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Claressa Shields Issues Warning To Laila Ali

Originally posted on Dice City Sports | By Robert LaMar | Last updated Jul 14, 2025 11:17 AM ET

Laila Ali made it clear, a comeback isn’t on the table unless the offer is truly life-changing. When asked whether she’d ever consider coming out of retirement for a potential showdown with Claressa Shields, the former unbeaten champion didn’t shut the door completely, but she did set the bar sky high.

“The rumor that I heard is that unless somebody has $15, $20 million, don’t even call me about a fight against Shields. That’s all I got, Ali said”

Claressa Shields didn’t waste a second responding to Laila Ali’s recent comments about a potential return to the ring and she made sure to do it loud and clear.

On July 13, