Filed under: UFC
A pair of Jakes will battle on the bayou in September.
MMA Fighting was first to report Sunday a planned fall welterweight fight between former title challenger Jake Shields and surging contender Jake Ellenberger. Tuesday, UFC officials announced the fight will headline UFC Fight Night 25: Battle on the Bayou on Sept. 17 in New Orleans.
Despite some reports to the contrary, a UFC official on Tuesday told MMA Fighting that the fight will be a three-round main event, not five rounds. Earlier this month at UFC 131, UFC president Dana White announced that all main events in the UFC would be five-round fights, including non-title fights. It was not immediately clear why Shields-Ellenberger will be a three-round main event.
Shields (26-5-1, 1-1 UFC) is coming off his first loss in in six and a half years, a unanimous decision setback to welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre at UFC 129 in April. Ellenberger (25-5, 4-1 UFC) fought on the same card, knocking out Sean Pierson in the first round for his fourth straight victory.
Fight Night 25 will be the UFC’s first trip to New Orleans in more than a decade. In April, the promotion announced a renewed sponsorship deal with Bud Light, and as part of the deal the two companies will produce an annual live event.
The first joint venture, “Battle on the Bayou,” will take place at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center and is expected to include fan expo-like events, a concert tie-in and meet-and-greets with Zuffa fighters. As with all UFC Fight Night cards, Fight Night 25’s main card will air live on Spike TV.
The UFC has held three shows in New Orleans, all prior to Zuffa’s purchase of the company in 2001. The last UFC show in Louisiana was UFC 37 in May 2002 in Bossier City, near Shreveport. Several UFC fighters hail from the New Orleans area, most notably Pat Barry, Melvin Guillard and Alan Belcher, who trains in nearby Biloxi, Miss.
Belcher is expected to fight on the card in a middleweight bout against Jason MacDonald. Also confirmed by the UFC for the card is a middleweight bout between Season 11 winner of “The Ultimate Fighter” Court McGee and Dongi Yang and a featherweight bout between Season 12 TUF winner Jonathan Brookins and Erik Koch.