DETROIT, MICHIGAN – Costa Rican boxing star Hanna Gabriels lost to Claressa Shields in an IBF and WBA world middleweight championship fight over the weekend at the Masonic Temple Theater in Detroit, Michigan.
Saturday’s fight saw Shields come back after being knocked down by Gabriels to defeat the champ, according to the Detroit Free Press.
“I’ve never been knocked down before,” Shields, the two-time Olympic gold medalist, told the Free Press about Gabriels, a two-time 154-pound champ who moved up a weight class for the fight. “But I know once I hit the ground, I took a deep breath, and I remember thinking to myself, ‘I’m about to whoop this girl’s ass!’ That’s what I was thinking to myself.”
Shields won by unanimous decision (97-92, 98-91 and 97-92) to claim the middleweight belts.