Shields stops Scott to reclaim WBC, WBA middleweight titles - ESPN

Claressa Shields is back on top in the middleweight division, rolling to a dominant sixth-round TKO victory over Kaye Scott to reclaim the WBC and WBA championships Saturday night at State Farm Arena in Atlanta.

Shields (19-0, 4 KOs), ESPN's No. 1 pound-for-pound women's boxer and the current undisputed women's heavyweight champion, dropped down three weight classes to fight at middleweight for the first time since 2023, when she was the 160-pound division's undisputed champion.

Still, she looked as sharp as ever in outclassing and overpowering Scott to regain her titles.

«This was a really hard camp,» said Shields, a five-division champion who won Olympic gold in 2012 and 2016. «I cut 38 pounds. I was at 198 pounds and got down to 160. This is the most disciplined I've been since the Olympics, I feel like.»

Scott (5-2-1) stood her ground and didn't shy away from slugging it out with the fighter known as «The GWOAT,» but Shields' power and accuracy proved too much for the champion, who had a giant welt on her forehead by early in Round 2.

Fully in control of the fight, Shields forced Scott to take a count following a hellacious left hook in the sixth round that left the champion stumbling against the ropes. With Scott visibly hurt and on shaky legs, Shields went for the finish and got it, with Scott's corner throwing in the towel and the referee halting the bout at 1 minute, 38 seconds.

«I was actually just trying to figure her out,» Shields said. «She was stronger than what I thought. She was very strong, and I knew that with me cutting the weight that I cut, that I didn't want to exert too much early. So I was trying to make sure I could deal with her strength and not get caught with nothing crazy because I'm not as