Khamzat Chimaev fought twice, and won twice, in 10 days on the inaugural Fight Island. Zuffa LLC
Khamzat Chimaev fought twice, and won twice, in 10 days on the inaugural Fight Island. Zuffa LLC
Khamzat Chimaev fought twice, and won twice, in 10 days on the inaugural Fight Island. Zuffa LLC
Khamzat Chimaev fought twice, and won twice, in 10 days on the inaugural Fight Island. Zuffa LLC

UFC: Dana White lines-up Leon Edwards and Khamzat Chimaev bout for Abu Dhabi


John McAuley
  • English
  • Arabic

UFC president Dana White is working towards rebooking the postponed match-up between Leon Edwards and Khamzat Chimaev for Abu Dhabi next month.

The highly anticipated clash was initially scheduled for Las Vegas next week, however Edwards had to withdraw from that slot having contracted Covid-19.

White told Canadian network TSN late on Thursday that plans are now for the welterweights to headline an event on Fight Island in Abu Dhabi on January 20, as part of a three-show International Fight Week.

The run, still to be confirmed by the UFC or local organisers, is expected to conclude with Conor McGregor’s much-awaited comeback against Dustin Poirier at UFC 257. The capital has already hosted two Fight Island series, the most recent of which concluding in October.

Speaking to TSN’s Aaron Bronsteter, White said Fight Island was targeted for the UFC’s opening three events of 2021 – January 16-23 – with the hope to that fans could attend - should they test negative for Covid-19.

In line with public health guidelines at the time, the first two residencies took place without spectators and inside a safe-zone “bubble”. The newly built Etihad Arena on Yas Island has been mooted as a potential host venue.

Regarding fan attendance, White said: “We’re still looking at that stuff. In a perfect world, if I could pull this thing off, we go to Fight Island again and it’s like International Fight Week.

"We’re doing all cool things that week for people to fly in, hang out, watch fights, Saturday-Wednesday-Saturday.”

White also said he "could be" looking at booking Justin Gaethje against Michael Chandler for UFC 257. Gaethje competed on Fight Island in October, at UFC 254, losing his lightweight unification bout to undefeated champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.

