Fights

Italians would riot in the streets if Rome's Colosseum staged a UFC fight between Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg ... that's the prediction from a famed archaeologist over in Italy.

Darius Arya, a historian whose been on tons of TV programs about Ancient Rome, joined us on "TMZ Live" Friday from Italy's capital and we asked him about the Italian government contacting Zuckerberg about hosting his fight with Elon.

For Darius, the prospect of the billionaires doing battle at the same site as the ancient gladiators of old sounds super enticing ... telling us the Colosseum would come out on top of a list of potential venues, mainly because of its international fame as the ultimate arena of the ancient world.

Darius says there are inherent issues with staging a fight of this magnitude at the Colosseum, because it's a heritage site and tourist attraction ... and while he's confident it would never come to fruition, he's glad folks are talking about the venue and getting excited about history.

Logistics aside, Darius firmly believes Italians would take to the streets in protest if the nearly 2,000-year-old venue gets the green light to host the fight ... so that's another hurdle for Dana White.

There's been concerts and other events on the Colosseum grounds over the years, mostly outside the arena walls ... and we've been told Elon and Mark would love to fight there ... but it sounds like Las Vegas might be a more likely fight destination.

As we reported, the Ministry of Culture reached out to Mark Zuckerberg about the prospect of staging a Musk vs. Zuck fight at the Colosseum, and Zuck passed it on to UFC's Dana White, whose people were in touch with the Ministry. A Zoom call was set for next week.

This will blow your mind -- an official from the government of Italy contacted Mark Zuckerberg about staging a UFC fight against Elon Musk at the most legendary battleground in the world ... Rome's Colosseum ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Sources with direct knowledge tell us ... the Minister of Culture reached out to Zuckerberg a few days ago about staging what could be the biggest fight in the history of the world in the most fabled fight theater in history.

Our sources say both Elon and Mark would love for the fight to go down at the Colosseum.

We're told Zuckerberg's people passed on the message to UFC Prez Dana White, whose people contacted the Minister.

As for the venue itself -- one of the 7 Wonders of the World -- there have not been large events held inside the nearly 2,000-year-old amphitheater in hundreds of years, and only a few hundred spectators can be seated in temporary seating within the theater.

Sir Paul McCartney performed inside the Colosseum in 2003 for an exclusive charity show before 400 people who paid up to $1,500 -- but other than that, all other concerts have been held just outside the structure.

It's unclear where a Musk vs. Zuck fight would go down -- inside or outside.

Multiple sources with direct knowledge tell us if you're gonna bet on whether this fight goes down ... wager that it's happening. We're told both Musk and Zuck are "all in," and have been negotiating with Dana about the details of a fight daily ... multiple times each day for more than a week.

The biggest obstacle is height and weight disparity, although both men have no issue with it. The question ... if the fight were to go down in Vegas -- which was the goal until the Colosseum offer surfaced -- the Nevada Athletic Commission would have to sign off. Given that Zuck is 5'7" and weighs 145, and Elon towers over him at 6'2" and weighs 230, it's a little problematic. Nevertheless, this would be an exhibition fight, so the rules might bend.

Now that Italy is interested, it opens up so many more possibilities.

Originally Published -- 6/29 9:39 PM PT

Roy Jones Jr. is one of the best boxers ever, but the legendary fighter is stepping back in the ring with an opponent like never before, massive bodybuilder and social media star NDO Champ!

54-year-old RJJ and 39-year-old NDO Champ -- who is 250 lbs. of solid muscle -- are fighting Friday night in the Metaverse (more on that later).

NDO Champ, government name Robert Wilmote, is an IFBB Pro bodybuilder who has over one million followers on Instagram ... and has gone viral a bunch of times. There's a good chance you've seen NDO's videos online.

Much different than Roy's typical opponents ... which he concedes.

"It's much different than I'm used to. It's kind of like Godzilla versus King Kong. You know, King Kong being the gorilla, that's what he kind of reminds me of with all the muscles and he's such a big dark figure," Jones Jr. said.

