Mark Zuckerberg vs. Elon Musk Cage Fight: Everything We Know

Many will recall the exciting brawl between UFC superstars Nick Diaz and B.J Penn in 2011, as with other top-draw bouts over the years.

However, in June 2023, millions on social media witnessed a potential martial arts main event between two famous non-sports executives, Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk.

The billionaire tech gurus decided to settle their bicker in the most unconventional manner distant from their profile, a UFC-style cage fight.

As the world expects a billionaire Super Brawl Sunday, here is everything you need to know about the Mark Zuckerberg vs. Elon Musk Cage Fight.

Mark Zuckerberg vs. Elon Musk Cage Fight: Facts

Elon Musk proposed a cage match on Twitter on June 21, 2023, in reply to a user’s tweet: “Better be careful @elonmusk, I heard he does the jiu-jitsu now.” ¹

However, the story gained vantage the following day when Zuckerberg responded via an Instagram story with a screenshot of Elon Musk’s tweet and the caption “send me location.”

Iska Saric, a Meta spokesperson, substantiated Zuckerberg’s seriousness to The Verge about the fight.²

Millions around the globe considered this event a tech billionaire brawl for the ages that needs to happen, inciting hype around the fight.

The fanfare would even tempt the most prominent MMA promotions in the world, UFC, president Dana White to join in on the excitement, posting an Instagram video of himself wearing a Zuckerberg vs. Mark shirt that was made available for sale on the promotion’s website.³

The president even went on to declare his willingness to organize an exhibition bout between the tech executives, with both men agreeing to a charity component included in the bout.

Training photos solidified the story after pictures of both contestants emerged online.

Elon Musk was captured training with mixed martial arts coach John Danaher, UFC legend Georges St. Pierre, and Brazilian Jiu-jitsu black belt Lex Fridman.⁴

Zuckerberg, however, had gym photos taken with UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski and Nigerian-New Zealander UFC ex-middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.⁵

Following photos surfacing online, Elon Musk suggested that the match would be live-streamed on X, Twitter’s rebranded platform.

Zuckerberg thought differently, seeking a more reliable platform for the live stream. Nevertheless, both men agreed that all proceeds would go to a charity for veterans.

With Zuckerberg ready for a match, Elon Musk’s readiness is clouded by doubt, saying he may need surgery before a fight and that the date is “still in flux”.⁶

Days after, Musk tweeted about the Italian government agreeing to an “epic location” for a fight that will pay respect to the country’s past and present.⁷

It would be managed by the billionaires’ foundations, not any professional fight promotions.

Sadly, Zuckerberg downplayed Musk’s plans, suggesting that he would prefer to work with a professional fight promotion and that he would announce the date if agreed.

On August 13, Zuckerberg posted on the Thread App about his desire to run along as Elon Musk would not confirm a date.

That day, the X CEO posted a screenshot of a supposed conversation that both men had, where his counterpart asked him to train on his own and announce when he was ready to compete.⁸

Zuckerberg added: “I don’t want to keep hyping something that will never happen.”

The Backstage

On the face of it, billionaire tech executives like Mark and Elon settle their differences in Forums, on yachts, or over a golf session.

As such, witnessing the duo suggest an octagon settler was unexpected.

Zuckerberg vs. Musk’s upset resulted from tensions following the launch of Instagram’s Threads platform.

Thread, launched July 5, was deemed a direct competitor to Elon Musk’s Twitter.

The newly launched platform amassed its first 100 million users on July 10, just five days following its launch.⁹

The revelry would be short-lived following Elon Musk’s mockery, calling his counterpart a “cuck” on Twitter, the same day Thread users reached 100 million.¹⁰

Elon proceeded with proposing a “dick-measuring contest” with Mark.¹¹

In other news, the account was assuming more gravity. It almost took a legal turn as a Twitter attorney threatened to sue Meta for plausible copyright infringement.

