Undisputed heavyweight champion and consensus pound-for-pound queen Claressa Shields is staying active – and wants to add to her already-unparalleled resume.
Shields is scheduled to defend her heavyweight championship against IBF light heavyweight titleholder Lani Daniels on July 26 at the Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan. The bout will stream on DAZN.
Shields, 16-0 (3 KOs), has a long list of achievements. She is a two-time Olympic gold medalist. She is a three-division undisputed champion. Rarely has she even been challenged – except, perhaps, by activity. She boxed only once per year in 2023 and 2024.
“The girls at the higher weight classes are fighting each other,” Shields, a 30-year-old from Flint, Michigan, told BoxingScene. “It was so hard for me to get fights at 154lbs, 160lbs and 168lbs.”
“I don’t think any of my fights at heavyweight have been hard to make, to be honest with you,” Shields said. “I am just fighting who will fight me. It just has to have some history on the line. I want to fight for some belts.”
Shields consistently fought the best available opposition during her title reigns at super middleweight, middleweight and junior middleweight, and defeated them all. Her record includes wins over Hanna Gabriels, Christina Hammer and Savannah Marshall, among others.
“I think a lot of these girl fighters are good, but I think I will be the one in the history books because of my longevity, the Olympic gold medals, and how I continue to fight the best,” Shields said. “I think I have one of the biggest spots in women’s sports ever.”
Shields also made mention of how, when she began her Olympic journey in 2012, women’s boxing was less visible than it is now. Shields cited herself, Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano as examples of pioneers making significant sums of money in the past decade – women’s boxing remains underdeveloped compared to men’s, but Shields, Taylor and Serrano have established themselves as quality operators and stars.
“I was the first woman to make a million dollars in boxing,” Shields said. “We are building a great blueprint for the girls coming after us.”
Daniels, 11-2-2 (1 KO), is a 36-year-old from Pipiwai, New Zealand, and is riding a seven-fight win streak since 2022.
“She is a two-time world champion, and she is coming to fight,” Shields said. “I am looking forward to being inside the ring with her and being challenged, and seeing if someone could take me off my GWOAT [Greatest Woman of All Time] status.”
Another thing of importance for Shields is the attendance for her fights. The Little Caesars Arena has a capacity of 19,000, and she wants to sell it out.
“I am a one-woman army. I want to let people know I don’t have to have a stable of 100 females for me to change women’s boxing,” Shields said. “I have done with myself, Salita Promotions, and God for the longest. And I am hoping once I sell 19,000 tickets, they can stop that myth that I don’t sell tickets.”
Shields wants to stay true to herself as she continues her remarkable career.
“There is not a certain type of woman’s boxer who sells tickets,” Shields said. “You can be different, you can be loud, you can be confident and still sell tickets, and have a great career while being the best.”
