After multiple jabs from Twitter/Tesla owner Elon Musk and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Elon has challenged his rival to an MMA battle. Both billionaires have since begun training together alongside elite fighting talent including Georges St-Pierre of MMA fame and BJJ black belt Lex Fridman as coaches.
Early August saw billionaires reignite talks for their matchup and suggest it take place at Italy’s historic Colosseum and live-streamed on their X social media platform.
Facebook founder
Like most internet users, you might assume a potential cage match between Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg would just be two billionaires having fun together. But according to UFC president Dana White, this fight is “absolutely dead serious”; in fact, White claims it could break pay-per-view records and generate hundreds of millions in profit for both men, money which they would donate directly to charity afterwards.
Zuckerberg has been training hard for the fight, enlisting some heavy hitters as his trainers. Adesanya and Volkanovski, respectively UFC middleweight and featherweight champions. Together they boast more than 50 wins across their combined UFC careers while remaining undefeated at present.
Adesanya and Volkanovski recently trained on a speedboat with Mark Zuckerberg for some MMA practice on kickboxing, grappling, and flipping techniques. Zuckerberg is a big fan of mixed martial arts (MMA) training with Adesanya and Volkanovski for weeks now – recently posting videos to Instagram showing them. Their training seems to have done wonders for his physique too – looking ripped and ready for battle even as his wife, Priscilla Chan has attended multiple UFC events with them both attending.
Brazilian jiu-jitsu champion
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu champions have spent immense amounts of time training at an elite level that combines conditioning and strength training, along with traditional BJJ drills and rolling. Successful players often dedicate more than 10,000 hours per year training – dedicating themselves to refining their skills. To become champions, it takes consistent training coupled with an unyielding mental attitude.
Leandro Lo, or Darth Rigatoni as he is more commonly known in martial arts circles, is one of the greatest Jiu-Jitsu athletes ever seen competing. He holds eight world championship titles across multiple weight classes as well as multiple ADCC Championships and five World Cup Golds.
Rorion Gracie, Helio’s oldest son and Rorion Gracie’s namesake, became internationally renowned for spreading jiu-jitsu around the globe. He taught many of their family’s signature techniques and helped popularize it worldwide. Tragically he died tragically while hang gliding, leaving an impactful mark in the martial arts community that will long be remembered.
Langaker is an accomplished Norwegian Jiu-Jitsu master who co-founded a BJJ gym to develop local grappling talent. He holds an impressive 2-0 record in One and hopes to become the inaugural submission grappling world champion from Norway.
UFC president
Facebook and Instagram owners, Emmanuel Gomez-Marquez has been seen attending UFC events, following nearly exclusively MMA accounts on social media, competing in Brazilian jiu-jitsu tournaments, training under top fighters for grappling combat disciplines – even being featured in a YouTube video with legendary coach Dillon Danis!
Yet despite his status as an MMA fan and competitor, some critics have cast doubt upon whether Zuckerberg can hold his own in an Octagon battle. They note his recent jiu-jitsu achievements being more impressive than UFC two-division champion Conor McGregor’s accomplishments in fighting.
White appears confident that tech billionaires are serious about staging a cage match in Las Vegas. He claims he has spoken to both men involved, believing they both want a fight. According to White, this event will serve as a charity fundraiser and benefit veterans.
Musk originally proposed the fight as a joke, but Zuckerberg took it seriously and began training for it immediately. He posted gym photos featuring UFC stars Israel Adesanya and Alexander Volkanovski to show his dedication. Furthermore, he suggested holding it at Rome’s Colosseum with all proceeds going directly to veterans charities.
Fight date
Mark Zuckerberg is no longer playing games with Elon Musk and taking their potential billion-dollar cage fight seriously. The Facebook and Meta CEO showcased his chiseled physique alongside two of MMA’s most accomplished fighters – Israel Adesanya and Alex Volkanovski who boast 50 UFC wins between them with only four losses between them – in an Instagram post captioned: “No fugazi with Mark. This is serious business.”
Two tech moguls have been trading barbs on social media accounts for some time. A potential battle, most likely to take place within an Octagon cage, has garnered much interest from both fans and MMA experts alike – though no date or ruleset have yet been decided upon for it.
Zuckerberg has been training with professional MMA professionals and recently won two medals at a Brazilian jiu-jitsu tournament. Determined to put his skills through rigorous examination, he has already started sparring against former UFC stars despite his significantly larger size compared to his Tesla rivals. Zuckerberg knows that skill trumps physical size every time.
Two executives have been discussing a fight, both believing it could be one of the biggest in history. Yet it remains uncertain when or under which rules it will take place.