In Brief

mixed martial arts

St. Pierre suffers knee injuries,
forced to pull out of UFC 143

Ultimate Fighting Championship star Georges St. Pierre has been forced to withdraw from another main event title defense because of a knee injury.

The welterweight champion was set to meet Nick Diaz in the main event of UFC 143 on Feb. 4 at Mandalay Bay, but is expected to need six to nine months to recover after he undergoes surgery to repair a completely torn ACL and partially torn meniscus in his right knee.

In October, St. Pierre pulled out of a title defense against Carlos Condit when he injured his left knee and right hamstring in training.

The 30-year-old champion said on a conference call Wednesday he believes the latest injury happened because he returned too soon to training and was overcompensating for the previous injury.

St. Pierre fought just one time in 2011, a unanimous decision victory over Jake Shields in April.

"Life goes up and down. Now it's down. A few months ago I was at the top of the world, world champion," he said. "Now everybody says bad things and will say bad things. Mark my words, right now I'm in a downfall in my life. I'll be back stronger than ever. I will be champion again, I promise that."

Diaz will now fight Condit in the main event for the interim welterweight title. No announcement has been made whether Josh Koscheck, who was supposed to meet Condit, will remain on the card.

PRO BASKETBALL

Memo: NBA players agree to
out-of-season testing for PEDs

NBA players agreed to additional drug testing, adding offseason screening for performance-enhancing drugs only.

Union executive director Billy Hunter sent a memo, obtained by The Associated Press, to players detailing these and other changes of a new labor deal and recommends they ratify the agreement.

Less clear is the provision for human growth hormone testing.

The memo says an NBA-NBPA joint committee would study the "possibility of an HGH testing program."

NBA spokesman Mike Bass, however, insists both sides agreed to HGH blood testing, subject to the process being validated by a "neutral committee of experts."

Also: Los Angeles Lakers owner Jerry Buss was hospitalized because of blood clots in his legs.

Team spokesman John Black said the 77-year-old owner is expected to be released in the next couple of days.

miscellaneous

Formula One reaches 10-year
deal on U.S. Grand Prix in Texas

Formula One is returning to the United States in 2012 after reaching a 10-year deal to hold the U.S. Grand Prix in Austin, Texas.

Formula One's racing calendar with the U.S. Grand Prix was formally approved at a World Motor Sport Council meeting New Delhi, India. Race organizers announced they reached a contract deal with F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone, ending a financial dispute that threatened the kill the race and a new track being built for it.

The race will mark F1's return to the United States for the first time since 2007.

Also: Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins will miss the next two games as a precaution following a collision with teammate Chris Kunitz in Monday night's loss to Boston.

General manager Ray Shero said the former Most Valuable Player wasn't "feeling 100 percent" after running into Kunitz in the third period.

Las Vegas-based broadcaster Al Bernstein and local journalist Michael Katz have been chosen for induction into the International Boxing Hall of Fame's Class of 2012.

They will join multidivision world champion Thomas Hearns, trainer Freddie Roach, two-division champion Mark Johnson and ring announcer Michael Buffer at the induction ceremonies scheduled for June 10 in Canastota, N.Y.

Three-time European champion Manchester United was eliminated from the Champions League when it lost 2-1 at FC Basel.

Manchester City joined its local rival on the sidelines despite beating Bayern Munich.

United needed to avoid defeat in Switzerland to secure a 15th knockout-round appearance in 16 Champions League seasons. It now drops into the Europa League while Basel advances.

City, the English Premier League leader, also heads into the second-tier tournament despite a 2-0 win over already qualified Bayern. Napoli's 2-0 win at Villarreal took the Italian side through instead.

Lyon won 7-1 at Dinamo Zagreb to complete a remarkable turnaround and qualify ahead of Ajax, which lost 3-0 to Real Madrid. CSKA Moscow won 2-1 at Inter Milan to take the final spot and complete the 16-team lineup for the next round.