As Claressa Shields continues to do her factor as an undefeated boxing champion, MMA remains to be very a lot a part of her fight sports activities plan.
Shields, who’s 14-0 as a boxer and 1-1 in MMA, hasn’t fought within the latter sport since October 2021, the place she misplaced a cut up determination to Abigail Montes at 2021 PFL Championships.
There have been questions on whether or not the 28-year-old had moved previous the MMA experiment after the setback, however Shields assured anybody questioning her priorities that isn’t the case.
In truth, Shields’ third MMA bout is anticipated to occur within the coming months.
“It’s trying like February or perhaps April,” Shields advised MMA Junkie Radio. “I’ve been coaching MMA with Murcielago Workforce in Lansing (Mich.) for the previous few months, and I’ll proceed coaching with them. I’ve been studying so much. … I’m getting stronger in these fields that I’m not sturdy. I can’t say I’m sturdy on the bottom, however I will probably be. I’m stronger than I used to be, so I’m simply going to maintain constructing from there.
“I’ve simply been grinding and dealing arduous, so I imagine February or April you’ll see me again within the PFL SmartCage.”
Though Shields may simply keep in her personal world and proceed to thrive as a world champion boxer, she mentioned her ardour for combating and competitors received’t enable her to be complacent. She craves greatness in each avenue out there, and that’s what serves because the motivation to work on the components of her sport the place she’s nonetheless a relative novice.
“I really like combating,” Shields mentioned. “I don’t like the truth that I’ve to say, ‘There’s different ladies in MMA that may beat me.’ That form of angers me a bit of bit, like, ‘Ugh, she will be able to beat me in a struggle as a result of she is aware of extra of the issues that I don’t know. However she will be able to’t beat me in a boxing match.’ However I need to be the perfect fighter on the earth. It doesn’t matter if it’s MMA or if it’s kickboxing or it’s boxing. I need to be the perfect.”
With that mindset, Shields mentioned she units a excessive bar with regards to her objectives. The 2012 and 2016 Olympic gold medalist in boxing and present WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, WBF and The Ring ladies’s middleweight titleholder solely has identified the best stage of success in her fight sports activities journey, so to aspire for something apart from an MMA championship can be accepting she will be able to’t attain those self same heights.
“I wish to turn out to be PFL champion,” Shields mentioned. “I imagine that’s doable. I imagine that it’s potential for me. Give me some years of coaching of simply me making MMA a precedence. I imagine that I is usually a PFL and boxing world champion on the identical time. I do know it’s massive, however I really feel prefer it’s achievable, one hundred pc, for me.”
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