Joe Rogan offered to train Elon Musk for a hand-to-hand fight with Russian President Vladimir Putin — and noted that Tesla’s billionaire CEO appeared to hold his own during a past bout with a sumo wrestler.
Musk, 50, initially challenged 69-year-old Putin to “single combat” earlier this month, tweeting, “stakes are Ukraine.” He also shared several memes poking fun at the Russian leader on Twitter.
In a podcast last week, Rogan noted Musk’s recent claims that he previously tussled with a professional sumo wrestler. The Tesla founder claimed last week on Twitter that he “managed to throw” the sumo wrestler but suffered a back injury in the process.
Musk shared an image of the match, although the neither the date nor the authenticity of the photo could be determined.
‘Managed to throw him, but it cost me smashing my c5-c6 disc & 8 years of mega back pain!” Musk tweeted.
“According to him, he had some match with a world champion sumo wrestler back in the day for fun, and he f—ed his neck up, like, throwing this guy outside of the ring,” Rogan said. “But he actually defeated some world champion sumo wrestler.”
Rogan, who has cultivated a friendship with Musk and twice invited him to appear on his podcast, suggested that he likes the eccentric billionaire’s chances in a fight with Putin.
“Elon Musk is a strange character, because first of all, he’s a very big man. He’s not small. Putin is smaller than me. Elon is quite a bit bigger than me. Elon is probably 6’2” and he’s big, he’s a big guy,” Rogan said.
Putin, who was trained as a KGB officer, meanwhile has his own history of posting tough-guy photos on the internet, including a famous shot of him riding shirtless on a horse.
Musk’s bizarre challenge to Putin had previously drew a response from Chechen warlord Ramzan Kadyrov, a longtime Putin crony. Kadyrov slammed Musk over his words toward Putin, referring to him as “gentle (effeminate) Elona” and claiming he wouldn’t stand a chance in a fight.
Kadyrov also suggested the billionaire should train with Chechen special forces to toughen up. Musk rejected Kadyrov’s offer – though he briefly changed his Twitter name to “Elona” following the exchange.
“Thank you for the offer, but such excellent training would give me too much of an advantage. If he is afraid to fight, I will agree to use only my left hand and I am not even left-handed,” Musk tweeted.
Rogan, the popular podcaster who moonlights as a UFC color commentator, revealed he contacted Musk shortly after the Tesla chief challenged Putin to a brawl in response to the war in Ukraine.
“I offered my services. I texted him. I said ‘dude, I will arrange all your training.’ I go, ‘if you really do fight Putin, I will arrange all your training.’” he said during a recent episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience.”
Musk, whose personal fortune is estimated to exceed $270 billion, has played an active role in the Russia-Ukraine war. His firm SpaceX has provided “Starlink” internet access to assist the people of Ukraine since fighting began.
The billionaire has also feuded with the head of Russia’s space agency, who issued an ominous warning that the International Space Station could fall from the sky without the country’s support.
