The tech world was buzzing with excitement when Elon Musk, the owner of X (formerly Twitter), Tesla, and SpaceX, challenged Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta (formerly Facebook), to a cage match in June. The two billionaires have been rivals for years, and many fans were eager to see them settle their differences in a mixed martial arts fight.
Musk tweeted that he was “up for a cage fight” with Zuckerberg, who quickly accepted the challenge and replied “send me location”. Musk said the fight would be live-streamed on X and Meta, and that the money raised from the event would go to charity. He also hinted that the fight would take place in an “epic location” in Italy, and that he had spoken to the Italian prime minister about it.
The excuses
However, as the weeks passed by, it became clear that Musk was not serious about the cage match, and that he was making excuses to avoid facing Zuckerberg. The Meta boss said he had offered Musk a real date for the fight, and that Dana White, the UFC president, had agreed to make it a legitimate competition. But Musk would not confirm a date, then said he needed surgery for a shoulder problem, and then asked to do a practice round in Zuckerberg’s backyard octagon.
Zuckerberg, who trains in jiu jitsu and has competed in tournaments, said he was ready to face Musk anytime, anywhere. He said he was frustrated by Musk’s lack of commitment and seriousness, and that he wanted to compete with people who take the sport seriously.
The end
On Sunday, Zuckerberg announced on his social media platform Threads that he was moving on from the cage match idea, and that he believed Musk was not serious about it. He said he had wasted enough time hyping something that would never happen, and that he advised Musk to either commit to the fight or forget about it. He said if Musk ever got serious about a real date and official event, he knew how to reach him. Otherwise, he said it was time to move on.
Musk responded by calling Zuckerberg a “chicken” on X, but did not offer any concrete details about the fight. He also posted a picture of himself lifting weights at work, claiming he did not have time to work out.
It seems that the tech world will have to wait for another opportunity to see the two titans clash in the cage. For now, they will have to settle for their rivalry in the digital realm.
