Jake Shields Free Agent; Planning Move to UFC

Jake Shields (22-4-1), currently riding an impressive 11-fight winning streak with the most recent being an October arm bar submission over Brit Paul Daley at Elite XC’s final card, has attained free agent status following the collapse of Pro Elite Inc., the parent company of Elite XC.

To many MMA pundits, the news comes as no surprise, as Shields and his management team sent out a breach of contract letter to Pro Elite Inc. less than a month ago, which cited a clause in his contract that would allow the fighter to become a free agent if suitable proof of an immediate future venue and opponent could not be provided within 30 days.

The 30 days is up, and now begins the hunt for a new promotion for the No. 5 ranked welterweight in the world (MMA Weekly), who holds notable career wins over a who’s who of the MMA circuit, including Yushin Okami, Nick Thompsom, Paul Daley, Mike Pyle and Carlos Condit.

Where will this fighter end up? If he has his way, it will be whichever promotion current welterweight kingpin Georges St-Pierre is calling home at present, which happens to be the UFC. Once Shields is in the UFC fold, he will face no shortage of top-flight competition in the stacked welterweight division before he can make it to the top to challenge for a belt, as notables such as Thiago Alves, Josh Koscheck, Jon Fitch, Diego Sanchez, and a multitude of up-and-comers such as Dustin Hazelett call the promotion home.

For Shields, the move to the UFC—assuming his father/manager can reach a deal with White and the Fertittas in the coming weeks—is not as much about the exposure—which he has plenty of fighting for Elite XC—as it is about the competition.

“If [UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre] was in Affliction, then that’s probably where I would want to fight. I’m looking to be a top fighter, and you’ve got to fight the top guys to be the No. 1. That’s just how it goes.” Shields remarked to MMAJunkie.com early this morning.

As for when we can expect to see Shields in action? As soon as six weeks, according to the fighter, and assuming, once again, the terms of his new deal can be reached in a swift enough fashion.