FLOYD MAYWEATHER has backed Claressa Shields in her fight against Savannah Marshall – after comparing the women’s star to himself.
Shields, from Michigan like Mayweather, faces her British rival in an undisputed middleweight blockbuster tonight at the O2 Arena.
The American has lost just once in the boxing ring, against Marshall in a 2012 amateur bout.
But Mayweather – whose last loss came in the 1996 Olympics – predicted Shields will avenge her bitter defeat.
He said: “I’d like to see Claressa. She’s from Michigan, like myself, she’s a native of Michigan like myself.
“Two-time Olympic gold medalist, we like to call her the female TBE (The Best Ever) in the sport of boxing.
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“And this is going to give her a chance to redeem her first loss. She only has one loss throughout her whole career.
“So I’m excited for her. And we work with the same trainer, Gerald Tucker.
“Gerald Tucker is from the Mayweather tutelage, the Mayweather school. So I’m looking forward to seeing Claressa Shields this weekend.”
Marshall, 31, was once promoted herself by Mayweather, 45, and is now 12-0 with ten knockouts.
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Shields, 27, is a three-division world champion, twice undisputed and considers herself “The Greatest Woman of All Time”.
And if bragging rights and all four titles was not enough to motivate the unbeaten champ, hearing Mayweather’s backing was an extra boost.
Shields tweeted: “@FloydMayweather excited about my fight tomorrow!”
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
