• Football
  • Boxing
  • UFC
  • Home
  • Football
    • England
    • Transfer News
    • Premier League
    • Champions League
    • Lionel Messi
    • Cristiano Ronaldo
    • EA FC 25
    • Wrexham
  • Boxing
    • Tyson Fury
    • Anthony Joshua
    • Oleksandr Usyk
    • Mike Tyson
    • Jake Paul
    • Logan Paul
  • UFC
    • Dana White
    • Conor McGregor
    • Khabib Nurmagomedov
    • Jon Jones
    • Paddy Pimblett
    • Joe Rogan
  • Other Sport
    • Athletics
    • Formula 1
    • MMA
    • Motorsport
    • NBA
    • Darts
    • NFL
    • Snooker
    • Wrestling
    • Tennis
    • Cricket
    • Golf
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • LADbible
  • UNILAD
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
Snapchat
TikTok
YouTube
'He's a mate': Alexander Volkanovski opens up on friendship with Mark Zuckerberg

Home> MMA

Updated 01:15 14 Oct 2022 GMT+1Published 01:14 14 Oct 2022 GMT+1

'He's a mate': Alexander Volkanovski opens up on friendship with Mark Zuckerberg

The Aussie revealed that he and the Facebook founder had been friends long before the 38-year-old’s passion for MMA was public knowledge.

Jayden Collins

Jayden Collins

UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski has opened up about a rather unexpected friendship with Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg.

The social media juggernaut’s CEO is an avid fan of MMA, attending UFC Vegas 61 alongside his wife earlier this month.

He’s even taken up jiu-jitsu and mixed martial arts himself, and has been described as a ‘silent killer’ by his trainer. 

However, the Australian UFC legend revealed that he and Zuckerberg had been friends long before the 38-year-old’s passion for MMA was public knowledge. 

Advert

Volkanovski told The MMA Hour: “Yeah, he’s a mate.

“I knew well before he made the appearance at the UFC that he’s a big fan. He loves the sport.

“I do consider him my mate. Again, he’s a cool dude, we get along. I’m actually catching up with him a bit later on in the year. 

“But yeah, cool dude. He knows his stuff, he knows the UFC and all about it.”

Advert

That’s certainly one friendship that I don’t think anyone expected to exist. 

The Aussie has been on the injury list until recently with a thumb injury he suffered back in July when defeating Max Holloway at UFC 276.

ZUMA Press, Inc. / Alamy

Volkanovski revealed that Zuckerberg reached out following the incident.

Advert

He continued: “We sort of got started talking after the Max Holloway fight, when he found out I broke my hand. 

“He was just like, ‘How do you get through that?’ Things like that. 

“We were just talking about mindset and that’s sort of how it started.”

Mark Zuckerberg’s own MMA skills and toughness have been praised by some of the greats in the industry.

Advert

UFC commentator Joe Rogan wrote: “This is great! I’m so happy to see this. Training looks solid too!"

 Aljamain Sterling also commented on his skills, writing: This is really amazing to see! Idk, UFC debut might be coming soon for you too.”

Conor McGregor chimed in to say: "Yo!!! F***ing awesome Mark!"

As for Volkanovski, he’s getting set to be on standby in case anything goes wrong at UFC 280.

Advert

Alexander Volkanovski confirmed earlier this week that he will be the official backup for the upcoming UFC lightweight championship fight between Charles Oliveira and Islam Makhachev.

Featured Image Credit: Px Images / Alamy. Xinhua / Alamy.

Topics: Australia, UFC, MMA, Alexander Volkanoski

Jayden Collins
Jayden Collins

Jayden Collins is a Journalist at SPORTbible. He has worked across multiple media platforms in areas such as sport, music, pop culture, entertainment and politics. He is part of the editorial team for LADbible Australia.

Advert

Advert

Advert

Choose your content:

a day ago
3 days ago
4 days ago
  • a day ago

    Jon Jones leaves UFC fans confused as he drops bombshell update on superfight with Tom Aspinall

    The UFC heavyweight champion checks in from Thailand

    MMA
  • 3 days ago

    Dana White breaks silence after Conor McGregor calls out UFC boss over shock return to the octagon

    The UFC boss has spoken out to address the rumours.

    MMA
  • 3 days ago

    UFC set to strip Jon Jones of heavyweight title if he doesn't fight Tom Aspinall by strict deadline

    The UFC GOAT could be set to lose his title if he doesn't agree to a huge fight with Aspinall by a specific date.

    MMA
  • 4 days ago

    EXCLUSIVE: Darren Till reveals 'ridiculous' purchase he made after UFC title fight which he massively regretted the day later

    The former UFC title challenger will take on fellow ex-MMA fighter Darren Stewart in a boxing bout at MF & DAZN: X Series 21 on Friday.

    MMA
  • Alexander Volkanovski jumps to Hasbulla's defence after he's attacked on Twitter by Conor McGregor
  • Alexander Volkanovski Says The UFC Featherweight Division Needs A Kick Up The A**
  • Alexander Volkanovski Believes His Legacy Was Cemented After Escaping Brian Ortega Guillotine Choke
  • Former Two Division Champ Henry Cejudo Confronts Alexander Volkanovski At UFC 276