"She's daring to be great" - Fans react to Claressa Shields moving up two weight divisions to challenge for WBC heavyweight championship

Claressa Shields has shown time and time again that she is willing to test herself. The undisputed female light middleweight champion will put herself through yet another challenge as she moves up multiple weight classes to challenge WBC heavyweight champion Vanessa Lepage-Joanisse for her title at the Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan, on July 27.

ESPN Ringside shared the news on Tuesday, tweeting:

"Claressa Shields announced Tuesday she is moving up two weight classes to challenge women's WBC heavyweight champion Vanessa Lepage-Joanisse on July 27 in Detroit."

Check out the tweet from ESPN Ringside below:

Fans reacted to the news by praising Shields' desire to chase greatness. @takamurap4p claimed:

"She's daring to be great!"

@May_twenty3rd believes that the move points to the staleness of women's boxing:

"Women's boxing is stale, Claressa has to move up two weight classes to get a fight"

@MWil81 suggested her dominance left her no choice but to move up in weight:

"She GOTTA move up, she done best everything else!"

@ChrisMa40505471 stated that Shields is levels above every other women's boxer:

"Don’t know the opponent, but in terms of women’s boxing, shields is head and shoulders above absolutely everyone in any division. Technically excellent compared to the plodding and amateur style of ALL others."

Check out the best fan reactions below:

Fan reactions

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What did Claressa Shields say about her upcoming WBC heavyweight title bout?

Claressa Shields has not been shy about labeling herself the greatest women's boxer of all time. She has also done plenty to test herself and prove her critics wrong, with her venture to heavyweight serving as the latest example of that. The undisputed female light middleweight champion sent out two tweets following the announcement of her next bout, stating:

"💋 See y’all July 27th in Detroit @Littlecaesarsarena 🥊 let’s go! Claressa Shields challenging Vanessa Lepage-Joanisse for heavyweight title"

She later added:

"The Queen of Boxing 👸🏾 Is Back July 27th in DETROIT @LCArena_Detroit ! Get your tickets now"

Check out the tweets from Claressa Shields below:

Shields has a 14-0 record since making her professional boxing debut in November 2016. She is the only women's boxer to unify all four titles in two separate weight classes and the first boxer - to do so, regardless of gender. She will enter the boxing ring for the first time in over a year after taking her third career mixed martial arts bout earlier this year, defeating Kelsey DeSantis via split decision. She is 2-1 in the PFL since debuting in the sport in 2021.