Jamie Varner

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Jamie Varner
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Varner in 2010
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Phoenix, Arizona, U.S.
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Other namesC-4
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DivisionLightweight
Welterweight
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Fighting out ofGlendale, Arizona, U.S.
TeamArizona Combat Sports
MMA Lab
RankBrown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu[2][3] under Gustavo Dantas[citation needed]
Years active2003–2014
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Mixed martial arts record
Total35
Wins21
By knockout7
By submission11
By decision3
Losses11
By knockout2
By submission5
By decision4
Draws1
No contests2
Other information
UniversityLock Haven University
Notable schoolTemplate:Pluralize from textDeer Valley High School
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
Last updated on: September 09, 2009

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James Varner (born October 12, 1984) is a retired American mixed martial artist who fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and the World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC). He is a former WEC Lightweight Champion.

Background

Born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona, Varner attended Deer Valley High School where he competed in wrestling.[4] At Deer Valley, Varner was a two-time Regional Champion and a State Runner Up and went on to compete at Pima Community College where he was a two-time National Qualifier and a National Runner Up, in addition to being an NJCAA All-American and a two-time Academic All-American.[5]

Mixed martial arts career

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Varner competed twice in the UFC. His first appearance was against veteran Hermes Franca, which Varner lost via submission (armbar) in round three. His final appearance was against formerly undefeated Jason Gilliam, which he won via first round submission (rear naked choke). After this win, Varner transferred to the WEC.

World Extreme Cagefighting

Varner successfully defended his WEC Lightweight Championship against the previously undefeated Marcus Hicks on August 3, 2008.

He next retained his title on January 25, 2009, defeating Donald Cerrone via technical split decision at WEC 38.[6] The fight was highly competitive and won the Fight of the Night award. However, the fight was stopped prematurely in the fifth round when Cerrone hit 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 hand.

Varner faced Benson Henderson to unify the WEC Lightweight Championship at WEC 46 on January 10, 2010.[7] After outboxing and outwrestling Henderson in the first two rounds, Henderson came back and caught Varner in a standing guillotine choke ending the fight at 2:41 of the third round.[8]

Varner was expected to face Kamal Shalorus on April 24, 2010 at WEC 48,[9] but the bout was called off due to an injury sustained by Shalorus. Varner/Shalorus was then rescheduled for June 20, 2010 at WEC 49.[10] The match ended in a split draw.

Varner faced Donald Cerrone in a highly anticipated rematch on September 30, 2010 at WEC 51.[11] He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Varner faced Shane Roller on December 16, 2010 at WEC 53.[12] He lost via submission in the first round and was subsequently released from the promotion.[13]

Post Zuffa

In his first post-Zuffa fight, Varner fought Tyler Combs for XFO and won via submission in the first round. He was also in negotiations for a possible fight against DREAM Lightweight Champion Shinya Aoki at the end of May 2011,[14] but the bout did not materialize.

Varner headlined Titan Fighting Championships 20 against Dakota Cochrane on September 23, 2011, losing by unanimous decision.[15]

Varner has signed a three-fight contract with XFC. He debuted on the XFC 14 show, defeating Nate Jolly via KO in round one. He returned on the XFC 16 High Stakes card which took place on February 10, 2012 from the Knoxville Civic Auditorium-Coliseum in Knoxville, Tennessee.[16] He defeated Drew Fickett via TKO due to strikes just 40 seconds into round one.

Return to the UFC

It was announced that Varner would replace Evan Dunham, who suffered an injury, to fight undefeated prospect Edson Barboza on May 26, 2012 at UFC 146.[17] Varner defeated Barboza by TKO due to punches in the first round.

