Jake Shields Wants To Fight A Top UFC Middleweight Contender

[No More Sorrow]

Jake Shields knows the kind of middleweight he wants to be in the UFC.

He wants to be the version that spent four rounds dominating Dan Henderson in a Strikeforce title fight in April 2010. The one that beat Ed Herman at UFC 150 on Saturday, he thinks, needs one specific upgrade.


And to that end, Shields (28-6-1 MMA, 3-2 UFC) plans to put on a little more weight after a four-fight stint at welterweight.


"Fighting at middleweight I like, but the altitude definitely slowed my pace down," Shields said after his UFC 150 win over Herman (20-8 MMA, 7-6 UFC).


But at the post-event news conference, Shields said it was more than just an adjustment to fighting at the mile-high altitude in Denver. He believes he still has a few pounds to go for his next fight.


When Shields signed with the UFC in 2010 after his win over Henderson, which was his last Strikeforce middleweight title defense before vacating the belt, he dropped to welterweight. He went 2-2 at 170 pounds in the UFC before returning to 185 to fight Herman.


"I felt good, (but) I need to put on a little more weight," Shields said. "I got about halfway to where I want to be. Herman's really tough and an underrated guy. The altitude, I had to pace myself more. I just need to go and keep working on things. When I first fought middleweight in Strikeforce, every fight I got a little stronger.


"If I can put on another five or six pounds, I can fight someone who's a top contender and get back into the mix."


Shields won a unanimous decision on the main card at Pepsi Center in Denver, beating Herman with scores of 30-27 twice and 29-28. And while Shields said he felt good and surely was glad to get a second straight win, his boss was surprised by how the fight played out.


"I expected that fight to be a lot better," White said. "I found it completely odd that Herman was running into the clinch. Why do you want to get in the clinch with Jake Shields and go to the ground with him? It was a weird fight – it wasn't the fight that I expected it to be."


Shields brought a 13-fight win streak to the UFC when he signed in 2010, including eight by stoppage. His four wins just before moving over to the UFC were submissions of Paul Daley and Robbie Lawler and decision wins over Jason Miller and Henderson.


But in the UFC, he won a close and somewhat controversial split decision against Martin Kampmann, then lost a welterweight title fight to Georges St-Pierre. After that, he was knocked out by Jake Ellenberger in 53 seconds.


His rebound the last two fights likely has given him a boost. But his unanimous decision win over Yoshihiro Akiyama in February and Saturday's win over Herman were not necessarily the types of fights fans are talking about on Monday.


"He won," White said. "It was a Jake Shields fight. Know what I mean?"


"It was a little embarrassing, but props to Ed Herman," Shields said. "Hopefully next time it won't be at altitude, and I can come here and give a lot more and show the kind of fighter I was when I fought Dan Henderson."

Wouldn't mind seeing Shields/Sonnen if Chael decides to stay at 185. They could also do Shields/Rashad if Evans plans on moving down to MW.

 

[The Cork]

Shields/Sonnen would be great, and even better if Chael started dogging on the Diaz bros in the build up.

As a Sonnen fan I wouldn't want to see it for the fact Shields has a big chance of getting the sub.

I do think he gets a bad rap in general though, kinda like GSP. IMO the Herman fight wasn't even that bad. I don't know what people were thinking if they thought that had excitement written all over it.

 

[Deezy]

I've never been much of a fan of Shields and I knew of him since the Rumble on The Rock tournament. Give him someone who could knock his block off for all I care.

This guy gets more gift decisions than Leonard Garca.

 

[Slim]

I'm a fan of Shields but I wanna see him fight one more middleweight guy before facing a top level talent. The Herman fight just wasn't there. Need to see the Shields of old that would have a real good chance of tapping you out or something. This Shields that has been in the UFC is... kinda meh. SO I'd say one more before and hopefully he can tap that guy out.