___________________________________________________

Gallery: Khabib beats Gaethje at UFC 254

  • UFC 254 GALLERY: Dagestan fighter Khabib Nurmagomedov celebrates his victory over Justin Gaethje of the US after their lightweight title bout on UFC Fight Island in Abu Dhabi. Getty
    UFC 254 GALLERY: Dagestan fighter Khabib Nurmagomedov celebrates his victory over Justin Gaethje of the US after their lightweight title bout on UFC Fight Island in Abu Dhabi. Getty
  • Khabib Nurmagomedov celebrates his victory over Justin Gaethje. Getty
    Khabib Nurmagomedov celebrates his victory over Justin Gaethje. Getty
  • Khabib Nurmagomedov clinches his victory over Justin Gaethje via a second-round triangle choke at Flash Forum. Getty
    Khabib Nurmagomedov clinches his victory over Justin Gaethje via a second-round triangle choke at Flash Forum. Getty
  • Khabib Nurmagomedov takes down Justin Gaethje. Getty
    Khabib Nurmagomedov takes down Justin Gaethje. Getty
  • Justin Gaethje kicks Khabib Nurmagomedov. Getty
    Justin Gaethje kicks Khabib Nurmagomedov. Getty
  • Khabib Nurmagomedov punches Justin Gaethje. Getty
    Khabib Nurmagomedov punches Justin Gaethje. Getty
  • Khabib Nurmagomedov after his victory. Getty
    Khabib Nurmagomedov after his victory. Getty
  • Australian fighter Robert Whittaker lands a punch during his victory over Jared Cannonier of the US in their middleweight bout. Getty
    Australian fighter Robert Whittaker lands a punch during his victory over Jared Cannonier of the US in their middleweight bout. Getty
  • Robert Whittaker after the fight against Jared Cannonier. Getty
    Robert Whittaker after the fight against Jared Cannonier. Getty
  • Jared Cannonier punches Robert Whittaker. Getty
    Jared Cannonier punches Robert Whittaker. Getty
  • Robert Whittaker punches Jared Cannonier. Getty
    Robert Whittaker punches Jared Cannonier. Getty
  • Dagestan's Magomed Ankalaev celebrates his KO victory over Ion Cutelaba of Moldova in their light heavyweight bout on UFC's Fight Island, in Abu Dhabi. Getty
    Dagestan's Magomed Ankalaev celebrates his KO victory over Ion Cutelaba of Moldova in their light heavyweight bout on UFC's Fight Island, in Abu Dhabi. Getty
  • Magomed Ankalaev knocks down Ion Cutelaba. Getty
    Magomed Ankalaev knocks down Ion Cutelaba. Getty
  • Magomed Ankalaev punches Ion Cutelaba. Getty
    Magomed Ankalaev punches Ion Cutelaba. Getty
  • Russian fighter Alexander Volkov celebrates his victory over Walt Harris of the US after their heavyweight bout. Getty
    Russian fighter Alexander Volkov celebrates his victory over Walt Harris of the US after their heavyweight bout. Getty
  • Alexander Volkov punches Walt Harris. Getty
    Alexander Volkov punches Walt Harris. Getty
  • Walt Harris punches Alexander Volkov. Getty
    Walt Harris punches Alexander Volkov. Getty
  • US fighter Lauren Murphy celebrates her victory over Liliya Shakirova of Uzbekistan after their women's flyweight bout. Getty
    US fighter Lauren Murphy celebrates her victory over Liliya Shakirova of Uzbekistan after their women's flyweight bout. Getty
  • Lauren Murphy punches Liliya Shakirova. Getty
    Lauren Murphy punches Liliya Shakirova. Getty
  • Liliya Shakirova and Lauren Murphy during their bout. Getty
    Liliya Shakirova and Lauren Murphy during their bout. Getty
  • US fighter Phillip Hawes lands a punch during his 18-second victory over Jacob Malkoun of Australia in their middleweight bout. Getty
    US fighter Phillip Hawes lands a punch during his 18-second victory over Jacob Malkoun of Australia in their middleweight bout. Getty
  • Phillip Hawes punches Jacob Malkoun. Getty
    Phillip Hawes punches Jacob Malkoun. Getty
  • Phillip Hawes celebrates his KO victory over Jacob Malkoun. Getty
    Phillip Hawes celebrates his KO victory over Jacob Malkoun. Getty
  • Phillip Hawes celebrates his KO victory over Jacob Malkoun. Getty
    Phillip Hawes celebrates his KO victory over Jacob Malkoun. Getty
  • Kazakhstan's Shavkat Rakhmonov on his way to victory over Alex Oliveira of Brazil in their welterweight bout. Getty
    Kazakhstan's Shavkat Rakhmonov on his way to victory over Alex Oliveira of Brazil in their welterweight bout. Getty
  • Alex Oliveira lands a kick on Shavkat Rakhmonov. Getty
    Alex Oliveira lands a kick on Shavkat Rakhmonov. Getty
  • American fighter Casey Kenney lands a punch and his way to victory over Nathaniel Wood of England in their catchweight bout. Getty
    American fighter Casey Kenney lands a punch and his way to victory over Nathaniel Wood of England in their catchweight bout. Getty
  • Nathaniel Wood punches Casey Kenney. Getty
    Nathaniel Wood punches Casey Kenney. Getty
  • Australian Tai Tuivasa lands a punch on Stefan Struve of the Netherlands on his way to victory in their heavyweight bout. Getty
    Australian Tai Tuivasa lands a punch on Stefan Struve of the Netherlands on his way to victory in their heavyweight bout. Getty
  • Stefan Struve lands a kick on Tai Tuivasa. Getty
    Stefan Struve lands a kick on Tai Tuivasa. Getty

___________________________________________________

Meanwhile, the fight between Edwards and Chimaev pits against one another two of the top-rated welterweights in the UFC.

The division’s third-ranked challenger, Edwards has not fought in July last year, while Chimaev was the breakout star of the original Fight Island.

