With arguably the biggest fight of his career about a week away, Jake Ellenberger said he would understand if it didn’t happen.
Ellenberger fights Jake Shields in the main event of UFC Fight Night 25 this Saturday in New Orleans. But he’ll be fighting an opponent carrying a heavy heart – Shields’ father and manager, Jack Shields, died late last month.
On last week’s “The MMA Hour,” Ellenberger told host Ariel Helwani that had Shields decided to pull out of the fight, he would have had no choice but to understand it, given the circumstances.
“I’m always sad to hear when something like that happens,” Ellenberger said. “Unfortunately it did, (but) we’re still going to fight. I can totally understand if he wouldn’t be in the right realm to fight. It’s definitely something tough to go through.”
Ellenberger (24-5, 4-1 UFC) has been on a tear ever since dropping his UFC debut by split decision to Carlos Condit in September 2009. His four straight wins include three knockouts – and his KO win over Sean Pierson at UFC 129 in Toronto came just 2:42 into the first round, and on 17 days notice.
Shields fought at UFC 129, too – and lost a unanimous decision to welterweight champ Georges St-Pierre. So an Ellberger win over Shields would not only give him five straight, it would have his name right in the mix for a possible title shot down the line.
And though Ellenberger said he’s not thinking beyond the Shields fight, he said he knows what’s at stake for him with a win.
“I’m just taking it one fight at a time,” Ellenberger said. “People can always say what they want, but at the end of the day it comes down to winning fights. Beating a guy like Jake Shields, who’s top three in the world, is going to prove if I’m a top contender or not.”
Ellenberger also will carry a little extra bulletin board material into the fight. He started asking for a fight with Shields a year ago when the former Strikeforce middleweight champ first signed with the UFC. And recently, Shields said he didn’t know who Ellenberger was.
Now the native of Omaha, Neb., said he’ll not only use Shields’ slight of him as motivation, he’ll also use Shields’ resume as a reminder of what he’d like to accomplish, himself.
“We fought not he same card in Toronto (and) I had (a) knockout – and he claims he does’t know who I am,” Ellenberger said. “It’s all good, though. No worries. He’s been what I want to be, I’m not gonna lie. He’s a top guy in the world at middleweight and welterweight. It’s definitely motivating for sure.”
Ellenberger and Shields fight in the main event of UFC Fight Night 25 on Sept. 17 in New Orleans. The main card will air live on Spike TV starting at 9 p.m. Eastern.