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24-02-2010, 17:19
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It's been a long time coming, but now it's official.
Dan Henderson and Jake Shields have agreed to meet in Strikeforce with the middleweight title on the line in April. Shields confirmed the bout when speaking to MMAWeekly Radio on Tuesday night.
"It's a go now. We finally worked it out a few days ago," he said about the fight with Henderson. "It's a done deal, it's been agreed upon by both parties as far as I know, and I think it's set to go."
As recently as six weeks ago when Shields left to help out as assistant coach on the eleventh season of “The Ultimate Fighter," a deal had still not been sealed for the fight to happen.
Now, both Shields and Henderson have a deal in place to put the two middleweights in the cage together in April, although according to the current Strikeforce champion, while a date and venue have been given to the fighters, the actual broadcast has yet to be determined.
"I have a date (and) venue, but they told me to hold that back," said Shields. "Hopefully CBS. I think it's CBS. There's a slight possibility of Showtime because they're still (working it out). I don't know the rest of the card or any of that yet. But me and Dan's on, and I'm hoping it's on CBS."
Shields admits that the waiting game was tough because contract negotiations are something that have to be done, but now it's all over and he's happy to fight again soon.
"I really wanted the fight, the fans really wanted it, so I knew it was going to happen," he commented. "There was a few little things holding it back, but luckily everything's been worked out and I'm just happy the fight's happening, and I want to go out there and put on an exciting fight."
Even though Shields will enter the fight as the Strikeforce middleweight champion, Henderson brings with him a wealth of experience, and a resume of impressive wins. If the betting odds come out placing Henderson as the favorite, it's nothing new to Shields, and he'll happily play the underdog.
"I always prefer to be the underdog. Dan's a great fighter, he doesn’t have a lot of holes in his game, but I think he does have a few, and I'm going to go out there and try to exploit them," stated Shields.
The fight will likely either headline or co-headline the card in April, depending on what happens with Fedor Emelianenko, who is also rumored for the same show. Stay tuned to MMAWeekly.com for more information on the upcoming Strikeforce card as it becomes available.
It's been a long time coming, but now it's official.
Dan Henderson and Jake Shields have agreed to meet in Strikeforce with the middleweight title on the line in April. Shields confirmed the bout when speaking to MMAWeekly Radio on Tuesday night.
"It's a go now. We finally worked it out a few days ago," he said about the fight with Henderson. "It's a done deal, it's been agreed upon by both parties as far as I know, and I think it's set to go."
As recently as six weeks ago when Shields left to help out as assistant coach on the eleventh season of “The Ultimate Fighter," a deal had still not been sealed for the fight to happen.
Now, both Shields and Henderson have a deal in place to put the two middleweights in the cage together in April, although according to the current Strikeforce champion, while a date and venue have been given to the fighters, the actual broadcast has yet to be determined.
"I have a date (and) venue, but they told me to hold that back," said Shields. "Hopefully CBS. I think it's CBS. There's a slight possibility of Showtime because they're still (working it out). I don't know the rest of the card or any of that yet. But me and Dan's on, and I'm hoping it's on CBS."
Shields admits that the waiting game was tough because contract negotiations are something that have to be done, but now it's all over and he's happy to fight again soon.
"I really wanted the fight, the fans really wanted it, so I knew it was going to happen," he commented. "There was a few little things holding it back, but luckily everything's been worked out and I'm just happy the fight's happening, and I want to go out there and put on an exciting fight."
Even though Shields will enter the fight as the Strikeforce middleweight champion, Henderson brings with him a wealth of experience, and a resume of impressive wins. If the betting odds come out placing Henderson as the favorite, it's nothing new to Shields, and he'll happily play the underdog.
"I always prefer to be the underdog. Dan's a great fighter, he doesn’t have a lot of holes in his game, but I think he does have a few, and I'm going to go out there and try to exploit them," stated Shields.
The fight will likely either headline or co-headline the card in April, depending on what happens with Fedor Emelianenko, who is also rumored for the same show. Stay tuned to MMAWeekly.com for more information on the upcoming Strikeforce card as it becomes available.