Claressa Shields has made the 2022 Forbes 30 Under 30 list under the Sports category.
Shields was the only boxer or mixed martial artist to make the list. The 26-year-old is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and is undefeated as a professional boxer…
Shields was the only boxer or mixed martial artist to make the list. The 26-year-old is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and is undefeated as a professional boxer at 11-0. This year, Shields went 2-0 in boxing, with victories over Marie-Eve Dicaire and Ivana Habazin, both via unanimous decision.
Claressa Shields vs. Marie-Eve Dicaire
Shields also made her MMA debut with the Professional Fighters League. She was successful in her debut, pulling out a come-from-behind victory over Brittney Elkin. She would then lose her follow-up bout to Abigail Montes, however.
Heading into her bout against Montes, Shields acknowledged that she’s learning as she goes, but expressed rocksteady confidence once her overall skillset matches her hands.
“I’ve been learning on the job, and I’ve been just getting better and better,” Shields told The Albuquerque Journal. “… I’m being taught armbars and stuff, and I’m being taught how to get out of them. They’re showing me rear naked chokes, and I’m doing really good in wrestling and getting in great positions.
“That’s stuff that used to confuse me. Now I actually feel good doing them, and that’s just giving me more confidence for the future.”
Shields joins the ranks of NBA star Devin Booker, MLB’s Vladimir Guerrero Jr., and Dallas Cowboys starting quarterback Dak Prescott to make this year’s Forbes list, to name a few.
Shields is currently scheduled to box Ema Kozin on January 29 and is expected to make her MMA return next year as well, though a hard date has not been set as of yet.
Is there anybody else from MMA that you think would be a good addition to join Claressa Shields on the 2022 Forbes 30 Under 30 List?
Two-time PFL champion Kayla Harrison is ready to prove to Dana White that she’s “worth the investment,” and plans on making the UFC President eat his words.
Harrison has made a dominant tear towards the top of the MMA agenda in the past few years, …
Two-time PFL champion Kayla Harrison is ready to prove to Dana White that she’s “worth the investment,” and plans on making the UFC President eat his words.
Harrison has made a dominant tear towards the top of the MMA agenda in the past few years, and currently sits as the most sought-after free agent in the sport. It’s easy to see why that’s the case.
The Ohio native is a two-time Olympic gold medalist, having stood on the top of the podium at both London 2012 and Rio 2016, and has continued the form she had as a judoka into her blossoming MMA career. In just 12 fights and three years as a professional, Harrison has racked up a perfect record that includes five knockouts and five submissions.
After experiencing championship glory for the first time in 2019, the 31-year-old repeated the feat in this year’s PFL season. After decimating Mariana Morais, Cindy Dandois, and Genah Fabian with first-round finishes, Harrison secured a second title and $1 million check with a second-frame armbar against Taylor Guardado last month.
The deeper into free agency she gets, the more unlikely another season in the PFL seems. With that in mind, talk of possible moves to Bellator and the UFC have reached the forefront in recent weeks.
Given she currently competes at lightweight, a move to the UFC would see Harrison join a lackluster 145-pound roster, which many believe could be ended in the near future. Having seen Amanda Nunes clear out the weight class, Dana White recently revealed his uncertainty over the future of the women’s featherweight division.
Despite that, Harrison isn’t worried. In a recent interview with MMA Fighting, the American Top Team product claimed she’ll prove to White that she’s worth the investment, and plans on making the UFC kingpin “eat his words.”
“I get it (talk of the UFC dissolving the featherweight division), but also, Dana has said a lot of things before. Look, it’s my job. If I wanna fight in the UFC someday, If I wanna fight at featherweight for the UFC someday, then it’s my job to prove to him that I’m worth the investment and I’m worth the risk. All I can do is go out there and continue to be dominant and continue to be so good that you can’t ignore me. I know that I’ll do that. I know that, he says a lot of stuff, and I know that I’m going to make him eat his words, and he’ll smile when he does it and it’ll be great. I’m not worried about it. That time is coming.”
Two-time PFL champion Kayla Harrison has revealed that she knows which promotion she wants to fight for, but says it’s ultimately down to her coaches and manager.
Harrison’s future has been one of the most discussed topics in mixed martial arts thi…
Two-time PFL champion Kayla Harrison has revealed that she knows which promotion she wants to fight for, but says it’s ultimately down to her coaches and manager.
