Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk says his much talked about cage fight with Facebook owner Mark Zuckerberg will happen in “an epic location” after he discussed it with the Italian Prime Minister.
Musk recently rebranded the social media site Twitter as X - his latest move to transform the company since he bought it in October last year for 44 billion US dollars (£34.3 billion).
Writing on the site, he said the bout with Zuckerberg will raise money for veteran’s charities and be presented as a gladitorial clash, adding: “Livestream will be on this platform and Meta. Everything in camera frame will be ancient Rome, so nothing modern at all. I spoke to the PM of Italy and Minister of Culture. They have agreed on an epic location. “
The fight will be managed by my and Zuck’s foundations (not UFC).
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 11, 2023
Livestream will be on this platform and Meta. Everything in camera frame will be ancient Rome, so nothing modern at all.
I spoke to the PM of Italy and Minister of Culture. They have agreed on an epic location.
Musk also quoted the Latin phrase “Dulce est desipere in loco” which is a line from the Roman poet Horace and translates as “It is delightful to play the fool occasionally; it is nice to throw aside one’s dignity and relax at the proper time. “
He also said “Everything done will pay respect to the past and present of Italy” and suggested some Twitter users will receive bonus behind the scenes footage of the event.
Musk said an exact date for the fight has not been set yet as he requires minor surgery but it has been discussed since June when the billionaire pair first agreed to face each other in a cage fight.
But Zuckerberg played down suggestions the fight with is close to being arranged.
The Meta owner said on social media platform Threads that none of Mr Musk’s claimed plans had been agreed, and that he was “Not holding my breath”.
Responding to the claims, Mr Zuckerberg said on Threads: “I love this sport and 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. Until then, please assume anything he says has not been agreed on.
“Not holding my breath for Elon, but I’ll share details on my next fight when I’m ready.
“When I compete, I want to do it in a way that puts a spotlight on the elite athletes at the top of the game.
“You do that by working with professional orgs like the UFC or ONE to pull this off well and create a great card.”
The story began when Musk tweeted he was “up for a cage fight” with Meta boss Zuckerberg in an exchange that has since gone viral.
Mr Zuckerberg, who manages Facebook and Instagram as well as Twitter rival Threads, agreed to the challenge by taking a screenshot of Mr Musk’s tweet and replying “send me location”.