But, RJJ has a strategy to deal with his powerful foe ... "be smart enough not to run into the foolishness." The "foolishness" being a big power punch.

As for how he sees the fight going, Jones Jr. says he'll win ... it's just a matter of whether it's by knockout or not.

"Depends how good of a punch he can take. He can't take good punch then he goes to sleep. All depends on what happens. I don't know, I've never been in the ring with him. I've never seen him box. There's no film on him. That's what makes it so different."

Roy continued ... "You don't know what he's bringing. You don't know if he's gonna be a Mike Tyson puncher or a guy with a lot of muscle that can't punch at all."

Champ, as you may expect, sees things playing out a bit differently.

"Listen, we don't train to lose. We don't train to come in there and play. If that's the case, I'll go back doin' something else, you feel me. No disrespect, I salute the OG, but it's wartime."

NDO continued ... "I'm not coming in there to congratulate you on all our successes, nah, you shouldn't have gotten in this ring with this man. You shouldn't have gotten in the ring with me. I'm a born stone killer!"

Elon Musk is already hitting the training mats in anticipation of his huge fight with Mark Zuckerberg ... throwing and slamming a famous black belt who recently trained with Elon's fellow billionaire.

Popular podcaster Lex Fridman says he had an impromptu training session with Elon on Monday, sharing a photo of Elon slamming him to the ground.

Lex, a black belt in jiu-jitsu, says he came away super impressed with Elon's fighting prowess.

"I'm extremely impressed with his strength, power, and skill, on the feet and on the ground," Lex said. "It was epic. It's really inspiring to see Elon and Mark doing martial arts, but I think the world is served far better if they train martial arts but not fight in the cage."

Don't get it twisted, Lex wants to see Elon and Mark do battle ... just like everyone else.

Lex adds ... "That said, as Elon says, the most entertaining outcome is the most likely... I'm there for them, no matter what."

It's interesting to see Elon and Lex training ... Lex recently had Mark on his podcast, and they trained some jiu-jitsu.

In addition to Lex, Elon's accepted an offer to train with UFC legend Georges St-Pierre ... while Jon Jones recently offered Mark his services.

As TMZ Sports first reported, Dana White told us both sides are for real about getting in the Octagon together ... and now Elon's showing just how serious he is.

Chael Sonnen was talking out the side of his neck when he claimed Mark Zuckerberg personally called him to reveal the Elon Musk fight would go down at UFC 300 ... so says a rep for the Meta CEO, who tells TMZ Sports no such phone conversation ever took place.

The former UFC star made the wild declaration on "The MMA Hour" earlier Monday ... saying Zuck dialed him up to share a major update on his proposed fight with the Twitter honcho during his appearance on the show.

"Zuckerberg contacts me because he saw your tweet that I'm coming on," Sonnen said. "Zuckerberg has told me that he has agreed to fight Elon Musk at UFC 300 and it was a very big deal."

Sonnen swore up and down that he was 100% serious ... adding, "That just happened. [My producer] Ethan is my witness, my son, Thero, my dog, Duke. This is a shoot."

While a Zuck vs. Musk fight could very well happen at UFC 300 next year for all we know, a spokesperson for the Facebook co-founder was quick to shut down any talks of a phone chat with the former contender -- saying, "I have confirmed with Mark that he did not call Chael Sonnen."

Things have been picking up steam after the two billionaires traded public jabs all last week ... and UFC honcho Dana White told us both sides are dead serious about fighting.

In fact, Dana thinks it could be the most successful fight in history ... and has the potential to rake in three times the amount of Pay-Per-View buys than Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor.

Jake Paul isn't worried one bit about having to go 10 rounds with Nate Diaz in August ... and he made that crystal clear by smoking a heater during a recent training session!!

The Problem Child shared the funny footage to his Instagram page on Monday ... showing him hitting the bag and ripping a cigarette while training in Puerto Rico.

"Getting my lungs ready for 10 rounds," Paul said. "August 5th. #PaulDiaz"

The two sides recently agreed to make the fight longer than the initial eight-round agreement ... which will make it the longest bout in both Paul and Diaz's careers.

