Savannah Marshall braced for Crews-Dezurn, believes Claressa Shields will avoid rematch

Any fighter suffering their first professional defeat is going to be deflated and that was definitely the case for Savannah Marshall, who dropped a 10-round unanimous decision to pound-for-pound queen Claressa Shields in London last October.

That matchup was 10 years in the making. Marshall is the only fighter to have handed the legendary American a loss, in a 2012 amateur competition, and the “G.W.O.A.T” had pledged revenge ever since. On fight night, Shields’ quick hands and skill trumped Marshall’s hard-hitting attack and she left the ring with the British star’s WBO middleweight belt and recognition as undisputed champion.

However, following a period of convalescing, opportunity soon came knocking for Marshall, who is now set to face undisputed super middleweight champ Franchon Crews-Dezurn at the Manchester Arena on July 1.

MORE: All you need to know about Crews-Dezurn vs. Marshall

Despite this being Marshall’s 168-pound debut, she’s been installed as favourite to hand Crews-Dezurn her second defeat. “The Hard-Hitting Diva” was outpointed by Shields when both women made their professional debuts in November 2016 and she’s won eight fights since.

While Marshall acknowledged that she was “a little bit” surprised by the pre-fight odds, the ex-champ was able…