Israel Adesanya has confirmed his highly anticipated UFC comeback, with the former champion scheduled to face his arch-rival in Perth.

The 34-year-old announced a hiatus from mixed martial arts following his surprising defeat by Sean Strickland in Sydney last September.

His return to the Octagon has been widely anticipated, with Adesanya strongly considered for the headline slot at UFC 300, but his fierce rival Dricus du Plessis was unable to confirm his availability for the date.

The two fighters had exchanged taunts before, with the South African asserting that he would embody a true African champion, living, training, and breathing in Africa, unlike Adesanya, who was born in Nigeria before relocating to New Zealand.

Posting a mocked-up image of himself donning the UFC’s brand new golden glove, Adesnaya, in a post on X, on Monday,  appears to announce he will return to the ring later on August 17. 

He wrote: “The SUN of Africa is the same sun that lights up our planet.

“The SUN will set and will rise again until you walk into it. The SUN, enjoy while it shines. Darkness falls when it’s gone.”

The federal government has denied renaming the Murtala Mohammed expressway in the federal capital territory (FCT) after Wole Soyinka, the Nobel Laureate.

On June 4, President Bola Tinubu named the just inaugurated arterial road N20 from the northern parkway to the outer northern expressway (ONEX) in the FCT, the Wole Soyinka highway.

In a statement on Monday, Rabiu Ibrahim, special assistant on media to Mohammed Idris, minister of information and national orientation, said “rumours are being circulated” that the Murtala Mohammed expressway has been renamed as Wole Soyinka Way.

Ibrahim said the renaming of the Murtala Mohammed expressway “has never been contemplated by this administration”.

“For the record, on June 4, 2024, President Bola Tinubu inaugurated a new road in the FCT codenamed Arterial Road N20 (from Katampe to Jahi), which links the existing Outer Northern Expressway (also known as Murtala Mohammed Expressway) to the Northern Parkway (also called Ahmadu Bello Way),” the statement reads.

“During the inauguration of the N20 (which is a new road), FCT Minister, Barrister Nyesom Wike, proposed to the President that the road be named after Prof Wole Soyinka, and the President agreed.

“Therefore, it is the Arterial Road N20 that is named after Prof Soyinka. The Murtala Mohammed Expressway remains unchanged and continues to bear the name of our esteemed former Head of State, General Murtala Ramat Mohammed.”

Ibrahim asked Nigerians to disregard “any misinformation regarding the renaming” of the Murtala Mohammed expressway.

“The report is entirely false and only exists in the imagination of its purveyors,” he said.

Romelu Lukaku endured a frustrating night as Slovakia stunned favourites, Belgium 1-0 on Monday night in the second game of Group E.

Romania opened the group with a 3-0 win over Ukraine to go top of the table.

The first upset of the competition was recorded at the Deutsche Bank Park when the less-fancied Slovakia earned a shock win over Belgium.

It was an unforgettable evening for Chelsea striker, Romelu Lukaku who missed three big chances in the first half before his goal was ruled out for Luis Openda’s handball in the second half.

Ivan Schranz took advantage of a terrible Jeremy Doku’s pass to stab home the opener in the seventh minute.

Belgium dominated the game with over 70 per cent possession and seven shots in the first half but they failed to find the back of the net coupled with Lukaku’s wasteful showing.

Just after the restart, Lukaku thought he had scored the equaliser but his effort was ruled out for offside.

48th placed ranked Slovakia held on for a record-breaking win over the third best team in the world according to the latest FIFA rankings.

It was the first defeat for Belgium against a team outside the top 45 of the Fifa world rankings for the first time since 2010.

The Red Devils will hope to bounce back in their second game when they take on Romania on Saturday, while Slovakia will be seeking a place in the next round with a win over Ukraine.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in the South-South region has urged President Bola Tinubu to recontest in the 2027 presidential election.

The party praised Tinubu for his policies, projects and programs, maintaining that his policies were targeted at repositioning the country.

This was contained in a communiqué jointly signed by the APC South-South Zonal Executives after a meeting in Calabar, Cross Rivers, on Sunday.

The party reaffirmed its unwavering support for the policies and programs of the Tinubu administration in areas of good governance, economic reforms, national security and infrastructural development.

