Bob Arum, the renowned boxing promoter, is a legend within fighting circles. Though he’ll soon turn 86, he hasn’t lost any of his invective attitude, willing to dispense any opinion no matter whatever controversy it may stir up.
Recently that included Arum’s thoughts on cannabis. In reflecting upon his career, Arum told CBS Sports that marijuana may have helped with maintaining his longevity.
“The question is, if they gave me a VADA test, would I pass it?” Arum said during an appearance on the “In This Corner” podcast. “I don’t take performance-enhancing drugs, I mean, but I come from Nevada. So it’s legal now and I have a puff every now and then. I plead guilty to that. Other than that, I keep my body in pretty good shape.”
To his credit, Arum hasn’t come out as a cannabis supporter in recent years when it’s become chic for celebrities to do so. He infamously appeared in the 1975 film The Marijuana Affair. He also advocated to remove cannabis from the banned substances list in 2012 when Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. received a nine-month suspension after testing positive for weed.
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At that time, he told Fight Hub TV that it wasn’t a performance-enhancing drug, so it shouldn’t adversely affect a fighter’s career.
“I’m not going to condemn a kid for smoking a joint a month before a fight to go to sleep,” Arum said. “What the f*** has happened? I mean, let’s be real about it. Let’s not be hypocrite about it.”
In talking with CBS Sports, Arum’s stance hasn’t changed in the slightest. He still believes in its decriminalization and that marijuana use will continue to be legalized around the country.
“I started [using marijuana] in 1966,” Arum said. “Kids, young kids shouldn’t do it because your brain is being formulated. But in 1966, I was in my 30s and I started. I don’t do it at work, I do it for recreation. It’s good for you, it’s good for you. Cannabis is good for you!
“It’s these damn people during the Nixon administration that really put cannabis into the position where it was a drug like heroin and cocaine and that was wrong. Now I think people in states like Nevada, Colorado, Oregon, Washington and soon California, people will be able to go into places and buy it legally like I do in Nevada.”
