Savannah Marshall defeated Mirella Vargas by first round stoppage in her MMA debut at PFL Europe in Newcastle, before moving on to face fellow PFL boxing rival Claressa Shields.
Sunday, June 9, 2024, 8:04, UK
Savannah Marshall made a spectacular MMA debut, stopping Mirella Vargas in a fiery first round at PFL Europe on Saturday night in Newcastle.
Marshall defeated Franchon Crews-Dezuen to become the undisputed super middleweight boxing champion last July before turning to mixed martial arts and competing in the cage for the first time.
Although she was severely tested early on with multiple takedowns, Marshall recovered well to showcase her talent as one of the hardest punchers in women's boxing.
Marshall kept his cool despite a nasty leg kick early in the bout and rose smoothly to his feet, just as he had trained with UFC interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall.
Her knockout feats quickly got out of hand for Vargas, as she landed a flurry of heavy punches forcing the referee to stop the bout.
With long-time boxing rival Claressa Shields in attendance, Marshall wasted no time in reiterating her intention to face the American in the PFL.
“Are we going to do it in a cage?” Marshall said. “Let's do it. Full MMA rules. Let's go!”
Shields faced Marshall in the UK's first-ever televised women's boxing card at the O2 Arena in October 2022, winning by unanimous decision.
It was the culmination of a frenzy that began with Marshall's win over Shields at the amateur level, and remains Shields' only loss in boxing to date.
Shields himself decided to branch out into the world of MMA when he made his PFL debut in 2021 and has since amassed a 2-1 record.
She is now scheduled to return to boxing on July 27 in Detroit to challenge for Vanessa Lepage-Joanis' WBC heavyweight title, with the aim of becoming a four-division world champion.
Marshall's debut came just nine months after she began MMA training, and the 33-year-old has not been shy about admitting on multiple occasions that the possibility of facing Shields was a major factor in her decision to pursue this path.
“An MMA fighter has to be a little crazy to do something like this,” Marshall said.
“I loved fight week, I loved training and the MMA community was so welcoming. It's a tough sport and I have so much respect for anyone who participates in it.”
