There has been an uptick of chatter about a possible mega fight between undisputed women’s world middleweight champion Claressa Shields and UFC women’s bantamweight and featherweight champion Amanda Nunes.
Well, Shields is so serious about making the fight happen that she’s not only willing to invite Nunes into the ring for a boxing bout, but cross over into the Octagon herself for a mixed martial arts clash as well.
“We could do a boxing match and then I’d go over there,” Shields told Sporting News. “We could do a two-fight deal.
“I feel like she’s a great in her sport. I’m the GWOAT (Greatest Woman of All Time) in my sport. Us just being competitive athletes, you always want to know, like, who’s the baddest? Who’s the best? It’s definitely something that could absolutely happen.”
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Shields also believes that a mega clash — or pair of super scraps — against Nunes would be better than the Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Conor McGregor boxing bout in August 2017.
“I think McGregor is a great MMA fighter, but he was all talk. Amanda Nunes is not all talk,” she said. “He got tired and he got knocked out, but it’s really hard to prepare for a 12-round fight and I don’t think he took it serious. Amanda Nunes will take it 100 percent serious because of who I am and what I’ve accomplished and I would do the same thing for her, so I definitely think it will be a better fight.”
Plus, the timing of a Shields-Nunes fight with both champions in their prime is just right, with the billing of GWOAT in boxing vs. GWOAT in MMA speaking for itself.
At 24 years old, Shields (9-0, 2 KOs) has two Olympic gold medals (2012, 2016) and the undisputed middleweight crown that she won in April with a unanimous decision over previously-unbeaten Christina Hammer to her name.
The 31-year-old Nunes (18-4) has blazed past the likes of Valentina Shevchenko (twice), Miesha Tate, Ronda Rousey, Cris Cyborg and, just last month, Holly Holm, during one of the most dominant and destructive runs the MMA world has ever seen.
Shields’ manager, Mark Taffet, said “The GWOAT” is expected to fight in October, when she’ll likely look to become the fastest boxer — female or male — ever to be a three-division world champion. Meanwhile, Cyborg’s unanimous decision over Felicia Spencer at UFC 240 just last week seems to bring her closer to a rematch with Nunes seemingly for later this year as well.
That’d make the projections for a Shields-Nunes fight in 2020 possible, considering that both take care of their respective interim business.
UFC president Dana White said it himself while speaking with TMZ Sports last month.
“Amanda Nunes has things that she needs to do here first, but I’m not opposed to it,” White said of a possible super fight between the women. “No, I’m not opposed to it. Maybe Claressa comes over here and fights in MMA.”
MORE: The real reason Amanda Nunes is not the UFC's biggest star
As aforementioned, Shields is definitely up for doing just that, while specifying that she’d need ample time to train in MMA, understandably.
“Late 2020, early 2021,” Shields told SN of a possible timeframe to start the pair of crossover fights. “I have to give myself the proper preparation. I’m not going to underestimate her. I don’t underestimate anybody. As much as I respect my sport, I respect her sport also in that to be the best, you got to train real hard. You have to put in a lot of hours. I just have to have a very good coach and be dedicated and I believe I’d fare well against her with the proper preparation to get ready for her.”
Taffet, too, believes the pair of super fights can become a reality, while also highlighting Shields’ need for adequate time for MMA training.
“A boxing match with Amanda Nunes is something that could happen any time that Nunes and the UFC want to do it,” Taffet told SN. “Claressa would then dedicate the appropriate amount of time to train and learn the craft of MMA, so that she could be at her best in that sport as well, which is what a world class athlete should do. But it’s definitely something that she would partake in with proper training. She would commit to it.
“I think it would be something that would enhance women’s sports tremendously,” he added, “and enhance the legacies of these women tremendously.”
MORE: Amanda Nunes is undeniably the greatest female fighter all time
Needless to say, Shields believes she’d blast Nunes in boxing, but seeing how “The Lioness” rocked Cyborg with her striking in a 51-second KO last December, especially those overhand rights, throws caution to “T-Rex” to not take the MMA star lightly in the sweet science, either.
When asked to analyze Nunes’ boxing ability, Shields recognizes her power more than anything else.
“The only time I seen her have really good hands was against Cris, when she caught Cris,” Shields said. “The fight against Holly Holm, she knocked her out with a kick and there wasn’t much that she did with her hands, so I think she kind of figured out her own recipe to make things work the way it works, but I think she has heavy hands.
“I sparred against Cris Cyborg and you seen the highlights … we weren’t in there throwing pillows,” she continued. “To see her knock Cris out … that’s just kind of scary to be honest. But at the same time, I’m so competitive that I know I could get in there and be smart and that I'd hit hard, too. That’s what you do when you’re fighting with someone who hits hard. You don’t run from them, you stand there and fight them.
“So, knowing that she was able to take her out in the way that she did, really would make me train extra hard to get ready for her in both matches — in the boxing ring and in MMA. Especially in MMA.“
If both bouts happen, only one will emerge the undisputed GWOAT and Baddest Woman on the Planet.