Now, it's likely the 6-1 boxer pulled a Bill Clinton and didn't inhale anything ... but the message was still pretty obvious -- he's ready to go all 10 rounds against the former UFC star.

One thing's for sure, though -- Jake's opponent is no stranger to smoking, and he's very open about his love for cannabis ... so it could very well be a shot at Diaz.

Lil Uzi Vert and his City Girls girlfriend JT got into a heated argument during the BET Awards ... with many fans believing Ice Spice is to blame for the fight.

Video circulated of JT from the show Sunday night whacking Uzi Vert with her phone multiple times, accusing him of being a "groupie."

Fans speculated she was pissed about Uzi's performance during the BET Awards where he shouted out Ice Spice, rapping, "I got a nice wife/Wig came off twice/She got a little afro, she looks like Ice Spice."

Sources inside JT's camp tell TMZ Hip Hop her blowup with Uzi had nothing to do with Ice  ... she had become frustrated when she lost her seat after the audience shuffled around. We're told JT loves Ice and there's not even a shred of beef between them whatsoever.

A fan recount of the altercation appears to confirm the musical chair's confusion. Ice can also be seen explaining her side of the situation.

Uzi and JT left the building together without another scene ... seemingly confirming they're good.

Fivio Foreign was involved in a crazy confrontation Saturday, claiming someone in the club roofied him ... TMZ has learned.

The rapper was performing at the Paris nightclub, L'Arc, for Paris Fashion Week. The rapper's reps were not specific as to the nature of the altercation, but it was serious enough that cops had a talk with him.

Fivio's reps tell us while police did speak with their client, he was not arrested or detained. However, it looks like what did go down between Fivio and the other party may have spilled into the streets.

PETA didn't find Drew Rosenhaus' wrestling match with a shark this week impressive, amusing or entertaining ... telling TMZ Sports it wishes the NFL super agent would have just left the creature alone.

The animal rights org sounded off on the 56-year-old just days after he was seen on video yanking a dusky shark by its tail in the middle of the ocean near Miami ... straight-up calling the guy a "wannabe macho man."

"Spending so much time around top athletes must have Drew Rosenhaus feeling like he has something to prove," PETA said in a statement.

"Aquatic animals already suffer at the hands of anglers who impale them, yank them out of the water, and gut them or leave them to suffocate, so they don't need some wannabe macho man yanking on their tails for a few Twitter 'likes.'"

Rosenhaus, though, hasn't appeared to be remorseful for his actions ... in fact, just a couple hours after he posted the first video of him with the sea beast, he threw up another one showing him putting his hands on the animal again.

He also seemed to gloat about it all in one of the vid's captions ... writing, "Went fishing with [Tyreek Hill] ⁩today and decided to get up close to this Dusky Shark."

Cops are searching for a dangerous assailant who knocked the crap out of a woman in an NYC subway station ... and the unprovoked attack was all caught on video.

Check out the SCARY footage ... it starts rather calmly with the woman peering down at her cell phone as she's walking along the platform at Clinton-Washington Avenues Station in Brooklyn last Sunday.

The suspect then appears, heading toward her in the opposite direction ... as the two pass each other on the platform, the guy hauls off and socks the woman in the face, knocking her down.

Dazed and confused, the woman covers her injured face with her hands as a good Samaritan rushes to her aid from a subway idling in the station.

The woman later posted video of the assault to TikTok, showing her black eye and blaming herself for not paying attention by staring at her phone.

Meanwhile, the perpetrator dashed out of the station and is currently being sought by NYPD detectives.

Mark Zuckerberg may have Jon Jones in his corner, but Elon Musk's potential coach isn't too shabby himself ... the legendary Dominick Cruz, the G.O.A.T. bantamweight, tells us he's down to get the Twitter owner ready to fight!

38-year-old Cruz joined Babcock on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weekdays on FS1) ... where Dom offered his services.

"I would coach and train Elon Musk in a heartbeat. I would start with him immediately. I'm a fan of that guy and the things that he's doing for the world and the things that he stands for," Dom told us.

