Jake Shields Officially Signs with the UFC

[Turd Ferguson]

The worst kept secret in all of MMA has finally been revealed. Jake Shields, the former Strikeforce Middleweight Champion, has finally signed with the UFC, and will be fighting at his natural weightclass of 170 lbs.

Cesar Gracie Jiu Jitsu's website posted:

Jake Shields will be debuting at the 170lbs weight division in the UFC. After careful consideration and consulting with UFC representatives it was determined Jake would be finally going back to his original fighting weight.

Jake's opponent is one of the UFC's top contenders and will be announced shortly.

One of the UFC's top contenders, so that automatically eliminates Josh Koscheck, Jon Fitch, Thiago Alves, Dan Hardy, and Carlos Condit. That leaves the one guy who I can't stand, Martin Kampmann, and I can't wait for Shields to destroy him. He'll probably take on the Fitch/Alves winner after that point, and the winner of that fight would most likely get a title shot.

Jake Shields is one of the top pound for pound fighters in the world. He's on a 14 fight win streak, most recently coming off of his biggest victory to date, which is a successful defense of his Strikeforce Middleweight Title against some guy named Dan Henderson, in which he dominated him for four rounds. Shields is a world-class wrestler who is very well-versed in Jiu-Jitsu as well, and has mixed the two to develop his own style of fighting, "American Jiu-Jitsu".

Shields has beaten the following notable names in his career:
Dan Henderson
Jason "Mayhem" Miller
Robbie Lawler
Paul Daley
Mike Pyle
Carlos Condit
Yushin Okami
Hayato Sakurai

He's only 31 years old as well. He instantly becomes one of the top 5 Welterweights in the UFC right now.

Here's the thing though, did he make the right move in going back to Welterweight, or should he have stayed at Middleweight? Both divisions are so stacked, but Shields was so successful at Middleweight recently, defeating three really big names in Henderson, Miller, and Lawler, that I think he would have had no problem going up against guys like Marquardt, Belfort, Leben, and I'm sure a Chael Sonnen fight would be a good challenge for Shields as well. A fight with Anderson Silva would have been a very interesting battle as well, and I think he would have posed a great challenge for Anderson.

But anyway, let's get away from hypotheticals. How do you think Shields will fare at Welterweight in the UFC? Do you think he could get past the cream of the crop of the division... Koscheck, Fitch, and Alves? How much of a potential challenge do you see him posing to GSP?

 

[Tha Wolfpac]

Hey Yo!

Well to begin, awesome news for the UFC and Jake Shields, and for the fans obviously.

Fighting in the welterweight division, hmm im not too sure about that, Didn't Jake Sields claim that he wanted to fight Anderson Silva, but at least he will still get to eventually fight the best in the UFC with that being GSP.... dont flame me. Honestly i think he will able to rise through the ranks of the welterweight division with not much troule he is an amazing fighter who is well versed in almost eveyr aspect in MMA. He will prove to be GSP's toughest threat if he continues to fight as well as he has in Strikeforce. Well thats my two cents.

 

[Toxs]

This is great. Shields' wrestling is on the same level as any of the elite guys at 170. We know he's another tough guy who can take a punch, survie and pull out a W. Combine all of that with his "American Jiu-Jitsu" and I see a guy who can compete with anyone in the Welterweight Division.
I like his matchup with Kampmann the guy is no joke and it looks like it could be interesting fight.
Jake's got some tough fights ahead of him and, unless Koscheck dethrones GSP beforehand, I see Jake being the guy to beat GSP since Serra.

 

[jmt225]

Jake Shields is the one Welterweight walking this Earth who I can picture knocking GSP off his throne. Literally, the only one.

Shields has the wrestling, size and athleticism to keep GSP from taking him down. And even if he doesn't, he's not Fitch or Koscheck or Dan Hardy... Shields can actually work off his back. He'll be able to go for submission, and get back to his feet. There's no doubt in my mind about that.

Also, Shields will be able to take GSP down, I firmly believe, especially in a long fight. After what Shields was able to do to Dan Henderson (which I'm still in shock about), I don't put it past him to be able to do the same to GSP.

At the same time, I think GSP is the only person in the UFC Welterweight Division who can beat Jake Shields. Nobody else can match Shields' wrestling other than GSP. Not Kos or Fitch. And if Fitch were able to take Shields down, then Shields would not just allow the dude to lay on him for 3 Rounds. Shields will get out of it.

So, yeah... have very high hopes for my main man Jake Shields in the UFC, and I certainly can't wait for him to prove me right.

