<div style="text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 1rem;">Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg are ready to fight, offline.</span><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In a now-viral back-and-forth seen on Twitter and Instagram this week, the two tech billionaires seemingly agreed to a "cage match" face off.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It all started when Musk, who owns Twitter, responded to a tweet about Meta reportedly preparing to release a new Twitter rival called "Threads." He took a dig about the world becoming "exclusively under Zuck's thumb with no other options" — but then one Twitter user jokingly warned Musk of Zuckerberg's jiu jitsu training.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"I'm up for a cage match if he is lol," Musk wrote late Tuesday.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook and Instagram parent company Meta Platforms, soon responded — and appeared to agree to Musk's proposal.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"Send me location," Zuckerberg wrote on a Wednesday night Instagram story, which showed a screenshot of Musk's tweet alongside another user's response urging the Twitter owner to "start training."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Zuckerberg is actually trained in mixed martial arts. The Facebook founder posted about completing his first jiu jitsu tournament last month.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In response to Zuckerberg's location request on Wednesday, Musk proposed the Vegas Octagon. He then joked about his fighting skills and workout routine, suggesting that the fight may not be serious.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"I have this great move that I call 'The Walrus', where I just lie on top of my opponent &amp; do nothing," Musk wrote.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Whether or not Musk and Zuckerberg actually make it to the ring has yet to be seen — especially as Musk often tweets about action prematurely or without following through. But, even if their cage match agreement is all a joke, the banter gained attention. An endless chain of memes and posts to "choose your fighter" have sprung up in response.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"The story speaks for itself," a Meta spokesperson said in a statement to The Associated Press. Zuckerberg has not commented further.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Despite the uncertainity of a cage match actually happening, bids are already being placed for a projected winner. DraftKings' projected odds stood at 140+ for Musk and -160 for Zuckerberg on Thursday.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The Associated Press also reached out to the Ultimate Fighting Championship, which owns the Octagon, and Twitter for statements. Twitter's press email responded with a poop emoji, its standard automated response to reporters. AP/UNB</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd24/kh</div>