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[Brutus]

Shields would like to fight GSP next

MMA Madness: You were born in San Luis Obispo, California. Is that how you got involved with Liddell's SLO Kickboxing Academy?

Jake Shields: Well, I was actually born closer to the Sierras…

MMA Madness: Wikipedia gets me again.

JS: (Laughs) So yeah, I was born up there but I moved down to San Luis Obispo for college. I started working out at Liddell’s gym when he wasn’t well known at all.

MMA Madness: How'd you make the transition from wrestling and grappling tournaments to mixed martial arts?

JS: I wrestled all throughout high school and college. I was with Liddell for just a few weeks before he had me doing kickboxing and some MMA stuff. All of a sudden, I was fighting real fights.

MMA Madness: You're a shooto world champion. For those who don’t know what that is or what it entails, can you tell us a little bit about that?

JS: Sure, shooto is worldwide and its one of the oldest organizations out there. It’s even older than the UFC. It’s not quite MMA, but it is still a combat sport and it’s very respected in the world. I was the first American to win a shooto belt.

MMA Madness: You've beaten some of the biggest guys in the sport, from Carlos Condit to Hayato Sakurai. What would you call the biggest win of your career?

JS: I haven’t had it yet. I’m just getting started here and before I’m done I plan on being the best.

MMA Madness: Are you happy with EliteXC or would you ever consider a jump to the UFC?

JS: I mean, I’m always looking at my options and I just want to fight the best. Elite has been really good to be so I have loyalties there, but I do want to continually be upping the competition that I face.

MMA Madness: Do you have any upcoming fights booked?

JS: Nothing is signed yet, but I’m looking to fight in March or early April at a couple of different venues.

MMA Madness: Who do you want to fight?

JS: It’s sort of out of my hands, but if I could choose, I’d say GSP. He’s my number 1 pick.

MMA Madness: You haven't lost in over three years. What in your training is responsible for this recent success?

JS: It’s a combination of things. I just trained really hard, for starters. I never feel like I’m good enough either. I feel like I gassed in my last fight, even though I won, so I’m working on cardio. You can’t beat cardio. I’m learning new techniques, new submissions, and new things. It’s a sport where there’s always so much more to learn.

MMA Madness: You're still just 27 years old. Have you hit your peak?

JS: I still feel really young and I have a few years before I hit my peak. I don’t want to retire as long as I want to keep fighting.

MMA Madness: I’m sorry, I gotta go back to that GSP comment. How would a fight like that even happen?

JS: Hopefully, the organizations can work together to make it happen. Either I could go to the UFC or he could come here. I really want to see how we can make this work.

MMA Madness: You're involved with Fairtex-Gracie in SF and Tulsa Top Team. Can you tell us a little bit about those organizations?

JS: Well my main trainers run MMA programs at Fairtex. That’s kinda my own group over there. At Tulsa Top Team, it’s just some guys who train with me.

MMA Madness: Let’s change gears for a second. How's your daughter doing? How has life changed for you since having a child?

JS: My daughter is great but lots of work, so I’m always training but I’m trying to do fewer trips. She’s in first grade now, so it’s just cool to have a daughter.

MMA Madness: That’s gotta be interesting when she tells her friends parents that her dad fights for a living.

JS: Yeah, she knows I’m a fighter and she grew up watching it so to her, it’s nothing unusual. I’ve never brought her to a fight but she’s seen some jiu-jitsu tournaments. Eventually, she’ll realize that I don’t have a normal job, but it’s just what I do.

MMA Madness: Any sponsors you'd like to thank or websites you’d like to plug?

JS: JakeShields.com. I’d like to thank Fairtex, Stagger, Dominant, and…I know there’s more. Who else? I’m spacing on one (laughs)…they’ll be mad.

MMA Madness: Anything to say to your fans?

JS: Just thanks for all the support and keep watching me because I’m gonna do some big things.

I would kill to see shields in the UFC @ WW. With an already stacked division i see a ton of good matchups for him.

[jlruthven84]

He'd be a great WW addition. GSP would take him, though.

[ArMnHC]

you wanna fight GSP? leave that 2nd rate company and go to the UFC!

[TheDirtySis]

Originally Posted by ArMnHC

you wanna fight GSP? leave that 2nd rate company and go to the UFC!

Yeah I was really disapointed to hear he signed a 6 fight deal. I mean I can understand if they are offering more money than the UFC but you would think he would sign a 3-4 fight deal, win all those fights, then try again to get the UFC to pay him the big bucks. But when you are young and you have a kid you cant blame a guy for wanting more money.

Does anybody know if those other orgs offer the win bonuses? Cause with the UFC if you are really good you can almost bank on that extra money.

[jkilla374]

He can have GSP after Serra KOs him again.

[playuntiltheskyisblack]

Originally Posted by Jake Shields

Hopefully, the organizations can work together to make it happen. Either I could go to the UFC or he could come here. I really want to see how we can make this work.

I'm guessing he hasn't been watching the Randy/Fedor situation (this of course coming under the assumption GSP is under an exclusivity clause in his contract)

Originally Posted by jkilla374

He can have GSP after Serra KOs him again.

You seem pretty confident. Care to put up that sig of yours?

[sandywh]

If UFC had offered what Elite had offered, or even garunteed he'd be fighting top comp right away, there is no doubt in my mind he would have jumped over. But that didn't happen.

AFter his deal w/ Bodog expired he was considered to be a top flight WW, yet UFC offered him the same 3 fight $6k per deal they had just signed Luigi Fiovaranti for. This last time around, in Novemember, they offered a 4 fight deal for about $14k per. That is still well below what established top 10 UFC WWs are getting. But, to come to UFCs defense, they did offer him a chance to be TUF contestant at one point.

Elite XC offered to pay Jake like a champion. How can anyone argue that?
Respect+Dollars = Long Term Deal

The only area that GSP is better at is the stand up game. Jake is one of the very best grapplers on the planet. Not many guys in the sport are great wrestlers and BJJ at once. Jake is. If / When a fight with GSP hit the ground, it wouldn't take long for Jake find a position to GnP or sub St.Pierre.

War SHIELDS

[Dr. MMA]

i understand that shields stayed with elite xc for more money. It's understandable that he also wants to build his stock in a place where he might be put in the spot light. However, how can he possibly say he would wanna fight gsp next? he knows that ufc is not going to work with another organization and gsp is not going to leave the ufc.

Hopefully he finishes all his fights before 2009 comes to a close. He needs to be there with the other top ww's. If he wants to solidify himself, he needs to be in the ufc.

[Kimuras"R"Us]

Why did he not want to be on TUF that's a damn near automatic W for him and catapults him into mainstream MMA. I mean I guess with the kid that would make things tough but thinking in the long run that would have definitely helped him from a marketing standpoint.


GSP would work him right now I think.

[sandywh]

Originally Posted by Kimuras"R"Us

Why did he not want to be on TUF that's a damn near automatic W for him and catapults him into mainstream MMA. I mean I guess with the kid that would make things tough but thinking in the long run that would have definitely helped him from a marketing standpoint.


GSP would work him right now I think.

To be fair. Jake has never confirmed the TUF story. One of his trainning partners at Fairtex (David Terrell if I remember right) mentioned it to a reporter that was doing a story about the anomosity between the Gracies and the UFC.

GSP has fought plenty of wrestlers and done well, but has he ever faced a BJJ guy as nearly as good as Shields? Other than Serra, because he got KO'd before he could get subbed.