The Chechen, who is based in Sweden, made his debut in July and then was in action again 10 days later – creating history for the shortest turnaround between bouts.

In September, he moved to 3-0 in the UFC by defeating Gerald Meerschaert in 17 seconds in Las Vegas.

Starring: Jamie Foxx, Angela Bassett, Tina Fey

Directed by: Pete Doctor

Rating: 4 stars

Visit Abu Dhabi culinary team's top Emirati restaurants in Abu Dhabi

Yadoo’s House Restaurant & Cafe

For the karak and Yoodo's house platter with includes eggs, balaleet, khamir and chebab bread.

Golden Dallah

For the cappuccino, luqaimat and aseeda.

Al Mrzab Restaurant

For the shrimp murabian and Kuwaiti options including Kuwaiti machboos with kebab and spicy sauce.

Al Derwaza

For the fish hubul, regag bread, biryani and special seafood soup. 

Indian origin executives leading top technology firms

Sundar Pichai

Chief executive, Google and Alphabet

Satya Nadella

Chief executive, Microsoft

Ajaypal Singh Banga

President and chief executive, Mastercard

Shantanu Narayen

Chief executive, chairman, and president, Adobe

Indra Nooyi  

Board of directors, Amazon and former chief executive, PepsiCo

 

 

Community Shield info

Where, when and at what time Wembley Stadium in London on Sunday at 5pm (UAE time)

Arsenal line up (3-4-2-1) Petr Cech; Rob Holding, Per Mertesacker, Nacho Monreal; Hector Bellerin, Mohamed Elneny, Granit Xhaka, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain; Alex Iwobi, Danny Welbeck; Alexandre Lacazette

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger

Chelsea line up (3-4-2-1) Thibaut Courtois; Cesar Azpilicueta, David Luiz, Gary Cahill; Victor Moses, Cesc Fabregas, N'Golo Kante, Marcos Alonso; Willian, Pedro; Michy Batshuayi

Chelsea manager Antonio Conte

Referee Bobby Madley

House-hunting

Top 10 locations for inquiries from US house hunters, according to Rightmove

  1. Edinburgh, Scotland 
  2. Westminster, London 
  3. Camden, London 
  4. Glasgow, Scotland 
  5. Islington, London 
  6. Kensington and Chelsea, London 
  7. Highlands, Scotland 
  8. Argyll and Bute, Scotland 
  9. Fife, Scotland 
  10. Tower Hamlets, London 

 

Traits of Chinese zodiac animals

Tiger:independent, successful, volatile
Rat:witty, creative, charming
Ox:diligent, perseverent, conservative
Rabbit:gracious, considerate, sensitive
Dragon:prosperous, brave, rash
Snake:calm, thoughtful, stubborn
Horse:faithful, energetic, carefree
Sheep:easy-going, peacemaker, curious
Monkey:family-orientated, clever, playful
Rooster:honest, confident, pompous
Dog:loyal, kind, perfectionist
Boar:loving, tolerant, indulgent   

Living in...

This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.

How Tesla’s price correction has hit fund managers

Investing in disruptive technology can be a bumpy ride, as investors in Tesla were reminded on Friday, when its stock dropped 7.5 per cent in early trading to $575.

It recovered slightly but still ended the week 15 per cent lower and is down a third from its all-time high of $883 on January 26. The electric car maker’s market cap fell from $834 billion to about $567bn in that time, a drop of an astonishing $267bn, and a blow for those who bought Tesla stock late.

The collapse also hit fund managers that have gone big on Tesla, notably the UK-based Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust and Cathie Wood’s ARK Innovation ETF.

Tesla is the top holding in both funds, making up a hefty 10 per cent of total assets under management. Both funds have fallen by a quarter in the past month.

Matt Weller, global head of market research at GAIN Capital, recently warned that Tesla founder Elon Musk had “flown a bit too close to the sun”, after getting carried away by investing $1.5bn of the company’s money in Bitcoin.

He also predicted Tesla’s sales could struggle as traditional auto manufacturers ramp up electric car production, destroying its first mover advantage.

