Once Claressa Shields announced her promotional free agency this past July following a dominant win over Lani Daniels to retain boxing’s undisputed women’s heavyweight title, a swarm of interest flooded her way from promoters wanting to represent Uncrowned’s No. 2 pound-for-pound women’s fighter. Included among that interest, according to Shields, was Jake Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions (MVP).
“It was worth it, but it was so difficult,” the two-time Olympic gold medalist told Uncrowned’s “The Ariel Helwani Show” on Monday regarding the negotiation process for her new deal. “Listen, I had four different contracts [offered to me]. Looking at everybody’s contracts, weighing the pros and cons — it was very stressful. It was not easy at all. But I almost signed with MVP. [I was] close.”
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Shields said Paul’s MVP and Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing were among those interested in signing her. Both promoters have been major forces in women’s boxing over the past decade, with Matchroom dominating the women’s side of the sport for many years until its stronghold was broken by Ben Shalom’s BOXXER and MVP. Presently, MVP represents the majority of the top talent in women’s boxing.
“[I was] super close [to signing with MVP],” Shields revealed. “I like everything that they stand for. Me and Nakisa [Bidarian, MVP co-founder] were able to talk a lot, and he understood my vision, and I think that some of our stuff aligned. But it just wasn’t enough money. But I love what they have going on over there. I love how they promote fights. What they’ve done with Amanda [Serrano], done with Katie [Taylor], done with Alycia [Baumgardner] — I love that. It just wasn’t all the way right for me.”
Shields ultimately chose to sign a new deal with Dmitry Salita’s Salita Promotions and Wynn Records in a two-year, four-fight agreement worth $8 million, with a $3 million signing bonus.
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Salita has represented Shields for the past eight years, while Shamele Mackie, better known as “Papoose,” is Shields’ boyfriend and the creative director of the Wynn Records music label.
“I have creative control now with my deal with Salita and Wynn Records,” Shields said. “It’s just boxing business, but they definitely came with the most money, and I didn’t really have to explain my vision because I’ve been working with Salita for nine years. It was like, ‘Listen, I want to be really, really big. I want to make these events really big, because I’m going to go out there and just over-perform.’ So I landed back at home with Salita. But it was great talking with MVP and Eddie Hearn.”
Shields is now targeting a return to the ring in the first quarter of 2026, she told Uncrowned, though it won’t be against Laila Ali.
Ali, 47, the daughter of the late, great Muhammad Ali, retired from boxing as the WBC super middleweight champion in 2007 with a 24-0 professional record. Ali was vocal about her interest this past year in coming back to boxing to take on Shields, however she turned down a $15 million offer for exactly that, Shields claimed.
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Unified super middleweight champions Shadasia Green and Franchon Crews-Dezurn are understood to be leading contenders to be Shields’ next opponent, with the latter being the more likely of the two.
“If it were up to me [who I’m fighting next], which it is, it doesn’t really matter,” Shields said. “It doesn’t really matter if it’s Franchon, if it’s Shadasia, if it’s [Raquel] Miller, if it’s Mikaela [Mayer]. It doesn’t really matter. I’m just letting the team do their job. I’m in the gym training, getting ready, trying to become faster, stronger and smarter.”
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The biggest fight that can be made for Shields, at the moment, is arguably a clash with the unified 154-pound champion Mikaela Mayer.
Mayer dominated Mary Spencer to capture three super welterweight belts this past month, and because of struggles to make a fight with Lauren Price for the undisputed welterweight crown due to neither fighter’s promoter having a network deal, her future could lie at 154 and 160 pounds.
“I do [like the idea of fighting Mayer],” Shields said. “I think 160, 154 for me and Mikaela would be fair. I haven’t been at 160 in the past two years, but that’s a great fight and she’s ranked No. 3 on the pound-for-pound list now, so that’d be great to fight another fighter on the pound-for-pound list knowing that we both have an Olympic background, went to the Olympics together.
“I think it’d be great for women’s boxing, to be honest with you.”
