Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has taken a break from VR to show off his developing grappling skills. The controversial tech entrepreneur took home medals in gi and nogi respectively at a BJJ tournament this week, posting several in-match pictures to his social media accounts. The controversial tech giant has been closely tied to combat sports over the last few years, sitting ringside at UFC events and discussing the topic with Joe Rogan on his podcast.
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The Tournament
According to a story from Jitsmag, Mark Zuckerberg competed in the white belt master’s two division of the currently unnamed tournament. Zuckerberg looked to display head control with a snap down in a nogi match and secured a mounted kimura in a gi match. Flanked by coach Dave Camarillo of Guerilla Jiu-Jitsu, the 38-year old secured a gold and silver medal for his performances.
Mark Zuckerberg’s BJJ awakening
Zuckerberg first revealed his love of MMA in an appearance on the Joe Rogan Experience last year. Finding grappling during the COVID-19 pandemic, he credited his surfing friends with first exposing him to the gentle art.
“There’s something so primal about it, I don’t know… Since then I’ve just introduced a bunch of my friends to it—we train together, and we like, wrestle together, and there’s a certain intensity to it that I like,” Zuckerberg told Rogan. He’s since promoted different fighters like Mackenzie Dern and Khai Wu on his social pages, and featured former UFC champ Alexander Volkanovski in an ad for Meta.
Zuckerberg’s love of grappling is becoming more common in the celebrity space. Jonah Hill and Henry Cavil have made numerous posts about their love of the sport, while others like Tom Hardy have found success in tournaments themselves. Singer Demi Lovato made waves with her promotion to purple belt earlier this year.
Who should Zuckerberg fight next?
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