Claressa Shields is the real deal, but Savannah Marshall would still beat her in the “greatest female fight“, according to Lauren Price and Karriss Artingstall.

The rivalry between Shields and Marshall is intense and negotiations are almost complete for their fight for the undisputed world middleweight title.

Price and Artingstall, who launched their own professional careers at BOXXER, would be watching closely if they met.

“It’s the biggest fight out there,” Price said on Sky Sports News.

“It’s exciting to have this rivalry,” added Artingstall. “It’s not just happening in the male ranks, it’s also happening in the female ranks. I can’t wait to see the fight now.

“In my opinion, this is the greatest women’s fight because of that rivalry and the amateur pasts they both had; Savannah is the only person to beat Claressa.”

Shields had a heated showdown with Marshall in the ring after the latter defended her WBO title with a dramatic knockout of Femke Hermans.

“As much punching power as she [Marshall] a, I’m sorry to tell you, if this is what I have to expect, it’s going to be an annihilation,” Shields said confidently.

“She is [Marshall] going to have problems with me and she’s definitely not going to knock me out. It’s not going to take a big punch from him to deal with me inside the ring. It’s going to take a long time.”

Artingstall thinks Shields has the performance levels to back up his words, but alongside Price, thinks Marshall will win if their pair go head-to-head in the ring.

“She [Shields] can confirm it, she does not speak everything,” Artingstall said. “Her accolades, belts, trophies and medals speak for themselves. It will be a very, very good fight. A very exciting.

“I believe Savannah – if she goes 100 per cent and trains as hard as she needs to – she has what it takes to get the win.

“I think she [Marshall] beats her, 100%,” Price concluded.

Price and Artingstall begin their professional careers at the same time, which continues them on the trajectory of professional and personal development together.

The duo, who are a couple, find comfort in the fact that all the elements of their lives are intertwined, even if they do not fight regularly!

“It’s great to take the trip together,” Price said. “It’s something different and something new.”

Price aims to be multi-weight world champion

Price, who won Olympic gold at the women’s middleweight, has very clear ambitions for her future in the professional ranks.

“I checked all the boxes as an amateur and it felt like the right time to shoot,” she said. “My goal is to become a world champion, an undisputed multi-weight world champion and achieve as much as possible in the professional ranks.

“It’s hard work but it’s nothing me and Karriss haven’t done before. We train Monday to Friday every week putting the transplant in place, when you work hard you can accomplish anything. .”

Price grew up with sports at the heart of his life, playing soccer and kickboxing from the age of eight.

She has 52 caps for Wales, played football for Cardiff City and knew she wanted to perform at the Olympics from an early age.

“Kelly Holmes is the one who inspired me to watch the Olympics when I was eight,” Price said. “I didn’t know what sport I was going to do, but I just knew I wanted to go to the Olympics.

“In 2012 women’s boxing was introduced, so that was the route, really, to switch from kickboxing. I went down to my local boxing gym, they sent me to Wales for the next team, training with the national team, then I had the chance to go to the Commonwealth Games in 2014.

“I just took that chance with both hands, and I thought if boxing didn’t work out for me, I could go back to playing football. But it did, I got a medal and I went from there.”

Artingstall’s journey to becoming a pro and his ambitions

Artingstall also turned to sports at a fairly young age and did so after difficult times in the education system.

“I started boxing feeling a little scared when I was younger. I was kicked out of four different schools and not accepted into any others,” she said.

“I joined a non-traditional school and every Friday they went to a local boxing gym. The coaches said they saw potential so I stuck with it and went three times a week. .

“I also joined the military, so I also found my calling. I’ve always been the kind of person who needs to be active and active. I quit boxing for two years when I I joined the army, then also got back into boxing thanks to that.”

Like Price, Artingstall returned from the Tokyo Olympics with a medal. She won bronze in the highly competitive women’s featherweight division. Artingstall, like her partner, is now very clear about her goals as a professional.

“I want to dominate in whatever weight class I eventually decide to fall into and box. I’m going to make my featherweight debut and potentially go down to super bantamweight, time will tell. I want to be dominant.

“I don’t want to float between weights, I want to pick a weight and dominate that weight. I want people to look at me and say, ‘She’s the best at this weight class, she’s the girl to beat’ .”