BoxRec

Claressa Shields to face Abigail Montes in October 27th MMA return



It won’t be as quick a turnaround as previously reported, but Claressa Shields is officially set to return to the MMA cage. Professional Fighters League confirmed on Twitter that “T-Rex” will face 2-0 Abigail Montes on their October 27th championship event.

Mexico’s Montes, 21, has beaten two debuting opponents thus far in her career. Footage of her most recent fight in April shows some decent kickboxing and ground skills; nothing spectacular, but definitely enough to make this a risky endeavor for Shields (11-2 Boxing, 1-0 MMA), who needed a comeback TKO to get past Brittney Elkin in her June debut.

While I don’t see her having anywhere near as bright a future in MMA as in boxing, I definitely respect Shields’ willingness to test herself. Montes is far from a gimme, and if she finds herself in the same dominant positions Elkin enjoyed, her ground-and-pound is strong enough to put the “GWOAT” away.

MMA is a harder sport to determine winners especially this early on in their careers. Elkin was a tough test to have off the bat, so I will lean towards Shields winning this second match although I know next to nothing on this Montes.

Press Release

The Professional Fighters League (PFL) has announced the 2021 PFL World Championship will take place on Wednesday, October 27 at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida. Finalists across six divisions face off for a world title and $1 million purse live on ESPN networks and streaming platforms.

An evening of six world championship fights will feature the return of two-time Olympic gold medalist Claressa Shields to PFL.

Shields, a three-division champion, is coming off a thrilling come-from-behind TKO victory in her MMA debut in June and will face 21-year-old Abigail Montes.

The Mexico native brings a perfect record to the SmartCage and is quickly climbing the Latin American female rankings.

"There is no better place to welcome fans back in-person than at the 2021 PFL World Championship as $6 million and six world titles will be up for grabs on October 27,” said PFL CEO Peter Murray.

“The biggest night in MMA gets boosted by the return of Claressa Shields to the PFL SmartCage, and we can’t wait to deliver an unforgettable night for the more than 550 million MMA fans around the world with our great partners at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino and ESPN.”

The 12 PFL World Championship fighters will be determined this month as the league hosts three win-or-go-home playoff events on Aug. 13, 19 and 27 at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino.

The action kicks off this Friday at 5:30pm ET on ESPN2 and streaming platforms as former world champions Ray Cooper III and Rory MacDonald headline the first playoff event which features the top contenders across the welterweight and lightweight divisions.

Kayla Harrison, the 2019 PFL Champion, begins her postseason journey next Thursday, August 19 against Genah Fabian as the women’s lightweight and heavyweight action is set to hit the PFL SmartCage on ESPN. The final PFL Playoff will feature the top-four fighters across the featherweight and light heavyweight divisions, airing live on ESPN2 on Friday, August 27.

Hopefully the loss humbles here a little.

Not the GWOAT but respect for trying a different sport.

A split decision loss ain't too bad. MMA is one of those sports where underdogs when more than you would expect because there are so many variables involved.

I wouldn't put too much emphasis on the loss especially when you consider how topsy-turvy careers are in MMA. For example, the same Ray Mercer who lost to Kimbo Slice is the same Ray Mercer who knocked out Tim Sylvia in 9 seconds.

There are an awful lot of MMA fighters even at the world class level with basically .500 records (even win/loss ratios) who on any given night could beat anybody in the world.

The question is whether her losing might take a little bit of shine off of her undefeated record as a boxer when before she was seen as kind of an unbeatable commodity.

I don't think serious fans will care because it's apples and oranges, but for casual fans one might look at her losing in MMA as her potentially slipping as an athlete and think Savannah Marshall has got her number.

the split was very generous, she clearly lost 2 and 3 so no idea how the 1 judge scored the fight for her

her opponent had no amateur fights and was very green herself

if she dedicates herself to mma she will surely improve over time , but if she just kinda half asses and constantly switches between boxign and mma she could perform below her potential in both of them

I think Amanda Serrano has the whole MMA/Boxing ratio figured out. She's often matched with poor grapplers or strictly strikers, so she's able to keep winning and keeping her profile out there without risking anything.

Plus she devotes the vast majority of her time to what she is good at which is boxing. Shields seems to have fallen into the trap of trying to juggle two different sports.

Personally I would like to see her focus strictly on Savannah Marshall and then getting out of boxing where she can then focus strictly on MMA. Unless she wanted to do a boxing match with Cris Cyborg, or wanted to move up in weight to try to conquer another division.

Thank you numbers.
This forum has always needed a moron telling us results that are a little over a year old.