Strong Arab presence at Abu Dhabi proof of jiu-jitsu’s popularity in the region

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Updated 02 April 2021
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Strong Arab presence at Abu Dhabi proof of jiu-jitsu’s popularity in the region

  • Fighters from Bahrain, Kuwait, Lebanon, and Jordan are taking part in the Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship held on April 6-9

While the UAE has for some time been on the fast track to becoming a jiu-jitsu powerhouse, other countries in the region are also upping their game at the 12th Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship held in the UAE capital from April 6-9.

Ali Monfaradi, a black belt holder from Bahrain, will compete in the 69-kg category and said that he was happy to get the chance to compete in such a prestigious tournament.

“Just qualifying for the ADWPJJC in my category is a very humbling feeling,” he said. “My category has traditionally been dominated by South American athletes and has been quite a difficult one to crack on the global level. I have been training extremely hard to ensure that I put on a strong performance and do Bahrain and myself proud.”

The ADWPJJC will welcome 2,000 athletes from across the world and Monfaradi is delighted the UAEJJF was able to organize the tournament during these challenging times.

“The chance to come and fight at this tournament is a true gift,” he said. “I am so thankful to the organisers for ensuring that the ADWPJJC comes through. The global jiu-jitsu community is lucky to get a chance to compete on such a huge platform.”

Camile Sleiman from Lebanon, who will be competing in the masters category, said that after looking at Abu Dhabi’s previous record of putting on high profile events amid the pandemic, he felt very safe travelling to the UAE’s capital for the ADWPJJC.

“This is the first jiu-jitsu tournament I have participated in since the pandemic began and I am very excited,” said Sleiman. “I have managed to train regularly but fighting at a competition as important as this is always very exciting. I received my black belt in December and I am looking forward to fighting in a new division and against some amazing athletes.”

Qutayba Alloughani, a blue belt holder representing Kuwait in the 85-kg category, said that he was seeing a growing number of people taking up the sport competitively in the Middle East.

“I think jiu-jitsu is a beautiful sport and we are seeing accomplished champions emerging from our region over the last few years,” he said. “Back home in Kuwait, more people are taking it up and awareness about its benefits is growing. I am looking forward to doing well here at the ADWPJJC and helping to raise interest about jiu-jitsu in my country.”

Action at the ADWPJJC begins on Tuesday, April 6 with athletes in the under-18 and under-21 categories taking to the mats at the Jiu-Jitsu Arena, followed by the masters category on April 7. The final two days of the competition are reserved for action in the professional division as top male and female stars of global jiu-jitsu go toe-to-toe.


Morocco’s Elmehdi El-Jamari set for high-stakes clash against Thailand’s Aliff at ONE Fight Night 32

Elmehdi El-Jamari is bolstered by a decorated career at the national and international levels. supplied
Updated 10 sec ago
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Morocco’s Elmehdi El-Jamari set for high-stakes clash against Thailand’s Aliff at ONE Fight Night 32

  • Among his accolades are seven Moroccan Muay Thai championships, two Arab titles, and championship belts under the K-1 and WBC banners

RIYADH: Moroccan Muay Thai standout Elmehdi El-Jamari is set to return to the ring in a thrilling strawweight clash against Thailand’s Aliff Sor Dechapan at ONE Fight Night 32, scheduled for June 7 at the historic Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok.

The highly anticipated bout will see El-Jamari attempt to build on his electrifying debut earlier this year, where he secured a knockout victory over Thongpoon PK Saenchai.

The 27-year-old enters the contest with a sterling professional record of 27 wins and just one loss, bolstered by a decorated career at the national and international levels.

Among his accolades are seven Moroccan Muay Thai championships, two Arab titles, and championship belts under the K-1 and WBC banners.

El-Jamari, the younger brother of fellow ONE Championship athlete Zakaria El-Jamari, is aiming to continue his rise within the division by toppling another local favorite in front of a partisan Thai crowd.

However, he faces a formidable opponent in Aliff Sor Dechapan, one of Thailand’s brightest young talents. The 21-year-old boasts a formidable 60-9 professional record, including a 7-2 run in ONE Championship, where five of his victories have come by stoppage. Aliff enters the bout riding a three-fight win streak, with two of those wins coming via first-round knockouts.

Standing 7 cm taller than his Moroccan opponent and enjoying the backing of the home crowd in Bangkok, Aliff will look to use his reach and momentum to maintain his winning form. But El-Jamari, known for his aggressive striking and well-timed combinations, has proved he can silence a Thai crowd — and will aim to do so again on fight night.

ONE Fight Night 32 will be broadcast live from Bangkok at 3 a.m. Makkah time on beIN SPORTS and via the ONE Championship’s official platform, watch.onefc.com.