"He's a special guy in the world right now and so I would love to be in his corner to watch him execute martial arts which brings us all together."

Musk could do a lot worse than 24-4 Cruz ... who has beaten the likes of greats such as Urijah Faber, T.J. Dillashaw and Demetrious Johnson.

Remember, Jones offered his services to Zuck, writing ... "You already know I am Team Zuck ... Let me know if you need a training partner!"

As for the naysayers who say Musk vs. Zuckerberg is a bad idea and disrespectful to martial arts, Cruz (and many others) believes the opposite.

"If you're gonna say this is gonna be the highest level of sport and we're gonna call it that, that might be disrespectful, but nobody's saying that. This is just fun. This is just making fun, and letting people get their aggressions out and their differences in a healthy way."

Of course, we broke the story on Thursday ... UFC president Dana White spoke to both billionaires, who he told us are "absolutely dead serious" about fighting each other in an Octagon.

The UFC honcho said he believes it'd be the biggest fight, by far, in combat sports history.

We reported on Friday ... the biggest holdup at this point is the roughly 50 lbs. size advantage that Musk enjoys.

Assuming the kinks can be ironed out, some of the most dangerous men in the world are ready, willing, and able to whip the rich guys into shape.

Boxer Albert Ochoa will be channeling his inner Michael Jackson when he steps into the ring this weekend ... 'cause he just copped some insane custom "Thriller" shoes to pay homage to the King of Pop!!

Ochoa -- who famously took Kylie Jenner to prom -- is set to fight TikTok star Xavier Long at Academy LA in Hollywood on Saturday ... and TMZ Sports has learned he plans to show out with his moves AND his shoes.

We're told the 23-year-old wanted personalized gear for the fifth fight of his career ... so he reached out to his close friend, artist Aztek Kustoms, with the idea of making kicks similar to the loafers on Jackson's feet in the iconic "Thriller" music video.

Aztek Kustoms -- who also made Rolly Romero's Frank Ocean boxing shoes -- says the kicks feature over 4,000 pearl-white rhinestones and black glitter paint ... and Ochoa is thrilled with the finished product.

Ochoa tells us "Thriller," which is his all-time favorite song, will be playing for his walkout to the ring.

"He's an icon, he's a legend," Ochoa told us. "For me to wear these shoes and to come out with that outfit and his music ... it's dope."

Boxing is something Ochoa is taking very seriously ... in fact, he says he's training with former boxing champ Joel Casamayor and former Olympian boxer Vicente Escobedo.

"It's a great team -- having a world champion and an Olympian and two people that were successful in their sport at the start of my career is a blessing," Ochoa said. "It's a dream come true."

Of course, many still doubt the reality star, like they did YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul, but the 3-1 super welterweight tells us he's the real deal.

"I'm a real fighter," Ochoa said. "I put in the work and I've improved so much in this camp. I'm on my way to becoming a great star in this sport."

If Mark Zuckerberg really gets in the Octagon with Elon Musk, he'll have arguably the greatest fighter ever in his corner ... 'cause Jon Jones says he's down to train the Facebook billionaire!!

Bones took to Twitter Thursday night to offer his support to the 39-year-old Meta boss ... writing, "You already know I am Team Zuck ... Let me know if you need a training partner!"

As we previously reported, a fight between the two billionaires could actually happen ... with UFC honcho Dana White telling TMZ Sports both sides are serious about scrapping.

Of course, the weight difference between Elon and Zuck may pose a problem ... but Jones made it clear he'll be at the ready in case things move forward.

Jones' bond with Zuck goes back a few months -- in February, he commented on a video of Mark sparring with UFC champion Alex Volkanovski in the Metaverse ... saying the techy training looked like a blast.

Zuck wished him well ... replying, "Excited for your return!" ahead of Jones' first-round win over Ciryl Gane.

Now that one of the G.O.A.T.s is getting involved, the hype surrounding the potential fight is even greater.

Conversations continue between Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, and Dana White ... and while the billionaires are itchin' to get their hands on one another, there's is an issue preventing the fight from being made official -- Elon's weight advantage.

