And the winner is... Foo Fighters for 'White Limo!' Foo Fighters have just beaten out Mastodon, Megadeth, Dream Theater and Sum 41 for the 2012 Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock / Metal Performance.

Ever since the Dec. 1 announcement of the nominees for Best Hard Rock / Metal Performance, the buzz began to build as Foo Fighters, Megadeth, Dream Theater, Mastodon and Sum 41 were pitted against each other for the award. Although the other bands gave Foo Fighters a run for their money, Grohl and friends were able to snatch up the award.

Megadeth received their 10th Grammy nomination in their career for 'Public Enemy No. 1.' Despite all their nominations, the thrash metal titans have never actually taken home the golden gramophone.

With their decade-long reign of critical acclaim and underground respect, Mastodon have proven to be one of the most important metal acts of the 21st Century. Mastodon gained their second Grammy nomination for the single ‘Curl of the Burl.’ The band was nominated for ‘Colony of Birchmen’ in 2007, but was beaten by Slayer‘s ‘Eyes of the Insane.’

Although Dream Theater have been around for nearly three decades, this Grammy nod for 'On the Backs of Angels' is the first in their storied career. Dream Theater have perhaps been the most vocal of the nominees, giving their thanks on any occasions for being considered.

In a surprising turn of events, pop-punkers Sum 41 rounded out the nominees in the Best Hard Rock / Metal Performance category with the track ‘Blood In My Eyes’ from their 2011 release ‘Screaming Bloody Murder.’

Foo Fighters also won Grammys for Best Long Form Music Video, Best Rock Song and Best Rock Album. The band will be performing twice tonight (Feb. 12) at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards and are also nominated for Best Rock Performance and Album of the Year.

Stay tuned for more Foo Fighters news from the 2012 Grammy Awards.