Varner replaced an injured Terry Etim against Joe Lauzon on August 4, 2012 at UFC on Fox: Shogun vs. Vera.[18] Varner broke his hand in the second round[19] and lost at 2:44 in the third round via triangle choke. However, his performance earned him the $50,000 Fight of the Night bonus[20] and a Fight of the Year nomination at the World MMA Awards.[21]

Varner was scheduled to face Melvin Guillard on December 15, 2012 at the Ultimate Fighter 16 Finale.[22] However, Varner fell ill the day of the event and the bout was scrapped from the card. Varner/Guillard was rescheduled for December 29, 2012 at UFC 155.[23] Varner won the fight via split decision (30–27, 27–30, 30–27). Joe Rogan said post fight that "whoever scored it 30 to 27 for Guillard should never be allowed to judge a fight again."

Varner faced Gleison Tibau on August 31, 2013 at UFC 164.[24] He lost the fight via split decision.

Varner was expected to face Pat Healy on December 14, 2013 at UFC on Fox 9.[25] However, Varner pulled out of the bout due to injury and was replaced by Bobby Green[26]

Varner faced Abel Trujillo on February 1, 2014 at UFC 169, replacing Bobby Green.[27] He lost the back-and-forth fight via knockout in the second round. Despite the loss, Varner was given a Fight of the Night bonus award for the bout. The loss was also Varner's first knockout loss in his career.[28]

Varner faced James Krause on May 24, 2014 at UFC 173.[29] Varner lost the fight via TKO due to injury as he broke his ankle in the first round and was unable to continue into the second round.[30]

Varner next fought Drew Dober on December 13, 2014 at UFC on Fox 13.[31] He lost the fight via a rear-naked choke. Varner landed on his head while attempting a takedown, temporarily rocking him and allowing Dober to take Varner's back to get the choke. In his post-fight interview inside the octagon, Varner announced his retirement from mixed martial arts competition.[32]

Personal life

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 where he joined the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity 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. Also attended PCC (Pima Community College) outside of Maricopa county in Arizona.

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.[33]

