"(Expletive) him [Jake Shields]. I will (expletive) him up. I beat his teammate Nick Diaz’s ass, and I will beat his ass too. I mean, that is a very disrespectful thing to say. I have beaten a lot of tough guys in the world. I have had my fair share of losses, as well; I have had my ups and downs. But look who I have fought; I have fought nothing but top guys. In the UFC, I fought nothing but the best. And that guy just says that because I am a bad matchup for him. I am just as good a wrestler as he is; I don’t think he would be able to take me down. And on the feet, he is a girl. His girlfriend or wife probably slaps him around standing up. He is a (expletive) joke. That guy thinks he is way, way better than he is. Everybody wants to fight him because the first person to expose him is going to look like the man."
-- Strikeforce welterweight fighter Joe "Diesel" Riggs responds via Versus.com to comments made by Jake Shields regarding the Cesar Gracie student's decision to pass on a fight with him on the April 11 Strikeforce: "Shamrock vs. Diaz" card to face Robbie Lawler in June because Riggs wasn't a "big enough" fight. Obviously Diesel wasn't too pleased with the cancelation of the bout because it was such a big opportunity for him "expose Shields," but he's even more upset with the lack of respect being shown from the former Elite XC welterweight champion. It's hard to argue that Shields vs. Lawler is a more marketable and higher profile fight for the Showtime audience, but Riggs makes some solid points about why he deserves more respect from the older, yet seemingly less experienced, Shields.
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