“I hereby challenge Vladimir Putin to single combat,’ Musk tweeted Monday. “Stakes are Ukraine,” he added. Musk followed up his offer of combat with another tweet written entirely in Russian. “Do you agree to this fight?” he asked, tagging the Kremlin. While 6’ 1" Musk is six inches taller, 19 years younger, and reportedly over 25 pounds heavier than the diminutive Russian leader, Putin is a judo black belt who has co-written a book on the martial art called Judo: History, Theory, Practice. He was also made honorary president of the International Judo Federation in 2008 but has since been suspended from the role over the war with Ukraine. Musk did say on the Joe Rogan show that he trained in Kyokushin karate, taekwondo, and judo when he was a kid, though it’s hard to imagine that being enough to best the former KGB officer. Musk tweeted another message a few hours ago, replying to the director-general of Russia’s space agency, Dmitry Rogozin, who responded to Musk’s offer to fight Putin with, “You, little devil, are still young.” Reactions to the tweets have been mixed. Some praised Musk for the work he has done for Ukraine, while others have criticized the self-proclaimed edgelord for seemingly making light of a conflict that has claimed thousands of lives. Musk has tweeted out several posts related to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. He previously shared a video of him speaking directly with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, tweeted “Hold strong Ukraine,” and wrote, “[…] my sympathies to the great people of Russia, who do not want this.” He has also sent Ukraine shipments of Starlink terminals so citizens can access the internet in cities under siege. “Thank you [Musk] for supporting Ukraine and peace in the entire world!” tweeted deputy Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov. Musk also said SpaceX could stop the ISS crashing into Earth after Russia’s space chief warned the 500-ton structure could hit the US, Europe, India, or China.
