Jake Shields: 'The hunger is back'

Jake Shields went unbeaten for two straight years in the UFC, before losing handily to Hector Lombard last March. Immediately prior to that loss, Shields won a main event grappling battle with Demian Maia.

In fact, Shields headlined three out of his last seven UFC bouts, in all. The Cesar Gracie black belt was a long-time top ten welterweight and star fighter.

That's why it was so shocking to the MMA world, and the fighter himself, when he was cut by the UFC after his loss to Lombard at UFC 171. "I was shocked, yeah," Shields admits to Cagewriter.

"Before that loss, I was coming off a nice winning streak, and had headlined an event. I just had to not let it keep me down, and I had to stay focused."

As the 35 year-old pondered a future outside of the world's top MMA promotion, he found solace in the fact that he had made a living without the UFC for so many years, prior to joining it in 2010.�I had spent most of my career outside the UFC, anyway," he explains.

"So, I didn't feel my career was defined by fighting in the UFC. Plus, I was a bit tired of dealing with the UFC on some issues, anyway."

Shields signed with the World Series of Fighting (WSOF) and was set to make his organization debut against fellow former top UFC welterweight contender Jon Fitch before an injury cancelled that bout. The fighter out of San Francisco says that latest set back was also mainly a psychological challenge.

"It was more psychologically hard than physical," he says.

"Because I knew I'd be back. It was just an annoying injury that took me out of the fight, but I knew I'd recover fine."

Now, Shields is set to headline yet another event - WSOF 14 - against Ryan Ford in the Canadian's home town of Edmonton. All his set backs, including his time away from competition, have only made Shields more motivated and eager to step into the cage.

"Definitely," he says.

"I'm raring to go, get in there and fight. It's good because, prior to this, I was a little burned out. Now, I'm refreshed and have that hunger back."

Shields fights Ryan Ford Saturday, Oct. 11 on a four-fight card airing on NBC Sports Network at�9 pm ET/6 pm PT

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Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/jake-shields---the-hunger-is-back-150922622.html

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