Harrison’s future has been one of the most discussed topics in mixed martial arts this year. Her rise to becoming the most-sought after free agent in the sport has been as impressive as it’s been rapid. The two-time Olympic judo gold medalist only made her professional MMA debut in 2018. Since then, she’s amassed an unblemished 12-0 record that includes five knockouts and five submissions.
Having won the 2019 PFL Women’s Lightweight Championship, Harrison repeated the feat this year. With three first-round finishes against Mariana Morais, Cindy Dandois, and Genah Fabian, the Ohio native booked her spot in the final opposite Taylor “No Mercy” Guardado. Despite making it to the second round, the 30-year-old became Harrison’s latest fallen victim, doing so via an armbar submission.
Harrison spoke about her future in a recent interview with MMA Fighting. After confirming that nothing has been decided yet, the American Top Team product said she was leaving the negotiations and decision-making in the hands of her manager, Dominance MMA CEO Ali Abdelaziz, and her coaches.
“No decision (has been made yet). This is kind of the time where I kinda have to put my trust and my faith in my team. I did the work, I showed up, I won in dominant fashion all year, I talked a little shit, I did my part, I got everyone paying attention, I went out and won another title, and now I have to trust the people that I’ve surrounded myself with. I have to trust Ali. I have to trust my coaches. Because I know what I wanna do; I know where I wanna go. But it really comes down to what they think is best for me, and me having the patience or the wisdom to listen to them and do what they think is best.”
Despite revealing she has an ideal destination in her mind, Harrison reiterated that wherever her team says is best, that’s where she’ll go.
“This is the hard part. Everyone wants to know what the answer is and where I’m going; PFL, Bellator, UFC, etc… I don’t have an answer. I’m staying out of it. I’m gonna trust my coaches… Ali is the one out there doing the work, talking to people, setting up all of these meetings… My job now is just to trust them. If they say, ‘Kayla, you should go here,’ that’s what I’m going to do.”
Where would you like to see Kayla Harrison fight in 2022?
Cris Cyborg is not all that impressed with what she has seen from Kayla Harrison so far.
With Harrison looking to test the waters of free agency after a successful run in the PFL and the UFC seemingly uninterested in her, Bellator has become the to…
Cris Cyborg is not all that impressed with what she has seen from Kayla Harrison so far.
With Harrison looking to test the waters of free agency after a successful run in the PFL and the UFC seemingly uninterested in her, Bellator has become the top candidate for the Olympian if she decides to sign elsewhere. Of course, the biggest fight for her if that happens is one of the best to ever do it, featherweight champion Cyborg.
However, Cyborg does not seem to be taking this as a serious threat, as she explained in a recent interview. She compared Harrison to another former Olympic judoka, Ronda Rousey, in that she is being outspoken because she wants people to know who she is, even though she has not fought enough to prove her skills.
“I believe Kayla is just doing like Ronda Rousey was doing in the beginning. I was a champion in Strikeforce, and Ronda started talking about me and all that because people didn’t know who she is at that point. So I think that she’s just following the things that Ronda did in the beginning, she’s just in the beginning too,” Cyborg said.
Image Credit: Getty Images
“I don’t think that she’s gonna leave the PFL. If she left the PFL, then she would be welcomed in Bellator and we can make the fight happen. I just feel like for some reason, I don’t think she’s gonna leave there, but she’s searching online. Let’s see what’s gonna happen. It will be a great fight.”
Another option that Cris Cyborg says that she is down for if Kayla Harrison re-signs with the PFL is doing a cross-promoted fight to still see who the better fighter is. This is something Bellator has done before with Rizin, so it is not out of the realm of possibilities.
“Even if she stays in the PFL, we can still make this fight happen, cross-promotion. But I believe this fight can happen like boxing, have the A-side and the B-side. I know she’s been fighting for two years and that’s it, but she has 50,000 followers. She’s touched the fans a lot. So this fight can happen anytime, just make it like boxing, A and B-side. It’d be a great fight,” Cyborg said.
It is worth watching to see where Kayla Harrison ends up. That said, fighting Cris Cyborg would be basically the biggest thing she could do right now, even if it took place in a cross-promoted environment.
Former UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion Miesha Tate has suggested sought-after free agent Kayla Harrison “belongs in the UFC.”
