World Extreme Cagefighting lightweight champion Jamie Varner will meet interim titleholder Benson Henderson in a unification bout at WEC 46 on Jan. 10 at the Arco Arena in Sacramento, Calif. WEC officials on Monday announced the matchup via Twitter.

Anchored at Arizona Combat Sports, Varner will carry a five-fight winning streak into his third title defense. The 25-year-old has not competed since his technical split decision victory over Donald Cerrone in January. That bout ended with Varner ahead on the scorecards after Cerrone struck him in the face with an inadvertent illegal knee. Finished only once as a professional, he holds notable victories against “Razor” Rob McCullough and UFC veteran Kyle Bradley.

The fast-rising Henderson, meanwhile, captured the interim WEC crown in a riveting unanimous decision victory over Cerrone at WEC 43 last month; many view the bout as frontrunner for “Fight of the Year.” Based out of the MMA Lab in Glendale, Ariz., he has rattled off nine consecutive wins, seven of them finishes. A protégé of John Crouch, Henderson was a two-time collegiate All-American at Dana College in Nebraska. He counts victories over former Palace Fighting Championship titleholder Diego Saraiva and three-time collegiate All-American Shane Roller among his 10 career conquests.