Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has earned a blue belt in jiu-jitsu. Zuckerberg posted photos of his achievement on his Instagram account, including his new belt and a certificate presented to him by his trainer. Praising his coach, the 39-year-old tech giant said, “You’re a great coach and I’ve learned so much about fighting and life from training with you.”
Zuckerberg’s jiu-jitsu training may benefit him if he and his Twitter counterpart Elon Musk follow through on their agreement to fight each other in a cage match. Musk posted a tweet on his platform saying he was “up for a cage fight,” Zuckerberg responded by saying, “Send me the location.”
However, it is unclear if the challenge is a serious one, as Musk followed up with tweets saying the only exercise he gets is lifting his children, and he has a unique fighting move he calls “the Walrus.” He describes it as lying motionless on top of his opponent.
President of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Dana White, however, later said the two parties are “dead serious” about fighting. “I was talking to both Elon and Mark last night, both guys are absolutely dead serious about this. This would be the biggest fight ever in the history of the world,” White said. He added that such an event could raise millions of dollars for charity.
Musk may wish to continue to treat the matter light-heartedly however because Zuckerberg has a history of winning fights. In his very first jiu-jitsu tournament earlier this year, the billionaire won gold and silver medals in front of a surprised audience.
Jiu-jitsu is a Japanese close-combat martial art that dates back, in some form, as far as the 8th century. The modern term was introduced in the 17th century and the art is continually evolving. Distinct from many martial arts, jiu-jitsu focuses on throwing and pinning techniques and is founded on a philosophy of using an opponent’s strength as a weapon against them.
