"The confidence as an MMA fighter is just not there"– John McCarthy and Josh Thomson talk about the difference between Claressa Shields' boxing and MMA fights

Josh Thomson and John McCarthy have noticed a significant difference between the two fighting personas of Claressa Shields — boxer and mixed martial artist.

Shields returned to the ring with a massive win over Savannah Marshall at The O2 arena this past weekend. The American was at her best on the night and oozed self-belief as she went toe-to-toe with the Brit.

During an episode of the Weighing In podcast, McCarthy had this to say about Shields lacking the same level of confidence when she enters the cage:

“She’s confident. She believes she’s gonna win. You can just see the difference between her as a boxer or as an MMA fighter because the confidence as an MMA fighter is just not there. There’s too many elements that she’s not confident in right now.”

Thomson followed up by pointing out how different the two combat sports are:

“I was concerned about Claressa Shields coming off the MMA experience. They are just completely different sports.”

Watch Josh Thomson and John McCarthy discuss the difference between Claressa Shields as a boxer and an MMA fighter below:

Shields extended her perfect professional boxing record to 13-0 by beating Marshall. In doing so, she continued to solidify her legacy as the consensus greatest female boxer of all time.

Meanwhile, her ambitions to find success in MMA under the Professional Fighters League banner are still alive.

'T-Rex' holds an MMA record of 1-1. Both fights were with the PFL, including her split decision loss to Abigail Montes. Previous reports have suggested that Shields could be in line for her third outing at the PFL finals event late next month.

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Claressa Shields reflects on historic win against Savannah Marshall

Claressa Shields's championship bout with Savannah Marshall was a historic night for women's boxing. As well as beating the toughest opponent of her career to date, Shields also scored a massive payday.

Following her win, Shields wrote on Twitter:

"Walked away with 2 new belts, 3rd undisputed championship, Millions of new fans, 7 figure pay day & a black eye [laughing emojis] that’s cool with me! LEGACY CEMENTED #GWOAT #Claressashields #ShieldsMarshall"

At 27 years old, Shields plans on continuing to fight in MMA while dominating the boxing world. 'T-Rex' has decided to train at Jackson Wink MMA, where she can also learn from Holly Holm about her successful transition from boxing.

With that in mind, the future is bright for the consensus greatest female boxer of all time.