Elon Musk Ready to Battle Mark Zuckerberg Anytime, Anywhere
3 min readSamuel Corum/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Elon Musk Challenges Mark Zuckerberg to Fight: “Any Place, Any Time, Any Rules”.
In a surprising twist to the ongoing rivalry between tech titans Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg, the Twitter/X owner has publicly reiterated his willingness to face the Meta CEO in a physical confrontation. Elon Musk declared he is ready to fight Mark Zuckerberg “any time” and “under any rules,” reigniting the buzz around a potential showdown.
The saga began in the summer of 2023 when the idea of an MMA match between Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg gained traction. The two billionaires exchanged barbs on social media, captivating their followers. However, as the year progressed, the hype surrounding the proposed fight faded, with little mention of it until now.
BREAKING: Elon Musk of Tesla, $TSLA, has said he’d fight Meta, $META, CEO Mark Zuckerberg “any place, any time, any rules” pic.twitter.com/bnOvPrkxFb
— unusual_whales (@unusual_whales) July 24, 2024
On July 24, Elon Musk revived the conversation by responding to a fan’s query, affirming his eagerness to take on Zuckerberg. “I’ll fight Zuckerberg any place, any time, any rules,” Musk proclaimed during a press interaction in Washington. He was in the capital to attend Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to Congress.
Despite Musk’s provocations, Zuckerberg’s response was notably reserved. A Meta representative referred to a Threads post where Zuckerberg seemed to downplay Musk’s challenge. “Are we really doing this again?” he wrote, hinting at the repetitive nature of Musk’s claims.
This wasn’t the first instance Musk expressed a desire to fight Zuckerberg. During an October 2023 episode of the Joe Rogan podcast, Musk made a similar challenge, humorously suggesting a fight “in a house, on a mouse, with a louse.”
I’m up for a cage match if he is lol
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 21, 2023
The origins of their feud trace back to June 2023, when Musk threw down the gauntlet amid rumors that Meta was developing a rival to Twitter. Mark Zuckerberg responded with a confident “send the location” on Instagram, given his training in martial arts. Despite Musk’s acceptance of the challenge, the fight never materialized, leading to ongoing speculation and commentary from both sides.
Mark Zuckerberg, who has trained with UFC champions Alexander Volkanovski and Israel Adesanya, reiterated his readiness to fight Musk. In an August 11 Threads post, he stated, “I’ve been ready to fight since the day Elon challenged me. If he ever agrees on an actual date, you’ll hear it from me.” He also advised fans to be skeptical of Musk’s statements until an official agreement was made.
If only Zuckerberg were as tough (sigh). I’ve offered to fight him any place, any time, any rules, but all I hear is crickets. 🦗
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 15, 2024Advertisement
The rivalry isn’t entirely antagonistic, though. Musk recently praised Meta’s new AI model, Llama 3.1, acknowledging Zuckerberg’s achievement in open-sourcing the technology. This rare compliment came as both tech moguls continue to push the boundaries in AI development, aiming to compete with giants like OpenAI and Microsoft.
Despite their professional overlaps, the personal animosity between Musk and Zuckerberg keeps the public intrigued. The potential for a physical showdown remains uncertain, but Musk’s repeated challenges ensure that the possibility stays alive in the minds of fans.
As of now, Mark Zuckerberg has yet to respond to Musk’s latest challenge, leaving the future of their rivalry and the potential for a cage match hanging in the balance. The tech world watches with bated breath, eager to see if these billionaires will finally settle their differences in the ring.
It is impressive and Zuck does deserve credit for open-sourcing
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 23, 2024