For UFC veteran Jamie Varner, it's been a longtime since he's been in the winner's column. The former WEC lightweight champion had been ousted from the from the Zuffa banner after going winless in four fights, despite having fought against some of the best fighters the promotion had to offer. Varner took the opportunity to move one step closer in getting back to the big leagues when he picked up an impressive first-round submission victory at XFO 39. ...

It’s one thing to know that it has to happen, it’s another thing entirely to see it in motion. And make no mistake, fans and friends… the purge has begun. In addition to the recently-announced firings of major (albeit down-on-their-luck) WEC stars Jamie Varner and Chris Horodecki, it’s also being reported that Featherweight Tyler Toner has been released from his contract. It appears as if the UFC is finally cleaning house in earnest, wiping the slate clean and only allowing the best and brightest from the WEC into the UFC. Here are all the details, as well as some thoughts on the individual releases and what this means as a whole. ...

Well it looks like Varner didn't escape the dreaded UFC axe. The former WEC lightweight champion recently suffered another loss when he was pitted against former top contender Shane Roller at WEC 53, the promotion's final show which was to signal the assimilation of the lightweight, featherweight, and bantamweight into the the organization's sister promotion, the UFC which are both under the Zuffa LLC banner. Along with Jamie, former IFL star Chris Horodecki has also been released from his contract following a loss at the same show earlier this month, which took place at the Jobing.com Arena in Glendale, Ariz. ...

Former WEC lightweight champion Jamie Varner has lost two-in-a-row in a time in his career when he could least afford to. Recently, World Extreme Cagefighting has since merged with it's sister promotion the Ultimate Fighting Championship, both promotion's fall under the Zuffa LLC. banner. Among the acquisition of both the bantamweight and featherweight divisions, a stacked 155-pound class has since been assimilated into the UFC. With the high influx of fighters, many have since found themselves fighting for their jobs in most recent events, with the lightweight class being atop of the chopping block. ...

After it was all said and done, nearly 10 years in the game, and I think it's safe to say that the WEC left the world of mixed martial arts with a bang, and a proper farewell casted off by all of their combatants just last night. In the main event of the evening, Anthony Pettis shocked the world when he displayed devastating arsenal of striking techniques which culminated in a highlight reel head kick knockdown executed by "Showtime" launching himself from the cage and landing the maneuver mid-air on former champion Ben Henderson, before a ruckus crowd in Glendale, Ariz. While Pettis' star shined the brightest in his lightweight title clash with the hometown favorite in Henderson, several others displayed a varied array of skills that netted them an additional ten thousand dollars for their efforts. ...

Hello once more fans and friends and welcome to the first entry in a brand-new series of articles: “Top 5 Best Moments”. This series of articles is designed to give fans who may have missed an event five big reasons to go ahead and check it out. These are the moments that will stand the test of time, the kind that fans can point to and say “this is what made that card so great”. And what better show to start out with than the final WEC show? So let’s get right to it with my Top 5 Best Moments of WEC 53: “Henderson vs. Pettis”. ...

It’s been a long time coming, but we’re finally here, fans and friends: the WEC is no more, WEC 53: “Henderson vs. Pettis” now exists only in the hearts and minds of the countless legions of fans it entertained. In the main event, Ben Henderson and Anthony Pettis fought a five-round war that gave birth to one of the craziest strikes ever landed. But now that the WEC has officially ceased operations and will be folded into the UFC, what’s next for the big winners and losers of WEC 53? Let’s examine just that with the latest edition of my “What’s Next” series of articles. ...

It’s all over, fans and friends. WEC 53: “Henderson vs. Pettis” is now a thing of the past, and with the close of this show, the “WEC Era” is no more. After this event the WEC will be folded into the UFC, and what an event it was. I think few WEC fans could have asked for a better way to end the WEC than with what I have no trouble calling one of the greatest fights I’ve ever seen. Here are the full results to WEC 53: “Henderson vs. Pettis. ...

wec 53: “Henderson vs. Pettis” will be the WEC's final stand. After this event, the promotion as we know it will no longer exist, and all we’ll be left with is fond memories of a ridiculously underrated MMA organization. WEC 53 in particular should give us an ample amount of things to remember, as it features two great title fights and (as usual) a stacked undercard. And it just wouldn’t be a major MMA card without another edition of “Picks and Predictions”, so here’s my thoughts on who I think will win, and why, at WEC 53: “Henderson vs. Pettis”. ...

Hello again fans and friends and welcome to the latest edition of “Crash Course”, the series designed to give fight fans a quick rundown on the latest and greatest MMA card, including why you should care, what you should look forward to, and more. Today’s edition features WEC 53: “Henderson vs. Pettis”. This event marks the end of an era: once it's completed, the WEC will cease operations and be folded into the UFC. So, is my “little promotion that could” going out with a whimper or a roar? Let’s find out with the latest edition of “Crash Course”. ...

