Claressa Shields Dominates Middleweight Title Fight in Detroit

During her middleweight title fight in Detroit on Saturday night, Claressa Shields’ looping right hand would sometimes clip challenger Maricela Cornejo’s jaw or bounce off her shoulder. However, when the 28-year-old threw her right hand straight, she rarely missed her mark. Along with left hooks to the head and body, and a tempo-setting jab, Shields secured her title with aggressive accuracy.

The judges scored all 10 rounds in her favour, clinching her 12th win by decision out of 14 fights, with two knockouts. Shields’ dominance in the ring has raised questions as to why such a strong fighter wins so few bouts by knockout.

Shields, the undisputed middleweight champion boasts a record of 14-0, with her two knockouts seemingly low. Shields believes it’s all about skill, will, and heart, and she’s confident that she has more of it than all her opponents.

In round 7, Shields knocked Cornejo wobbly with a powerful right hook following a left hook to her gut. Despite being on the verge of a bona fide knockout, the bell came to Cornejo’s aid, revealing the reasons behind Shields’ low knockout percentage.

Firstly, the fight’s format. Men’s title fights last twelve rounds, each round lasting three minutes while women’s bouts are scheduled for ten rounds with each round lasting two minutes. The extra minute in round seven would have given Shields the opportunity to seal the win with a knockout punch. If women’s title fights were given 36 minutes, Shields could potentially win more fights by attrition if not by knockout power.

Another contributing factor appears to be Shields’ opponents. Many fighters, regardless of their gender, take easy fights to build up their early career records. Shields, however, fought for a world title in her fourth professional bout against high-level pros with championship-level boxing skills and durability. The 36-year-old Cornejo, who took the fight with less than two weeks’ notice, would have become a KO statistic if she hadn’t proved to be unusually tough.

Detroit was the perfect setting for the fight, and the legendary Motown quartet The Four Tops sang the national anthem. Shields sported a glittering gold-and-green two-piece while Detroit-based rapper Kash Doll accompanied her to the ring. Shields’ win has initiated the hunt for future opponents, as she currently monitors four weight classes between 147-pound welterweight and 168-pound super middleweight.

After the fight, Shields expressed her interest in returning to Detroit to fight for the super middleweight title against the winner of a July 1 fight between Franchón Crews-Dezurn and Savannah Marshall in Manchester, England. Shields has already defeated both boxers by decision and has demonstrated that skill and heart are paramount in the ring.