06-24-2021
Kayla Harrison thinks Claressa Shields’ performance in her MMA debut makes it clear that fighting her would be pointless.
Shields, a two-time Olympic boxing gold medalist and multiple-time boxing champion, She faced a bit of early adversity when she faced Brittney Elkin (3-7) in a non-regular season lightweight fight in 2021 PFL 4. Bounced back to win by third round TKO. Elkin was able to secure the full mount multiple times on the ground, but Shields was eventually able to collapse in Round 3, raining punches until the referee stopped the fight.
While Harrison praises Shields for showing heart on his successful MMA debut, He believes the way the fight unfolded indicates that he still has a long way to go.
«She just did a good job. I know she has talked about wanting to fight in the season next year and wanting to fight me in the future, so I don’t want to be like a big sister to her. I said, ‘Good job. Way to go. I saw you. I think we all knew it was going to have holes. We all knew he was going to have problems in some aspects of the game, which he did. But she is a winner and she found a way to win, which is what winners do. So I applaud her for that.
“I think PFL’s job is a bit more difficult from now on. Like, where do you go from here? And I think hopefully Now this whole Kayla fighting Claressa thing can be over because it’s like it doesn’t make any sense. It would be like you guys saying, ‘Oh, Kayla should find Amanda (Nunes) after I had my first fight.’ Like, it doesn’t make any sense. No, that’s stupid. Stop.”
Shields is already booked for the next MMA fight at a PFL event on August 27, taking place at the Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood, Florida. His opponent has yet to be determined.
Meanwhile, two-time Olympic judo gold medalist and 2019 PFL women’s lightweight champion Harrison, She returns to action Friday when she takes on Cindy Dandois in the 2021 PFL 6 main event at Ocean Casino Resort in Atlantic City, New Jersey. preliminaries on ESPN +. If Harrison is victorious and advances to the playoffs, he will share the card with Shields for his next fight.
