Jamie Varner Tweets

Jamie Varner (born October 12, 1984) is a mixed martial artist who fights for the World Extreme Cagefighting. He is the current WEC Lightweight champion. He is an alumnus of Deer Valley High School in Glendale, Arizona, where he also was a part of the Deer Valley Skyhawk Wrestling Team.

He attended Lock Haven University and spent his time at that school training both as a wrestler and a boxer, where he was NCBA (National Collegiate Boxing Association)Champion for the nationally recognized Lock Haven University boxing team.

Recently, Varner was instrumental in the legalization and forthcoming athletic sanctioning of mixed martial arts in the state of Arizona after giving testimony to the sport's legitimacy and ongoing development as an athletic profession.

He successfully defended his WEC Lightweight Championship belt against the previously undefeated Marcus Hicks on August 3rd 2008.

He retained his title on January 25, 2009 against Donald Cerrone at WEC 38. The fight was highly competitive and won fight of the night honors. However, the fight was stopped prematurely in the fifth round when Cerrone grazed Varner's temple with an illegal knee while Varner was still on the ground. Varner was given time to recover, but he was unable to continue, noting that he had double vision and had sustained a broken foot.

This was much to the chagrin of the crowd, which believed Varner was looking for a way out of the fight, despite being ahead on points. Varner has since had successful surgery to repair a detached retina suatained against Cerrone.