Craig Jones revealed on The Ariel Helwani Show that he nearly put together one of the most unexpected celebrity grappling matches in recent memory: Tom Hardy versus Mark Zuckerberg at Craig Jones Invitational 1.
The disclosure came during a conversation about the tattoo of “Tom Hardy” Jones has inked on his right hand, a piece of body art he says he now regrets placing there.
“I regret getting it on my right hand. I have to see it every time I take a piss and pay for something,” Jones said.
The tattoo originated from a separate attempt to get Hardy to step in and replace Gable Stevenson at CJI2 after an opponent pulled out at the eleventh hour. That deal fell through due to short notice, but what Jones revealed next was far more surprising.
“I don’t know if I’m legally allowed to say this, but we were trying to get Tom Hardy versus Zuck for CGI1. We did come close. We did come very close,” Jones told Helwani.
According to Jones, the plan was built around getting Zuckerberg’s attention by dangling high-profile opponents. He had Mackenzie Dern and Alexander Volkanovski wearing Zuckerberg-branded gloves as bait, knowing the Meta CEO closely follows the sport and trains daily under coach Dave Camarillo. The strategy worked well enough to get both Hardy and Zuckerberg to agree to the match in principle.
Jones even recalled a specific conversation with Hardy about the potential match. “I remember we’re just in New York and I was like, ‘Yo, Tom, if you come out and face Zuckerberg,’ and as you touched hands he said, ‘Remember I can read all your DMs. What happens in that match? I tap,'” Jones recounted.
Hardy’s self-deprecating joke aside, Jones took the matchup seriously as a competitive contest. He noted that Hardy trains every day and is “the real deal” among celebrities who practice combat sports.
In the end, the matchup never came together.
“I think it was more of a timing issue. They both agreed to it in principle,” Jones explained. He also acknowledged the unique stakes Hardy would have faced. “Scary for Tom to face Zuckerberg because if he loses, it’s hard to be the action star anymore,” Jones said, while noting that a strong showing from Zuckerberg would have been compelling viewing given how seriously the tech billionaire approaches training.
With CJI on pause for now and Jones focused on launching his new training facility in Tulum, Mexico, the Hardy versus Zuckerberg match remains a what-if.
