Claressa Shields is firing back after Shannon Sharpe questioned whether she could defeat a male fighter.
The two-time Olympic gold medalist addressed the former NFL star on social media after he made the comments on his Nightcap podcast. Sharpe said he believed Shields would struggle against a trained male boxer and cited Rolando Romero as an example.
Shields responded directly, making it clear she disagreed with the criticism.
These guys doing all this chirping are the same guys who can not punch correctly or fight. @ShannonSharpe you will throw a hip out trying to fight anybody. So let me do my thing & be THE GREATEST. And I’ll sparr Rolly! Just to shut yall ass up! Dead ass! https://t.co/E9d9m3EVJq
— Claressa Gwoat Shields (@Claressashields) March 9, 2026
Lastly I don’t aspire to fight a
— Claressa Gwoat Shields (@Claressashields) March 9, 2026
Man but I get busy inside that ring flat out! All my sparring partners are men! And everyone knows I’m a banger with quick hands & yes defense go crazy! I don’t post my sparring cause I have 0 to prove
And I’m not to keen on Anybody, anyone telling Me what the hell I can & can not do. They said Back in 2016 no woman Boxer would ever make $1 million! But look what happened, they said women can’t fill out arenas but look what’s happening, they said women can’t fight but look at…
— Claressa Gwoat Shields (@Claressashields) March 9, 2026
Please don’t let my confidence & bravado scare you! It’s needed for me to maintain my greatness! So that’s for me, not you! pic.twitter.com/02XwN5CJOu
— Claressa Gwoat Shields (@Claressashields) March 9, 2026
“These guys doing all this chirping are the same guys who cannot punch correctly or fight,” she wrote. “@ShannonSharpe you will throw a hip out trying to fight anybody. So let me do my thing and be the greatest.”
The undefeated champion also explained that she regularly trains with male sparring partners and feels confident about her abilities in the ring.
“All my sparring partners are men,” Shields wrote. “Everyone knows I’m a banger with quick hands and crazy defense. I don’t post my sparring because I have nothing to prove.”
Still, Shields said she is not interested in fighting men professionally.
“I don’t aspire to fight a man,” she added. “But I get busy inside that ring.”
Sharpe previously called Shields the “GWOAT,” or greatest woman of all time, while explaining why men’s and women’s sports are typically separated.
Claressa Shields told Unc Shannon Sharpe that if she really watched film on Rolly and had a whole 2-3 month training camp she would win and he wasn’t going for that bruh
— Shannonnn sharpes Burner (PARODY Account) (@shannonsharpeee) March 10, 2026
: @NightcapShow_ pic.twitter.com/An0BL3YlvL
