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Claressa Shields was originally supposed to fight Marie-Eve Dicaire on May 9, but the showdown in Shields’ hometown of Flint, Michigan was scrapped due to the coronavirus global pandemic.
Shields (10-0, 2 KOs), a three-division champion and two-time US gold medalist, is declaring that she will be delivering Dicaire (17 -0, 0 KOs) a rain check, and eventual beating, once the fight is rescheduled later this year.
“She can be aggressive, box well and move on her feet. She looks heavy in the legs, so she probably can take a punch. All of the girls are different, and she has a different boxing style,” Shields told BoxingScene.com in an interview. “I look forward to fighting her. I’m gonna whoop her ass too. Any girl that gets in the ring with me, she’s going to have the same result — a loss.
“People say she doesn’t have power, but just because she doesn’t get knockouts doesn’t mean she doesn’t have a lot of power. I can say that from my own experience. I have more power than any woman that I’ve fought, but I’m not getting knockouts. Boxing is a sweet science.”
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The 25-year-old Shields said that when she puts on clinics by displaying her jab and defense, she believes she’s unjustly criticized as a pillow puncher.
“I’m a very disciplined fighter, and I don’t think people give me enough props for that because of my trash talking,” said Shields. “How can you become a three-division champion while moving down in weight? I don’t drink, I’ve never smoked in my life and I haven’t had meat in over nine months. I drink a gallon of water a day.”
Shields is coming off a unanimous decision win against Ivana Habazin in January.
Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist and member of the Boxing Writers Assn. of America since 2011. He has written for the likes of the LA Times, Guardian, USA Today, Philadelphia Inquirer, Men’s Health and NFL.com. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan or via email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com.