Our sources tell us the guys are still serious about fighting in an Octagon, and as the UFC president told us yesterday, he's absolutely down to put on the fight ... but, Zuckerberg's size disadvantage has become an issue.

In fighting, size matters, a lot. Elon is 6'1", and reportedly weighs between 185 and 200 lbs. As for the Facebook founder, he's just 5'7", and reportedly weighs around 155 lbs.

Significant differences ... Elon has a 6-inch height advantage, and somewhere around a 30 to 45 lb. weight advantage.

To put that into perspective, Zuck would be a lightweight in the UFC. Musk would be a middleweight or light heavyweight ... a 2-3 weight class difference.

Typically, exhibition fights ignore weight classes ... Floyd Mayweather has fought a much bigger Logan Paul, for example.

But, just because the fight could technically be made doesn't mean Mark isn't hesitant to give up a sizeable advantage to his foe.

On Thursday, White joined "TMZ Live" and revealed he'd actually been having conversations with both men, who Dana says are "absolutely dead serious" about fighting in an Octagon.

Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg are "absolutely deadly serious" about fighting each other in a UFC Octagon and it would be the biggest fight in the history of the world, so says UFC Prez Dana White.

Dana told Harvey and Charles on "TMZ Live" Thursday he's been talking and texting with Mark and Elon Wednesday night and into Thursday, and says both men want to square off in Vegas.

"Talked with Mark and Elon last night, both guys are absolutely dead serious about this," White said.

It all started on Wednesday when Musk responded to a report Zuck was going to launch his own version of Twitter, to which Elon responded, "I'm up for a cage match if he is lol."

The Facebook founder got wind of the tweet, and served up a message of his own, writing ... "Send me location." BTW ... that's code in the world of UFC for, he's really serious.

So, fight on?? People weren't exactly sure if the men were just messing around ... but alas, White says they're not.

As for how big the event could be -- Dana believes it would easily be the most-watched fight ever, saying "The biggest fight of all time was Floyd and Conor, I just think it triples that -- it triples what that did, there's no limit on what that thing can make."

Dana's confident both men are capable of handling themselves. Zuck has been in jiu-jitsu competitions recently, and Elon has done martial arts and told Dana he was involved in "plenty of fights growing up in South Africa."

DW says the cost for Pay-Per-View would be $100 a pop ... it's normally $80 for a UFC fight. Forget about what it would cost to watch it in the arena. Dana expects the fight would gross hundreds of millions of dollars, and the loot would go to charity.

Bottom line ... this is no joke. Mark and Elon are serious, and Dana is determined to make it happen.

You can watch the full interview on "TMZ Live" Thursday.

A billionaire brawl between Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk?!?

The wild cage match might actually happen ... 'cause the Meta CEO just clapped back at the Twitter honcho's callout by saying he's totally down to fight!!

Musk recently pitched the fight idea in response to a report claiming Zuck's company is planning to rival Twitter with a new platform of its own ... to which he replied, "I'm up for a cage match if he is lol."

Whether or not he was kidding, the Facebook co-founder got wind of Musk's tweet ... and channeled his inner Khabib Nurmagomedov by saying, "Send me location."

The response, according to The Verge, was NOT a joke ... and he's 100% serious about duking it out.

Musk, 51, already seems to have a spot in mind for the potential fight ... tweeting "Vegas Octagon" late Wednesday night.

He also teased some of his skills ... adding, "I have this great move that I call 'The Walrus,' where I just lie on top of my opponent & do nothing."

Musk better pray the move works, 'cause Zuck, 39, started honing his craft back during the pandemic ... and he recently competed in a jiu-jitsu tournament, where he earned a gold and silver medal.

He also claims to have finished the famous "Murph Challenge" -- a one-mile run, 100 pull-ups, 200 push-ups, 300 squats, and an additional one-mile run (all while wearing a weighted vest) -- in under 40 minutes, which is quite an accomplishment.

Controversial former kickboxer/media personality Andrew Tate is down to have Elon's back, though ... 'cause he said he wants revenge for being blocked on all Meta platforms.

Somebody get Dana White on the phone ASAP.