DETROIT (July 25, 2017) – On Friday, August 4, two-time Olympic Gold Medalist Claressa “T-Rex” Shields will make another significant stop on her historic journey through the sport of boxing.
In the 10-round main event of Salita Promotions’ “BATTLE OF THE BEST” event at MGM Grand Detroit and televised live on ShoBox: The New Generation (10;30 p.m. ET/PT) Shields (3-0, 1 KO) will challenge for her first world title in just her fourth fight against reigning WBC Super Middleweight World Champion Nikki Adler (16-0, 9 KOs) of Germany.
Already considered a national treasure and award-winning female role model, Shields’ boldly quick world-title quest will catapult her to superstar status and into boxing history once again. By comparison to other female boxing stars from past and present, Shields is way ahead of the curve for a typical rise through the ranks:
Laila Ali: Won IBA Super Middleweight title in her 12th pro fight
Christy Martin: Won WBC Jr Welterweight title in her 21st pro fight
Lucia Rijker: Won WIBF Super Lightweight title in her 9th pro fight
Regina Halmich: Won IBF Flyweight title in her 10th pro fight
Ann Wolfe: Won IFBA Jr Middleweight title in her 10th pro fight
Cecelia Braekhus: Won WBC Welterweight title in her 11th pro fight
Christina Hammer: Won WBO Middleweight title in her 8th pro fight
Holly Holm: Won IBA Super Lightweight title in her 11th pro fight
The historical significance of this fight is not lost on the 22-year-old Flint, Michigan native.
“It’s a great honor to be mentioned in the same sentence as Lucia Rijker, Christy Martin, Laila Ali and Ann Wolfe, among others,” said Shields. “I want to lift boxing to new heights and help open doors for women in boxing. Beating Nikki Adler is a must for me to achieve my goals.”
Shields’ co-manager, Mark Taffet, says this rocket ship to the top is all part of the plan set out for Shields. “We want every one of Claressa’s fights to occupy a special place along her historic journey. August 4 against Nikki Adler, and the opportunity to win a world title in just her fourth pro fight, is an important ‘first’ in what will be a career of game-changing firsts for Claressa Shields.”
In the night’s televised co-main, junior welterweight KO artist Bakhtiyar “Bakha Bullet” Eyubov (13-0, 11 KOs) will face undefeated prospect Sonny “Pretty Boi” Fredrickson (17-0, 11 KOs) over 10-rounds and to open the telecast, world-ranked super bantamweight Vladimir Tikhonov (16-0, 9 KOs) of Russia will face Texas slugger Jesse Angel Hernandez (8-1, 6 KOs) over eight rounds.
Tickets for the event are on sale now and are priced at $350, $250, $125 and $60. They are available at www.ticketmaster.com.
About ShoBox: The New Generation
Since its inception in July 2001, the critically acclaimed SHOWTIME boxing series, ShoBox: The New Generation has featured young talent matched tough. The ShoBox philosophy is to televise exciting, crowd-pleasing and competitive matches while providing a proving ground for willing prospects determined to fight for a world title. Some of the growing list of the 69 fighters who have appeared on ShoBox and advanced to garner world titles includes: Errol Spence Jr., Andre Ward, Deontay Wilder, Erislandy Lara, Shawn Porter, Gary Russell Jr., Lamont Peterson, Guillermo Rigondeaux, Nonito Donaire, Devon Alexander, Carl Froch, Robert Guerrero, Timothy Bradley, Jessie Vargas, Juan Manuel Lopez, Chad Dawson, Paulie Malignaggi, Ricky Hatton, Kelly Pavlik, Paul Williams, Errol Spence Jr. and more.
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