Promoter Ahmed Seddiqi, participating boxers and other officials’ pose for a picture.

The third version of the popular Rising Stars Arabia “RSA 3” pro boxing series, the first of its kind in the UAE and the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region, will take place  at the picturesque Yas Links Golf Course in Abu Dhabi on Friday.

The 10-round main event matches Moroccan super featherweight Jaouad “The Moroccan Bomber” Belmehdi (19-1-3, 9 KOs) against the No.1 ranked Ghanaian and African star, undefeated Alfred Lamptey (13-0, 9 KOs).

Belmehdi is a former French Lightweight Champion riding a three-fight win streak. His most notable victories to date have been against 17-1 James Chereji (17-1), 13-1-1 Sebri Sediri (TKO1), and 19-2 Meyyl Vegas (TKO4). The 21-year-old Lamptey is a former World Boxing Council (WBC) Youth Silver, World Boxing Organisation (WBO) Youth and Ghana super featherweight champion.

Hometown favorite Fahad “Kid Emirati” Al Bloushi (13-1, 3 KOs) is riding a 12-fight win streak into the eight round co-featured event versus Venezuelan lightweight Andres Garcia (14-7-1, 11 KOs). Bloushi has the distinction of being the most experienced Emirati boxer of all-time with 14 professional fights.

Undefeated UAE super flyweight Sultan Al Nuaimi (10-0, 6 KOs) faces dangerous Eliu Canario (14-3, 11 KOs) in a 10-round bout, while promising Iraq light heavyweight prospect Amer Kadhum Ghaneem (3-0, 1 KO) takes on the toughest test of his young career, WBC Asian Continental Super Middleweight Champion Wulamu Tulake (11-3-1, 6 KOs). Another Emirati in the fray is Fahad Khouri.

From his side, the promoter Ahmed Seddiqi, highlighted the steady growth that (RSA) achieves, and he also expressed his hope that the event will help enable the talented Arab boxers to win a global championship within the next 3-5 years.

“The event actually witnessed significant growth. AAM Seddiqi Sports has been promoting events for a long time, and now we are focusing upon the talents in the region, e.g. from the UAE, Jordan, Iraq, Syria, Morocco, and all around the region. We saw the event growing even faster than we expected, as we are now beginning our third installment and getting very positive feedback from the part of international and regional boxing media, and we believe that if we continue going in the same manner, particularly in the shadow of the boxing talents that we have in the region, we can see an Arab world champion comes out of this region with the next 3-5 years”, Seddiqi advised.

Siddiqi also expressed his pride in the two UAE boxers who will participate in “RSA 3”, Fahad Al Bloushi & Sultan Al Nuaimi.

“I’m proud of Al Bloushi & Al Nuaimi because their full training and career started in the UAE. They didn’t go outside the country to get trained, and they built their bodies in the local gyms here. So, when they participate in an international platform like “RSA 3”, it is a very big deal, as will be streamed live on DAZN, which is the biggest sport streaming online platform today, and also ESPN Knockout, which is deemed one of the prominent broadcasters in Latin America.

Accordingly, it is a great achievement for Al Bloushi & Al Nuaimi, and they are capable of showcasing their talent on this international platform. It’s a moment of national pride to have two UAE boxers fighting in the same card.”