Not many have risen to prominence in the sport of mixed martial arts quicker and more dominantly than Harrison. The two-…
Former UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion Miesha Tate has suggested sought-after free agent Kayla Harrison “belongs in the UFC.”
Not many have risen to prominence in the sport of mixed martial arts quicker and more dominantly than Harrison. The two-time Olympic gold medalist debuted in MMA two years after her success at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro games. Since then, she’s built an unblemished 12-0 record that includes five knockouts, five submissions, two world championships, and $2 million in prize money.
After winning the 2019 PFL Women’s Lightweight Tournament, Harrison returned to defend her crown this year. With first-round finishes against Mariana Morais, Cindy Dandois, and Genah Fabian, the 31-year-old found herself in yet another PFL final. Despite making it out of the opening frame, Taylor Guardado had little response to Harrison’s imposing offense, and fell to a second-round armbar submission.
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Tate Calls For Harrison To “Stir Up” 145 pounds In The UFC
Harrison’s second title crowning marked the final fight on her PFL contract. Talk of her future had been rife throughout the 2021 season and has only picked up since her fourth outing of the year. Appearances at UFC and Bellator events in recent weeks has only increased interest in her future destination.
Now, in an interview with ESPN MMA’s Marc Raimondi, UFC women’s bantamweight contender Miesha Tate has offered her thoughts on where Harrison should be headed. According to “Cupcake,” the Ohio native belongs in the UFC. Tate added that she’d love to see Harrison improve the featherweight division alongside the likes of Felicia Spencer and Norma Dumont.
“If she’s a free agent, she belongs in the UFC. I’m not gonna beat around the bush there. She certainly belongs in the UFC. I’d love to see her come over at 145 and see if she can stir up that division a little bit. I love Felicia Spencer, I love Norma Dumont; Norma’s amazing. Obviously, Amanda’s there. They’re training partners (Nunes & Harrison) so it’s just weird. I don’t know how that’ll play out, but I think she adds a lot of value to that division.”
Fabricio Werdum is unsure of his future in mixed martial arts.
After eight years with the promotion, the UFC and Farbicio Werdum parted ways in 2020. “Vai Cavalo” chose not to re-sign with the company and instead opted to fight for the …
Fabricio Werdum is unsure of his future in mixed martial arts.
After eight years with the promotion, the UFC and Farbicio Werdum parted ways in 2020. “Vai Cavalo” chose not to re-sign with the company and instead opted to fight for the PFL. But before he signs up for another season with the promotion, Werdum wants to revise his contract.
“I need to make a decision still,” Werdum told MMA Junkie in Spanish. “I need to speak to my wife first because she wants me to stop (fighting). I’m 44 years old, so she wants me to stop and we’re doing well in Brazil and running a lot of things.”
Werdum partook in one bout under the PFL banner. The fight was originally ruled a TKO loss for the former champion, and was eventually overturned after the State Athletic commission ruled that Werdum’s opponent, Renan Ferriea, tapped while in a triangle choke. The tap prompted Werdum to release the hold, which allowed his opponent to rain down blows.
Fabricio Werdum works a triangle choke on Fedor Emelianenko AP Photo/Jeff Chiu
A Life Outside of Fighting
At 44-years-old, Werdum needs to make sure it’s worth the risk to his health to continue fighting in a cage. At this point in his career, he has too many ventures outside of being punched in the face for a living.
“So I have the meat business, I also have a clothing brand – Werdum Sports – I have the YouTube channel, and I’m an ambassador for PFL here in Brazil,” Werdum said. “So I have a lot of things going on. It needs to be worth it for me to stop everything and go fight again because I would need to go back to the U.S. because my team is in Los Angeles in Kings MMA.
“I can train here and start the training camp, but I would need to leave my family and go back to the U.S. to do the actual camp. I don’t want to think about the money only, I need to have all my focus on winning. So I don’t know if it’ll be worth it now that I’m 44 years old. That needs to be decided. I need to speak to PFL and see if we come to an agreement, so I can fight again.”
With nearly twenty years in the game, one would have to assume that Werdum is nearing the end of his illustrious career. Before his run in the UFC, Werdum was as star in Japan under the PRIDE banner. He later went on to become the first man to beat Fedor Emelienko in over a decade when they clashed in Strikeforce in 2010.
