Meet Maxwell Jacob Friedman (MFJ) — Controversial Wrestler Fighting His First AEW World Championship Match
And he already has quite a reputation among wrestling fans.
Youtube Maxwell Jacob Friedman — better known by wrestling fans as MJF — might only be 24 years old, but he's preparing to fight Jon Moxley in his first ever All Elite Wrestling World Championship Match on Saturday night in Jacksonville, Florida. During his career, he's already gained quite a reputation for who he is in and out of the ring, and he definitely has a pretty big personality.
So who is MJF AKA Maxwell Jacob Friedman — and why is he a wrestler to watch?
MJF has been wrestling for five years under a few different names.
MJF's professional wrestling career began in 2015, and he hasn't just wrestled with the AEW. Before this part of his career, MJF wrestled with Combat Zone Wrestling and Major League Wrestling, and he has even become an MLW World Middleweight Champion. In January 2020, MJF began wrestling for AEW, and he's come a long way with the organization since then.
MJF is known for wearing a Burberry scarf.
MJF frequently appears for his matches wearing his trademark Burberry scarf, and there's a reason he's made it his signature accessory. MJF's favorite WWF wrestler is "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, and MJF wears his scarf as a tribute to Piper's kilt. When it comes to his fights (and when he's out there promoting his wrestling career), he's almost never seen without it.
MJF's polarizing personality has made him a few enemies.
In a recent interview, MJF acknowledged the fact that many wrestling fans don't like him — mostly thanks to his tagline, "I'm better than you and you know it" — but that doesn't seem to bother him.
“At AEW, a fan tried to dress up like a pilot and was trying to convince our security that they were supposed to fly me out on a private jet after the show,” he said. “I can assure you that that guy was most certainly not my pilot, so there was once a fan who literally tried to kidnap me. I’ve seen it all. When I was in Mexico, people threw a car battery at me and urine at me. That’s because I don’t tiptoe around. I don’t hide how I feel.”
MJF has had a passion for wrestling since childhood.
Earlier this year, MJF took to Instagram to share a photo of himself playing with wrestling action figures as a child, along with a caption where he joked about asking his mom to make one of the action figures him instead. It seems like his love of wrestling has been lifelong, so it's no wonder he has come such a long way in such a short period of time.
Who is MJF dating?
As far as his Instagram goes — which mainly focuses on his wrestling career — MJF seems to be single. Of course, being that he does keep his social media focused mostly on the sport, it wouldn't be surprising to find out if there was more going on behind the scenes of his personal life but as of now, it doesn't seem like he's seeing anyone.
MJF's parents describe him as "a jerk."
In an interview from earlier this year, Max's parents told a story about how a time when he refused to wear a shirt at the dinner table, so when he was told to put clothes on, he came back wearing nothing but a single sock. His father, Steven, admitted that's just the kind of personality his son has always had — and they love him for it.
"He’s a jerk, but he’s funny," Steven said. "He garners attention. And I spit my food out all over the table.”
Nicole Pomarico is an entertainment and lifestyle writer whose work has appeared in Cosmo, Us Weekly, Refinery29, and more.