 

[Via Armbar]

So apparently he's going to be making his debut against Martin Kampmann. Interesting fight and very big one for The Hitman. Unfortunately for Kampmann, he's well rounded but doesn't have one particular strength to use against Shields. If he has an edge anywhere on Jake it would be striking. His wrestling isn't anywhere close obviously. He has shown good sub defense before but he hasn't faced anybody with the top control that Shields has. Martin has surprised us though in recent times so you never know, but money should be placed on the obvious. Shields walks away with and will probably get the winner of GSP/Koscheck. If Kampmann wins, he will probably be a number one contenders fight away from a title shot; the winner of Fitch/Alves.

 

[jmt225]

I could not be more confident in Jake Shields for this fight.

Martin Kampmann has the stand-up advantage, no doubt, but Shields should be able to take him down at will, pass his guard, and put him away after getting the mount or his back. That's how the fight should go, easily.

And hopefully, Jake gets a title shot immediately after defeating Kampmann. I've been reading though many people say Jake should get a title shot only if he beats Jon Fitch, if Fitch beats Alves. And I say... fuck that! Fitch can be first in line to get the winner of GSP/Shields (assuming GSP beats Koscheck), but Jake should only need one win over a "top contender" to be worthy of a title shot, after the kind of run he had before signing with the UFC.

 

[INDYjon22]

Great news for the UFC but horrible news for Strikeforce. I however am fine with it and I am sure that just breaks SF's heart to hear. But seriously, this is very good news to hear. Shields is a great addition to a very stacked UFC Welterweight division and should make an immediate impact. He is immediately a viable contender for the title and is in contention with names such as Koscheck, Fitch, Alves, Hardy and St-Pierre. It will be very interesting to see what he can do from here.

He has the same if not better wrestling abilities then Kos and Fitch which would make for a very interesting fight and it would be interesting to see what sort of strategy he would implement against guys like Alves and Hardy. Regardless, he can beat any of the above mentioned names, no question in my mind and he is the biggest threat to GSP in the UFC now. A fight with Kampmann won't be easy but he should win. Kampmann is a very good striker but Shields shouldn't have any issue taking him to the ground and pounding on him. I think he will go on to fight the winner of Alves/Fitch which will be a hard fight to call but should be a good one and from there most likely a title shot. I can't wait to see what Jake Shields does in the UFC.

 

[ITurnGirlsGay]

Am I the only sober one on this thread? Shields will get bounced out of the UFC fairly quickly. Shields wrestling is NOWHERE NEAR Kos' I don't care if he outwrestled a Dan Henderson who hadn't fought in almost a year. He had mount on Henderson and couldn't do SHIT with it. I fucking hate Josh Koscheck, but the man went 42-0 during his junior season including a D-1 national championship. He's a 4 time All-American. 3 time recipient of Wrestler of the Year.

Additionally, Martin Kampmann has a tremendous ground game. FAR better than people give him credit for. He absolutely dominated Paulo Thiago who, I might remind you, is a BJJ black belt as well. Kampmann has FAR superior stand-up to Shields and a very well balanced MMA game.

Shields lacks knockout power and is pretty much a decision warrior if he can't get the submission. Shields has only T/KO'ed 3 of his opponents. That sort of one dimensional fighting isn't going to bode well in the UFC. When Shields fights someone like Koscheck who WILL stuff his take-downs, how is he going to win? Koscheck and GSP have KO power. Shields, IN NO WAY, poses a threat to GSP.

The answer to why Shields isn't fighting at MW is simple. He would get FUCKING destroyed. Leben would punch a hole through Shield's head. Anderson would pick him apart in every conceivable way. His wrestling wouldn't even be good enough to challenge Marquardt or Sonnen. His BJJ is VASTLY inferior to someone like Maia. Shields picked WW because it's probably the weakest division in the UFC and he can, conceivably, win enough fights to get a title shot and linger around. He will NEVER become champion.

 

[jmt225]

Am I the only sober one on this thread? Shields will get bounced out of the UFC fairly quickly. Shields wrestling is NOWHERE NEAR Kos' I don't care if he outwrestled a Dan Henderson who hadn't fought in almost a year. He had mount on Henderson and couldn't do SHIT with it. I fucking hate Josh Koscheck, but the man went 42-0 during his junior season including a D-1 national championship. He's a 4 time All-American. 3 time recipient of Wrestler of the Year.

Well, college wrestling really doesn't mean anything, man. GSP didn't wrestle in college and he took Kos down at will in their first fight.

Also, Jake Shields has one of the quickest, most beautiful takedowns in the sport, no doubt about it.

Additionally, Martin Kampmann has a tremendous ground game. FAR better than people give him credit for. He absolutely dominated Paulo Thiago who, I might remind you, is a BJJ black belt as well. Kampmann has FAR superior stand-up to Shields and a very well balanced MMA game.

