Give Us 20 Days and We'll Build UFC an Arena

Come fight time for UFC 112 it will be just 20 days from start to finish on construction on Concert Arena, where the event will take place on Yas Island. AOL Fanhouse's Ariel Helwani takes us on a tour of the venue as it nears completion...

UFC U.K. Pres on April Abu Dhabi Event and New Arena

Yahoo! Sports Cagewriter blogger Steve Cofield recently did a great radio interview with UFC U.K. president Marshall Zelaznik, going in depth on the promotion's plans for an April 10 event in Abu Dhabi.

Zelaznik talked about the building of a brand new arena, specifically for UFC events in Abu Dhabi, and basically confirmed plans that the UFC and their new partners at Flash Entertainment -- a subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi government -- are still working to put on an April event there.

But they do have a back-up plan, as they always do.

"We keep a chart of all the venues we're holding around the world... so in the event as we are moving forward with an April event, if we can't do one venue, we can almost turn the switch and just go to another venue," said Zelaznik.

"So whether April happens in Abu Dhabi or another place, there will obviously be an April event."

Check out the full interview with Cofield in the YouTube clip below...

UFC 112 Not Set In Stone for Abu Dhabi

MMAWeekly.com content partner Yahoo! Sports reporter Kevin Iole joins ESPN Radio 1100's Steven Cofield to discuss the possibility that UFC 112 may not take place in Abu Dhabi as planned, despite the promotion recently selling 10% of the company to Flash Entertainment, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi government.

Dean Lister Not Fighting Travis Lutter In MFC

Despite several reports stating that former UFC middleweight, Dean Lister, would make his next appearance in Maximum Fighting Championships against Travis Lutter, MMAWeekly has learned that the fight was never officially a done deal.

Instead, Lister will opt for another fight that he will announce exclusively with MMAWeekly.com next week when contracts are finalized.

The news was confirmed on Saturday by Lister's management team at Haymaker's Empire.

Lister has not seen action since a decision lost to Yushin Okami in December. After that fight the Abu Dhabi champion asked and received his release from the UFC, and has since been fielding offers from several promotions interested in his services.

As announced on MMAWeekly last week, Lister also plans to compete in this year's Abu Dhabi tournament, and is hopeful for a match-up against Fedor Emelianenko, or possibly a slot in one of the Super Fights if a spot opens up.

Stay tuned to MMAWeekly and MMAInsider for more information on Lister's next bout as it becomes available.

GSP Open For Return To ADCC

Back in 2005, Georges St. Pierre was only 4 fights into his legendary UFC career. Little did the Abu Dhabi Combat Club know what kind of future star they would feature when GSP entered the 2005 competition in the 66 to 76kg weight class on short notice when invited to the tournament.

In his first round match-up, St. Pierre out wrestled and used superior technique to defeat Otto Olson on points. His next bout against Leo Santos didn't go as well as the Canadian was forced to tap out after getting caught in an armbar.

Since that time, St. Pierre has gone on to become a 2x UFC welterweight champion while also gaining fame as possibly the top pound for pound fighter in the sport of mixed martial arts.

Regardless of titles or accomplishments, St. Pierre is a competitor and he said during a recent interview with MMAWeekly Radio that if the timing worked out, he'd love the chance to compete in the Abu Dhabi tournament again in the future.

"If I have time and the timing is good, I will do it, of course I will," St. Pierre said. "I love competition, I'm a true mixed martial arts man, and I don't only like MMA. I like grappling, I like wrestling, I like jiu-jitsu, I like Muay Thai, I like everything. But of course my main job is MMA."

Many other top MMA stars still compete regularly in grappling tournaments and a great many of them are expected at this year's Abu Dhabi championships. If timing worked out, St. Pierre would be a huge addition to the show.

And just like everything else GSP puts his mind to, he'd probably be a force in the tournament as well.