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Claressa Shields made a powerful return to middleweight on Sunday, stopping Kaye Scott in the sixth round to reclaim the WBA and WBC titles in Atlanta.<\/b><\/p>\n
Fighting at middleweight for the first time since 2023, the five-division world champion dropped three classes to face 42-year-old Scott of Australia.<\/p>\n
Dominant from the start, Shields shifted through the gears to seal a fourth career stoppage win and take her professional record to 19-0 – with Wales’ Lauren Price in her sights.<\/p>\n
“It was a hard camp,” said Shields, an Olympic champion in 2012 and 2016. “I always tell myself that everything is easy work, but it was a really hard camp. <\/p>\n
“I cut 38 pounds. I started 14 weeks ago at 198 and then I got down to 160. <\/p>\n
“It was the most disciplined I’ve been since the Olympics.”<\/p>\n
In just her eighth professional bout, Scott was outclassed by the challenger’s hand speed and accuracy before being weakened by a flurry of body shots in the fifth. <\/p>\n
In the following round, Shields put Scott on the ropes with a vicious left hook and, sensing opportunity, the American threw a barrage of shots as the fight resumed. <\/p>\n
As a dazed Scott failed to defend herself, her corner threw towels into the ring to end the bout.<\/p>\n
“I was actually just trying to figure [Scott] out,” said Shields, who holds all four heavyweight titles. “She was stronger than I thought. <\/p>\n
“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.”<\/p>\n
Following her statement win, Shields suggested welterweight champion Lauren Price should be her next opponent in December or January. <\/p>\n
Failing this, the 31-year-old hopes for a meeting with compatriot Mikaela Mayer, or Canada’s Tamm Thiebault, who holds the IBF, WBO and Ring middleweight belts. <\/p>\n
“She’s only had five fights as a professional, but she’s got belts,” Shields said of Thiebault.<\/p>\n
“It’s not my fault these girls don’t have the experience that I have. She’s got a belt that I know belongs to me \u2013 and that’s the Ring belt.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n