The upcoming December 16 WEC 53: “Henderson vs. Pettis” event will be the last event promoted by the soon-to-be-defunct World Extreme Cagefighting promotion. 2011 would have marked the WEC’s ten-year anniversary, instead, the promotion will be folded into the UFC, which adds two new weight divisions thanks to the merger. The full and complete lineup to the card has recently been finalized, so here’s how everything looks to be breaking down. ...

It’s going to be the end of an era… one of the best in recent history, if you want my opinion. The World Extreme Cagefighting promotion will look to end its stellar 2010 run with WEC 53: “Henderson vs. Pettis”, scheduled for December 16 at the Jobing.com Arena in Glendale, Arizona. This will officially be the WEC’s swan song before the promotion is folded into the UFC, and recently, eleven fights were confirmed for the event. Here are all the details. ...

We’re only a day removed from the shocking news that the UFC and WEC would be merging at the start of 2011, and already both fans and insiders have been tossing around several fantasy match-ups that would see the WEC's best and brightest take on the UFC's biggest stars. So, of course, you know I just had to get in on the fun. Without further ado, here’s my personal Top 5 list of the “WEC vs. UFC” match-ups I’d love to see. ...

You read that right, fans and friends. Top wec stars Donald Cerrone and Jamie Varner will once again compete at the same WEC event…except unfortunately it won’t be against each other. The final chapter to one of the WEC’s best and bitterest rivalries will have to come at a later day, as it’s recently been revealed that both the former WEC Lightweight Champion and his number-one rival won’t be facing each other but will both be competing at WEC 53. Here are all the details. ...

WEC 51 “Aldo vs. Gamburyan” was one for the history books, and now that it’s actually in the history books, I’m left looking towards the future once again. Like all of my previous installments in the “What’s Next” series, I’ll be giving my thoughts on what the future will hold for some of the big winners and losers of “Aldo vs. Gamburyan”. So let’s get right to it. ...

Following WEC 51, we've learned a lot of things about Donald Cerrone. "Cowboy" can overcome some of his mental hurdles that have plagued him in the past, and he really hates Jamie Varner--like, REALLY. While Cerrone has vied for the lightweight title on three separate occasions, twice against Ben Henderson (the current WEC lightweight champion) and nemesis Varner--his bout with Jamie was not about positioning himself as a top contender once again in a crowded weight class, but rather settle the score against a man whom has been a thorn in his side for nearly 2 years. ...

Just like every event, WEC 51 has produced yet again. At the 1st Bank Arena in Broomfield, Colorado, we witnessed Aldo establish his dominance once again, when he was able to easily dispatch the season five finalist of "The Ultimate Fighter", knocking out Manny Gamburyan with a flurry of punches on the ground, after connecting with a vicious uppercut that sent him to the mat. While the Brazilian claimed the knockout victory, it was George Roop's kick-to-head connection against "The Korean Zombie" which eventually garnered the nights "Knockout of the Night" award, and allowed him to pocket an additional ten thousand dollars for his efforts. ...

It's now come and gone, and WEC 51 reads like some crazy, bizarre storybook now that it's all over. A Korean Zombie was defeated, an Angel was reborn, a Mongolian Wolf chewed up the competition, a historic rivalry had its next (and almost certainly not last) chapter written in the blood of a great fighter, and in the main event of the night, the WEC Featherweight Champion once again proved that he is without equal. Here are all the results as well as my thoughts on the unsurprisingly fantastic WEC 51: “Aldo vs. Gamburyan” event. ...

Tonight's fights for wec 51 are nothing short of spectacular. If you've been following the WEC since it's inception to the main stream, especially with the aid of the Versus network, then you should be familiar with the bad blood between Jamie Varner and Donald Cerrone, Manny Gamburyan serving notice to the featherweight division, or Jose Aldo's dominance inside of the cage--something that has him often likened to the middleweight kingpin, Anderson Silva. So for those of you who think this card is worthy of PPV honors, your right. ...

Today marks the fifty-first show held by the World Extreme Cagefighting promotion. The card is so stacked that it was once rumored to be the next WEC Pay-Per-View, and it features big-name stars like Jose Aldo, Manvel Gamburyan, Mike Thomas Brown, Leonard Garcia, Miguel Torres, Donald Cerrone, and Jamie Varner. I’ve tried to be as vocal of a supporter of the WEC as I can possibly be in my time with fighters.com, so I can’t wait to see this show. Here are my predictions on all the big matches scheduled for WEC 51: “Aldo vs. Gamburyan”. ...

