MMA Worldwide

Jamie Varner: “I’m Always Just Going to Be Me”

Posted by Brett Atchley on the 26 August 2009 | No Comments

Jamie Varner comes across as being one of endless energy and one to accommodate in areas that are demanded of him regarding his role and occupation as one of the top mixed martial arts lightweights in the world. He seems to always have a smile on his face when not working in his craft. He loves it all, the lifestyle, the fans and of course the competitive nature of the performance itself. He keeps his public informed through his constant updating on social networks such as “twitter” and “facebook”. Varner’s current record of 16-2-0 is impressive as well as the current WEC lightweight  champion.

Varner went to college at Lock Haven University in Pennsylvania and spent his time there training both as a wrestler and a boxer, where he was NCBA (National Collegiate Boxing Association) Champion. After graduating from college with a degree in accounting, Varner started a career in commercial construction as a project manager. His career took him to Arizona where he started to delve into mixed-martial arts. The rest as they say is history and victory thus far.

The UFC saw promise in Varner early in his career earning him a contract. He fought tough as nails lightweight, Spencer Fisher in his debut at UFC 62. Fisher was injured prior and had to be replaced by then, WEC lightweight champion, Hermes Franca.  Franca prevailed, winning by arm-bar submission in the 3^rd round. Six months later, Varner fought Jason Gilliam  in UFC earning a victory by submission with a rear naked choke.

Varner took the WEC lightweight belt from Rob McCullough in WEC 32 in 2003 by 3^rd round by TKO. He successfully defended his WEC Lightweight Championship belt against then undefeated Marcus Hicks on August 3rd 2008. He defended his belt on January 25, 2009 against Donald Cerrone at WEC 38. The fight was stopped prematurely in the fifth round when Cerrone launched a knee to Varner's temple while Varner was still on the ground, an illegal maneuver. Unable to continue, complaining of double vision and discovering that he had suffered a broken right hand, the fight was stopped. The crowd saw it otherwise. They saw Varner as just wanting to get out of the fight. I would note that Varner was ahead on points on the judges scorecards at the time of injury.

I actually ran upon Varner in Seattle, Washington where he had a fighter, Jade Porter (3-0), fighting his 4^th professional bout at 145 lbs. in the “Rumble on the Ridge” put on by Punch Drunk Promotions. I walked back stage where I saw Varner sitting where he seemed most comfortable, in between two members of Seattle Mist (a professional bikini football team) who were also the promotions ring girls. He reluctantly agreed to talk to me.

MMA WorldWide: Jamie, thanks for talking to us. It looks like you are enjoying the great Pacific Northwest.

Jamie Varner: Dude, I can’t believe your timing. I was in.

MWW: No worries Jamie, I’m sure they will be there when we get done. They have their social obligations.

JV: You better hope so or you need to supply some replacements.

MWW: The possibilities are endless. Tell us about your purpose here.

JV: O.k , well I have a fantastic fighter here that I train, Jade Porter who is a very large and gifted 145 pounder. He walks around at about 175. He’s similar in build and density as Mike Brown. He’s super athletic and actually one of the first guys I started training at Arizona Combat Sports. The guy is a monster. He’s probably at 160 lbs. right now fighting tonight. He came to me with no combat skills whatsoever, now he’s undefeated and improving. It’s awesome and really a proud moment for me.

MWW: Do you have a pretty good talent pool of students in Arizona?

JV:  Yes, I do. I have about 12 fighters. Seven of them very promising amateurs and 5 of them being very talented pros. I’d like to get Jade another 3 or 4 fights and then move him into the WEC. I think he would be a force to be reckoned with.

MWW: It looks as though you have been traveling quite a bit through the mid-west and east coast?

JV: Ya, I had a friend back in Ohio that was fighting in his professional debut that I went to college with and I just want to get away from the distractions back in Arizona and just get back to the east coast to catch up and relax. I was just feeling a little burned out. I was sick of training and training people as well as some personal distractions, so it’s been really great.

MWW: You went to Philadelphia for the UFC. How was your experience there?

JV: It was awesome! I was twittering about it like crazy. I came into Newark, from there we went to Bellmawr at the Jersey Shore, from there the next day we went to the Meadowlands to see an AC/DC concert. The next day we went to Long Island to the MMA expo which was really a good experience. The fans there are just of a different sort. I mean it wasn’t a huge turn-out but they are just fanatics, insane and so very appreciative and respectful at the same time. I was so surprised at how much I was getting recognized. It was great; we ended up going to Rhode Island, into the city (New York) for a Yankees vs. Red Sox game where the Yankees just blew away the Red Sox. We left there went back to my buddies house, hung and got on the road to Philly for UFC 101. It was a really great thing.

MWW: So, it sounds like you really enjoyed yourself.

JV: It’s the best vacation I have ever had. The cheese-steaks in Philly are a must. If you go to Philly and don’t get a steak you haven’t experienced it.

MWW: I agree, very familiar with the significance of a good cheese-steak.

JV: Ya, wow! They’re just hole in the wall places but a taste all their own.

MWW: Let’s talk about what’s on the WEC horizon for you. Cerrone has been very vocal about a re-match. What are your thoughts?

JV: You know Cerrone is just doing what he needs to do by talking shit to pump himself up. I do things differently. I do all my talking in the ring and I feel that some of the things he said just shows how classless and uneducated he is. He can just keep doing it, I’m not getting sucked into it or changing the way I am. I’m just going to continue being me.