Al-Faisal Al-Zubair wins Gold Cup at Brands Hatch

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Updated 07 May 2025
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Al-Faisal Al-Zubair wins Gold Cup at Brands Hatch

Brands Hatch (England): Al-Manar Racing by Team WRT’s Al-Faisal Al-Zubair and teammate Jens Klingmann delivered a sensational performance to win the second of the one-hour Sprint races at the opening round of the 2025 GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS Sprint Series at Brands Hatch in England on Sunday.

After finishing fifth in the first of the two short races, Al-Zubair and Klingmann delivered a masterclass in pit strategy to kickstart their season in the new series with outright victory in the Gold Cup category and sixth position overall in Sprint Race Two at the helm of the Al-Manar Racing by Team WRT BMW M4 GT3 EVO.

Al-Zubair said: “Starting off doing very minimal laps in the Sprint Championship was something to get used to. Brands Hatch is such a difficult track, and we didn’t have much running time. There were a few red flags in practice. I think we did a total of 20 laps before we got into qualifying. It was not so easy.

“We started off with qualifying on the wrong foot. We finished fifth in class in the first race and then we won the second race. To jump so many people in the second stint and in the pit stop is something that we should be very happy of. It is good to get a start like this, and we can look forward to the rest of the season.”

Al-Zubair began the opening one-hour Sprint race from sixth on the Gold Cup grid but was not able to make headway through the opening laps. Arthur Rougier drove the Emil Frey Racing Ferrari to give the CSA Racing McLaren a brief lead, but Chris Lulham hit the front again in the Ferrari after the mid-race pit stop and driver change.

Klingmann took over from Al-Zubair with the sole target of moving up the field, and he managed to sneak ahead of James Kell in the CSA Racing McLaren following the driver changeovers after 23 laps.

Lulham continued to lead from Louis Prette in the Garage 59 McLaren as the opening Sprint race headed into its closing stages and on to the checkered flag. Klingmann held on to secure a fifth-place finish for the Al-Manar Racing by Team WRT BMW after 42 laps of racing.

Race Two took place in similar cool and overcast conditions in the afternoon. Klingmann took the wheel for the first stint and quickly settled into fourth place behind the Emil Frey Racing Ferrari, the Sainteloc Racing Audi and the Tresor Attempto Racing Audi.

Full course yellows failed to prevent Klingmann from maintaining his position, but the damage was done at the driver changeover when the Al-Manar Racing by Team WRT delivered the strategy to perfection and Al-Zubair hit the front.

The Omani continued to lead from the defending champions, Sainteloc Racing, and overcame another full course yellow to win Race Two with a margin of just under three seconds to Thierry Vermeulen and Lulham in the Emil Frey Racing Ferrari 296 GT3 after 37 laps.

Al-Zubair and Klingmann carried out free practice on Saturday morning and ran the Al-Manar Racing by Team WRT BMW for 30 laps. The team carded a best lap of 1 minute 24.186 seconds that put them fifth of the Gold Cup runners. The Emil Frey Racing Ferrari topped the times with a tour of 1 minute 23.178 seconds.

Pre-qualifying was next on the agenda, but the Al-Manar Racing duo could only manage a best lap of 1 minute 24.720 seconds, and the bragging rights from the Gold Cup session went to the Garage 59 McLaren with a time of 1 minute 24.122 seconds.

Qualifying was split into two sessions, and Al-Zubair managed six laps in Q1. The Omani carded a best tour of 1 minute 24.626 seconds, and that put him in sixth in the stint, with Thierry Vermeulen winning Q1 for Emil Frey Racing with a lap of 1 minute 23.374 seconds.

Klingmann fared slightly better in Q2 and was classified fifth in the Gold Cup runners with a best lap of 1 minute 24.012 seconds, with Lulham winning the stint for Emil Frey Racing to claim pole position for the first of the two one-hour Sprint races.

Action in the GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Series continues at Zandvoort in the Netherlands on May 16-18. 


India coach Gambhir wants no cricket with Pakistan

Updated 07 May 2025
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India coach Gambhir wants no cricket with Pakistan

  • Two-way cricket between nuclear-armed neighbors remains suspended since 2013
  • They play each other only in multi-team tournaments, mostly in neutral venues

