Clarissa Shields won gold medals at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics [Getty Images]<\/p>\n
Claressa Shields defended her undisputed heavyweight crown by beating fellow American Franchon Crews-Dezurn by unanimous points decision at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.<\/p>\n
In her first outing of an $8m (\u00a36.1m) multi-fight deal,<\/a> Shields was a 100-90 victor on the scorecards of all three judges as she retained her WBO, WBA, IBF and WBC titles.<\/p>\n The 30-year-old is unbeaten in 18 professional outings following the 10-round bout, which included plenty of fiery exchanges between Shields and 38-yer-old Crews-Dezurn.<\/p>\n “I felt like I had to take my time. Franchon hits hard and she’s tough,” said Shields.<\/p>\n “She was trying to cause an upset and got me with some shots. <\/p>\n “She’s a heavy-hitting diva and that’s one of the best fights I’ve been in my professional career, especially at 10 rounds. It was fun. I had to watch my ass every round.<\/p>\n “I think today I showcased my skills, my offence, my defence and body shots. I almost had her out in round seven, but she just wouldn’t go.”<\/p>\n Shields beat Crews-Dezurn three times as an amateur and on their professional debuts in 2016.<\/p>\n Boxing schedule and results 2026<\/a>Watch every Born to Brawl episode<\/a><\/p>\n