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Boxing superstar Claressa Shields is on her way to being promoted by UFC president Dana White in what Journal de Montreal reports will be the debut of White’s long-teased Zuffa Boxing promotional organization. That stunning move would be a huge coup for White, president of UFC, the world’s leading MMA promotional company. It would allow White the chance to begin staking his claim at moving toward achieving the same thing with his boxing promotional company, and it would give him a legit superstar to build those plans around.
Shields, 25, was a two-time Olympic gold medalist as an amateur, is a three-division world champion as a professional, and one of boxing’s top superstars.
Moreover, Shields is ranked the top fighter in women’s boxing pound-for-pound by The Ring magazine and ESPN.
So if White is planning to do the same thing in boxing that he did in women’s MMA, it would seem he already found his Ronda Rousey in Shields.
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Dana White’s First Boxing Card
White’s first foray into boxing would be an all-female card headlined by arguably the top draw in women’s boxing.
Shields (10-0, 2 KOs) is set to take on Marie-Eve Dicaire (17-0, 0 KOs) in a world title bout that will establish a three-belt unified champion in the women’s 154-pound division. Shields currently holds the WBC and WBO belts at 154 pounds, and Dicaire holds the IBF title.
Journal de Montreal reports Zuffa would stream the card via UFC Fight Pass.
That outlet also suggested White and his cohorts at Zuffa Boxing already have everything lined up for the fight and were only waiting for the results of the United States presidential election to be announced before releasing the news about Shields-Dicaire.
That would give the newly created Zuffa Boxing promotional entity a better chance at garnering more press coverage for its first big event.
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Boxing Champ vs. Amanda Nunes
According to BT Sports’ Adam Catterall, the timing of Zuffa Boxing’s Shields vs. Dicaire fight card also suggests White is aiming to set up a superfight showdown between Shields and UFC superstar Amanda Nunes.
Catterall posted, “UFC 256 is December 12th. Headlining that event, Amanda Nunes. Both women have told me on several occasions that they want to fight each other in both MMA and boxing. That’s where this is going. This isn’t Dana’s first rodeo.”
Indeed, both Shields and Nunes have talked about fighting each other in the past. It isn’t immediately apparent if the potential fight would be a crossover boxing battle like 2017’s Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor superfight, or if Shields would try her chances inside the Octagon.
However, the most likely outcome will be Nunes fighting inside a boxing ring against Shields. While Shields has teased the idea of moving over to MMA in the past, it would probably make more sense for Zuffa Boxing to keep Shields wearing her boxing gloves for now.
Regardless, Shields vs. Nunes is a legitimate superfight under any circumstance, assuming both women win their next fights, which they will be highly favored to do on the betting market.
Shields vs. Dicaire would take place on December 11.
Nunes vs. Megan Anderson in the main event of UFC 256 is on December 12.
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