Nov. 4 (UPI) — Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg underwent surgery this week to repair torn ligaments in his knee after the Facebook founder said he injured himself during training for an upcoming mixed martial arts fight.
Zuckerberg announced the injury Friday in an Instagram post, saying, “Tore my ACL sparring and just got out of surgery to replace it.”
The post included several photos of the tech leader in his hospital bed, with his left leg wrapped in compression bandages and strapped in a brace.
Zuckerberg’s wife, Priscilla Chan, is shown in a couple images tending to him in the recovery room.
“I was training for a competitive MMA fight early next year, but now that’s delayed a bit,” Zuckerberg said, adding that he was “still looking forward” to the bout after he recovers.
Zuckerberg also thanked medical personnel at the hospital, saying he was “grateful for the doctors and team taking care of me.”
The tech billionaire began competing in MMA competitions recently after studying various martial arts styles during the global pandemic, including Brazilian jiu-jitsu, which led to his winning gold and silver medals at a tournament back in May.
Rumors emerged this summer that Zuckerberg and his social media rival, X owner Elon Musk, were planning a celebrity style “cage match” to settle a purported feud over their competing platforms, but the fight was never scheduled, while Zuckerberg claimed “Elon isn’t serious.”
The Anterior Cruciate Ligament is one of the major structural components of the knee, and is critical for stability and the back-and-forth motion of the joint. ACL injuries are especially common among athletes due to rapid changes in direction or sudden stops during play that put substantial stress on the knee.