Let’s go back to the days when the scrap pack of Nick, Nate, Gil and Jake Shields were all holding gold, or damn near holding gold. Ahhh, those were the glorious Strikeforce days, the days in which Jake Shields was being groomed to take on GSP, Nick was calling out GSP, and beating up everyone in his path, as was Nate and Gil. It was great. You loved it, I loved it, and all was well. Then they moved to the UFC, where Nate has held strong, but is currently on a two-fight losing streak. Nick is on a two fight losing streak, Jake is coming off a big win over Tyron Woodley, but has had his ups and downs, and Gil has lost his first fight in years to Ben Henderson last April.
Now, the crew is rehabbing and planning the next attack, and for years, we’ve known Gilbert is kind of the de facto leader, so who better for our very own Michael Mardones to discuss the future of his teammates with.
“Nick says he’s retired now, but I think a few things can motivate him to get off whatever he’s sitting on. I think Machida was one of those guys. I remember BJ Penn vs. Machida. I think Nick would be a guy to pull that. Machida has been a badass lately and it would’ve been a great fight to get Nick in the cage. I want to see Nick back in the cage, period. I wish there was a 162 weight class for Nate or 177 for Nick.”
Nate has Gray Maynard:
“I think Nate’s going to do great, it’s a rematch he’s wanted for a while and he’s in a good place in his head asking for certain fights, and I think this is a scary fight for Maynard to come to as well. As far as the mental, hands, and grappling edge I think Nate has it.”
