Claressa Shields has announced that she's raised the $15 million purse needed to potentially bring Laila Ali out of retirement.
In a video shared with TMZ Sports on Friday (July 18), Shields said that the full purse Ali previously said would be the only way she'd consider a comeback is now in place.
The funding, Shields said, would be provided by Ruben Branson's Wynn Records. Branson joined Shields for the video, alongside the boxer's boyfriend Papoose (who is Wynn's Head of Hip-Hop) and her manager Mark Taffett. Branson confirmed the offer, making his point by bringing out a giant novelty check made out to Ali.
Shields and her team also claimed to have interest from two venues for the massive bout: T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and AT&T Stadium in Dallas.
"Laila, I'm here with my team. I got some great news for you. We got the $15 million!" Shields said in the video. "Let's make a fight between me and you. The best versus the best. The greats versus the greats. The GWOAT versus Muhammad Ali's daughter, Laila Ali. Let's make it happen."
She added, "We got the $15 million. We got the venue, and we got the dates. Now all we need is Laila Ali. Is you gonna make the fight happen or what? You asked for the $15 million and we delivered it."
Shields' message comes after Ali said that a bag in the $15–$20 million range would be enough to consider stepping back in the ring.
"Unless somebody has $15-$20 million, don't even call me about this," Ali told FightHype about rumors of a fight with Shields. "Unless somebody calls me and says they have it, we're not going to have a conversation. I'm not trying to come back and fight, but if someone offered that kind of money, I would actually have to think about it."
As of now, Ali has yet to respond to the offer publicly. A fight between these undefeated boxers has been brewing for some time. In 2019, Ali said in a radio interview that Shields couldn't beat her, and in response, Shields claimed Ali never fought real competition.
