It’s fitting that double Olympic champion Claressa Shields will challenge for yet another world title on the opening day of the boxing competition at Paris 2024. The self-proclaimed GWOAT takes on WBC heavyweight champion Vanessa Lepage-Joanisse at the Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on July 27.
The finest pound-for-pound fighter in the women’s game, Shields (14-0, 2 KOs) has already captured titles in three weight classes and claimed undisputed honors at super welterweight and middleweight. While the native of Flint, Michigan, has moonlighted in MMA, her true greatness was achieved in boxing long ago.
“Hearing, ‘And now, the heavyweight champion of the world… Claressa Shields’ has never been something I’ve thought about. It’s not something I ever dreamed of,” Shields told The Sporting News recently. “When this opportunity came, and these heavyweight girls were saying I was afraid of them, it was like, ‘Oh, we gotta take this opportunity!'”
WATCH: Claressa Shields vs. Vanessa Lepage-Joanisse, live on DAZN
Despite being the defending champion, Lepage-Joanisse (7-1, 2 KOs) is an unknown quantity. The 29-year-old Canadian picked up the vacant WBC title in February when she scored a 10-round split decision over Abril Argentina Vidal. However, Lepage-Joanisse has…
