Rumors have surfaced that the UFC is planning a major welterweight fight later this year. Welterweight fighters Jake Shields and Jake Ellenberger are slated to met each other in the cage sometime during a November UFC event. Current plans seem to suggest that Zuffa has targeted UFC Fight Night 25: Battle on the Bayou as the potential card for this showdown to occur.
The former EliteXC and Strikeforce champion, Jake Shields, suffered his first defeat in more than five years when he lost by unanimous decision to the perennial welterweight king, Georges St. Pierre, at UFC 129. Before that, Shields had defeated such fighters as Martin Kampmann, Yushin Okami, Carlos Condit and Mike Pyle. He walked away from the Strikeforce promotion to come into the UFC and receive a shot at St. Pierre, a shot which came this past April.
Ellenberger, however is riding a four-fight win streak since dropping his first UFC bout to Condit in September of 2009. Since that time he has knocked out Pyle, Sean Pierson and John Howard. He’s also earned a split decision over BJJ Black Belt Carlos Eduardo Rocha. With a 24-5 record, “The Juggernaut” has proven that he has both the power to stop any opponent suddenly and the strategic acumen to change up a game plan to pull out a victory.
This is a very interesting matchup for the welterweight division. Coming off his defeat to St. Pierre, Shields had been quoted as saying he wanted to fight either Jon Fitch or BJ Penn before asking for another shot at the title. However, Shields could be headed towards the same title shot purgatory that Fitch currently finds himself in. While he is a consistent winner, fans are not in awe of his fighting style, which goes into consideration whenever UFC matchmakers pair individuals together for upcoming events.
Ellenberger vs. Shields looks to be a solid wrestler versus grappler matchup. While he has the ability to drop opponents with his power, Ellenberger is a wrestler at heart, who uses his takedowns to control positioning throughout the fight. In Shields, he faces another individual with solid wrestling chops and superior grappling abilities. When he faced off against Rocha, Ellenberger had to adjust his game, because during the first round, Rocha’s aggressive guard almost got Jake caught in a variety of submissions and swept to bad positions.
Shields will most likely go back to the takedown and ground attack that he used against Dan Henderson during his last bout in Strikeforce. Ellenberger doesn’t possess the technical striking that St. Pierre used to defeat him during their bout, so Shields should be quicker when looking for the takedown. From there he will be able to work on the ground en route to a decision victory.
Ellenberger vs. Shields is a big matchup for the welterweight division. A win for Ellenberger places him right in the mix for a title shot at 170, especially with the recent Rick Story loss. Shields, on the other hand, can maintain his position near the top of the rankings and as a suitable option if St. Pierre vacates the title to move to middleweight.
