ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 17: Paulo Costa throws a punch at Yoel Romero in the third round during their Middleweight Bout at UFC 241 at Honda Center on August 17, 2019 in Anaheim, California. Joe Scarnici/Getty Images/AFP
ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 17: Paulo Costa throws a punch at Yoel Romero in the third round during their Middleweight Bout at UFC 241 at Honda Center on August 17, 2019 in Anaheim, California. Joe Scarnici/Getty Images/AFP
ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 17: Paulo Costa throws a punch at Yoel Romero in the third round during their Middleweight Bout at UFC 241 at Honda Center on August 17, 2019 in Anaheim, California. Joe Scarnici/Getty Images/AFP
ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 17: Paulo Costa throws a punch at Yoel Romero in the third round during their Middleweight Bout at UFC 241 at Honda Center on August 17, 2019 in Anaheim, California. Joe S

UFC 253: Paulo Costa surprised by 'gentleman' Israel Adesanya ahead of blockbuster battle


John McAuley
  • English
  • Arabic

Paulo Costa says he was surprised by Israel Adesanya’s demeanour during their hotel run-in earlier this week, as he vowed not to let the champion dictate their headline title fight at UFC 253 in Abu Dhabi.

The two undefeated fighters square off in a blockbuster bout in the capital on Sunday, which concludes the first of five events at Fight Island 2 on Yas Island. It marks only the second time in UFC history that two unbeaten rivals do battle for a belt.

The pair has been involved in a heated build-up to the clash, with barbs and insults traded on social media and in interviews. Even without that, UFC president Dana White has tipped the encounter to be fight of the year.

However, it seemed a different story between the duo earlier this week, when Adesanya and Costa bumped into one another in their hotel on Yas Island. A video sent out on social media by Costa's team appeared to show the rivals sharing warm words, although Adesanya later told The National that he was simply "sizing up" his opponent.

Speaking to media on Wednesday night, Costa said: “I don’t know what happened, because he changed a lot his personality, his persona. Because the Adesanya that I saw on a video conference was a very disrespectful guy; he show his [middle fingers] all the time to me.

“But when I met him upstairs, he was very kind, very [gentlemanly]. When I saw him I was waiting for a different kind of guy. For him, he came and he gave his hand to shake his hand and he asked me, ‘How are you feeling? Feeling good?’ ‘Okay, I’m good.’ He said, ‘You look very good.’ So it’s OK. If he changed, OK.”

On a cursory level at least, the fight pits against one another two vastly contrasting styles, with Adesanya, 31, viewed as the more technical combatant and Costa, 29, seen to offer raw power. The Brazilian is known for his highlight-reel knockouts.

Middleweight title fight between Israel Adesanya and Paulo Costa tops the UFC 253 card. Courtesy UFC
Middleweight title fight between Israel Adesanya and Paulo Costa tops the UFC 253 card. Courtesy UFC

Costa, whose record in professional mixed martial arts stands at 13-0, recently taunted Adesanya for running from opponents inside the octagon. The Nigerian-born athlete (19-0) was heavily criticised for a lack of action in his most recent bout, when he sealed a unanimous decision in a lacklustre contest against Yoel Romero in February.

Although, that won’t necessarily mean Costa will charge at the champion come Sunday.

UFC 251 in Abu Dhabi

“First of all, I think he’s a [counter-striker],” he said. “Everybody here saw when he fought Romero. If one guy doesn’t push him, he will not push out. He stood, the guy came for him.

“So I will try to push him, to bring him to the fight. But, if he avoids the fight, I will not chase him all the time. I will go back to the middle and cut the angles and try to make the fight happen.”

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Ferrari 12Cilindri specs

Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12

Power: 819hp

Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm

Price: From Dh1,700,000

Available: Now

The Bio

Favourite vegetable: “I really like the taste of the beetroot, the potatoes and the eggplant we are producing.”

Holiday destination: “I like Paris very much, it’s a city very close to my heart.”

Book: “Das Kapital, by Karl Marx. I am not a communist, but there are a lot of lessons for the capitalist system, if you let it get out of control, and humanity.”

