Despite rebounding back into the victory column in his last fight, Jake Shields has decided to move up a weight class. The former UFC No. 1 welterweight contender is set to transition to 185, where he’ll take on Ed Herman at UFC 150 in August.
UFC president Dana White confirmed the bout on Monday evening.
It was only two months ago when Shields came back from consecutive losses to earn a unanimous decision over Yoshihiro Akiyama at UFC 144. Afterward, he discussed the possibility of returning to middleweight, a division in which he once held the Strikeforce championship. It’s fairly rare for a fighter to move up in weight following a win, but that’s the decision Shields has made.
Following his win over Akiyama, he’s now 27-6-1 all-time. So far in his UFC run, he’s just 2-2, with losses coming to Georges St-Pierre and Jake Ellenberger.
Herman has had a nice run since returning from a serious knee injury. Since that time, he’s gone a perfect 3-0 with wins over Tim Credeur, Kyle Noke, and most recently, Clifford Starks. More impressively, all three of the victories have come by way of stoppage.
Shields, however, represents the most decorated opponent he has yet to face.
Herman is 20-7 overall in his 10-year career.
UFC 150 will take place on August 11 from the Pepsi Center in Denver.