UFC Fight Night 25: Jake Ellenberger Proves GSP's Work at 170 is Not Yet Finished

Despite the publicity the Mayweather/Ortiz fight has garnered, and the villains accompanying the fiasco, there were some "heroes" Saturday night. Jake Ellenberger thrashed Jake Shields for a victory that deserves a unique distinction: Shields has only lost to Georges St. Pierre in the six year run that has gained him spots on P4P lists, and with wins over Dan Henderson, Yushin Okami, Martin Kampmann, and Carlos Condit, Shields' resume proves that he's no paper tiger. 

Oh you may hear arguments on the contrary: 'Shields was never that good, had an inflated record, and so forth'. But these are all poor, and frankly stupid arguments. Jake Shields has always been flawed, but he's been good enough to hide them while imposing a truly elite ground game. And along comes Ellenberger. 

Jake has been on a run that essentially started in 2008. His last loss at the time was to Rick Story. Between then and now, he's only lost to Carlos Condit in a fight that had Condit damn near finished: another ref might have stopped the fight (not to get too hyperbolic, as I think Carlos defended brilliantly, but he took an unreal shot that has knocked out other fighters and had them vomiting, literally as displayed in his Pele win). Jake hasn't been perfect and his back to back fights against John Howard and Carlos Rocha proved as much: his cardio was lacking, and Rocha put him in trouble in the first with a very dynamic grappling game.

But he's knocked out one good fighter, and one great fighter in the first round since then. Another big win and he deserves his shot. Ellenberger is part of what Sherdog's Jason Probst calls the New School-Old School Cleave. Which brings us to GSP.

For all the sustained beckoning of GSP to test himself and fight Anderson Silva, these fan chants ignore what GSP is leaving behind. As acting champ, GSP will always have something to prove, and that is that he's still the best fighter at WW. But if his past challengers are taking emphatic losses, doesn't it follow that those fighters get their shots? It's always just assumed that GSP has nothing left to prove at WW, but much of that is biased by the attempt at getting him in the ring with Anderson Silva. 

However, Jake Ellenberger will get his with another big win. Down the line, GSP's dance card doesn't let up if fate rolls the dice. He still has Carlos Condit to worry about: a fight I've been vocal about in supporting. What happens if Nick Diaz beats B.J. Penn? What if Jon Fitch loses to Johny Hendricks? Could we conceivably see Rory MacDonald fight for the title in a couple of years (assuming they'd do it)?

What's interesting about this list of contenders (unlike GSP's previous foes) is that they all have something in common: youthful aggression. This fight mode is likely the only kind that exists in providing a blueprint for how GSP will lose, if he does: someone that can shake his confidence, and rattle him for the finish.

This is good news. MMA fans need to stop being such downers. Anderson Silva vs. GSP is an MMA mirage, and always has been. And I think fan anticipation is fueled more by seeing GSP pushed beyond his potential boundaries for being so lackluster with his dominance than actually feeling like the two need the fight for P4P relevance. GSP still has work to do at WW, and I, for one, would like to see him do it.