alicia baumgardner and Claressa Shields I'm back again.
The latest in their rivalry outside the ring: Last Saturday, richardson hitchens–Gustavo Lemos On the fight card at Fontainebleau Las Vegas, several media outlets and some amateur iPhone videographers filmed a heated and prolonged altercation between Shields (who served as the on-air talent for the broadcast) and Baumgardner.
At the very least, this showdown raised the question: Given the length and intensity of the fighters' rivalry, why haven't Shields and Baumgarder taken a step yet? internal What's the rope for hashing things out?
That's a serious problem.
Shields (14-0, 2 KOs) is a two-time gold medal winning Olympian and undisputed two-division world champion who competes at middleweight. Baumgardner (15-0, 7 KOs) is an undisputed champion in his own right, competing in the junior lightweight division. That's a 30-pound difference in weight, and is almost certainly a bridge too far to match a fighter.
Dmitry SaritaShields' promoter recently spoke to BoxingScene about the odds of a Shields vs. Baumgardner fight happening.
“Alicia keeps talking complete nonsense there. shaquille o'nealpodcast, where I talk about my fight with Claressa,” Sarita said. “as if Manny Pacquiao challenging mike tyson. That's so ridiculous – it's not real. And for those who don't know much about boxing or don't follow women's boxing, just look at the name. they don't understand class, [but] They think about it and talk about it. ”
Sarita, who is aiming to revive boxing in the Detroit area with progressive series like DAZN's ShoBox, has known Baumgardner for some time.Currently training from Fremont, Ohio bill haney In Las Vegas, Baumgardner made a name for himself as a professional in Detroit. LJ Harrison and tony harrison.
“I've known Alicia for a long time. I've known her for a long time,” Sarita said. “We've always invited her to her games. I'm not one to say anything negative.”
However, a degree of negativity remains in Baumgardner's career, completely unrelated to his relationship with the SEALs. Last July, Baumgardner's pregame drug test sample yielded an “adverse result for a prohibited substance,” and she underwent microscopic examination. Suspension from the Boxing Commission Association.
Mr. Baumgardner was subsequently acquitted by the WBC, the sanctioning body that collected the samples in question. According to the fighterthe suspension by the Boxing Commission Association has been lifted.
But it will be difficult to completely forget about this issue until Baumgardner plays in his next game.
Is there a possibility of fighting against SEALs?
“I called her manager,” Sarita said. “'We'll fight at 154.' And like don king I used to say, “There's only one way to say yes, and 99 ways to say no.” So they said no in 99 different ways. ”
Sarita said the theoretical Shields-Baumgardner fight needs to happen now “because Claressa is growing up,” and has not fought below middleweight in years.
Either way, promoters suspect Baumgardner wasn't serious about facing a fighter who many say is boxing's GWOAT.
“It’s all talk,” Sarita said of Baumgardner’s desire to fight with the SEALs. “It's a way to make yourself relevant, and the way she went about it was beyond classy.”
