Jake Shields has travelled a rocky path since switching from Strikeforce to the UFC in 2010, putting together a mediocre 2-2 record that was in stark contrast to the impressive 15 fight winning streak he had mustered outside the promotion prior to that.
Seeking answers to his current predicament Shields has now decided that the cut down to welterweight that he made when he first joined the UFC may have been at the root of the problem and so it’s been announced that he will be moving up to the middleweight division for his next fight.
In some ways it’s a move that makes sense given that prior to entering the UFC Shields was Strikeforce’s middleweight champion, picking up wins over Jason ‘Mayhem’ Miller and Dan Henderson along the way.
It should however be noted that much of Shields 15 fight unbeaten run did actually take place at welterweight.
So it remains to be seen whether this is the solution to his problem, but it certainly gives him the opportunity to have a fresh start at 185lbs.
The UFC Tonight show on Fuel TV who first broke the story also stated that Shields hopes to take his first fight in his new weight class in August, though an opponent has yet to be named.
