Beneil Dariush is the latest fighter to use UFC’s spotlight to call out a major celebrity. This time it was billionaire Elon Musk for stiffing him on a car delivery.
Beneil Dariush scored the biggest win of his mixed martial arts (MMA) career at UFC 262 last night (Sat., May 15, 2021), defeating Tony Ferguson via dominating three-round decision. After the fight, Joe Rogan gave him a chance to call out whoever he wanted … and who did Dariush put on notice? Not Conor McGregor. Not the winner of the vacant UFC Lightweight title fight later that night.
No, Dariush called out … Elon Musk.
“Joe, I’m gonna call out your buddy Elon,” Dariush yelled. “Elon Musk! Where’s my car, bro? I’ve been waiting six months! I’m having a baby! I need a good car! I gotta protect my daughter! Let’s go Elon! Get me my car!”
Dariush expanded on his demand during the UFC 262 post-fight press conference (watch it here).
“December, I order my [Tesla] car,” Beneil said. “I order the safest car, the best car for my pregnant wife. And I’m still waiting! Elon, bro, what’s the deal man? You told me March, it’s coming up on June. I want my car. Come on bud. Big fan, big fan. But this is disrespect.”
For anyone paying attention, Tesla delays are nothing new. The company has been struggling to get its production line going fast enough to meet demand for years. New Model S and Model X cars that were supposed to roll out in February still hadn’t shown up by April, and many people who ordered cars had their expected delivery dates pushed back to June or July.
The official reason: parts shortages due to supply chain issues.
Whatever the reason, it looks like Dariush just got bumped to the front of the line. Musk may or may not have his finger on the pulse of UFC — he attended UFC 227 and his girlfriend Grimes is an avid fan of women’s MMA — but he certainly keeps his eye on Tesla news.
He saw Dariush’s plea via Twitter account Tesla Hype and responded:
Coming soon. Sorry for the delay!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 16, 2021
So there we go …
Use your time on the victory mic wisely. Use it to ask Miley Cyrus on a date, or get your Tesla car a bit sooner. Use it to try and secure a fight, although honestly that feels a bit basic and old hat now. Just use it, because these days you never know what’s gonna work if you’re willing to shoot your shot.
For complete UFC 262 results and coverage click here.