Before anything happens with he and I, it’s first things first. I’ve got to heal and he has to get through Ben Henderson. Henderson is a great wrestler and in good shape. Cowboy’s wrestling sucks, so I really see Henderson winning that fight. Cowboy’s doing all this talking, he’s gonna lose and not be able to even fight me. I mean that’s going to be the irony of the whole thing and the fact that I already beat him once with a broken hand as well as a broken foot. I incurred some serious injuries in that fight, a lesion over my right eye, a boot on my foot for six months, but I wanted to finish that fight but there are rules put in place for a reason and those reasons prevailed.

MWW: I recently spoke to Urijah Faber and he indicted that it was his goal to hold the 135, 145 and 155 pound WEC World Championship belts. What do you think of that?

JV: (Laughs) He did not say that.

MWW: Yes, he did say that. I have it recorded.

JV: (Smiling) Urijah would have a hard time with me. He’s having a hard enough time in his weight class. Let him win the belt in his weight class first and then he might be able to come after me. I’m twenty-five pounds bigger than he is and ya, sure he could put on that weight. He’s a very talented and gifted guy but that just wouldn’t be a realistic fight for him. There are other guys at 155 that would be more realistic for him that he could defeat, but me? Nah, no not me.

MWW: So you wouldn’t do it?

JV: Oh ya, if the money was right but I’ve got nothing to gain by fighting Urijah. Now Mike Brown might be more realistic. He’s a big guy and that would be something that I could benefit from in the very near future. Urijah? No I don’t see it happening; he’s a good friend of mine. He was a 133 pounder in college and I was a big 165 pounder plus, being an All-American. He was an average size 133 pounder, which just doesn’t make sense. He would be outsized and trying to compete out of his range of ability as well. Getting back to the original question, would I fight him? Yes, for $100,000.00, ten times for that! You know at the end of the day we all want to make money in this sport, to be immortalized in it. Me, beating Urijah doesn’t do anything for him…..or maybe it does, I don’t know. Me personally I’ve got nothing to gain and everything to lose by doing it.

MWW: So what is the scope of recovery on your hand currently?

JV: I’m looking at December man. As soon as I get the green light, I’m heading right into training camp. I’ve doing what I can and swimming but you know it’s not the same. I mean I was walking around at 190 recently until I was able to use it more. The swimming has been a great conditioning tool and has helped me take the weight off. I was running but after a while it just got boring. I was a swimmer in college and it’s something that I enjoy doing. I can come out of this and go into training camp with a leg up and in good shape.

MWW: What is your opinion of the presentation by some of the athletes that the WEC needs to modify or improve?

JV: If you mean from a production level no, I don’t think that’s where it’s critical for us as the fighters. I think it needs to be marketed more aggressively. I think there needs to be resources allocated and invested there. I mean look the WEC has some of the best, most dynamic fighter in the world that NOBODY has ever heard of. I was the youngest fighter ever to be in the UFC fighting a number one contender. If it weren’t for shows like Tapout, Versus or Comcast nobody would even know who Donald Cerrone or Marcus Hicks is. I mean really nobody would know who the WEC really is. Think about that!

So at this point I don’t get the recognition that I deserve but it will come as time goes on and I keep up my end of things. The WEC is so infant in its exposure. It’s been around for a long time but, it hasn’t been mainstream for more than 3 years. It took the UFC a long time to become what it is and the fact that the WEC is under the Zuffa umbrella reinforces that growth.

MWW: Is there anything on your mind that you would like to comment on in terms of the MMA industry as a whole?

JV: You know it’s the whole Fedor (Emelianenko) thing. I just don’t understand where his management’s strategies are or what they could possibly hope to achieve. I mean what are they thinking? Are they just playing hard-ball by signing with Strikeforce? Who the hell is he going to fight? I think he is really tarnishing his legacy by not signing with the UFC to stand up against the best in the sport. He could honestly immortalize himself forever by going against the best. In the public’s eye there is always going to be a glimmer of doubt. M-1 wanting to co-brand and all of that to get Fedor is just ridiculous. The UFC has worked hard to get where they are and to let M-1 come in and just say that they want part of it is…….come on, it’s just delusional.

You know the whole UFC model is kind of like the old school mafia. You either pay me or else. I mean they’ve screwed the fighters out of a lot of money but the also take care of them very well in other ways. I don’t agree with their sponsorship policy. I just see it as them taking food from the fight’s mouth. If anything I think it would be reasonable for them to put the fighters of long standing on some sort of progressive pay grade. I’ve been with them for a very long time and at this point I’m injured and don’t have any direct revenue from them coming in. I know that some fighters only perform a couple times a year. So they’re on the fence or just a breath from being able to tap their talent.

MWW: How has it been these last few days here with Quentin (Jackson)?

JV: Ya, you know he’s just a little too big time for me. He didn’t event know who I was or barely what the WEC was. He commented that he had a good friend in Rob McCullough that fought in the WEC but did not seem to know that I beat him to a pulp and took the world championship belt from him……or maybe he did. He is just a different kind of cat. He parties a lot, doesn’t seem to be a real fan of the sport, and just seems like it spreads who he might be in reality a little thin. I’m never going to change. I wear torn up jeans, my Chuck Taylors and don’t like to shave. That’s just who I am. If I got insanely famous, I would be the same. I love these fans, fighters and the sport. I love the women here in Washington (laughing). It doesn’t help things that I’m experiencing some difficulty back home with a relationship, so they’re looking more appealing.

MWW: Thanks for talking with us Jamie. Anything else?

JV: Keep an eye on Jade Porter, you’re gonna see great things come from him in the very near future.