Jake Shields Interview: World’s Finest

Prior to his CBS fight against Jason “Mayhem” Miller on November 7, Jake Shields was already considered one of the very best welterweight fighters in the world. Since defeating Miller in a relatively one-sided affair in the co-main event of Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Rogers, Shields is now the Strikeforce Middleweight Champion and remains one of the best pound for pound fighters currently competing outside of the UFC.

While Shields is happy with his latest performance, he acknowledged in an exclusive interview with Tapology’s Steven Kelliher that he could have done more to finish the fight. Shields also discussed his disappointment with former Middleweight Champion Cung Le, his thoughts on Miller’s recurring trash talk since the fight, and his continued hope for a fight with UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre in his hunt for the title of the world’s finest.

Tapology: Regarding your last fight against Jason “Mayhem” Miller, how did you see the fight going and how do you feel with the win?

Shields: Overall I think the fight went pretty well. Obviously I would have liked to get the finish, but I got the win. I thought I dominated him pretty much, but Miller did a great job of defending everything I did early on.

Tapology: There was a big submission attempt on Miller’s part at the end of the third round. It’s hard to tell watching the fight, but was that attempt close?

Shields: I’m not going to take anything away from Miller’s choke, but if you watch the fight he had his arm out to the side, not behind my head, and I was pushing my head back really hard to make sure he couldn’t do that. Overall it was a strong choke, but I never felt like it was a serious threat. That is Miller’s strongest point so I worked a lot from that position in training.

Tapology: Where do you rank this fight in terms of difficulty? Was it your most difficult fight in recent memory?

Shields: It was the most difficult in the last two years. I have had difficult fights—against Yushin Okami and other guys—but definitely this was the most difficult recently.

Tapology: What is it about Miller that makes him so tough to fight? Is it his ability to avoid damage?

Shields: Yeah, exactly—he is good at avoiding submissions and damage, so it made it frustrating. I felt like I was able to dominate the fight, but I was never able to put any serious damage on him.

Tapology: Did you feel a significant size difference or have you bulked up enough to where it was really negligible?

Shields: I think I bulked up ok, but he definitely felt bigger than me. I am used to feeling pretty big at 170lbs, so he was noticeably bigger.

Tapology: I saw that there has still been some talk going back and forth between the two of you on Twitter. How seriously do you take that at this point in time?

Shields: I’m really not too concerned with it. I think he’s just being a sore loser. I normally get along with the guy, but he is just whining right now. I’m sure he’ll get over it, but he’s making himself look bad right now with these excuses. I fired a couple of comments back because he was talking crap, but I’m pretty much done with the shit talk—I’m over it.

Tapology: You won the Strikeforce Middleweight Championship with this fight. How big is that for you?

Shields: It’s awesome holding the belt. Strikeforce is a huge organization, extremely legitimate, so now I need to talk to Scott Coker and Showtime and see what they want me to do about dropping back down to 170lbs or staying up here at middleweight.

Tapology: If you do drop down to 170lbs, do you have any plans of vacating that middleweight title, or is someone going to have to take it from you?

Shields: I’d like someone to try to take it from me. I’m not going to give away my belt, so I might just hold two of them.

Tapology: How do you think the fight delivered in terms of excitement for fans? It seems that people were split down the middle with some loving it and some hating it.

Shields: I think I could have done a little bit more on my part, but I think part of it is the U.S. fan perspective on grappling. There were quite a bit of reversals, passes, sweeps, but I think the U.S. fans have difficulty understanding that somewhat.

Tapology: I wanted to get your thoughts on Cung Le. Are you frustrated that you didn’t get a chance to fight him for the belt you have now?

Shields: I’m a little frustrated. I thought we were friends, but I kind of lost respect for him when he decided not to fight me and hand picked his opponent. I expected it from him, honestly, because people for years were telling me that Cung Le was that way and would never fight with me, so he showed his true colors.

Tapology: How do you think you would fare in that fight? Obviously you are confident you would do well, but do you think that is part of the reason he has chosen not to fight you?

Shields: Yeah, we have trained together and we both know what would happen, so I guess he would just prefer to give up his belt and pick fighters that he matches up well with. For a guy like me it’s hard to understand, because I try to test myself against the best.

Tapology: Do you have any idea who you will be fighting next?

Shields: I’m willing to fight whenever, so I’m just waiting to hear.

Tapology: You are a fighter that likes to stay active, so would you prefer to get on a card within the first few months of 2010?

Shields: Yeah, definitely. I don’t want to sit around and wait, I want to get in there and get active again soon.

Tapology: Talking about fighting on CBS, do you feel more confident now with Strikeforce on CBS than you did with EliteXC?

Shields: Absolutely. Strikeforce is just finding so much new, fresh talent and they are getting a lot of exposure, so they are definitely making big things happen.

Tapology: I know you get the UFC question all of the time, so I’m not going to ask it, but you mentioned that it is important to you to fight the best people you can fight. Georges St. Pierre is considered the best welterweight in the world right now, so is it important to you to get a fight with him within the next couple of years, whether it be in Strikeforce or the UFC?

Shields: It is important. I feel like I have to fight him unless someone beats him. To be the best, you have to fight the best, and GSP is for sure considered to be the best. It would be awesome if we could get that together in a co-promotion, and the way Strikeforce is going, who knows, it could happen.

Tapology: You are happy fighting for Strikeforce right now, but at what point does the importance of fighting a guy like St. Pierre weight heavily enough that you would consider jumping ship in order to make that happen?

Shields: The bottom line is that the UFC is not going to let you jump ship after one fight, so it’s not a realistic option. At some point you have to look and weigh your options between money and fighting the best. Hopefully it will happen, but at this point I just have to concentrate on my Strikeforce contract and after that I will sit down with my managers and we’ll figure out what I want to do.

Tapology: GSP mentioned you specifically as someone he would be interested in fighting at a recent Q&A session before UFC 105. How does it make you feel to be directly addressed by him in that manner?

Shields: He mentioned that it was his dream fight, you know. He mentioned Brock Lesnar vs. Fedor and him against me, which is awesome because it shows me that in his mind I’m the best guy he hasn’t faced. I have wanted that fight for a while, but it’s nice for him to say that he wants it as well.

Tapology: It might be a long ways off if it ever does happen, but how do you see yourself matching up with him?

Shields: I think it is a really interesting fight. Who knows what will happen. I think I have an edge in Jiu-Jitsu, he might have the edge in striking, but let’s get out there and see what happens.

Tapology: Mike Swick mentioned recently that you spar with him, Koscheck, and Fitch at AKA on occasion. Just to let the fans know how you might match up with some of the top welterweights in the UFC, how do you fare against those guys in training and would you ever fight against them if you were under the same promotional banner?

Shields: Yes I would fight them because they’re not my teammates and it’s business, and as far as how I fare, I fare well. It’s hard to talk about that in terms of training, but I do well.

Tapology: Is there anything you are working on or are planning to work on in your training in the near future that you have been unhappy with or are looking to improve in your overall game?

Shields: Yeah, definitely. I have been watching that tape and noting things that I did wrong like why I couldn’t finish, landing heavier shots from the top, and looking to submit that I could use if I fight Miller again.

Tapology: My last question: what can we expect from you first in 2010, and second within the next few years?

Shields: I am just training hard, winning fights, and ultimately I want to be considered the best welterweight in the world and hopefully the best pound for pound as well.

Tapology: Thanks for the time, Jake.

Shields: Thank you.