Mark Zuckerberg’s awkward moment before Alexander Volkanovski’s UFC 298 featherweight title fight Saturday night did not go unnoticed.
Fans on social media raised eyebrows when they saw Zuckerberg, who walked out with Volkanovski’s team for the fight against Ilia Topuria, trying to lend a hand as Volkanovski’s crew were passing some of the champion’s gear he was taking off before entering the cage, only to be ignored.
Zuckerberg did hug Volkanovski before he entered the cage in Anaheim, where the Australian lost via knockout in the second round to end his four-plus year reign as the featherweight champion.
“This clip of Zuck is mesmerizing,” Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy wrote on X Sunday.
Mark Zuckerberg tried to help Alexander Volkanovski’s team pass his gear, but he was ignored. Screengrab/ESPN+
Zuckerberg and Volkanovski have actually been friends for a couple of years now, as they’ve trained together multiple times since Zuckerberg got into Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu a few years ago.
The Facebook founder, who previously teased a fight against Elon Musk, was dressed head to toe in the same gear Volkanovski’s team wore to the cage, and he took a seat in the front row after hugging the 35-year-old just before the fight.
Volkanovski was 25-1 in MMA and 12-0 in the UFC before he lost by unanimous decision to Islam Makhachev at UFC 284, when he moved up to try to win Makhachev’s lightweight title and become a double champion.
Alexander Volkanovski of Australia prepares to face Ilia Topuria in their featherweight title fight as Mark Zuckerberg looks on during UFC 298. Getty Images
Mark Zuckerberg hugs Alexander Volkanovski before the Australian’s UFC 298 fight. Getty Images
Mark Zuckerberg sat in the front row for the UFC 298 main event. USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con
He lost in a rematch for the lightweight title in the first round at UFC 294 in October and has now lost three of his last four fights.
Topuria, 27, improved to 15-0 with the win over Volkanovski and is 7-0 in the UFC.