Meh, Paulo Thiago has always been inconsistent like a motherfucker. But let's say you're right... Shields can still lay on top of him for 3 rounds and get the decision win, if he's not able to sub him.

Shields lacks knockout power and is pretty much a decision warrior if he can't get the submission. Shields has only T/KO'ed 3 of his opponents. That sort of one dimensional fighting isn't going to bode well in the UFC. When Shields fights someone like Koscheck who WILL stuff his take-downs, how is he going to win? Koscheck and GSP have KO power. Shields, IN NO WAY, poses a threat to GSP.

Shields stand-up is SHIT. Even I, as one of his biggest fans, can admit that.

However, he is not a one dimensional fighter. The guy is a fantastic wrestler and a black belt in Jiu-Jitsu. He's not a "decision" guy. He looks to pass guard after taking someone down; he looks to go for submissions. Does he always get them? No, but he goes for them, which is more than you can say with most wrestlers of his caliber.

And you bring up how he only has 3 TKO victories (he has 4, btw), he has 10 submission victories. So, out of 25 wins, 14 of them he finished. Doesn't sound like a decision guy to me, man.

The answer to why Shields isn't fighting at MW is simple. He would get FUCKING destroyed.

I don't think so, man.

Leben would punch a hole through Shield's head.

No, Leben would get taken down and controlled, just like Hendo.

Anderson would pick him apart in every conceivable way.

This is possible, but a small part of me thinks Shields would take him down and control him as well. However, I have too much confidence in Anderson's ability to say that for sure.

His wrestling wouldn't even be good enough to challenge Marquardt or Sonnen.

I bet you thought the same thing when Shields fought Hendo, huh? And Hendo would destroy both of those guys too, for the record.

His BJJ is VASTLY inferior to someone like Maia.

I'll give you this; however, I think Shields knows enough to where he could stopped from getting submitted. Could he tap Maia out? No, I doubt that, but he could lay on top of him for 3 or 5 rounds, no doubt.

Shields picked WW because it's probably the weakest division in the UFC and he can, conceivably, win enough fights to get a title shot and linger around. He will NEVER become champion.

Well, only time will tell, my friend.

As I said in my first post, while I'm not completely confident in Shields being able to defeat GSP, I am 100% certain he can defeat everyone else in the division. I cannot wait for him to prove me right.

 

[ITurnGirlsGay]

And you bring up how he only has 3 TKO victories (he has 4, btw), he has 10 submission victories. So, out of 25 wins, 14 of them he finished. Doesn't sound like a decision guy to me, man.


No, Leben would get taken down and controlled, just like Hendo.



This is possible, but a small part of me thinks Shields would take him down and control him as well. However, I have too much confidence in Anderson's ability to say that for sure.

No, Shields only has 3 T/KO wins. Paul Harrison, Renato Verissimo, and Steve Berger. He got KTFO by Marty Armendarez in his only LOSS by T/KO if that's what you're thinking, but he only has 3 wins by way of T/KO.

Additionally, you say he doesn't sound like a decision guy, but you reference that he could take people down and lay on them on. What does that sound like to you? A Lay and Pray decision warrior.

Shields has 25 wins. THREE by way of T/KO and 10 by submission. Simple math tells you that the remaining 12 came by decision. This means that the MAJORITY of the fights he has won have come via decision. He's a decision guy. I never said he was one dimensional, I said he was two dimensional.

Yes, Shields would get mauled at MW. You seriously think that Shields could take down and control Leben? You've been drinking more than I have this weekend, Jeff. Aaron Simpson, who is a MUCH better wrestler and striker than Shields was unable to take down Leben. Akiyama could barely control Leben on the ground, need I remind you that, while Akiyama had some success, he was also fighting a Leben that had fought two weeks prior.

Shields had trouble with Mayhem Miller. Everyone is putting WAY too much stock in his win over Dan Henderson. Henderson hadn't fought in a year and is fucking 40, man. Shields has made a career out of fighting cans. Out of 30 professional fights, MAYBE 6 of those were against anyone good or noteworthy. It's not hard to have a resume like Shields has when you're fighting complete jokes. Might I add that he's fought the majority of those 6 in the past 2 years.

Anderson has never been controlled in a fight and Shields would NOT be the person to do it.Shields will not last long in the UFC and all the people that have been sipping his ball cream will jump off the bandwagon as soon as he's exposed for the average fighter that he is. I could run through the list of big names that he's beaten and point out why it's not that impressive of a win, but people will just ignore the facts and continue their nuthuggery of this guy.

