Elon Musk accepts offer to fight Nicolas Maduro

World’s richest man agrees to bout with Venezuelan president as the dictator clings onto power after disputed election win

Elon Musk has accepted an invitation by Nicolas Maduro, the Venezuelan president, to a fight following criticism of his contested re-election.
Mr Musk, the world’s wealthiest man, repeatedly criticised Mr Maduro on his social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, accusing him of “major election fraud” and labelling him a “dictator”.
Mr Maduro was declared the winner in Venezuela’s election on Sunday, but electoral authorities have failed to disclose detailed results to back up the claim.
The result has been widely called into question, with the US and EU demanding Venezuelan authorities release detailed voting data.
“Shame on Dictator Maduro,” Mr Musk wrote on X on Sunday.
In response to Mr Musk’s attacks, Mr Maduro declared on national television in Venezuela on Monday: “Do you want to fight? Let’s do it. Elon Musk, I’m ready. I’m not afraid of you, Elon Musk. Let’s fight, wherever you want.”
On Wednesday afternoon, Mr Musk tweeted: “I accept”, adding that Mr Maduro “will chicken out”.
“If I win, he resigns as dictator of Venezuela,” Mr Musk posted to X. “If he wins, I give him a free ride to Mars.”
Sunday’s elections were held in the shadow of Mr Maduro’s warnings of a “bloodbath” if he were to lose.
Venezuela has been thrown into uncertainty following the results, which Mr Maduro claims show he received 51 per cent of the votes.
Mr Maduro had promised to lead a free and fair election, but opponents have flagged issues including the barring of his opposition’s main leader – Maria Corina Machado – from running and reports that witnesses for his opponent were allegedly denied access to the centralised vote count.
The opposition claims their candidate, Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, is the rightful winner.
They have released extensive voting data they argue shows Mr Gonzalez defeating Mr Maduro by a significant margin, in line with pre-election polls.
On Wednesday, the New York Times released an analysis showing Mr Gonzalez beat Mr Maduro by more than 30 percentage points.
The news outlet made the conclusions based on partial election results, provided by a group of researchers associated with Venezuela’s main opposition alliance.
The researchers estimated a result of 66 per cent for Mr Gonzalez versus 31 per cent for Mr Maduro, which closely matches the findings of an independent exit poll conducted nationwide on election day.
Maduro said he was “ready to present 100 per cent of the records,” as he addressed journalists outside the Supreme Court of Justice, where he filed an appeal against what he termed an “attack against the electoral process”.
But he voiced outrage at opposition leaders Ms Machado and Mr Gonzalez, saying they “should be behind bars”.
Protests have erupted across the country, resulting in the deaths of over a dozen individuals and the arrest of more than 1,000.
On Monday, security forces used tear gas and rubber bullets against Venezuelans who flooded the streets chanting “Freedom, freedom!” and “This government is going to fall!”
Ms Machado reported 177 detentions and 11 “forced disappearances”, while Tarek William Saab, the attorney general, stated that over 1,000 people had been arrested during the protests, with some potentially facing terrorism charges.
He added that one military officer was killed and 77 officials were injured.
Mr Maduro has led the oil-rich country since 2013, during which time GDP has plummeted by 80 per cent, prompting over seven million of Venezuela’s 30 million citizens to emigrate.
He faces allegations of imprisoning critics and harassing opponents amidst a growing climate of authoritarianism.
Mr Maduro’s previous reelection in 2018 was widely condemned as a sham by numerous Latin American countries and other nations, including the US and members of the EU.