Claressa Shields has vowed to KO Savannah Marshall in their undisputed middleweight grudge clash.
Shields and Marshall will meet for all the middleweight marbles on September 10 at The O2 arena in London, 10 years after Marshall handed her rival her only amateur defeat. But despite being without a knockout win in almost five years, Shields predicted she will stop Marshall late on.
"You're going to see a very exciting fight especially early on with Savannah Marshall and me being knockout punchers," she said. "I see myself coming out on top. I'm going to knock her out in rounds eight, nine or 10."
The pair's undisputed clash was expected to take place in July, but Marshall was forced to undergo surgery on an arm injury which delayed the fight by two months. Shields was sceptical of Marshall's injury and has accused the undefeated Brit of avoiding a fight against her.
Marshall didn't offer an official prediction but vowed to outclass her rival, stating: "I win this fight through heart and my boxing brain. On September 10th I will become the undisputed middleweight champion of the world and that will be the end of all this GWOAT (Greatest Woman of All Time) rubbish, it won't be rammed down anyone's neck anymore."
The rivals' history dates back to a decade ago when Marshall handed Shields the only loss on her otherwise pristine record.. Marshall said the result of that bout doesn't matter heading into their undisputed clash, insisting she is the better fighter out of the two.
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Two-time Olympic gold medalist Shields said Marshall would never follow in her footsteps by fighting on enemy territory. "I can leave the country and fight, she would never go to the US and fight against me or any other top fighter in the US. If it was up to her, we would be fighting in her hometown," she added.
Shields made her UK debut when she signed for BOXXER last November, outpointing Ema Kozin to set up a fight with Marshall. She was involved in a heated confrontation with Marshall after the win as the pair were separated by security. Earlier this year, Marshall defended her WBO title for the third time with a stoppage win over Shields' former opponent Femke Hermans.
