Posted on 5/26/2007 1:13:13 AM

UFC 71 Betting - Parisyan Vs. Burkman

By John A. Edwards

UFC 71: Karo Parisyan (24-4-0) Vs. Josh Burkman (19-3-0)

Saturday's UFC 71 card at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas not only has the highly anticipated rematch between Chuck Liddell and Quinton Jackson, with Liddell's belt on the line, but a card full of exciting match-ups.

Karo “the Heat” Parisyan will fight in UFC 71 on May 26th against Josh Burkman. Karo comes off of a victory over Drew Ficket whom he defeated last December leaving him the current record of 6-2 in the Octagon. His overall MMA record is 24-4-0.

Karo has had a few high profile wins over the likes of Matt Serra and Chris Lytle, but also a few high profile losses to Diego Sanchez and Georges St-Pierre. Karo has fought some of the biggest names in the welterweight division and brings a lot of experience to this fight.

Karo has successfully adapted his Judo style in the Octagon. He has developed his technique under the Hayastan Grapping System, a blended style of martial arts that includes elements of Judo, Sambo, Muay Thai and Greco-Roman wrestling. He currently fights out of the WFA Legends gym.

Karo was set for a shot at then UFC welterweight champion Matt Hughes in November of 2005, but an injury kept him out of his title shot. Having already beaten current welterweight champion, Matt Serra, Karo hopefully will get another shot at the title, providing he has an impressive showing against Josh Burkman this time out.

 

What do we know about Karo Parisyan's opponent on the night - Josh Burkman? Josh "The People's Warrior" Burkman first arrived on the UFC scene when he appeared on The Ultimate Fighter 2 (TUF 2) on SpikeTV. He was forced to leave the competition after breaking his arm in the match with Melvin Guillard. Since then he has made his way through the UFC welterweight ranks, beating opponents such as Josh Neer, Chad Reiner and Sam Morgan.

Burkman comes into this fight with a 19-3-0 record.

Karo Parisyan is favorite to win the fight - current UFC odds at -300 (subject to change). Burkman is +220 (subject to change). Burkman might be worth betting for an upset, but with Parisyan's crazy Judo skills, I think the odds are about right.

Here is a round up of the rest of the fight card:

Chuck Liddell Vs. Quinton Jackson

Keith Jardine Vs. Houston Alexander

Terry Martin Vs. Ivan Salaverry

Kalib Starnes Vs. Chris Leben

Thiago Silva Vs. James Irvin

Sean Salmon Vs. Eric Schafer

Jeremy Stephens Vs. Din Thomas

Carmelo Marrero Vs. Wilson Gouveia

UFC 71 starts at 7pm PT/10pm ET, Saturday May 26 at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada. Live on PPV.

John A. Edwards is a freelance writer for BetUS.com and features regularly on Fight News.

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