Back for the first time at the scene of his greatest professional achievement to date, Jan Blachowicz wore the smile of a man content with life.
Impending UFC light-heavyweight title defence, or not.
"One year ago. Yeah, it’s a lucky place for me. Good memories. Good weather. I feel great," Blachowicz told reporters on Wednesday at the Hilton Abu Dhabi Yas Island, about a stone’s throw from the Etihad Arena where he puts his belt on the line on Saturday night against Glover Teixeira in the headline bout at UFC 267.
“Happy to be back and fight here again.”
Not everything, though, was exactly how it was 13 months ago. Back then, inside the Fight Island “bubble” and at du Forum, Blachowicz dropped Dominick Reyes in the second round at UFC 253 to claim the vacant crown. Professionally, life took a steep upward turn: at 37, and having experienced the highs and lows of the elite fight game, Blachowicz had extended a late-career resurgence to nine victories from 10 bouts. His win streak sits at five.
Things are pretty sweet personally, too. Blachowicz is in town with Jan Junior, having become a father for the first time earlier late last year.
“I’m just happy,” he said. “Just happy becoming the UFC champion. I do this all my life and finally I’m at the top. And I like it. I don’t want to go anywhere. I will stay on top. I enjoy my life. A lot of good things have happened to me, so we just enjoy it every day.”
Saturday, though, is business. Serious business at that. Blachowicz’s second title defence comes against the division’s No 1-ranked contender. Teixeira pro storyline runs kind of similar; he has rebounded from trials and tribulations to also put together five wins on the bounce. Saturday represents his second shot at a UFC belt. Seven years separate them.
Turning 42 on Thursday, Teixeira's clearly making the most of his days remaining in the world's lead mixed martial arts promotion.
Refreshingly – or not, depending on your persuasion – the two best light-heavyweights on the planet don’t hold any ill feeling toward the other.
“He’s a great opponent with great skills,” Blachowicz said. “A lot of experience. Longer than me in the sport. We are friends, no bad blood between us.
"When the fight will start I have to knock him out and I will do it. He just deserves this title shot. Anyway he’s going to lose it, but he deserves this.”
Teixeira, meanwhile, is one bout away from becoming the second oldest UFC athlete to win gold, after Randy Couture (43 years, eight months) in 2007. That’s quite the claim to fame.
“I love it when someone overcomes the odds, breaks the rules,” he said. “Doing something not many people have. I win this title and who did that before? Only one guy in the UFC. It’s a hard thing to do and I’m glad that I’m here. And I’m going to get it Saturday night.”
Having lost his other championship fight, to Jon Jones in April 2014, it’s been some journey since. It will be, should he get his hand raised on Saturday.
“It’s going to be a great fight because the style match-up is amazing,” Teixeira said. “Jan, he likes to come in and finish fights, and goes after people. You know me, the record speaks for itself. I’m a fighter.
“I know how strong he is. I have the most submissions in UFC, my jiu-jitsu is MMA jiu-jitsu. He’s a well-rounded fighter. That’s why he’s a champion now. But I’m not concerned about it. But I respect it.
“The best is going to win. Like my mum says all the time, ‘I’m praying so no one gets hurt’. Hopefully no one gets injured bad, but somebody’s going to get hurt. And it’s going to be Jan.”
Earlier on Wednesday, another light-heavyweight on the UFC 267 main card, Volkan Oezdemir, referenced Teixeira’s relentless style, likening him to a zombie.
"If he’s a zombie," Blachowicz said, "you know how to kill a zombie: you need to hit him in the head, very hard. So I will do it.”
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Suggested picnic spots
Abu Dhabi
Umm Al Emarat Park
Yas Gateway Park
Delma Park
Al Bateen beach
Saadiyaat beach
The Corniche
Zayed Sports City
Dubai
Kite Beach
Zabeel Park
Al Nahda Pond Park
Mushrif Park
Safa Park
Al Mamzar Beach Park
Al Qudrah Lakes
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
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The Al Barzakh Festival takes place on Wednesday and Thursday at 7.30pm in the Red Theatre, NYUAD, Saadiyat Island. Tickets cost Dh105 for adults from platinumlist.net
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
War 2
Director: Ayan Mukerji
Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana
Rating: 2/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl, 48V hybrid
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: Dh359,000
On sale: now
The five pillars of Islam
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The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
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.
Game Of Thrones Season Seven: A Bluffers Guide
Want to sound on message about the biggest show on television without actually watching it? Best not to get locked into the labyrinthine tales of revenge and royalty: as Isaac Hempstead Wright put it, all you really need to know from now on is that there’s going to be a huge fight between humans and the armies of undead White Walkers.
The season ended with a dragon captured by the Night King blowing apart the huge wall of ice that separates the human world from its less appealing counterpart. Not that some of the humans in Westeros have been particularly appealing, either.
Anyway, the White Walkers are now free to cause any kind of havoc they wish, and as Liam Cunningham told us: “Westeros may be zombie land after the Night King has finished.” If the various human factions don’t put aside their differences in season 8, we could be looking at The Walking Dead: The Medieval Years.
