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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
The WEC and AMP Energy teamed up this summer to run the "Hometown Takedown" contest, giving 30 cities the chance to vote and bring a WEC event to their city this December.
On Wednesday's broadcast of WEC 50 on Versus, the organization announced the top three vote-getting cities in the contest before ultimately revealing the winner. The top three cities were Milwaukee, Nashville and Phoenix.
UFC President Dana White then revealed before the main event that Phoenix, Arizona was the winner of the contest. The city will receive the WEC 54 event on Thursday, December 16 at the Jobing.com Arena in Glendale, Ariz., just outside of Phoenix.
The card will likely be headlined by WEC Lightweight Champion Benson Henderson in his second title defense, as he lives and trains in the state. Who that fight will come against may not be determined until after next month's WEC 51 event, where Jamie Varner and Donald Cerrone square off for a second time.
Henderson defeated Varner for the Title in January, but Varner could earn his rematch with a win over Cerrone. If he's not a viable option, both Anthony Pettis and Bart Palaszewski made their case for a title shot with victories at WEC 50 on Wednesday.
Penick's Analysis: If Varner beats Cerrone I think he'll likely get the rematch, in which case the WEC should book a rematch between Pettis and Palaszewski as well to determine the next challenger to the title. Pettis dropped a split decision to Palaszewski in their first meeting last December, but he's come a long way in eight months since that fight, winning three straight himself. He looked excellent against Shane Roller, and if he can beat Palaszewski in a rematch he would absolutely earn a title shot in 2011.
RELATED STORY: WEC 50 RESULTS: Cruz retains title over Benavidez; Jorgensen, Pettis and Palaszewski emerge as challengers: [CLICK TO READ FULL ARTICLE]
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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