He accused the firm of misusing Twitter’s “trade secrets and other intellectual property” and hiring former Twitter employees to help develop Threads, tagging the new platform as a “copycat” app of Twitter.

Contradictory Opinions

There was a brewing evidence pointing to a potential match between two of the world’s highly-ranked tech executives.

Nevertheless, there were also reasons to believe it was “all bark and no action,” and so were the thoughts of Elon Musk’s biographer Walter Isaacson.¹²

The writer later claimed to have doubted the possibility of a fight in a Twitter Space session.

He believed the account was “a metaphor” for the competition between the executives’ rivaling social media packages.

Betting Odds

Many considered Mark Zuckerberg the favorite to emerge victorious, evidenced by betting companies’ odds.

DraftKings set -160 odds for Zuckerberg to win the match, inciting bettors to wager $160 on the Thread’s CEO to earn $100 in profit. However, a $100 bet on Elon Musk would yield a $140 profit at +140 odds.¹³

The company attributed the odds to Zuckerberg’s physique, younger age, and regular physical activity.

Key Notes

Typical UFC matches feature stats that tell about the fighters’ fight record, height, current weight, and other essential details.

A cage fight between the tech top personalities could feature the same if it ever comes to pass.

Mark Zuckerberg is 39 years, thirteen years younger than 52-year-old Elon Musk. At six feet and one inch tall, the X CEO towers over five feet, seven-inch Zuckerberg.

However, the 39-year-old edges his counterpart in physique as he regularly trains and competes.

He recently secured a gold and silver medal in his first Jiu-jitsu tournament.¹⁴

Sadly, Musk admitted to seldom working out on X.¹⁵

While none have experience with any professional fight promotions, Zuckerberg seems to be an avid fan of the world’s most successful MMA promotion, UFC.

The Meta CEO even attended a UFC fight card with his wife in October 2022.¹⁶

Mark Zuckerberg vs. Elon Musk: Fight of the Numbers

While the cage fight is still metaphorical, at least from what we have gathered, the tech gurus have dealt blows to each other over the years.

According to Forbes’ real-time billionaires list, the 39-year-old Meta CEO is the ninth-wealthiest person at the time of writing this article. ¹⁷

However, he climbed one step above this position the week Meta launched Thread. The social media site surged Meta’s stock by $1.2 billion that week, contributing to the billionaire’s wealth.

Elon Musk fought back, having a better week than Zuckerberg to reclaim his spot as the world’s wealthiest person that week and remaining atop until the time of writing this article.

Their main shareholdings, Tesla and Meta, are the second-and-third-highest-performing stocks in the S&P 500 in the first half of the year.

Tesla has upped 123%, while Meta has earned a 141% increase in stocks in 2023. Despite these competitive figures, both CEOs have tremendously excelled this year.

The Twitter vs. Threads comparison that resulted in the metaphoric cage fight is the least highlight of Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg’s careers.

While the following has nothing to do with the proposed bout, there are comparable highlights in their careers.

• 23-year-old Zuckerberg first became a billionaire in 2008, debuting at No. 321 on the Forbes list, with $1.5 billion to his name. Elon Musk debuted 634th as a 41-year-old on the list four years later, worth $2 billion.

• Elon Musk has led more companies, including SpaceX, Tesla, Neuralink, and Twitter (rebranded X). However, Mark Zuckerberg has focused his attention on Facebook, turned Meta.

• Musk holds more shares of the company that made him wealthy. He owns approximately 20% of Tesla shares, while Zuckerberg owns just under 15% of Meta’s shares.hat

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Wrap Up

We almost witnessed a “Here we go!” for a cage fight between two of the world’s most popular billionaires who have earned their wealth from the tech space.

However, complications in date fixing and readiness from one of the contestants seem to have ruined the anticipation of the Mark Zuckerberg vs. Elon Musk Cage Fight.

While it looked like it would have been a friendly exhibition if it ever happened, many questions are left unanswered. Who would win?

Would the winner emerge victorious via KO, submission, or the judges’ decision? Would the fight cause an upset?