Dana White: Aurora Cannabis Partnership Could Benefit All Of Humanity

Two months on from announcing their partnership, the UFC and Aurora Cannabis hosted a press conference on Wednesday, to discuss their new, exciting eight year partnership. The partnership intends to significantly advance clinical research on the relationship between hemp derived Cannabidiol (CBD) products and athletes’ overall health and recovery.

Aurora Cannavis was started in 2013 in Canada and is currently working in 24 countries. The research will be conducted at the UFC’s Performance Institute (PI) in Las Vegas and athletes can choose to participate in the studies if they wish.

Speaking at the press conference (as transcribed by UFC.com), UFC president Dana White said he believes that the partnership will not only benefit the UFC but all sports, and for all of humanity.

“This is a ground-breaking deal, not just for the UFC but for sports and humanity in general. When you think about this the amount of money that’s going to go into the testing and the research of this deal is going to affect our athletes, then it’s going to spill into the NFL, the NBA and soccer. And eventually into just regular people like us that workout every day or deal with chronic pain. I believe that this thing really is the future and when we see things like this we’ve always been first to dive in.”

Aurora CEO Terry Booth believes that the partnership will change the future of the CBD market.

“Our partnership with UFC is about committing to the science that will educate and advocate. We are going to work together to change the way people think, to change the industry and to launch the first hemp-derived CBD products that are backed by scientific research. The brand-building and product development are all part of our move into the US, and in collaboration with UFC and we intend to play a major role in that market.”

Duncan French, PHD, who is the UFC VP of Performance, and who will lead the research at the UFC PI, said that he’s excited to spearhead such a task.

“I think the thing about the Performance Institute is that we try to position ourselves as the leaders in health, well-being and performance. We’re very excited about pushing the boundary of our insights and innovating around the concept of maximising the health and well-being of all athletes.”

Dr. Dyck, who will be working hand-in-hand with Dr. French, said he believed that their work at the PI will help benefit the health of the UFC’s athletes.

“We will be able to provide the UFC with clear evidence that determines which products are the best products to provide to their athletes. At the end of the day we are looking to make evidence based research on CBD products and understand how to best help athlete recover and improve the overall health of UFC fighters.”

Jeff Novitzky, the VP of Athlete Health and Performance for the UFC, said that with around half of all UFC athletes either currently using CBD or having used CBD in the past, that partnering with Aurora is huge.

“It’s huge. In my world the number one priority is directing athletes toward safe things to take. Whether it be supplements, CBD products or food products, CBD is here to stay and jumping on this early teaming with a company like Aurora and being able to provide our athletes with safe and tested products is giant.”


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