UFC 106 Preview: Karo Parisyan vs. Dustin Hazelett (Update)

Karo Parisyan (18-5, 1 NC, 8-3 UFC) vs. Dustin Hazelett (12-4, 5-2 UFC)

Update: The fight isn't happening as Karo withdrew.

The poll will be closed but the preview will remain up.

The Story So Far: The tale of Karo Parisyan is a well known story to most UFC fans. At one point Karo was at the top of the MMA mountain. Parisyan was a respected Judo fighter, who had a title shot against Matt Hughes. Unfortunately an injury sidelined Parisyan who then had the joy of falling into the middle of the pack of the welterweight division.

While Karo was attempting to climb back to the top of the mountain he had a series of memorable fights. Yet Karo found himself pushed to the back of the line as a new crop of welterweights rose to the top. Parisyan kept winning but the wins weren't impressive enough to scale the summit. Karo's work all came undone at Ultimate Fight Night 13 where Karo was knocked out by Thiago Alves. It was Parisyan's first TKO loss since 2001. Karo followed this loss with a victory over Dong Hyun Kim at UFC 94 but that fight was ruled a 'No Contest' as Parisyan tested positive for three prescription painkillers to the Athletic Commission. On top of that Karo was suspended for nine months and fined $32,000.

Dustin Hazelett built a cult following due to his eccentric facial hair and head scratching submissions.

In Hazeltt's UFC career, four of his five wins came via submission including an inverted arm triangle victory over Tamdan McCroy at UFC 91. After the fight Hazelett tore his ACL and has been rehabbing the injury.

SBN coverage of UFC 106: Ortiz vs. Griffin 2

Conventional Wisdom: This fight is a toss up with both fighters pulling -115 odds. Some consider this a rebound fight for Karo while others believe this is a coming out party for Hazelett. It all depends on your perspective.

WKR Analysis: Usually when two fighters who specialize in grappling face off, their skill sets cancel each other out and the determining factor is a secondary skills set, in this case striking. Karo hasn't engaged in his Diego Sanchez/Nick Diaz wars of late but he still has solid stand-up, especially when compared to Dustin Hazelett who only has one win coming via TKO.

Fun Fact: Dustin Hazelett's nickname is "McLovin" from the popular comedy Superbad. So here is your obligatory best of McLovin montage.