Shields On How Social Media Fights Built Her Fame

Claressa Shields has leveraged social media warfare into the mainstream recognition that eluded her for years despite an unbeaten professional record and two Olympic gold medals.

The multi-division champion told ESPN that her willingness to engage in public feuds — most notably with rapper Papoose and fellow boxer Franchon Crews-Dezurn — transformed her from respected technician into a pay-per-view draw. Shields said the shift happened when she stopped waiting for traditional media to anoint her and started creating her own buzz through confrontational posts and call-outs that routinely went viral.

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Price Of Online Notoriety For Boxing Star

The strategy worked. Shields now headlines major cards and commands attention that once went exclusively to male champions in her weight classes. But she acknowledged to the outlet that the approach required her to absorb criticism and personal attacks that had nothing to do with her skills between the ropes.

"I finally got the fame I always wanted," Shields said, per ESPN's report on her rise. The question she now grapples with, according to the piece, is whether the cost of that notoriety was worth the platform it built.

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Shields remains undefeated across boxing and mixed martial arts. Her next fight date has not been announced.

Reported via:

• ESPN Boxing — How boxer Claressa Shields turned notoriety into main event fame