Varner's Kingdom: Analyzing the WEC Lightweight Division

The WEC’s heaviest weight-class is its 155-pound division and sitting atop the Lightweight throne is the champion Jamie Varner.

Varner is Mufasa to the 155-pound kingdom and through his dominant WEC victories he has also established himself as one of the top lightweight fighters in the entire world.

However in his last title defense against Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone, Varner suffered a career threatening injury and has been forced out of action unable to defend his crown.

While the champion remains seated on the sidelines, an interim title contest will be contested between top contenders Cerrone and Ben “Smooth” Henderson on Oct. 10.

The winner of the interim contest is likely to meet Varner sometime in 2010 to determine an undisputed champion. Meanwhile there are other sharks lurking around the 155-pound waters and they are hungry for gold.

With that being said let’s take a look at the top-ten lightweights in the WEC jungle.


10. Anthony Pettis

Undefeated prospect Pettis made an impact in his WEC debut back at WEC 41 submitting Mike Campbell with a tight first round triangle choke. The victory upped his overall record to 7-0 and instantly placed him on the radar as a potential contender.

He was originally slated to square off with Ultimate Fighter veteran Alex Karalexis at the upcoming WEC 43 fight card but an undisclosed injury suffered by Karalexis has scrapped the bout. A new opponent for Pettis has yet to be announced but another win could catapult him very high up the rankings—especially if the win comes against one of the top contenders in the division.

9. Ed Ratcliff

“9 mm” Ratcliff started off his WEC career with a bang scoring thunderous TKO victories over Johnny Sampaio and Karalexis but after getting caught in the first round with Marcus Hicks’ guillotine choke his momentum dropped tremendously.

A unanimous decision victory over Phil Cardella at WEC 42 has saved his spot in the rankings and he will need to string together victories if he plans on staying here.

8. Ricardo Lamas

In his first WEC contest, Lamas was called up on extremely short notice to take on dangerous striker Bart Palaszewski at WEC 39. At the time not very many people knew who Lamas was and Palaszewski was being hyped as a future title contender so obviously the WEC newcomer was not favored in this bout.

Lamas proved them all wrong by completely dominating Palaszewki with his overwhelming wrestling base to earn the unanimous decision on the judges’ score cards. Unfortunately Lamas followed that victory up with a disappointing decision loss to top five ranked Danny Castillo.

 7. Anthony Njokuani

Njokuani is not only one of the most underrated fighters in the WEC but he quite possibly could be among the most underestimated fighters in MMA today. He is a tactical striker with devastating Muay Thai and is comparable to a less-talented version of UFC Middleweight champion Anderson Silva.

His WEC debut didn’t go according to plan and he was submitted by interim title challenger Henderson by way of a second round guillotine choke. The striking sensation bounced back however by completely picking apart and knocking Palaszewski out to claim his spot among the top contenders in the organization.

A dominant performance over newcomer Muhsin Corbbrey at WEC 43 could earn Njokuani an opportunity at a title shot.

6. Shane Roller

A product of Team Takedown, Roller is a highly impressive prospect with explosive wrestling, powerful striking combinations and bone snapping submission skills. He is currently 3-1 inside the WEC cage and his only loss came to top ranked “Smooth” Henderson.

Other than that Roller has beaten Todd Moore, Mike Budnik, and most recently former title contender Hicks. The former NCAA All-American wrestler could be just two or three victories away from a title shot, possibly even one win away if he defeats a top five contender in his next bout.

5. Rob McCullough

There was a time when “Razor” Rob ruled this division with an iron fist knocking out any opponent who dared to cross his path. Then he met Varner at WEC 32 and everything seemingly went downhill from there.

Since the knockout loss to Varner, McCullough has gone 2-1 with lackluster decision victories over Kenneth Alexander and the aforementioned Hicks. His loss to Cerrone at WEC 36 was a much more impressive performance than his recent two victories.

Cerrone and McCullough went to war for three full rounds in a fight that will be remembered for a very long time and despite not getting his hand raised at the end McCullough left the arena as a winner. It’s that version of “Razor” Rob that fans love to see and it’s also the type that made him a champion.

He’ll need to defeat top ranked contenders in convincing fashion if he ever plans on winning back his prestigious championship.


4. Danny Castillo

Castillo is the best fighter that you’ve never heard of. He’s relatively unknown to casual fans, even die-hard fans aren’t very familiar with him but make no mistake about he is a legit contender in the WEC’s lightweight division.

The All-American wrestler is on a three fight winning streak with victories over Rafael Dias, Cardella, and No. 8 ranked Lamas. After the winner of the Henderson-Cerrone bout squares off with Varner, Castillo is likely to be the next in line for a title shot.

Don’t let his previous WEC loss to Cerrone fool you because Castillo could become the next WEC Lightweight champion in a blink of an eye.

3. Ben Henderson

Henderson hasn’t lost a fight since 2006 and is currently riding a two-fight winning streak inside the WEC. “Smooth” is one of the fastest rising stars in WEC history because he has only been competing in the organization since January of this year and is already headlining a card against Cerrone for the interim title.

In his first fight Henderson submitted No. 7 ranked Njokuani and followed up with an explosive knockout over No. 6 ranked Roller. Varner’s injury has put Henderson on the fast track to a title shot and if able to upset Cerrone he will then challenge Varner for the undisputed championship, possibly on the WEC’s first ever Pay-Per-View broadcast.

2. Donald Cerrone

“Cowboy” entered the WEC in 2007 and has since seen his stock rise tremendously. Cerrone—a product of Jackson’s MMA in Albuquerque, NM has established himself as one of the best non-UFC lightweights in the entire world.

He’s tremendously well-rounded and is constantly training with world-class fighters such as Georges St. Pierre and Nate Marquardt on a day-to-day basis. His crisp striking and world class Jiu-Jitsu has led him to WEC wins over No. 4 ranked Castillo, No. 5 ranked McCullough, and James Krause.

“Cowboy” has unfinished business with his arch rival Varner whom he lost a split decision to back at WEC 38. Before their fight there was a mutual respect between the two lightweights but afterwards a bitter rivalry formed and now everyone is anticipating a rematch to see these two warriors settle the score.  

But Cerrone should not look past Henderson because a loss would put his rematch with Varner on an indefinite hold.


1. Jamie Varner

He may be inactive but he certainly isn’t forgotten and until someone rises to the occasion stealing his championship away from him, Varner will remain at the top of the heap for a very long time. Varner came to the WEC from the UFC and has been victorious in every single one of his WEC bouts.

His powerful wrestling base mixed in with his explosive boxing has made him an unstoppable force in the 155-pound division.

Varner claimed the championship in 2008 knocking out McCullough in the first round. Since then he has successfully defended the title twice against Hicks and Cerrone cementing his spot as the best lightweight that is currently not competing in the UFC.

He may currently be down, but he is far from out and will look to defend his title for the third time against the winner of the WEC 43 headliner between Henderson and Cerrone.