UFC middleweight champion Alex Pereira, left, faces challenger Israel Adesanya after the weigh-in for UFC 287. AP
UFC middleweight champion Alex Pereira, left, faces challenger Israel Adesanya after the weigh-in for UFC 287. AP
UFC middleweight champion Alex Pereira, left, faces challenger Israel Adesanya after the weigh-in for UFC 287. AP
UFC middleweight champion Alex Pereira, left, faces challenger Israel Adesanya after the weigh-in for UFC 287. AP

UFC 287: Adesanya ready to prove his greatness by finally beating Pereira


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Israel Adesanya is ready to "remind people how great I am" when the UFC's former middleweight champion aims to reclaim his title in an immediate rematch with long-time nemesis Alex Pereira.

Adesanya had held the middleweight belt for more than three years, since beating Robert Whittaker in October 2019, and had five successful title defences. That was until UFC 281 in November last year when, despite leading on the scorecards, he was stopped in the fifth round by Pereira.

Determined for an immediate shot at the title, the Nigerian-born New Zealander will be back in the Octagon on Saturday for UFC 287 in Miami for a rematch against a fighter he has lost to in each of their three encounters across different disciplines.

Even though he is the challenger, the 33-year-old Adesanya is the slight favourite, a status he is choosing to ignore, instead offering his own narrative of a comeback he called “one of the greatest storylines in MMA history”.

“Not many people get the opportunity to show how great they are, to rise to the occasion when all the odds are stacked against them, when people have counted them out," Adesanya said. "For me, this fight I feel like the underdog. I feel like everyone’s counting me out. They’ve forgot what I’ve done in this game. They’ve forgot who I am, and it’s time to remind people how great I am.”

Perhaps one reason Adesanya (23-2) wants this fight against Pereira (7-1) so quickly was because he was beating the Brazilian 39-37 on all three scorecards entering the fifth and final round at Madison Square Garden in New York. Pereira could only win by knockout, and that's what he got 2:01 into the round.

That loss ended Adesanya's 12-match winning streak at middleweight, one short of Anderson Silva's record.

“I know how I can beat this guy,” Adesanya said. “I know every time I fight this guy I’m dominating him and beating him, and then he has this special ability to recover and put his foot on the gas. So I have to find a way to take take him out of the driver’s seat, which I will.”

Pereira has never lost to Adesanya. Before the two met in November, Pereira defeated Adesanya twice in kickboxing.

Pereira stuns Adesanya at UFC 281

Even in the most recent bout, Pereira said he believed he had the upper hand despite trailing on points, and he proved that with the stoppage.

Pereira, 35, could have passed on Adesanya's rematch request when considering which opponent he wanted for his first title defence.

“He was a dominant champion,” Pereira said through an interpreter. “Maybe he could've done two or three (fights) before that, but he wanted to do it right away. I said, ‘No problem.’"

UFC president Dana White said he preferred Adesanya's desire for a quick rematch over a fighter choosing the more cautious route.

“This guy’s a real fighter that wants to prove himself against the best, wants to be looked at as the best, wants to be looked at as one of the greatest of all time,” White said. "You've got to respect that. Those are the kind of guys I love. The guys who are strategic drive me crazy. There is no strategy. You have to fight everybody in the top ten. That’s it.

“What you want to do is create a legacy for yourself and prove to the world that not only are you the best in the world, but you’re the greatest of all time. That’s what everybody should be striving to do.”

Pereira is giving Adesanya that chance, but said one rematch was enough. He didn't plan on creating the possibility for a UFC trilogy.

“I believe that me beating him this Saturday," Pereira said. "I will never face him again.”

Fifth-ranked welterweight contender Gilbert Burns (21-5) will face No 11 Jorge Masvidal (35-16) in the lead-up fight to to the main event.

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Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015

- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France

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Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic

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  • Riders must be 14-years-old or over
  • Wear a protective helmet
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  • Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
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Results

United States beat UAE by three wickets

United States beat Scotland by 35 runs

UAE v Scotland – no result

United States beat UAE by 98 runs

Scotland beat United States by four wickets

Fixtures

Sunday, 10am, ICC Academy, Dubai - UAE v Scotland

Admission is free

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Groom and Two Brides

Director: Elie Semaan

Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla

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The specs: Macan Turbo

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Most%20polluted%20cities%20in%20the%20Middle%20East
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 1: Commit to countering all types of terrorism and extremism in all their manifestations

2: Denounce violence and the rhetoric of hatred

3: Adhere to the full compliance with the Riyadh accord of 2014 and the subsequent meeting and executive procedures approved in 2014 by the GCC  

4: Comply with all recommendations of the Summit between the US and Muslim countries held in May 2017 in Saudi Arabia.

5: Refrain from interfering in the internal affairs of countries and of supporting rogue entities.

6: Carry out the responsibility of all the countries with the international community to counter all manifestations of extremism and terrorism that threaten international peace and security

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Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa

Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong

Rating: 3/5

LIKELY TEAMS

South Africa
Faf du Plessis (captain), Dean Elgar, Aiden Markram, Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, Quinton de Kock (wkt), Vernon Philander, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Morne Morkel, Lungi Ngidi.

India (from)
Virat Kohli (captain), Murali Vijay, Lokesh Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik (wkt), Ravichandran Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Mohammad Shami, Jasprit Bumrah.

Sustainable Development Goals

1. End poverty in all its forms everywhere

2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture

3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages

4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all

5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls

6. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all

7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all

8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all

9. Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation

10. Reduce inequality  within and among countries

11. Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable

12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its effects

14. Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development

15. Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss

16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels

17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the global partnership for sustainable development

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Company%20profile
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Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021

Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.

The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.

These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.

“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.

“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.

“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.

“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”

Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.

There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.

“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.

“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.

“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”

UAE SQUAD

Ahmed Raza (Captain), Rohan Mustafa, Jonathan Figy, CP Rizwan, Junaid Siddique, Mohammad Usman, Basil Hameed, Zawar Farid, Vriitya Aravind (WK), Waheed Ahmed, Karthik Meiyappan, Zahoor Khan, Darius D'Silva, Chirag Suri

Match info

Wolves 0

Arsenal 2 (Saka 43', Lacazette 85')

Man of the match: Shkodran Mustafi (Arsenal)

The specs

Engine: 0.8-litre four cylinder

Power: 70bhp

Torque: 66Nm

Transmission: four-speed manual

Price: $1,075 new in 1967, now valued at $40,000

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Ultra processed foods

- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns 

- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;

- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces

- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,

- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.

Updated: April 08, 2023, 6:42 AM