Daniel Dubois lived up to his 'Dynamite' nickname with an explosive fifth-round knockout of Anthony Joshua to retain his IBF heavyweight world title on Saturday night as Riyadh Season made a spectacular debut in London.
The 27-year-old champion dominated the bout from the start in front of 96,000 passionate fans inside Wembley Stadium, dropping the former two-time heavyweight champion multiple times from the first round onwards.
Dubois had spoken of his determination to "legitimise" his reign as IBF champion after being handed the belt that Oleksandr Usyk vacated in June. He produced a destructive display that raises major questions over Joshua's future, though Joshua's promoter Eddie Hearn said he expected his fighter would pursue a rematch.
Despite holding the belt, Dubois was viewed as the underdog and made his entrance to the ring first – a clear sign that it was Joshua who was the A-side. However, he went after his celebrated rival from the start and was rewarded as his big shots wobbled the former unified world champion time and again.
In an action-packed fifth round of the breathless clash, Dubois landed the decisive blow, having come through worrying moments himself as Joshua finally found his range.
"Are you not entertained?" he said, speaking to DAZN after the biggest win of his 24-fight career. "It's been a journey and I'm grateful to be in this position. I'm a gladiator, I'm a warrior until the bitter end. I want to get to the top of this sport and reach my full potential."
Oasis's Liam Gallagher fired up the expectant crowd with a live set of three songs before fireworks exploded over Wembley.
The British rivals locked horns in a dramatic opening round that ended with Joshua being saved by the bell after he was floored by a savage overhand right.
Joshua, four pounds (1.8kg) heavier than his younger opponent, was in full survival mode in round two and in the following round, Dubois had him down again, a left hook causing his legs to buckle.
A standing eight count was followed by the bell and as the fourth round got underway Joshua was floored for the third time, although he protested that it was not a legitimate knockdown.
In a dramatic fifth round, Dubois was momentarily stunned by two right hands, and just as Joshua looked to pile on the pressure, the 34-year-old was caught by successive right hands himself and he was down again, this time unable to beat the count.
Both fighters entered the ring intent on earning a shot at becoming undisputed world champion against Tyson Fury or Usyk, who became boxing's first four-belt undisputed heavyweight champion in May when he beat Fury, simultaneously holding the IBF title along with the WBO, WBC and WBA belts.
The Ukrainian agreed to a rematch with Fury rather than facing mandatory IBF challenger Dubois, who had won the interim IBF title in June and was elevated to world champion status when Usyk vacated the belt.
Joshua was hoping to join an elite group including Muhammad Ali, Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield as a three-time heavyweight champion.
Defeat to Andy Ruiz in 2019 and two losses at the hands of Usyk left his career on the brink. He then won four straight fights and was aiming to return to the division's top table.
Joshua hinted he would stay in the sport but he will have to do some soul-searching after the devastating loss at Wembley – a fourth defeat in 32 fights.
"We came up short as a team," he said. "You know I'm ready to kick off in the ring but I'm going to keep it respectful. Before I came here, I always say to myself I'm a fighter for life. You keep rolling the dice. I had a fast and sharp opponent, a lot of mistakes from my end."
And Hearn said he was "sure" his man would target a rematch. "I think that's a given," he said. "But he'll need a rest and it's a dangerous fight. This guy's growing in confidence all the time."
Sheeraz blasts out Denny to complete undercard
In the co-main event, Hamzah Sheeraz blasted out Tyler Denny inside two rounds to become the European middleweight champion and take a step closer to a world title shot.
Sheeraz sent Denny to the canvas in the opening round, and with the 33-year-old never fully recovering, struck again in the second before the referee stepped in and waved off the bout for his 21st victory.
Joshua Buatsi also took a significant step towards his own world title opportunity after defeating Willy Hutchinson to claim the WBO's light-heavyweight interim belt.
A close and competitive first half of the bout saw Buatsi eventually take control, sending Hutchinson to the deck in the sixth round and again in the ninth, although remarkably one judge still scored it 113-112 in the Scot's favour.
Buatsi earned wider scores of 117-108 and 115-110 from the other two judges to claim the split-decision victory to put himself in a position to challenge the 175-pound division's undisputed champion once Artur Beterbiev and Dimitrii Bivol fight for all the belts in Riyadh on October 12.
Anthony Cacace retained his IBF and IBO super-featherweight world titles with a wide points victory over former featherweight champion Josh Warrington, who indicated his retirement by placing his gloves on the centre of the ring.
Elsewhere, Josh Kelly weathered a late storm before claiming a majority-decision win over late replacement Ishmael Davis in a middleweight bout, while Mark Chamberlain suffered a surprise points loss to Josh Padley in the opening lightweight fight.
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How the UAE gratuity payment is calculated now
Employees leaving an organisation are entitled to an end-of-service gratuity after completing at least one year of service.
The tenure is calculated on the number of days worked and does not include lengthy leave periods, such as a sabbatical. If you have worked for a company between one and five years, you are paid 21 days of pay based on your final basic salary. After five years, however, you are entitled to 30 days of pay. The total lump sum you receive is based on the duration of your employment.
1. For those who have worked between one and five years, on a basic salary of Dh10,000 (calculation based on 30 days):
a. Dh10,000 ÷ 30 = Dh333.33. Your daily wage is Dh333.33
b. Dh333.33 x 21 = Dh7,000. So 21 days salary equates to Dh7,000 in gratuity entitlement for each year of service. Multiply this figure for every year of service up to five years.
2. For those who have worked more than five years
c. 333.33 x 30 = Dh10,000. So 30 days’ salary is Dh10,000 in gratuity entitlement for each year of service.
Note: The maximum figure cannot exceed two years total salary figure.
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six
Power: 650hp at 6,750rpm
Torque: 800Nm from 2,500-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Fuel consumption: 11.12L/100km
Price: From Dh796,600
On sale: now
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
The specs: 2018 Mercedes-Benz E 300 Cabriolet
Price, base / as tested: Dh275,250 / Dh328,465
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder
Power: 245hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 370Nm @ 1,300rpm
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 7.0L / 100km
So what is Spicy Chickenjoy?
Just as McDonald’s has the Big Mac, Jollibee has Spicy Chickenjoy – a piece of fried chicken that’s crispy and spicy on the outside and comes with a side of spaghetti, all covered in tomato sauce and topped with sausage slices and ground beef. It sounds like a recipe that a child would come up with, but perhaps that’s the point – a flavourbomb combination of cheap comfort foods. Chickenjoy is Jollibee’s best-selling product in every country in which it has a presence.
'How To Build A Boat'
Jonathan Gornall, Simon & Schuster
Museum of the Future in numbers
- 78 metres is the height of the museum
- 30,000 square metres is its total area
- 17,000 square metres is the length of the stainless steel facade
- 14 kilometres is the length of LED lights used on the facade
- 1,024 individual pieces make up the exterior
- 7 floors in all, with one for administrative offices
- 2,400 diagonally intersecting steel members frame the torus shape
- 100 species of trees and plants dot the gardens
- Dh145 is the price of a ticket
