Last week, Karina Smirnoff stunned everyone by announcing that she and Mario Lopez had ended their nearly two-year relationship, telling OK! that “we are both focused on our careers right now.”

Nearly a week later, OK! caught up with Karina’s former dance partner to get his side of the story. “I wouldn’t date me right now,” Mario told OK! at the Oscar Meyer Hot Dogs For A Cause BBQ in NYC’s Times Square. “I don’t think it’d be much fun. I don’t have that much time.”

And the 34-year-old hunk, who ranked #10 on OK!’s list of all-time Man Candy, seems to agree with his ex-gal-pal about the reason for their split. “I’ve been so focused on work and all this other stuff I got going on and flying back and forth for work,” he explained. “I don’t think I have a day off until September something.”

Actually, if Mario keeps working at his current pace, he’ll have enough jobs to keep him busy for a long time beyond this fall. He’s a correspondent on Extra, co-host of America’s Best Dance Crew, oh — he’s also starring in A Chorus Line on Broadway.

“I’m pretty happy with the way things are going,” he said. “I just want to continue going. I never complain. I’m very grateful.”

Currently, Mario calls NYC his home, but occasionally finds he has to go back to L.A. for his work. But this California-born star loves the hustle and bustle of Manhattan. “Everything’s open late. You don’t have to worry about drinking and driving. The people are great. I thought the people would be a lot more rude. They’re very cool and much more real. I like it. I didn’t think I was going to like it at all. I really like it,” he said.

The bi-coastal guy admits that sometimes, it takes a lot out of him. “I just fly back once a week so it’s a bit of a toll,” he said. “It’s not too good, but I got to do what I got to do. It’s a little tiring but I wouldn’t change it. I’m grateful I’m as busy as I am.”

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WENN

WENN

After being dogged by rumors of a split for months, OK! has confirmed that Mario Lopez and Karina Smirnoff have called it quits.

Karina, who began dating the Saved By the Bell star in 2006 when they were partnered together on Dancing With the Stars, announced the split on the red carpet at the A-list Bravo Awards on Wednesday night, telling OK!, “I just wouldn’t be a great girlfriend right now, Mario’s a great guy.”

The couple’s busy schedules were no doubt a strain on their relationship. Mario recently told OK! that he wasn’t going to have a free day until September, with a commitment to perform on Broadway in A Chorus Line, as well as promoting a fitness book and gearing up for the second season of America’s Next Dance Crew.

During the most recent season of DWTS, Karina was paired with sexy singer Mario, sparking rumors of a romance that were subsequently denied. More recently, the Ukrainian-born beauty was spotted out and about with E! personality Michael Yo. The two were recently seen dancing and canoodling at a recent event at Hollywood eatery Beso.

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Last week, Mario Lopez faced a storm of media attention when one website felt compelled to write a story claiming that the former Saved By the Bell star had split from his gal-pal, Dancing With the Stars pro Karina Smirnoff. Turns out the rumor wasn’t all it was cracked up to be — and Mario says that Britney Spears is somehow to blame!

“See what happens when Britney starts behaving?” he joked to the NY Daily News. “People start making up all kinds of things.”

Mario also told the paper that he and Karina aren’t just not broken up — he’s even taken her to meet his mom, not a step he takes lightly. “I learned a long time ago that I only introduce them to mom if they are going to be around for a while,” he explains.

It’s been a long few months for Mario and Karina, who have not only had to weather false reports of a split — but also that she was high-stepping out on her man with new dance partner, the one-named pop star Mario.

Additionally, Lopez recently talked to OK! to shoot down reports that he was somehow involved with socialite Phoebe Price. “I don’t even know who that is!” he laughed.

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Despite a people.com report, Dancing With the Stars’ Karina Smirnoff says she and beau Mario Lopez haven’t called it quits.

“You know, everybody goes through ups and downs in their relationships,” she told Usmagazine.com in a telephone interview Tuesday. “That’s kind of a given, and it’s normal. But Mario and I are going strong.”

Lopez, she said, “is a great guy, and I support him 100 percent, and I know he supports me.

“We are totally fine - and I’m not moving out!” she added. “You guys will be the first to know if I’m moving out.”

Smirnoff met the actor on the third season of the hit ABC show when he was a contestant.

In March, Smirnoff told Us “there is nothing” to rumors she’s hooking up with her current DWTS partner, R&B singer Mario.

“We have a completely professional relationship,” she told Us. “I have a lot of respect for Mario. He is a great person.”

Lopez told Us just two weeks ago that the rumor was “funny.”

The actor, best known for his role in the ’90s show Saved By the Bell, is currently starring in Broadway’s A Chorus Line.

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Mario Lopez and Dancing with the Stars pro dancer Karina Smirnoff have recently split, a source confirms to People.

The couple, who met during Dancing’s third season, never publicly acknowledged their relationship despite the fact that the pair were living together in Lopez’s Los Angeles home. A source tells People Smirnoff is moving out of Lopez’s digs.

Lopez’s personal rep, Lisa Perkins, says, “It’s my policy to not comment on my client’s personal life.”

Smirnoff, who is now competing on Dancing’s sixth season with R&B star Mario, has been spotted recently with E! Entertainment personality Michael Yo. The two were seen dancing and canoodling at a recent event at Hollywood eatery Beso.

Lopez, meanwhile, is starring in A Chorus Line on Broadway, and recently returned to the ballroom with 18 Chorus Line dancers to tape a synchronized number to air on Dancing’s 100th episode on May 6. He’s also about to embark on a national tour to promote his upcoming book, Mario Lopez’s Knockout Fitness.

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WENN