Max Jolliffe

Max Jolliffe is an American ultrarunner from Costa Mesa, California. On his first attempt at the Badwater 135 in July 2026, he won in 20:53:41, the first finish under 21 hours in the race’s history. The organizer’s course-record table lists the time as the overall record, 39 minutes 20 seconds faster than Yoshihiko Ishikawa’s 21:33:01 from 2019. Official splits show a close race with women’s winner Carmen María Pérez: Jolliffe reached Lone Pine, at mile 122.8, one minute ahead of her and finished 11 minutes 51 seconds clear after the climb to Whitney Portal.

Before Badwater, his strongest results came on trails. He won the 2024 Moab 240 in 69:22:17, nearly four hours ahead of Haroldas Subertas, and the 2025 Angeles Crest 100 in 21:23:43, 46 minutes 52 seconds ahead of Peter Davidson. He also placed 19th at the 148-kilometer TDS at UTMB Mont-Blanc in 2024, won the Sean O’Brien 100K and Leona Divide 100 that year, and finished fourth overall at The Mammoth 200 in 2025.

In October 2026, Jolliffe placed third at the Kodiak 100M in Big Bear Lake, a UTMB World Series Major, in 18:15:45. His management agency describes him as a Costa Mesa native who grew up surfing and skating and began running while recovering from an ankle injury. The 2025 film King of Moab follows his Moab 240 bid and dates his start in the sport to 2017.