They also praised the president for his commitment to the coastal road project, and the commencement of the construction from both ends of the project.

The committee said it has resolved to set up a reconciliation committee in the South-South region, to be headed by the Coordinator of the South-South geo-political zone, Sen Bassey Otu.

They said that the move is meant to bridge any existing gap, foster collaboration and work towards a common goal of strengthening the party’s presence and influence in the region.

It also resolved to mobilise available party assets towards winning more states; particularly using the forthcoming elections in Edo State as a test case.

Nigerian-born British heavyweight boxer, Anthony Joshua, has overtaken Tyson Fury in the latest WBC heavyweight rankings.

Anthony Joshua has now moved to number one in the WBC heavyweight rankings, while Tyson Fury has dropped from the first spot to the second spot.

The current undisputed heavyweight title holder, Oleksandr Usyk, is ranked the winner of the rankings.

Fury dropped one spot after losing his WBC heavyweight title to Usyk in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in May 2024.

While Fury suffered a massive defeat to the Ukrainian boxer, Anthony Joshua recorded successive victories against Francis Ngannou and Otto Wallin.

These two victories have qualified Joshua to contest for the vacant IBF title against Daniel Dubois in September.

Agit Kabayel who recently beat Frank Sanchez during one of the under-cards on the Fury vs Usyk bill in May, takes the third spot in the WBC rankings.

Zhilei Zhang who stunned Deontay Wilder with a knockout win earlier this year is the fourth-highest-ranked boxer in the world according to the WBC.

Nigerian heavyweight boxer, Efe Ajagba completes the top five list thanks to the WBC ‘silver’ trinket belt he is currently holding.

Jared Anderson is ranked 6th, Martin Bakole is ranked 7th, Sanchez 8th, Joe Joyce 9th, and Bakhodir Jalolov is ranked 10th in the WBC rankings.

The Otun Olubadan of Ibadanland, Senator Rashidi Ladoja, yesterday, insisted that Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State lacks the power to crown the new Olubadan of Ibadan land.

He also dismissed insinuations that Governor Makinde deliberately delayed the coronation of a new Olubadan to target him.

Recall that Makinde had announced that he would crown the new Olubadan, Oba Owolabi Olakulehin when he is medically fit.

Ladoja said this while speaking with journalists at his Ibadan residence during the Eid-el-Kabir celebration.

The former governor maintained that there is a cordial relationship between him and Governor Makinde.

His words: “I am not the target of Governor Seyi Makinde. He is not delaying the coronation because of me. The governor sent a huge cow and many bags of rice to me for the Sallah. He had called to greet me for the festival.

“It is the people of Ibadan land who will crown the new Olubadan, and the governor’s role is only to present the staff and instrument of office to the new monarch.

“It is the Oluwo of Ibadan land who crowns a new Olubadan and not the governor. 

“The Olubadan will be crowned at lle Ose-Meji, from where he will  go to Mapo for the governor to present him the staff and instrument of office.”

On the health condition of the Olubadan-designate, Ladoja said: “To me, the new Olubadan is fit. He had been on the journey of becoming the Olubadan since 1983. The new Olubadan is fit, but only old.”

Guinness Nigeria Plc has debunked insinuations that it is exiting the Nigerian market following the sale of the majority shareholding by Diageo, a British multinational alcoholic beverage company.

In a statement, the company which commenced operations in Nigeria in 1950 said it “wishes to correct the recent speculations and false/malicious misinformation alleging a plan to exit from the Nigerian market.”

Recall that last week, Guinness Nigeria entered a deal with Singapore-based Tolaram Group to acquire the 58 percent stake but Diageo will retain ownership of the Guinness brand, which will be licensed to Guinness Nigeria in the long term.

“Contrary to rumours being peddled on various media platforms, Guinness Nigeria remains firmly committed to its operations in Nigeria and is poised for a new phase of growth and innovation.

“Our unwavering commitment to Nigeria is evident in the substantial investments in infrastructure, employment, backward integration and our community development and social responsibility initiatives.

“The recent announcement of the partnership between Diageo and Tolaram Group further reinforces unequivocally that Guinness Nigeria remains committed to Nigeria and has no intention of exiting the dynamic Nigerian market. Our business will continue strongly, and no jobs or factories will be adversely affected as a result of this new partnership.”