Don't get me wrong, I don't hate Shields. I have nothing against him other than his Strikeforce: Nashville actions. I am, however, not going to deify the guy because he beat Dan Henderson. It's not that big of a win, IMO. As a matter of fact, that's the only marquee name Shields has on his resume and that dude is FORTY.

To quote the great Mike Gundy. "HE'S A MAN, HE'S FORTY"

 

[jmt225]

No, Shields only has 3 T/KO wins. Paul Harrison, Renato Verissimo, and Steve Berger. He got KTFO by Marty Armendarez in his only LOSS by T/KO if that's what you're thinking, but he only has 3 wins by way of T/KO.

Shit, you're right. My bad. I must have looked over his Wiki thing too fast, lol.

Additionally, you say he doesn't sound like a decision guy, but you reference that he could take people down and lay on them on. What does that sound like to you? A Lay and Pray decision warrior.

No, I'm saying he's capable of it IF he needs to go for it. But that doesn't mean he will every single fight like Jon Fitch.

For example, take a look at the Mayhem Miller fight. The first three rounds, Shields was doing everything he could to put Mayhem away, and come the 4th Round he knew... there was no point in risking the fight, so he just decided to lay and pray his way to victory for the last two rounds.

Now, look at the Dan Henderson fight. He couldn't put Dan away, but he constantly tried through rounds 2 through 5.

Somebody who at least TRIES to put their opponents away I cannot truly consider a "decision" guy, because they actually attempt to finish their opponents.

Shields has 25 wins. THREE by way of T/KO and 10 by submission. Simple math tells you that the remaining 12 came by decision. This means that the MAJORITY of the fights he has won have come via decision. He's a decision guy. I never said he was one dimensional, I said he was two dimensional.

Yeah, simple math tells me that he finished 13 of his fights, which is the actual majority.

Besides, like I said just a second ago, he goes for finishes. It's not like his mind-set for every fight will be to get decision wins.

Yes, Shields would get mauled at MW. You seriously think that Shields could take down and control Leben? You've been drinking more than I have this weekend, Jeff.

If he could do it to Dan Henderson, then yes... I believe he would be able to do it to Leben.

Besides, I'm a huge Leben fan, but when has he ever shown great takedown defense? The Aaron Simpson fight? Well let's get to that...

Aaron Simpson, who is a MUCH better wrestler and striker than Shields was unable to take down Leben.

I bet Aaron Simpson couldn't take down Dan Henderson, first of all.

Secondly... look, Simpson perhaps is a better wrestler than Shields. Hell, he's perhaps a better wrestler than GSP. But you know why Shields and GSP would be able to take Leben down over a wrestler like Simpson? Because of their speed and athleticism. That's it. That's why Shields was able to takedown a MUCH better wrestler down constantly in Dan Henderson. On paper, Shields should never be able to take down Hendo, but he did constantly in that fight, and it was all because of his quickness and athleticism.

Shields had trouble with Mayhem Miller.

He didn't have trouble taking him down, that's for sure. Did he have trouble with him on the ground? Sure, but people underestimate the fuck out of Miller's Jiu-Jitsu. Mayhem is FANTASTIC on the ground. Not even Jacare, one of the best submission grapplers in the entire sport was able to finish Mayhem. And hell... you never know how their 2nd fight would have ended up if Mayhem didn't get DQed.

Everyone is putting WAY too much stock in his win over Dan Henderson. Henderson hadn't fought in a year and is fucking 40, man. Shields has made a career out of fighting cans. Out of 30 professional fights, MAYBE 6 of those were against anyone good or noteworthy. It's not hard to have a resume like Shields has when you're fighting complete jokes. Might I add that he's fought the majority of those 6 in the past 2 years.

It was still the same Dan Henderson that EASILY beat Michael Bisping, who is without a doubt a top 20 Middleweight in the World, if not 10.

Come on Josh, be honest... did you think Shields had any chance against Hendo going into that fight? Even I, as one of Shields biggest fans, thought Hendo was going to manhandle him.

Anderson has never been controlled in a fight and Shields would NOT be the person to do it.

Ryo Chonan did controlled Anderson, first of all, but yes... that was a long time ago. However, I would have to say that Dan Henderson controlled Anderson too in the 1st Round of their fight, and then Hendo went away from the gameplan. Shields would not make that same mistake.

Shields will not last long in the UFC and all the people that have been sipping his ball cream will jump off the bandwagon as soon as he's exposed for the average fighter that he is. I could run through the list of big names that he's beaten and point out why it's not that impressive of a win, but people will just ignore the facts and continue their nuthuggery of this guy.

