On Tuesday, Claressa Shields publicly responded to the ban from Most Valuable Promotions events, dismissing the sanction, stating that she had previously refused to sign the promotion agreement and indicating that her legal team would address what she described as false statements and defamation. The X posts follow Monday’s announcement by MVP that the undisputed heavyweight champion has been banned from events until further notice following a physical altercation with Alycia Baumgardner at MVP MMA 1 at the Intuit Dome on Saturday, May 16.
Baumgardner, who is signed to MVP and holds the unified 130-pound championship, said Monday that she experienced a “physical attack without provocation” and that the case would be handled legally. BoxingInsider previously reported on the ban and Baumgardner’s response.
Shields’ answer to MVP
Shields addressed the promotion directly in the X post.
“Now to MVP, you all tried to sign me, I refused!” Shields wrote. “You can’t kick me out of a place I don’t want to be! Tomorrow I can fight anywhere in the world! So anyone who thinks this feeble ban matters, doesn’t matter. These false statements will be dealt with as well. All of you threatening me and then playing the victim is madness. MVP, all of you lying all over me, that’s NOTHING NEW! Since you came out of the gate, all that remains is disrespect! Calling all of you fighters a ‘Real GWOAT’ while looking at my achievements, trying to erase my demanding work in women’s boxing and constantly trying to kill my character with LIES!”
MVP, co-founded by Jake Paul and Nakisa Bidarian, has signed numerous female players in recent years, including Baumgardner and Amanda Serrano. Shields had not previously publicly confirmed that the promotion had offered her a contract.
Shields’ broader statement
Earlier Tuesday, Shields released a longer statement about X in which she characterized the encounter as the result of an extended pattern of hostility directed at her and said the circulating video did not capture the full sequence of events.
“I have dedicated my life to the sport of boxing. By the grace of God, I have been blessed. My talent has undeniably allowed me to take women’s boxing to a recent level,” Shields wrote. “It doesn’t end in the ring. What’s circulating on the Internet doesn’t tell the full story. Until now. I don’t condone violence. I’ve never done it. But I’m also not one to stand silently while I’m constantly verbally attacked, threatened, discriminated against, or have my character killed. I also won’t allow the reality of disrespect to turn into a narrative or discussion about colorism or jealousy.”
Shields continued: “There is a documented history of attacks and threats from this individual leading up to this point, and that history will speak for itself. There is a difference between aggression and protection. I stand for integrity. I stand on what I have built. I am a champion. Any further false allegations or defamation of character will be dealt with appropriately by my legal team.”
Shields did not detail the documented history she was referencing or specify what specific statements by MVP or Baumgardner she considered defamatory.
Where things stand
According to ESPNThe MVP ban applies to all future events and remains in effect until further notice, with no disclosure of the terms of its potential revocation. Neither side has filed any civil claims. Both camps said legal teams were involved.
Shields is the undisputed heavyweight champion and has fought between 154 and 175 pounds. Baumgardner holds the unified 130-pound titles. A sanctioned fight between the two teams has long been considered impractical due to the weight difference, which has been a recurring feature of their public exchanges since 2022.
Saturday’s MVP event in Inglewood was his first MMA promotion and his first event with Netflix. Ronda Rousey stopped Gina Carano 17 seconds into the main event.
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