The greatest female boxer alive, Claressa Shields, returns to the mixed martial arts on Saturday, February 24 at the PFL Champions vs. Bellator Champions: Renan Ferreira vs. Ryan Bader Pay-Per-View event in Saudi Arabia.
Shields will be part of the Free international prelim live stream on YouTube. The prelim event will feature a stacked card including star fighter Aaron Pico in the main event taking on Henry Corrales in a rematch, and Muhammad Ali’s grandson Biaggio Ali-Walsh will continue his MMA journey on the card.
When it comes to the best female boxer, there is no question that Claressa “Gwoat” Shields is on the top of the list. The American boxing star is undefeated with multiple world titles in different weight divisions including undisputed titles. Shields has no equal in her sport so to challenge herself she decided to crossover to the world of mixed martial arts.
What makes Shields so special is unlike the top male boxers she decided to go to MMA while in her prime, most of the time boxers will only dip into MMA once their career is done or they are no longer a top star, like when James Toney fought Randy Couture in the UFC, he clearly came just for a paycheck as he barely trained and was tapped out immediately before the fight event got out of the first round.
Shields lost a split decision to Abigail Montes in her second PFL MMA bout, she took the loss well and vowed to bounce back and return to the cage. She kept her word and after a few title defenses in boxing she is now back in the PFL and will take on Kelsey DeSantis in her comeback fight.
PFL vs Bellator Fight Card
Heavyweight Championship – Renan Ferreira vs. Ryan Bader (PFL vs Bellator Title Fight)
Middleweight – Impa Kasanganay vs. Johnny Eblen
Catchweight (182 lbs) – Ray Cooper III vs. Jason Jackson
Heavyweight – Bruno Cappelozza vs. Vadim Nemkov
Light Heavyweight – Thiago Santos vs. Yoel Romero
Lightweight – Clay Collard vs. AJ McKee
Prelim Fight Card
Featherweight – Aaron Pico vs. Henry Corrales
Lightweight – Biaggio Ali Walsh vs. Emmanuel Palacio
Women’s Catchweight (165 lbs) – Claressa Shields vs. Kelsey DeSantis
Featherweight – Abdullah Al-Qahtani vs. Edukondal Rao
Flyweight – Malik Basahel vs. Vinicius Pereira
Watch the PFL vs. Bellator event on Saturday, February 24, 2024. The free prelims start at 12:30 pm ET / 9:30 am PT on YouTube (international audiences), the main card begins at 3:00 pm ET / 12:00 pm PT on ESPN+ PPV, DAZN PPV.