Well, only time will tell, man. We'll see who's right come a few months from now.

And for the record, I've been on the Shields hype train since 2007.

 

[ITurnGirlsGay]

Yeah, simple math tells me that he finished 13 of his fights, which is the actual majority.

Besides, like I said just a second ago, he goes for finishes. It's not like his mind-set for every fight will be to get decision wins.



If he could do it to Dan Henderson, then yes... I believe he would be able to do it to Leben.

Besides, I'm a huge Leben fan, but when has he ever shown great takedown defense? The Aaron Simpson fight? Well let's get to that...



I bet Aaron Simpson couldn't take down Dan Henderson, first of all.

Secondly... look, Simpson perhaps is a better wrestler than Shields. Hell, he's perhaps a better wrestler than GSP. But you know why Shields and GSP would be able to take Leben down over a wrestler like Simpson? Because of their speed and athleticism. That's it. That's why Shields was able to takedown a MUCH better wrestler down constantly in Dan Henderson. On paper, Shields should never be able to take down Hendo, but he did constantly in that fight, and it was all because of his quickness and athleticism.

Come on Josh, be honest... did you think Shields had any chance against Hendo going into that fight? Even I, as one of Shields biggest fans, thought Hendo was going to manhandle him.


Ryo Chonan did controlled Anderson, first of all, but yes... that was a long time ago. However, I would have to say that Dan Henderson controlled Anderson too in the 1st Round of their fight, and then Hendo went away from the gameplan. Shields would not make that same mistake.



Well, only time will tell, man. We'll see who's right come a few months from now.

And for the record, I've been on the Shields hype train since 2007.

First off, well played. 13 is the actual majority. I guess I need to take a math class refresher, haha.

Also, when I say decision guy, I mean that his fights often go to decision. Machida is a decision guy, GSP has become a decision guy, that's all I mean by it. I think that both of those guys actively try to finish their fights. I mean, hell, I thought GSP was going to break Dan Hardy's arm.

Leben has incredible take down defense. A-Train is very fast, he just didn't account for Leben's ability to stay on his feet. Say what you want about speed and athleticism the fact remains that Henderson hadn't fought in a year. Not fighting for a year, at his age, is going to have massive effects.

I'm not taking anything away from Shields' victory because, as you said, I too picked Hendo by destruction. However, as I always do leading into fights like this, I was worried about the ring rust for Hendo. My concerns were validated. However, Shields is not going to be able to eat shots like the one Henderson gave him from people like Leben, Belcher, Anderson, etc...

Wait, he doesn't have to, he took the easier route and avoided the tougher division.

You and I must have watched a different Ryo Chonan fight...unless you were making a joke about his awesome submission. I'll assume it was a joke, because Anderson was fucking destroying Chonan before that beauty came out of nowhere.

Henderson won a round and we'll never know how Anderson would have adjusted to his wrestling in round 2. Anderson has extremely long limbs and could have caught Henderson in a submission or he could have been grounded out. Hendo didn't stick to the gameplan and Anderson walked out the winner. It's impossible to know what mistakes Shields will or will not make. I'm betting he loses to Kampmann.

 

[Dressler]

The Shields vs Kampmann fight will be interesting to say the least, but I think Shields will take that bout in commanding fashion. He has proved he is a good fighter with potential to be great, I want to see what he can do against UFC guys before calling him great, not to discredit him or anything.

As for the comment right above me saying that Shields record is a joke because he has only fought 5-6 legit noteworthy fighters, I agree to an extent, but I think that is why the UFC is putting him in a match wit Kampmann first, not to discredit Kampmann either, but because Dana White wants to see just how good Shields really is before a big big name fight is made with Shields. I like Kampmann, hes a good fighter but I don't think hes on the same level as a Hughes or St. Pierre, and that's why Shields gets this fight.

If Shields wins, I'd love to see him fight Koscheck after he loses to St. Pierre, I think a win there would be huge for Shields, that or a fight against either Matt Hughes or Dan Hardy would be awesome to watch.

The division is stacked and with so many talents any fight you put him in would be good, with guys like Hughes, Hardy, Alves, St. Pierre, Condit, Kampmann and the most hated fighter, Josh "Fuck You" Koscheck.

I can't see him beating GSP, not in a blue fucking moon, no ones going to be beating GSP any time soon, be it Koscheck, Hughes, Fitch, Hathaway or anyone in the Welterweight division for a while, so I don't think Shields provides that big a challenge.

As for why he is not going up to Middleweight, I think it was just he felt he had a better chance of succeeding in Welterweight, the thing is if he chose Middleweight we'd be discussion why not move down to Welterweight, so that's not a real big issue for me.