MMA fighter says he’s been offered half-million dollars to battle a chimpanzee
Amateur fighter Cole Johnson claims a group will pay over $500,000 for him to fight an adult male chimpanzee, prompting scientists to warn of catastrophic injuries.
Cole Johnson, an amateur mixed-martial-arts competitor from Minnesota, announced on social media that he had been offered more than $500,000 to fight a captive adult male chimpanzee. After the initial sponsor withdrew, he said a second, “less sketchy” group would fund an even larger sum and arrange the encounter in a large, grass-lined cage, leaving the chimp’s claws and teeth intact. Experts such as Kimberley Jane Hockings (Exeter University) and Michael Wilson (University of Minnesota) warned that chimpanzees possess far greater upper-body strength and bite force than humans, making severe or fatal injuries likely.
Additional scholars highlighted the ethical problems of using an endangered, intelligent animal for entertainment and the potential damage to conservation efforts. Johnson also mentioned traveling to the Democratic Republic of Congo to negotiate the deal, while a website promoting the event and a related cryptocurrency has been launched.
