ABU DHABI // Bruce Buffer, the UFC Octagon announcer, dubbed it: "the clash of legends". It turned out, for two and a half rounds anyway, to be a damp squib.
The overwhelming sensation, played out willingly by Renzo Gracie, the UFC debutant, and Matt Hughes, a former two-time welterweight champion, who spent 12 minutes sizing each other up, was one of respect.
It was not until three minutes in to the third round that anything meaningful happened.
That moment, a Hughes leg kick which sent Gracie to The Octagon floor, was not even followed up: Gracie casually put his hand out and Hughes, even more casually, helped him up.
In a contest expected to feature the renowned grappling and jiu-jitsu skills of both fighters, the action between Gracie and Hughes was distinctly stand-up. And of the comedy variety.
Neither seemed particularly interested in hurting the other. The crowd, partisan towards the Gracie, the Brazilian jiu-jitsu master, who trains Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed al Nahyan in his native form of the discipline, grew increasingly frustrated.
Then, Hughes kicked Gracie's weakening left leg again and once more the local hero, who entered the Yas Island arena venue to the Arabic pop singer, Aida al Manhali's anthem Salam Alah, fell.
Again, Hughes helped him up. The crowd were not happy.
Hughes, however, scented blood. As his opponent tired and wobbled, the American advanced, landing several hard punches - lefts and rights of all varieties - on Gracie's face and head. Gracie fell and Hughes pounced. Jumping down on to the stricken Gracie, Hughes rained down hammer blows for what seemed like an eternity - perhaps because of the lack of action beforehand - and referee Herb Dean stepped in.
"I was pretty happy with how it went," said Hughes in The Octagon afterwards. "I knew Renzo was throwing wide, looping shots, so it was important I moved away, keep it tight and simple."
Explaining the drawn-out stand-up, Hughes added: "The gameplan was to strike because I had to put the odds on my side."
Having sported a modified Manchester City strip, branded with his own sponsors, Gracie was 'ironically' fighting out of the blue corner - the colour of the English Premier League side.
With City's chairman Khaldoon al Mubarak watching from the sidelines, the only things blue about Gracie come the end, however, were his eyes and mood.
"It was very hard," he said. "Six months to prepare for this fight and a guy like Hughes is tough. But what kind of fighter would I be if I hadn't accepted?"
Asked if he would be returning to the UFC, Gracie, who has a six-fight contract, said: "I'll be back for sure."
The drama of this heavily-hyped fight may not have lived up to expectations, but it was 'legendary' nonetheless.
emegson@thenational.ae
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Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana
Rating: 4.5/5
Various Artists
Habibi Funk: An Eclectic Selection Of Music From The Arab World (Habibi Funk)
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Results
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Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
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.”
