UFC Fight Island: Khabib Nurmagomedov's return will provide 'extraordinary finale' to Abu Dhabi events

Local organisers say Khabib Nurmagomedov’s return in Abu Dhabi next month will provide an “extraordinary finale” to the upcoming Fight Island, with the second UFC residency beginning this Sunday.

The world’s lead mixed martial arts promotion has relocated to the capital once more for an extended five-event series, which gets under way with UFC 253 on Sunday and concludes with UFC 254 on October 24. Three other shows, including the first in Abu Dhabi to feature a female main event, take place on Yas Island, on October 4, 11 and 18.

Following on from July's hugely successful inaugural run, the "Return to UFC Fight Island" marks the first time in the organisation's history that successive numbered events will be held in the same city outside of Las Vegas.

Israel Adesanya's middleweight title defence against Paulo Costa headlines UFC 253, while the card includes another championship bout in Dominick Reyes encounter with Jan Blachowicz for the vacant light heavyweight crown.

Meanwhile, at UFC 254, undefeated lightweight champion Nurmagomedov will compete for the first time in more than a year in his clash with interim title-holder Justin Gaethje. Abu Dhabi hosted Nurmagomedov's last fight, too, at UFC 242 in September 2019.

"Khabib has been always an incredibly popular figure in this region," Ali Al Shaiba, the executive director at the Department of Culture and Tourism (DCT), told The National. "We saw that when he last appeared in the octagon during the sold-out UFC 242 right here in The Arena last September.

“The reaction of the fans everywhere he went and after his victory on the night underlined how much he is admired here. So his match-up against Justin will be an extraordinary finale to an enthralling ‘Return to UFC Fight Island’.

“It will be an amazing show for sure. Both fighters are ready and we are happy this fight takes place here in Abu Dhabi, and that Khabib is back.”

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UFC 242 in Abu Dhabi

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As in July – that run comprised four events - Fight Island will be staged inside a designated “safe zone” on Yas Island, open to only to the UFC delegation and those deemed necessary to the operation. As it stands, and similar to the summer series, fans will not be permitted to attend any of the events.

“For us, always health and safety is the priority and everything else comes second," Al Shaiba said. "So today we're not expecting to have any spectators in the arena. We’re aware how eager fans are to attend fights.

“However, to ensure the health and safety of the UFC fans, athletes, personnel, stakeholders and also the residents of Abu Dhabi, ‘Return to UFC Fight Island’ will be held behind closed doors, unfortunately.

“And, if there is any opportunity, definitely we’re going to announce this and make it in the right way. But for now people can enjoy watching it through the screens.”

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Yas Island's transformation for Fight Island 1

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A return residency in Abu Dhabi has been mooted for some time, with confirmation arriving last Thursday. Asked why the official announcement came so close to the beginning of Fight Island, Al Shaiba said: “I don’t think there was a delay. There was just a preparation from both sides. We wanted to make sure we built on the success of the first edition, and also that everybody is aligned here in the destination.

"As you know, it doesn’t happen only through DCT; it will be a collective effort by everybody here in Abu Dhabi, all the other entities. So we wanted to make sure everybody’s aligned, everybody’s ready 100 per cent to kick this off.

"It was a matter of time for everyone to get ready on board and we had the right guidelines in place to ensure we have another successful event here in Abu Dhabi.”

On the strengthening of the relationship between Abu Dhabi and the UFC, who last year signed a five-year partnership, Al Shaiba added: “It’s kind of a win-win situation. We have a good relation with the guys there.

Ali Al Shaiba, executive director at the Department of Culture and Tourism. Victor Besa / The National

"We have now a track record of success of events here in Abu Dhabi. Last year, UFC 242 was sold-out and this year the first edition of Fight Island was a great success for everyone - for us in Abu Dhabi and also for the UFC team.

“Based on this, they decided to do it again. And I’m sure if there’s an opportunity to do it even more in Abu Dhabi they will never hesitate to choose Abu Dhabi as the destination.”

Al Shaiba said the UFC's return underlines the emirate's "readiness to revive tourism" and, alongside the ongoing Indian Premier League and December's Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, provides a positive indication of how the capital is containing Covid-19.

“Today, in Abu Dhabi, we made it happen," he said. "We resumed the activity of events, brought all the big events here during such a situation. That’s a bonus, that’s a credit, that’s a hope.

“Everything is positive here and that’s the message we want to send to everybody: that, although we have such circumstances, Abu Dhabi proves that it can host these events during this situation - with the highest health and safety standards, of course.”

