Ali Al Qaisi becomes part of Jordanian history as the first mixed martial arts fighter from the Middle East nation to feature in UFC on Saturday.
Al Qaisi takes on Mexican Irwin 'The Beast' Rivera in the opening bantamweight clash of the UFC Fight Night, which is headlined by the heavyweight contest between American Derick Lewis and Ukrainian Aleksei Oleinik in Las Vegas.
"I'm honoured to represent Jordan and the Arab community at the UFC," Al Qaisi told The National in a Zoom interview.
“I’m sure the Middle East and Arab community, everyone will be behind me. I’m really happy to be part of the UFC family right now.
“It’s the summit for every MMA fighter. I have worked very hard to reach this point. When I first started, it was my long-term objective to feature in a UFC fight card, and now I have reached there and I am going to cherish every moment of it.”
Nicknamed the 'Royal Fighter', Al Qaisi, who turns 30 next month, enters the octagon with an 8-3 record.
“I want to open the door for more Jordanian fighters to UFC,” Al Qaisi said.
“We have a lot of good fighters back home and I feel my presence in the UFC can be a catalyst for more and more to reach this level.”
When MMA first started in the Middle East, the Jordanian capital Amman was considered the hub of the sport.
That has now shifted to Abu Dhabi after the signing of a five-year deal with UFC last year.
The first UFC event saw Khabib Nurmagomedov defeat Dustin Poirier to retain the lightweight championship in September 2019. The Fight Nights staged at Fight island last month further established Abu Dhabi’s status.
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UFC Fight Island: Usman v Masvidal
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“I have competed in the Desert Force and Phoenix in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, and obviously would like to return for a UFC appearance in Abu Dhabi’s Fight Island,” Al Qaisi added.
“I would like to place my appreciation to Abu Dhabi for taking MMA to a new level in the region, and providing Arab fighters more opportunities to compete in their events.”
On his upcoming fight against Rivera, who arrives with a similar 8-3 record, Al Qaisi is confident in making a successful UFC debut.
“He’s a tough, aggressive and good fighter,” he said. “For me, it doesn’t matter who I fight. I just have one goal and that’s to enter the cage, start the fight and win the fight.”
Al Qaisi believes his daughter Selma, born in March in the US, has given him new energy and motivation.
“She’s my lucky charm from now on,” he said. “Also, I want to thank everyone for sending me messages and wishing me the best for the fight.
“I’m here alone with my wife and little girl in Vegas but the messages I receive make me feel I have an army behind me.
“I wake up every morning and read the beautiful messages. It gives me more strength and motivation, and I want to do my best and bring success to my country and to all those beautiful people.”
Moroccan Yousef Zalal (9-2) is the other Arab fighter to feature in the card, and he comes up against UFC debutant American Peter Barrett (11-3) in a featherweight undercard.
Zalal, 23, makes a quick return to the octagon after stretching his UFC record to two wins with a unanimous points decision over American Jordan Griffin at Vegas-4 in June.
“The gym I work with keeps me ready all year around, and to be honest, I’m ready to take up any fights at short notices,” Zalal, who has been living in the US since he was 12, said.
“I got a call to say they got a guy for me and he was a UFC debutant. I was like ‘okay let me have a look at his record and one of his videos' and went, ‘aha this is going to a be a good fight’.
“I told them to bring him on. It doesn’t both me at all. I think he’s a brawler who comes in and really gases out after the first round. I think he’s not ready for my style. But let’s wait and see.”
All fights will be shown exclusively on UFC Arabia through the UFC Arabia app in the UAE and the Middle East at 6am, both English and Arabic.
UFC Arabia is the exclusive provider of all UFC Pay-Per-View events to fans in the UAE and the Middle East. The main card begins at 5am on Sunday with the preliminaries kicking off at 2am GST.
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Read more from Johann Chacko
Arrogate's winning run
1. Maiden Special Weight, Santa Anita Park, June 5, 2016
2. Allowance Optional Claiming, Santa Anita Park, June 24, 2016
3. Allowance Optional Claiming, Del Mar, August 4, 2016
4. Travers Stakes, Saratoga, August 27, 2016
5. Breeders' Cup Classic, Santa Anita Park, November 5, 2016
6. Pegasus World Cup, Gulfstream Park, January 28, 2017
7. Dubai World Cup, Meydan Racecourse, March 25, 2017
What is Reform?
Reform is a right-wing, populist party led by Nigel Farage, a former MEP who won a seat in the House of Commons last year at his eighth attempt and a prominent figure in the campaign for the UK to leave the European Union.
It was founded in 2018 and originally called the Brexit Party.
Many of its members previously belonged to UKIP or the mainstream Conservatives.
After Brexit took place, the party focused on the reformation of British democracy.
Former Tory deputy chairman Lee Anderson became its first MP after defecting in March 2024.
The party gained support from Elon Musk, and had hoped the tech billionaire would make a £100m donation. However, Mr Musk changed his mind and called for Mr Farage to step down as leader in a row involving the US tycoon's support for far-right figurehead Tommy Robinson who is in prison for contempt of court.
