Mark Zuckerberg’s interest in cage fighting could have a “material adverse impact” on Meta’s business, should the Facebook founder sustain a serious injury or even die while practising, the social media giant has warned investors.
As part of its annual report filed this month with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for 2024, Meta – the parent company of both Facebook and Instagram – warned of possible risks to its business and potentially its share price over some of Zuckerberg’s extra-curricular activities.
“We currently depend on the continued services and performance of our key personnel, including Mark Zuckerberg,” Meta said in the report. It adds that Zuckerberg participates in “various high-risk activities, such as combat sports … which carry the risk of serious injury and death.”
“If Mr. Zuckerberg were to become unavailable for any reason, there could be a material adverse impact on our operations,” the filing continued.
Zuckerberg, 39, began training in the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu martial art during the Covid-19 lockdowns, telling podcaster Lex Fridman last year that doing so resulted in him being “beaten up” a lot.
The Big Tech leader subsequently began training in mixed martial arts (MMA), the full contact sport popularized by athletes like Russia’s Khabib Nurmagomedov and Irish fighter Conor McGregor.
Zuckerberg last year teased a fight against fellow tycoon Elon Musk following an online spat between the two, with Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) CEO Dana White unsuccessfully attempting to form an agreement to stage what he predicted would be “the biggest fight ever in the history of the world.”
In November, Zuckerberg revealed on Meta’s Instagram platform that he had sustained a tear to one of his anterior cruciate ligaments while training for an MMA fight he said was expected to take place early in 2024.
An accompanying photo showed the social media magnate in a hospital bed with heavy strapping on his left leg, while holding a clenched fist. The injury, which required surgery, is expected to take several months to heal but he stated in the Instagram post that he is “still looking forward to [fighting] after I recover.”
Zuckerberg, who is Meta’s largest shareholder, has trained with several well-regarded mixed martial arts fighters, including past and present UFC champions Israel Adesanya and Alexander Volkanovski. He was recently awarded his blue belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu under martial arts expert Dave Camarillo.