UFC 123 lineup signifies passing of the torch to the prospects

With MMA fighters coming from all corners of the world, the UFC isn't short on candidates to fill its roster. That means, the guys who have UFC contracts are fighting for their spot in the pecking order everytime out. A staple of UFC pay-per-view cards for the last three years, Keith Jardine was sent packing earlier this year. And there's now a quicker hook than ever when it comes to the guys who succeeded on "The Ultimate Fighter". TUF 8 champ Efrain Escudero was just dumped by the promotion. There's not one member of the TUF 8 lightweight still fighting for the promotion (George Roop is with the WEC).

With that, it also means that you can rise to prominence just as quickly. Just take a look at the card at UFC 123 as an example.

Less than 14 months ago, Phil Davis (7-0, 3-0 UFC) was fighting for something called the UCFC. Now he's on the PPV portion of the card in Detroit facing Tim Boestch. So are George Sotiropoulos and Gerald Harris. Meanwhile former title contenders like Karo Parisyan and Tyson Griffin are fighting in the dark matches.

Parisyan's issues are well-documented. Battling addiction and mental issues, Parisyan (19-5, 9-3 UFC) backed out of several UFC fights at the last minute. It prompted Dana White to flip out, fire Parisyan and say he'd never fight for the promotion again. Parisyan, 28, seems to have gotten his act together and he'll make his return against fellow old-timer Dennis Hallman. The Armenian has to be thrilled to be back in action after killing time on Jay Glazer's MMA videos with Fox Sports.

Remember when Griffin lost a narrow decision against Sean Sherk at UFC 90? A win in that fight could've changed his career. Instead, the former lightweight title contender has gone in the other direction going just 2-2. He's coming off a vicious knockout at the hands of Takanori Gomi. Now it doesn't get much more humbling for Griffin (14-4, 7-4 UFC) open the 11-fight card in Detroit against Nik Lentz.

There's certainly hope for both Griffin and Parisyan. Look at guys like Harris and Sotiropoulos. Harris (17-2, 3-0 UFC) lost early during TUF 7. He wasn't invited back for another fight with the promotion. He hit the minors and put together a six-fight win streak. Then on the weekend of UFC 106, Harris pulled out all the stops calling White during an appearance on MMA Junkie radio to beg for a job. White said, "call the office on Monday" and now three wins later Harris is on a PPV. Maybe Harris' restraint after his slam of Dave Branch at UFC 117 scored him points as well. Check out UFC matchmaker Joe Silva in the background screaming for Harris to stop.

Sotiropoulos seemed to have suffered the same fate as Harris after losing in the semifinals of TUF 6. Injuries and multiple changes to his training camps saw him fight just once in 21 months. Sotiropoulos (13-2, 6-0 UFC) has ripped off four wins in 14 months and now he gets fellow prospect Joe Lauzon during the PPV portion of the card.

With big wins at UFC 123, Harris, Sotiropoulos and Davis could find themselves in the running for huge fights in the next six months. Griffin and Parisyan are simply looking to survive at this point. But you never know what can happen. Twelve months from now we could be talking about Griffin and Parisyan as the hot shots. That's the beauty of the fight game. Ultimately, you control your own destiny.  

UFC 123:

PPV
Quinton “Rampage” Jackson vs. Lyoto Machida
Matt Hughes vs. BJ Penn
Maiquel Falcao vs. Gerald Harris
Tim Boetsch vs. Phil Davis
George Sotiropoulos vs. Joe Lauzon

Spike
Mark Munoz vs. Aaron Simpson
Matt Brown vs. Rory MacDonald

Untelevised
Dennis Hallman vs. Karo Parisyan
Darren Elkins vs. Edson Barboza
Gabe Ruediger vs. Paul Kelly
Nik Lentz vs. Tyson Griffin

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