After retiring from MMA in 2014, Varner continued his studies that were interrupted when Varner got into the UFC. Eventually Varner graduated with major in marketing and a minor in financing. After graduating he worked at Boston Scientific before transitioning to the stem cell domain.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown
35 matches 21 wins 11 losses
By knockout 7 2
By submission 11 5
By decision 3 4
Draws 1
No contests 2
Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Loss 21–11–1 (2) Drew Dober Submission (rear-naked choke) UFC on Fox: dos Santos vs. Miocic Template:Dts 1 1:52 Phoenix, Arizona, United States
Loss 21–10–1 (2) James Krause TKO (ankle injury) UFC 173 Template:Dts 1 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Loss 21–9–1 (2) Abel Trujillo KO (punch) UFC 169 Template:Dts 2 2:32 Newark, New Jersey, United States Fight of the Night.
Loss 21–8–1 (2) Gleison Tibau Decision (split) UFC 164 Template:Dts 3 5:00 Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States
Win 21–7–1 (2) Melvin Guillard Decision (split) UFC 155 Template:Dts 3 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Loss 20–7–1 (2) Joe Lauzon Submission (triangle choke) UFC on Fox: Shogun vs. Vera Template:Dts 3 2:44 Los Angeles, California, United States Fight of the Night; Fight of the Year (2012).
Win 20–6–1 (2) Edson Barboza TKO (punches) UFC 146 Template:Dts 1 3:23 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States 2012 Upset of the Year.
Win 19–6–1 (2) Drew Fickett Submission (punches) XFC 16 Template:Dts 1 0:40 Knoxville, Tennessee, United States 160 lb Catchweight.
Win 18–6–1 (2) Nate Jolly KO (punches) XFC 14 Template:Dts 1 1:09 Orlando, Florida, United States 160 lb Catchweight.
Loss 17–6–1 (2) Dakota Cochrane Decision (unanimous) Titan FC 20 Template:Dts 3 5:00 Kansas City, Kansas, United States 165 lb Catchweight.
Win 17–5–1 (2) Tyler Combs Submission (north-south choke) XFO 39 Template:Dts 1 1:30 Hoffman Estates, Illinois, United States Welterweight bout.
Loss 16–5–1 (2) Shane Roller Submission (rear-naked choke) WEC 53 Template:Dts 1 3:55 Glendale, Arizona, United States
Loss 16–4–1 (2) Donald Cerrone Decision (unanimous) WEC 51 Template:Dts 3 5:00 Broomfield, Colorado, United States Fight of the Night.
Draw 16–3–1 (2) Kamal Shalorus Draw (split) WEC 49 Template:Dts 3 5:00 Edmonton, Alberta, Canada Shalorus had one point deducted in round two for illegal groin kicks.
Loss 16–3 (2) Benson Henderson Submission (guillotine choke) WEC 46 Template:Dts 3 2:41 Sacramento, California, United States Lost the WEC Lightweight Championship.
Win 16–2 (2) Donald Cerrone Technical Decision (split) WEC 38 Template:Dts 5 3:10 San Diego, California, United States Defended the WEC Lightweight Championship; Fight of the Night.
Win 15–2 (2) Marcus Hicks TKO (punches) WEC 35 Template:Dts 1 2:08 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Defended the WEC Lightweight Championship.
Win 14–2 (2) Rob McCullough TKO (punches) WEC 32 Template:Dts 3 2:54 Rio Rancho, New Mexico, United States Won the WEC Lightweight Championship.
Win 13–2 (2) Sherron Leggett TKO (punches and elbows) WEC 29 Template:Dts 1 4:08 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 12–2 (2) Jason Gilliam Technical Submission (rear-naked choke) UFC 68 Template:Dts 1 1:34 Columbus, Ohio, United States
Loss 11–2 (2) Hermes França Submission (armbar) UFC 62 Template:Dts 3 3:31 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Fight of the Night.
Win 11–1 (2) Leonard Wilson Submission (rear-naked choke) Rage in the Cage 78 Template:Dts 2 1:07 Glendale, Arizona, United States
NC 10–1 (2) Tony Llamas No Contest KOTC 56: Caliente Template:Dts N/A N/A Globe, Arizona, United States Llamas injured by an illegal strike.
Win 10–1 (1) Paul Arroyo Submission (punches) Rage in the Cage 71 Template:Dts 1 2:03 Tempe, Arizona, United States
Win 9–1 (1) Adam Roland TKO (punches) Rage in the Cage 70 Template:Dts 1 2:46 Glendale, Arizona, United States
Win 8–1 (1) Jesse Bongfeldt TKO (punches) WFF 7: Professional Shooto Template:Dts 1 4:12 Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Win 7–1 (1) Kyle Bradley Submission (rear-naked choke) Fight Factory Template:Dts 2 2:34 N/A
Win 6–1 (1) Kyle Sprouse Submission (choke) RITC 63: It's Time Template:Dts 1 1:47 Phoenix, Arizona, United States
Win 5–1 (1) Garett Davis Submission (triangle choke) World Freestyle Fighting 6 Template:Dts 1 3:52 Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
NC 4–1 (1) James Upshur No Contest RITC 61: Relentless Template:Dts 2 N/A Phoenix, Arizona, United States
Win 4–1 Jarvis Brennaman Submission (triangle choke) ECS: Evolution Template:Dts 1 1:22 Phoenix, Arizona, United States
Win 3–1 Dave Klein Submission (choke) RITC 50: The Prelude Template:Dts 3 1:56 Tucson, Arizona, United States
Win 2–1 Justin Nauling Submission (armbar) RITC 49: Stare Down Template:Dts 2 0:38 Phoenix, Arizona, United States
Loss 1–1 Jesse Moreng Decision (unanimous) RITC 47: Unstoppable Template:Dts 3 3:00 Phoenix, Arizona, United States
Win 1–0 Carlos Ortega Decision (unanimous) RITC 46: Launching Pad Template:Dts 3 3:00 Tempe, Arizona, United States

References

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