UFC har tröttnat på Jake Shields stil som en ”grinder” och valde som känt att avsluta samarbetet parterna emellan under gårdagen. Ett stort bakslag för både Shields och managern Lex McMahon, som under dagen gav sin syn på situationen.
Många blev förvånade när UFC tillkännagav att man bestämt sig för att avbryta den forne welterviktsutmanaren Jake Shields (29-7) kontrakt. Shields är som känt något av en UFC-veteran, då debuten för organisationen kom redan i slutet av 2010, på UFC 121. Där, som i hälften av de åtta matcherna för UFC, avgick han med vinsten. Det, tillsammans med faktumet att de tre förlusterna har kommit mot den dåvarande welterviktsmästaren Georges St. Pierre (25-2), Jake Ellenberger (29-7) samt nu senast mot Hector Lombard (34-4), alla väldigt tuffa motståndare, skapade en viss förvirring hos både Shields och managern.
”I think, obviously, Jake was disappointed,” berättade managern McMahon under måndagens ´MMA Hour.´ ”He is a guy who for many years has been a champion, fought on a championship level, been top ranked. He was on a four-fight win streak prior to the Lombard loss, so I think it was something that took him by surprise, but he’s prepared to move forward. To lose one fight and then all of a sudden be out of a job was something that I believe was surprising and not contemplated. To be honest, we were really positioned and looking for Jake as a potential title contender, given the mix of the landscape after Georges [St-Pierre] retired. Jake had beaten pretty much everybody that was out there. He beat Condit, he beat Woodley, he beat Maia. So really, there wasn’t too many other options. With the right performance, I think he could’ve been fighting for the title.”
Trots den minst sagt ovälkomna situationen visade McMahon förståelse för UFC:s beslut, samtidigt som han angav Shields något ifrågasatta stil som en uppenbar anledning till beslutet.
”It just shows you the nature of this sport,” fortsatte han. ”The right performance, he potentially fights for the title. The wrong performance, he’s looking for a new job. Listen, the UFC, it’s their organization. They have the liberty to do with it what they will. Certainly it’s surprising, but at the end of the day everybody knows the type of fights that they like to see. Jake grinds out wins, but the bottom line is that he wins, and he wins at a very high level. He beats some of the best guys out there. I certainly fought for Jake. Unfortunately, Dana and Lorenzo and Joe Silva had made up their minds, and at the end of the day it’s their company and they do what they decide to do.”
Pensionen hägrar ännu inte för 35-åringen, enligt managern, vilket således gör honom till ett hett villebråd för andra organisationer på jakt efter stora namn inom sporten. Trots att Shields varit arbetslös i mindre än ett dygn råder det ingen brist på nya intressanta erbjudanden och nyheten om att Jiu jitsu mästaren hittat ett nytt hem är med stor sannolikhet inte långt borta.
”Listen, guys that talk about retirement, typically they’re on the verge of retiring,” avslutade han. ”Jake has not once mentioned that word to me. It’s not part of his consciousness. He is very focused on becoming a world champion again. We are exploring the options, but I would say that at this juncture we’ve gotten some very interesting offers and some overtures from most of the players you would expect. I think Jake will have a new home very soon — he’s already being offered fights and opponents, so I don’t think it’s going to take long for Jake Shields to land on his feet with a new home.”
