Mark Zuckerberg’s wife might be sick of this whole MMA thing

It seems that Mark Zuckerberg’s MMA fandom has hit full on obsession stage. Sure the man once rented out the entire UFC Apex to get a private audience for a UFC fight card, but that seemed—at the time—like more of a brand tie-in announcement for the Metaverse and their partnership with UFC FightPass. Was Zuck really a big UFC dude? Yes, yes apparently he was.

In the time since that event, the Facebook CEO’s interest in combat sports has only become more apparent. He (now somewhat infamously) secretly entered a local BJJ competition, and got into a public spat with fellow billionaire and Twitter CEO Elon Musk—which resulted in both men teasing the idea of a full-on cage fight that will absolutely never ever happen. Although if it does, Zuckerberg certainly seems to have the early edge in preparation.

Mark Zuckerberg teases home Octagon

In a post to his social media (h/t TMZ) Zuckerberg shared a conversation with his wife over the new Octagon he apparently had installed at one of their several homes. Real, just a joke? Who can say, but the man does seem to really love MMA.

“I like Jiu Jitsu, I also really like MMA,” Zuckerberg explained in an interview back in June. “One of the things I think is very nice about these very high turnaround, conditioning sports is that you get feedback very quickly. It’s like, ‘Okay, I don’t counter something correctly, I get punched in the face.”

When someone’s got his kind of money and his kind of obsession, what’s to stop them from putting the ultimate training surface in their own back yard.

Meta creating UFC experience

Perhaps then it’s also no surprise that Meta has more plans for the UFC. The virtual reality platform has already promised immersive Fight Night experiences for users. Now they seem set on delivering a sort of VIP package in which users can not only watch bouts and chat with other users, but also compete in mini games. Here’s a video trailer for the new Meta ‘experience.’

“MMA fans can expect 4K resolution and 180-degree VR capture as they experience live immersive fights with cage-side seats for free in Xtadium,” a press release on the Meta Quest Blog reads. “Enjoy the action alone or with friends and switch camera angles throughout the fight to get the best view of every matchup. And after the fight ends, account holders can log in to UFC FIGHT PASS to access a library of UFC PPV cards plus the best original UFC FIGHT PASS content such as Fightlore, Year of the Fighter, and more.”

“We’ve seen all kinds of communities come together in Worlds, but when we first broadcast live UFC FIGHT PASS events last year, we were blown away by the engagement and passion of this audience,” they Meta Product Marketing Director, Meaghan Fitzgerald, was quoted as saying. “Since then, we’ve been working with UFC and MMA fans to build a virtual clubhouse for this community. We know that MMA fans don’t just like to watch thrilling fights—they also like to be a part of the action.”

“That’s why we’re introducing a new dedicated UFC world, with a recreation of the famous Octagon and new immersive streaming formats that make people feel like they’re closer to the action than ever. It’s not just about exciting fights—it’s about sharing the experience with other fans, discussing MMA techniques, and being a part of the UFC community.”

Zuckerberg gets his blue belt

Alongside the MMA stuff and the Metaverse news, Zuckberg’s BJJ journey took another twist as well. Back in July, the 39-year-old posted an update to his Instagram account, that he had just received his blue belt from noted Guerrilla Jiu JItsu instructor Dave Camarillo. A black belt under Ralph Gracie, Camarillo has worked with a number of high profile fighters and celebrities over the years, including a stint as a TUF coach for Team Koscheck in Season 12 of the Ultimate fighter.

“Congrats @davecamarillo on your 5th degree black belt,” Zuckerberg wrote. “You’re a great coach and I’ve learned so much about fighting and life from training with you. Also honored to be promoted to compete at blue belt for @guerrillajjsanjose team.”

For his part, Camarillo was extremely effusive in his praise for Zuckerberg’s work on the mats as well.

“He’s amazing,” Camarillo told ESPN recently. “He is an extremely hard worker, as everybody knows. But a lot of people have a business and they’re successful and they have that side of their life, and rarely do they dip into the physical side, especially with something like jiu-jitsu and MMA, and have the same amount of success or even go past Day 1 or Month 1. He’s not that kind of guy. I think he has a good balance between what he does with his business and what he does in the physical realm. And he excels. He’s one of the best students I’ve ever had.”

All things considered, Zuckerberg seems to be 100% invested in his MMA and BJJ fandoms. We’re still never going to see that Elon Musk fight though.

Zane Simon

Zane Simon is a senior editor, writer, and podcaster for Bloody Elbow. He has worked with the website since 2013, taking on a wide variety of roles. A lifelong combat sports fan, Zane has trained off & on in both boxing and Muay Thai. He currently hosts the long-running MMA Vivisection podcast, which he took over from Nate Wilcox & Dallas Winston in 2015, as well as the 6th Round podcast, started in 2014. Zane is also responsible for developing and maintaining the ‘List of current UFC fighters’ on Bloody Elbow, a resource he originally developed for Wikipedia in 2010.

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