Today's Edition
KUUMAR SHYAM (ABU DHABI)
The new season of UAE Warriors Mixed Martial Arts Championship, organised by Palms Sports, will kick off on January 21 with a double-header at the Mubadala Arena in Zayed Sports City.
In 2023, UAE Warriors delivered 11 events between February – October, during which eight champions were crowned in all three series: Africa, Arabia and International.
Heading into the new year, the UAE Warriors (UAEW) 46 in the International Series and UAEW 47 in the Arabia Series will see 13 and 11 bouts respectively featuring skilled martial artists from across the globe.
Among the most prominent participants in the UAEW 46 are Brazilian Alex da Silva in the lightweight division and Jaures Dea, the UAEW Africa bantamweight champion.
The 11 fights between 22 of the finest Arabic fighters will be headlined by a middleweight title bout between current champion Wisem Hammami from Tunisia and a tough contender in Lebanon’s Omran Chabaan.
The card will also feature many fan favourites, including Abdullah Al Boushehri, Jalal Al Daaja, Mohammed Al Osaily, Suhail Taeri, and Iman Al Mudhaf.
Based on the exciting events from the past season, the line-up has raised the level of anticipation.
The highlights of 2023 included the crowning of Jordan’s Ali “The Royal Fighter” Al Qaisi in the featherweight category of both the Arabia Series (UAEW 40) – and International Series (UAEW 42).
The local pride, Mohamed Yahya, defended his lightweight title in UAEW 37 Arabia, while Tunisian middleweight champion Badredine Diani defended his title in UAEW 42 Arabia.
In UAEW 35 Africa, the “Crazy Cameroonian” Dea fought his way to become the featherweight champion. Bruno Machado, UAE Warriors’ lightweight champion (International Series), defended his title for the last time in UAEW 36, where he announced his retirement. Meanwhile, Dagestan’s Amru Nurmagomedov filled the vacant title to be the last crowned champion of 2023 in UAEW 45.
Fouad Darwish, head of the organising committee of the UAE Warriors and CEO of Palms Sports, said that the entire team is determined to achieve even greater success in 2024.
“2023 was truly a historic year for UAE Warriors, reaching new heights and cementing its reputation as the leading MMA series in the MENA region,” Darwish said.