Musician: “I like very much Fairuz, the Lebanese singer, and the other is Umm Kulthum. Fairuz is for listening to in the morning, Umm Kulthum for the night.”

EA Sports FC 26

Publisher: EA Sports

Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S

Rating: 3/5

Essentials
The flights: You can fly from the UAE to Iceland with one stop in Europe with a variety of airlines. Return flights with Emirates from Dubai to Stockholm, then Icelandair to Reykjavik, cost from Dh4,153 return. The whole trip takes 11 hours. British Airways flies from Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Reykjavik, via London, with return flights taking 12 hours and costing from Dh2,490 return, including taxes. 
The activities: A half-day Silfra snorkelling trip costs 14,990 Icelandic kronur (Dh544) with Dive.is. Inside the Volcano also takes half a day and costs 42,000 kronur (Dh1,524). The Jokulsarlon small-boat cruise lasts about an hour and costs 9,800 kronur (Dh356). Into the Glacier costs 19,500 kronur (Dh708). It lasts three to four hours.
The tours: It’s often better to book a tailor-made trip through a specialist operator. UK-based Discover the World offers seven nights, self-driving, across the island from £892 (Dh4,505) per person. This includes three nights’ accommodation at Hotel Husafell near Into the Glacier, two nights at Hotel Ranga and two nights at the Icelandair Hotel Klaustur. It includes car rental, plus an iPad with itinerary and tourist information pre-loaded onto it, while activities can be booked as optional extras. More information inspiredbyiceland.com

Our family matters legal consultant

Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

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F1 The Movie

Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem

Director: Joseph Kosinski

Rating: 4/5

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Various Artists 
Habibi Funk: An Eclectic Selection Of Music From The Arab World (Habibi Funk)
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Defence review at a glance

• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”

• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems

• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.

• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%

• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade

• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels

How Voiss turns words to speech

The device has a screen reader or software that monitors what happens on the screen

The screen reader sends the text to the speech synthesiser

This converts to audio whatever it receives from screen reader, so the person can hear what is happening on the screen

A VOISS computer costs between $200 and $250 depending on memory card capacity that ranges from 32GB to 128GB

The speech synthesisers VOISS develops are free

Subsequent computer versions will include improvements such as wireless keyboards

Arabic voice in affordable talking computer to be added next year to English, Portuguese, and Spanish synthesiser

Partnerships planned during Expo 2020 Dubai to add more languages

At least 2.2 billion people globally have a vision impairment or blindness

More than 90 per cent live in developing countries

The Long-term aim of VOISS to reach the technology to people in poor countries with workshops that teach them to build their own device

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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4
Try out the test yourself

Q1 Suppose you had $100 in a savings account and the interest rate was 2 per cent per year. After five years, how much do you think you would have in the account if you left the money to grow?
a) More than $102
b) Exactly $102
c) Less than $102
d) Do not know
e) Refuse to answer

Q2 Imagine that the interest rate on your savings account was 1 per cent per year and inflation was 2 per cent per year. After one year, how much would you be able to buy with the money in this account?
a) More than today
b) Exactly the same as today
c) Less than today
d) Do not know
e) Refuse to answer

Q4 Do you think that the following statement is true or false? “Buying a single company stock usually provides a safer return than a stock mutual fund.”
a) True
b) False
d) Do not know
e) Refuse to answer

The “Big Three” financial literacy questions were created by Professors Annamaria Lusardi of the George Washington School of Business and Olivia Mitchell, of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. 

Answers: Q1 More than $102 (compound interest). Q2 Less than today (inflation). Q3 False (diversification).

Skewed figures

In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458. 

The alternatives

• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.

• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.

• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.

2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.

• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases -  but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.

RESULT

Huddersfield Town 2 Manchester United 1
Huddersfield: Mooy (28'), Depoitre (33')
Manchester United: Rashford (78')

 

Man of the Match: Aaron Mooy (Huddersfield Town)

The specs

Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors

Power: 480kW

Torque: 850Nm

Transmission: Single-speed automatic

Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)

On sale: Now