AJ Bell’s Russ Mould warns that many investors buy tech stocks when earnings forecasts are rising, almost regardless of valuation. “When it works, it really works. But when it goes wrong, elevated valuations leave little or no downside protection.”

A Tesla correction was probably baked in after last year’s astonishing share price surge, and many investors will see this as an opportunity to load up at a reduced price.

Dramatic swings are to be expected when investing in disruptive technology, as Ms Wood at ARK makes clear.

Every week, she sends subscribers a commentary listing “stocks in our strategies that have appreciated or dropped more than 15 per cent in a day” during the week.

Her latest commentary, issued on Friday, showed seven stocks displaying extreme volatility, led by ExOne, a leader in binder jetting 3D printing technology. It jumped 24 per cent, boosted by news that fellow 3D printing specialist Stratasys had beaten fourth-quarter revenues and earnings expectations, seen as good news for the sector.

By contrast, computational drug and material discovery company Schrödinger fell 27 per cent after quarterly and full-year results showed its core software sales and drug development pipeline slowing.

Despite that setback, Ms Wood remains positive, arguing that its “medicinal chemistry platform offers a powerful and unique view into chemical space”.

In her weekly video view, she remains bullish, stating that: “We are on the right side of change, and disruptive innovation is going to deliver exponential growth trajectories for many of our companies, in fact, most of them.”

Ms Wood remains committed to Tesla as she expects global electric car sales to compound at an average annual rate of 82 per cent for the next five years.

She said these are so “enormous that some people find them unbelievable”, and argues that this scepticism, especially among institutional investors, “festers” and creates a great opportunity for ARK.

Only you can decide whether you are a believer or a festering sceptic. If it’s the former, then buckle up.

Opening day UAE Premiership fixtures, Friday, September 22:

  • Dubai Sports City Eagles v Dubai Exiles
  • Dubai Hurricanes v Abu Dhabi Saracens
  • Jebel Ali Dragons v Abu Dhabi Harlequins
Key findings of Jenkins report
  • Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
  • Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
  • Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
  • Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
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ELECTION%20RESULTS
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AWARDS
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBest%20Male%20black%20belt%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ELucas%20Protasio%20(BRA)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBest%20female%20black%20belt%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJulia%20Alves%20(BRA)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBest%20Masters%20black%20belt%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Igor%20Silva%20(BRA)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBest%20Asian%20Jiu-Jitsu%20Federation%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Kazakhstan%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBest%20Academy%20in%20UAE%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ECommando%20Group%2C%20Abu%20Dhabi%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBest%20International%20Academy%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Commando%20Group%2C%20Abu%20Dhabi%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EAfrican%20Player%20of%20the%20Year%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EKatiuscia%20Yasmira%20Dias%20(GNB)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOceanian%20Player%20of%20the%20Year%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAnton%20Minenko%20(AUS)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EEuropean%20Player%20of%20the%20Year%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Rose%20El%20Sharouni%20(NED)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENorth%20and%20Central%20American%20Player%20of%20the%20Year%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAlexa%20Yanes%20(USA)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EAsian%20Player%20of%20the%20Year%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EZayed%20Al%20Katheeri%20(UAE)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERookie%20of%20the%20Year%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Rui%20Neto%20(BRA)Rui%20Neto%20(BRA)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
RESULTS

5pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (Dirt) 1,400m

Winner AF Nashrah, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer)

5.30pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,400m

Winner Mutaqadim, Riccardo Iacopini, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami.

6pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,600m

Winner Hameem, Jose Santiago, Abdallah Al Hammadi.

6.30pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,600m

Winner AF Almomayaz, Sandro Paiva, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.

7pm Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,800m

Winner Dalil Al Carrere, Fernando Jara, Mohamed Daggash.

7.30pm Handicap (TB) Dh70,000 (D) 1,000m

Winner Lahmoom, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer.

8pm Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,000m

Winner Jayide Al Boraq, Bernardo Pinheiro, Khalifa Al Neyadi.

In The Heights

Directed by: Jon M. Chu

Stars: Anthony Ramos, Lin-Manual Miranda

Rating: ****