(Nic Antaya via Getty Images)
Claressa Shields advanced her pro boxing record to 17-0 (3 KOs) and successfully retained her undisputed women’s heavyweight championship on Saturday with a dominant decision win over the tricky Lani Daniels. It all went down in front of a packed crowd at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan, atop an 11-bout card that aired on DAZN.
After raising the roof with her walkout, Shields, Uncrowned’s No. 2 pound-for-pound women’s boxer, and Daniels (11-3-2, 1 KO), combined to produce a bizarre opening round in which only two punches were landed in the entire two-minute frame. To borrow a phrase from boxing’s chief financier, Turki Alalshikh, it was as if Daniels had taken it upon herself to produce “Tom-and-Jerry” boxing.
From there, though, Shields took over, out-throwing and out-landing Daniels in each and every round — often by multiples. As the rounds progressed, Shields added more to the fight by feinting, as she tried to bait Daniels into making mistakes, of which she could capitalize on by landing her more powerful punches.
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Shields made an investment in body-punching Daniels, throwing multiple shots in flurries of punches that targeted her midsection, in an effort to take the wind out of her sails. That work paid dividends later in the fight, as rather than get on her bike and move laterally around the ring while throwing little of substance, Daniels instead boxed right in front of Shields — and an actual fight broke out.
Some of Shields’ best work came in the sixth round when she landed brutal body shots, clipped Daniels on the temple, and heard her corner tell her than the visiting New Zealander was effectively there for the taking. Daniels, though, proved to be tough, and absorbed the bigger shots that Shields was able to land, including a heavy punch at the end of the seventh that rocked her head back.
A barnburner broke out in the eighth, with Daniels landing more shots in the closing rounds than she had in any of the rounds prior, but it was Shields who continued to gain the upper hand with each exchange through a superior shot selection and greater power.
By the end, judges confirmed a lopsided win with scores of 100-90, 99-91, 99-91.
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Earlier in the card, Tony Harrison (30-4-1, 21 KOs) shook off any ring rust from 28 months away from the ring to rise up from the canvas and claim a win on points over Edward Diaz (15-7, 12 KOs), having showcased gifted inside-boxing and a piston-like jab. Harrison said in the build-up to the bout that he wanted to fight five times in the next 18 months, but he’ll need to fine-tune what worked and improve his focus at the end of fights if he’s to effectively challenge the top of a wide-open middleweight division, and not lose by knockout late in bouts.
Elsewhere, Shields’ protege Samantha Worthington picked up the WBA super lightweight interim belt with a majority decision win over Victoire Piteau. Worthington started hard and fast but faded considerably in the second half of the fight, suggesting that her conditioning currently leaves something to be desired.
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Finally, Pryce Taylor missed an opportunity to shine in a forgettable heavyweight win over Robert Simms after eight rounds, and Carolyne Veyre posted a good victory over Licia Boudersa.
Check out complete Shields vs. Daniels results below, as well as Uncrowned’s play-by-play of the main card.
Main card
Undisputed heavyweight title: Claressa Shields def. Lani Daniels (100-90, 99-91, 99-91)
Middleweight: Tony Harrison def. Edward Diaz via unanimous decision (96-93, 98-91, 97-92)
Heavyweight: Pryce Taylor def. Robert Simms via majority decision (80-72, 80-72, 80-72)
WBA super lightweight interim title: Samantha Worthington def. Victoire Piteau via majority decision (99-91, 95-95, 96-94)
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Featherweight: Caroline Veyre def. Licia Boudersa via unanimous decision (99-91, 99-91, 98-92)