NEW DELHI: India head coach Gautam Gambhir personally believes the country should not play any cricket with Pakistan, not even in neutral venues, after a deadly Islamist militant attack in Indian Kashmir last month.
India struck nine sites in Pakistan and Pakistani Kashmir on Wednesday in response to the April 22 killing of 26 tourists in the Himalayan region.
Two-way cricket between the nuclear-armed neighbors remains suspended since 2013 and they play each other only in multi-team tournaments, mostly in neutral venues.
“My personal answer to this is absolutely no,” Gambhir said on Tuesday, hours before India launched the airstrikes, when asked for his view on India-Pakistan cricket.
“Till all this doesn’t stop, there should not be anything between India and Pakistan.”
Any match between the arch-rivals remains a cricketing blockbuster and is declared sold out within hours after tickets go on sale.
India have dominated that rivalry in recent years but emotions still run high on either side of the border whenever the cricket-mad neighbors clash.
Pakistan’s men’s team toured India for the 50-overs World Cup in 2023 but their neighbors have not reciprocated.
India refused to tour Pakistan for the Champions Trophy earlier this year and played all their matches in Dubai instead.
Gambhir said he would follow whatever the Indian cricket board (BCCI) or the government decide on bilateral cricket with Pakistan.
“Ultimately, this is (the) government’s decision whether we play them or not,” Gambhir said.
“This is not up to me, it’s not in my jurisdiction. This is for BCCI and, more importantly, the government to decide whether we should play them or not.
“Whatever decision they make, we should be absolutely fine with it and not politicize it.”
Last month India’s star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra withdrew his invitation to Pakistan’s Olympic champion Arshad Nadeem to compete in a May 24 event in the southern city of Bengaluru following the Kashmir attack.
 


Alpine promotes Franco Colapinto to replace Jack Doohan for the next 5 Formula 1 Grand Prix races

Updated 07 May 2025
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Alpine promotes Franco Colapinto to replace Jack Doohan for the next 5 Formula 1 Grand Prix races

  • The team says Flavio Briatore will continue as executive adviser and will cover Oakes’ duties
  • Apline says “Colapinto will be paired with Pierre Gasly from the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, ahead of a new evaluation before the British Grand Prix in July”

LONDON: Formula 1 team Alpine has changed its driver lineup to promote Franco Colapinto for at least the next five Grand Prix races at the expense of Jack Doohan.
Alpine confirmed the change Wednesday, a day after Oliver Oakes quit as team principal. The team said Flavio Briatore will continue as executive adviser and will cover Oakes’ duties.
“Colapinto will be paired with Pierre Gasly from the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, ahead of a new evaluation before the British Grand Prix in July,” Alpine said in a statement.
Alpine is ninth in the F1 constructors’ standings after six rounds. The next race weekend is May 16-18 at Imola.
At Sunday’s Miami Grand Prix, Doohan ran into another car on the opening lap and then crashed on the second lap.
Media reports of a driver rotation were dismissed ahead of the Miami GP weekend by Oakes, who had indicated that the rookie Australian driver would remain in the seat.
Doohan, who didn’t score a point in his seven GP races and had a best finish of 13th, will revert to being the team’s reserve driver.
The son of five-time motorcycle world champion Mick Doohan, Jack Doohan made his Formula 1 debut in the last race of 2024 and started this year for Alpine at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix. He replaced Esteban Ocon, who left Alpine after a disappointing 2024.
Colapinto joined Alpine as a reserve driver in January after racing in 2024 for Williams, where he earned five points after replacing Logan Sargeant in August.


Pakistan cricket board says PSL tournament to continue despite regional tensions

Updated 07 May 2025
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Pakistan cricket board says PSL tournament to continue despite regional tensions

  • PSL features several foreign players and is credited with reviving international cricket in Pakistan
  • PCB says the cricket league will proceed, with Islamabad United set to take on Quetta Gladiators today

KARACHI: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Wednesday confirmed that the HBL Pakistan Super League (PSL) will proceed as scheduled, with Islamabad United set to face Quetta Gladiators later tonight in Rawalpindi, despite rising military tensions with neighboring India.
The match is set to begin at 8 PM local time at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, marking the league’s return to the city for four consecutive fixtures from May 7 to 10.
“HBL Pakistan Super League X will continue as planned with Islamabad United set to take on Quetta Gladiators later today at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium,” reads a handout issued by PCB.
The final group match, the PCB added, will be played in Multan on May 11, followed by the Eliminator in Rawalpindi on May 13. The playoffs and final are scheduled for May 14, 16 and 18 at Lahore’s Qaddafi Stadium.
The confirmation comes hours after Pakistan’s military said Indian missile strikes had killed at least 26 civilians and wounded 46 in cross-border attacks on six locations inside Pakistani territory.
India’s defense ministry said it had launched “Operation Sindoor,” targeting what it claimed were “militant infrastructure” linked to a recent deadly assault on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir.
New Delhi has blamed the attack on Pakistan, a charge Islamabad has repeatedly denied.
Responding to the Indian attack, Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said the country’s air force had downed five Indian fighter jets in the early hours of Wednesday.
The PSL, which features several foreign players, is widely credited with reviving international cricket in Pakistan after a decade-long suspension following the 2009 militant attack on the Sri Lankan team in Lahore.
The HBL PSL, now in its 10th season, is considered Pakistan’s premier T20 franchise competition and a symbol of the country’s sporting resilience.
Since its full return to home soil in 2020, it has helped Pakistan rebuild its reputation as a safe destination for international cricket.