As wec 51 looms our way tomorrow night, all competitors at the 1st Bank Arena in Broomsfield, Colorado made it to the scale, with no controversy. The main event of the evening, a featherweight match up against two of the best in the class, will feature Jose Aldo putting his belt on the line against season five finalist of "The Ultimate Fighter" Manny Gamburyan, and taking on co-headlining duties will be a grudge match for the ages when former WEC lightweight champion Jamie Varner steps back into the cage for the second time this year when he faces nemesis and crowd favorite Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone, who is coming off of a loss to current champion Ben Henderson in an attempt to vie for the title. ...

There are intense rivalries. There are bitter feuds. And then there’s things like Donald Cerrone vs. Jamie Varner. Since their first fight in January 2009, both men have let loose their hatred at each other in countless interviews. Cerrone recently found himself in the middle of a PR nightmare when he called Varner a derogatory term while also saying that he hoped Varner would be MMA’s first in-ring death. Jamie Varner recently responded to Cerrone’s various tirades, and it appears that cooler heads may have finally prevailed. ...

While the WEC is recognized as being under the Zuffa umbrella that also is associated with the UFC, which is unarguably the worlds largest leading promotion in the world of mixed martial arts--the WEC does not remain as the red headed stepchild of the group. The "little" big promotion has made many strides in the last few years, improving their fundamentals and becoming a leading competitor to any organization that embodies the lighter weight classes. Currently, of the WEC's bantamweight and featherweight classes, most if not all of the top-10 competitors exist within the promotion. And while the WEC has consistently put together solid shows, time after time--WEC 51 will be no exception. In fact, it may be on their better cards to date. ...

It’s one of the bitterest rivalries in WEC history, and it’s finally going to have a Chapter 2. At WEC 51, Jamie Varner and Donald Cerrone will finally meet for the second time. It’s been a match that’s been over a year in the making, and in a recent two-part video interview on YouTube, “The Cowboy” Donald Cerrone went on a tirade against “Showtime”. ...

Lately it seems that ufc Lightweight Gray Maynard has had a noticeable (and some would say rightly justified) chip on his shoulder. Maynard was passed over in favor of the man he beat, Frank Edgar, for a shot at then-champion BJ Penn. Of course, Edgar would go on to make the most out of that opportunity and beat Penn not once but twice, first at UFC 112 via a close, hotly contested Unanimous Decision win, and then again at the recent UFC 118 event via a dominating Unanimous Decision win. Maynard has also been the subject of recent criticism for not finishing any of his fights, with his last stoppage occurring almost three full years ago. But in his latest interview, Gray Maynard has fired back and poised an interesting question: who really finishes fights at Lightweight anyway? ...

I just can’t get enough of the World Extreme Cagefighting promotion. I’ve been a fan of their’s for several years running, but only recently have I begun to realize that if the UFC did not exist, the WEC would be putting on the best cards on the planet right now. I think there’s even an argument to be made that some of the recent WEC shows have actually been better than some of the recent UFC shows. No matter what your opinion may be in regards to the friendly competition between the two companies both owned by Zuffa, the WEC is riding an incredible wave of momentum heading into their WEC 51 event, which looks to be another great night of fights. WEC 51 features a highly-anticipated WEC Featherweight Championship showdown, the next chapter in one of the bitterest rivalries in the WEC’s history, and the return of a former division kingpin looking to try and regain his former glory. Nine fights have recently been made official for WEC 51, so here’s how the card breaks down so far. ...

“Smooth” Ben Henderson (10-1) choked “The Worm” Jamie Varner (16-4) in a standing guillotine choke compelling Varner to tapout at 2:41 of round three and winning the WEC lightweight title at WEC 46 in Sacramento Sunday night. ...

The anticipated lightweight title unification bout between WEC champion "The Worm" Jamie Varner (16-3) and interim champion “Smooth” Ben Henderson (9-1) will take place at WEC 46 at ARCO Arena in Sacramento on January 10, the WEC confirmed Monday. ...

Lightweight “Smooth” Ben Henderson (9-1) won the WEC interim title in a five-round unanimous decision upset of “Cowboy” Donald Cerrone (9-3) by judges' scores of 48-47 three times at WEC 43 in San Antonio Saturday. ...

The WEC officially announced Monday that WEC 38: Varner vs Cerrone will take place 25 January at the San Diego Sports Arena in San Diego, CA. Besides the title defense by WEC Lightweight Champion “The Worm” Jamie Varner (15-3) against “Cowboy” Donald Cerrone (8-1), WEC 38 will feature a rematch between “California Kid” Urijah Faber (21-2) and “Little Evil” Jens Pulver (22-9-1). Faber, then the Featherweight Champion, earned a unanimous decision victory over Pulver in their first fight at WEC 34 in June. Faber lost his title at WEC 36 in November when he was TKO’d at 2:23 of round one by Mike Thomas Brown (16-4). Pulver also lost his last fight at the same event.  He was TKO’d at 1:12 of the first round by “Bad Boy” Leonard Garcia (11-3). ...