Diriyah%20project%20at%20a%20glance

%3Cp%3E-%20Diriyah%E2%80%99s%201.9km%20King%20Salman%20Boulevard%2C%20a%20Parisian%20Champs-Elysees-inspired%20avenue%2C%20is%20scheduled%20for%20completion%20in%202028%3Cbr%3E-%20The%20Royal%20Diriyah%20Opera%20House%20is%20expected%20to%20be%20completed%20in%20four%20years%3Cbr%3E-%20Diriyah%E2%80%99s%20first%20of%2042%20hotels%2C%20the%20Bab%20Samhan%20hotel%2C%20will%20open%20in%20the%20first%20quarter%20of%202024%3Cbr%3E-%20On%20completion%20in%202030%2C%20the%20Diriyah%20project%20is%20forecast%20to%20accommodate%20more%20than%20100%2C000%20people%3Cbr%3E-%20The%20%2463.2%20billion%20Diriyah%20project%20will%20contribute%20%247.2%20billion%20to%20the%20kingdom%E2%80%99s%20GDP%3Cbr%3E-%20It%20will%20create%20more%20than%20178%2C000%20jobs%20and%20aims%20to%20attract%20more%20than%2050%20million%20visits%20a%20year%3Cbr%3E-%20About%202%2C000%20people%20work%20for%20the%20Diriyah%20Company%2C%20with%20more%20than%2086%20per%20cent%20being%20Saudi%20citizens%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

Killing of Qassem Suleimani

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Tips for used car buyers

Choose cars with GCC specifications
Get a service history for cars less than five years old
Don’t go cheap on the inspection
Check for oil leaks
Do a Google search on the standard problems for your car model
Do your due diligence. Get a transfer of ownership done at an official RTA centre
Check the vehicle’s condition. You don’t want to buy a car that’s a good deal but ends up costing you Dh10,000 in repairs every month
Validate warranty and service contracts with the relevant agency and and make sure they are valid when ownership is transferred
If you are planning to sell the car soon, buy one with a good resale value. The two most popular cars in the UAE are black or white in colour and other colours are harder to sell

Tarek Kabrit, chief executive of Seez, and Imad Hammad, chief executive and co-founder of CarSwitch.com

First-round leaderbaord

-5 C Conners (Can)

-3 B Koepka (US), K Bradley (US), V Hovland (Nor), A Wise (US), S Horsfield (Eng), C Davis (Aus);

-2 C Morikawa (US), M Laird (Sco), C Tringale (US)

Selected others: -1 P Casey (Eng), R Fowler (US), T Hatton (Eng)

Level B DeChambeau (US), J Rose (Eng)

1 L Westwood (Eng), J Spieth (US)

3 R McIlroy (NI)

4 D Johnson (US)

'Cheb%20Khaled'

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Tips from the expert

Dobromir Radichkov, chief data officer at dubizzle and Bayut, offers a few tips for UAE residents looking to earn some cash from pre-loved items.

Sellers should focus on providing high-quality used goods at attractive prices to buyers.
It’s important to use clear and appealing photos, with catchy titles and detailed descriptions to capture the attention of prospective buyers.
Try to advertise a realistic price to attract buyers looking for good deals, especially in the current environment where consumers are significantly more price-sensitive.
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A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.

Route 1: bank transfer

The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.

Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount

Total received: €4,670.30

Route 2: online platform

The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.

Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction

Total received: €4,756

The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.

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Hidden killer

Sepsis arises when the body tries to fight an infection but damages its own tissue and organs in the process.

The World Health Organisation estimates it affects about 30 million people each year and that about six million die.

Of those about three million are newborns and 1.2 are young children.

Patients with septic shock must often have limbs amputated if clots in their limbs prevent blood flow, causing the limbs to die.

Campaigners say the condition is often diagnosed far too late by medical professionals and that many patients wait too long to seek treatment, confusing the symptoms with flu.

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HAJJAN

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Specs

Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)

Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)

Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)

On sale: Now

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Last 10 NBA champions

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Federer's 11 Wimbledon finals

2003 Beat Mark Philippoussis

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Ad Astra

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Torque: 300Nm @ 1,600rpm
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Power 110hp) @ 7,750rpm

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Fuel economy, combined 5.3L / 100km

The specs

Engine: 8.0-litre, quad-turbo 16-cylinder

Transmission: 7-speed auto

0-100kmh 2.3 seconds

0-200kmh 5.5 seconds

0-300kmh 11.6 seconds

Power: 1500hp

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UFC Fight Island: Khabib Nurmagomedov's return will provide 'extraordinary finale' to Abu Dhabi events

Unbeaten lightweight champion faces Justin Gaethje in headline bout of UFC 254 on October 24

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UFC 242 in Abu Dhabi

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Yas Island's transformation for Fight Island 1

Diriyah%20project%20at%20a%20glance

Killing of Qassem Suleimani

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'Cheb%20Khaled'

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