Elon Musk is undeterred by Mark Zuckerberg’s jiu-jitsu skills. The Tesla pioneer seems hell-bent on getting in the ring against the Facebook founder. But before that he needs “a lot more training”.
Twitter meets a determined opponent. The Facebook group Meta will enter the ring tomorrow, Thursday, with an app that is supposed to teach Twitter to fear. Threads is the name of the challenger. This means that two tech billionaires are also meeting: Elon Musk is in charge of Twitter, and Mark Zuckerberg is in charge of Meta. And now it looks as if the alpha males could also carry out their long-held rivalry in a so-called cage fight.
In this full-contact sport in a cage-like octagon, opponents who rely on different fighting techniques meet against each other. That Musk and Zuckerberg actually beat each other mercilessly is completely out of the question. But it is quite likely that the two will duel in an exhibition match.
The bizarre story began a few weeks ago when Musk jokingly challenged the Facebook founder to such a fight. He was responding to rumors that Meta might soon be launching a Twitter competitor. Musk tweeted that launching such a platform would leave the planet “exclusively under Zuck’s thumb, with no other options.” One Twitter user then quipped about Zuckerberg’s martial arts skills: “Be careful. I heard he’s doing jiu-jitsu now.” Musk’s response: “I’m ready for a cage fight if he is.”
Zuckerberg’s reaction was a bit long in coming. As the “New York Times” reports, he first contacted Dana White, head of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, which organizes such events. Zuckerberg then asked White if Musk was serious about a fight. He then called Musk, got a confirmation (“I’m damn serious”) and passed it on to Zuckerberg.
“both want it”
Zuckerberg then posted a screenshot of Musk’s tweet on Instagram with the words: “Tell me the location” – a reference to a legendary cage fighter. Since then, according to White, he has spoken to the tech billionaires and their assistants several times to organize the showdown. “They both want to do it,” the NYT quotes him as saying. It is not yet certain whether there will actually be a duel in the octagon. But the event is gradually taking shape, according to the newspaper. An exhibition fight is planned to raise money for charity.
According to the newspaper, Zuckerberg’s friends and advisors support the idea. A person close to Musk told the NYT that he hates sports and doesn’t necessarily have the discipline to train regularly. But with Musk “nobody can rule anything out”.
And what are the chances of winning? Musk, 52, first wrote that he mastered a “great move” he calls “The Walrus, where I just lay down on top of my opponent and do nothing.” But now he also relies on professional support. Canadian wrestler and cage fighter Georges St-Pierre tweeted that he had a “great training session” with Musk, podcaster Lex Fridman and martial artist John Danaher.
“Really funny! The obvious conclusion is I need *a lot* more exercise,” Musk tweeted. In addition to training with St-Pierre and Danaher, Musk also did a separate “impromptu training session” with Fridman, the podcaster previously wrote. He posted photos of Musk laying on a mat so-called takedowns.
Meanwhile, 39-year-old Zuckerberg relies on jiu-jitsu. He discovered martial arts during the Corona pandemic and has been training mixed martial arts for a long time. At the beginning of May he competed in a Jiu-Jitsu competition for the first time and took home two medals.
Las Vegas instead of Colosseum
But according to a Yougov poll of Americans, Musk is ahead. According to this, 28 percent of those surveyed trust him to win. Only 16 percent rely on Zuckerberg. 17 percent see the chances of winning as equally distributed, while 39 percent do not want to commit themselves.
Should the duel take place, then probably in Las Vegas. However, Musk had also brought the Colosseum in Rome into play. But the Italian Ministry of Culture reacted cautiously. “If Zuckerberg and Musk were going to perform in the Coliseum, she would have to face a nonviolent challenge. Maybe some kind of certamen, a duel in Latin verse.” They would also have to make a “reasonable economic contribution” to protecting Italy’s historical heritage.
One major obstacle remains: Musk’s mother refuses a fight. “Don’t promote this match!” she quoted a tweet from podcaster Fridman, adding two angry emojis. She later tweeted that she “cancelled the fight” but did not inform her son or his opponent. “But I will continue to emphasize that the fight is cancelled. Just in case.” Her son’s reaction: “MUUUUUUTTTER! WHAT ARE YOU SAYING!”