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NEW ARRIVALS
Benjamin Mendy (Monaco) - £51.75m (Dh247.94m)
Kyle Walker (Tottenham Hotspur) - £45.9m
Bernardo Silva (Monaco) - £45m
Ederson Moraes (Benfica) - £36m
Danilo (Real Madrid) - £27m
Douglas Luiz (Vasco de Gama) - £10.8m
Hunger and Fury: The Crisis of Democracy in the Balkans
Jasmin Mujanović, Hurst Publishers
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
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The specs: 2019 Audi A7 Sportback
Price, base: Dh315,000
Engine: 3.0-litre V6
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 335hp @ 5,000rpm
Torque: 500Nm @ 1,370rpm
Fuel economy 5.9L / 100km
WHAT IS GRAPHENE?
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were experimenting with sticky tape and graphite, the material used as lead in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But when they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics.
The biog
Favourite car: Ferrari
Likes the colour: Black
Best movie: Avatar
Academic qualifications: Bachelor’s degree in media production from the Higher Colleges of Technology and diploma in production from the New York Film Academy
FIGHT CARD
Bantamweight Hamza Bougamza (MAR) v Jalal Al Daaja (JOR)
Catchweight 67kg Mohamed El Mesbahi (MAR) v Fouad Mesdari (ALG)
Lighweight Abdullah Mohammed Ali (UAE) v Abdelhak Amhidra (MAR)
Catchweight 73kg Mostafa Ibrahim Radi (PAL) v Yazid Chouchane (ALG)
Middleweight Yousri Belgaroui (TUN) v Badreddine Diani (MAR)
Catchweight 78kg Rashed Dawood (UAE) v Adnan Bushashy (ALG)
Middleweight Sallaheddine Dekhissi (MAR) v Abdel Emam (EGY)
Catchweight 65kg Rachid Hazoume (MAR) v Yanis Ghemmouri (ALG)
Lighweight Mohammed Yahya (UAE) v Azouz Anwar (EGY)
Catchweight 79kg Omar Hussein (PAL) v Souhil Tahiri (ALG)
Middleweight Tarek Suleiman (SYR) v Laid Zerhouni (ALG)
Read more from Kareem Shaheen
In numbers
- Number of children under five will fall from 681 million in 2017 to 401m in 2100
- Over-80s will rise from 141m in 2017 to 866m in 2100
- Nigeria will become the world’s second most populous country with 791m by 2100, behind India
- China will fall dramatically from a peak of 2.4 billion in 2024 to 732 million by 2100
- an average of 2.1 children per woman is required to sustain population growth
MATCH INFO
Syria v Australia
2018 World Cup qualifying: Asia fourth round play-off first leg
Venue: Hang Jebat Stadium (Malacca, Malayisa)
Kick-off: Thursday, 4.30pm (UAE)
Watch: beIN Sports HD
* Second leg in Australia scheduled for October 10
Teaching your child to save
Pre-school (three - five years)
You can’t yet talk about investing or borrowing, but introduce a “classic” money bank and start putting gifts and allowances away. When the child wants a specific toy, have them save for it and help them track their progress.
Early childhood (six - eight years)
Replace the money bank with three jars labelled ‘saving’, ‘spending’ and ‘sharing’. Have the child divide their allowance into the three jars each week and explain their choices in splitting their pocket money. A guide could be 25 per cent saving, 50 per cent spending, 25 per cent for charity and gift-giving.
Middle childhood (nine - 11 years)
Open a bank savings account and help your child establish a budget and set a savings goal. Introduce the notion of ‘paying yourself first’ by putting away savings as soon as your allowance is paid.
Young teens (12 - 14 years)
Change your child’s allowance from weekly to monthly and help them pinpoint long-range goals such as a trip, so they can start longer-term saving and find new ways to increase their saving.
Teenage (15 - 18 years)
Discuss mutual expectations about university costs and identify what they can help fund and set goals. Don’t pay for everything, so they can experience the pride of contributing.
Young adulthood (19 - 22 years)
Discuss post-graduation plans and future life goals, quantify expenses such as first apartment, work wardrobe, holidays and help them continue to save towards these goals.
* JP Morgan Private Bank
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Intercontinental Cup
Namibia v UAE Saturday Sep 16-Tuesday Sep 19
Table 1 Ireland, 89 points; 2 Afghanistan, 81; 3 Netherlands, 52; 4 Papua New Guinea, 40; 5 Hong Kong, 39; 6 Scotland, 37; 7 UAE, 27; 8 Namibia, 27
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Friday (UAE kick-off times)
Borussia Dortmund v Paderborn (11.30pm)
Saturday
Bayer Leverkusen v SC Freiburg (6.30pm)
Werder Bremen v Schalke (6.30pm)
Union Berlin v Borussia Monchengladbach (6.30pm)
Eintracht Frankfurt v Wolfsburg (6.30pm)
Fortuna Dusseldof v Bayern Munich (6.30pm)
RB Leipzig v Cologne (9.30pm)
Sunday
Augsburg v Hertha Berlin (6.30pm)
Hoffenheim v Mainz (9pm)
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 154bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option
Price: From Dh79,600
On sale: Now
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Brief scores:
Toss: Sindhis, elected to field first
Kerala Knights 103-7 (10 ov)
Parnell 59 not out; Tambe 5-15
Sindhis 104-1 (7.4 ov)
Watson 50 not out, Devcich 49
