Claressa Shields Stops Kaye Scott to Reclaim Middleweight Titles in Atlanta
On August 16, 2026, two-time Olympic gold medalist Claressa Shields defeated Australia’s Kaye Scott via a sixth-round technical knockout at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. The victory allowed Shields to reclaim the WBC and WBA middleweight titles, adding another milestone to her career as she became the first African American woman to headline a major boxing event in the city.
The matchup marked Shields’s return to the 160-pound middleweight division after spending her previous four professional fights competing at heavyweight. According to ESPN, the Michigan native underwent a rigorous training camp to drop from 198 pounds down to the middleweight limit.
“This was a really hard camp,” Shields stated following the bout, as reported by ESPN. “I cut 38 pounds. I was at 198 pounds and got down to 160. This is the most disciplined I’ve been since the Olympics, I feel like.”
Inside the Ring at State Farm Arena
Scott proved willing to engage in early exchanges, but Shields steadily established command of the ring. By the second round, visible swelling appeared on Scott’s forehead from the landing punches. Shields continued to dictate the pace of the bout.
In the sixth round, Shields landed a decisive left hook that sent Scott crashing into the ropes and forced a referee’s count. When action resumed, Shields pressed the attack. As Scott struggled to recover, her corner threw in the towel at the 1:38 mark of the round, securing the stoppage.
“I was actually just trying to figure her out,” Shields explained during her post-fight interview. “She was stronger than what I thought. She was very strong, and I knew that with me cutting the weight that I cut that I didn’t want to exert too much early. So I was trying to make sure I could deal with her strength and not get caught with nothing crazy because I’m not as strong as I feel at 175 [pounds].”
Historic Milestone in Atlanta
Beyond the championship hardware, the event drew a notable crowd of celebrities and athletes to downtown Atlanta. Latto and Shields’s partner Papoose accompanied the champion during her ring walk. Floyd Mayweather, Terence Crawford, Usher, Shakur Stevenson, and Shane Mosley watched the action from ringside, while Brandy attended to support her brother, Ray J, who fought Orlando Brown earlier in the evening.
The win expands Shields’s already extensive championship resume. Having previously claimed undisputed status at heavyweight, middleweight, and junior middleweight, she remains the only woman to achieve undisputed status across three distinct weight classes.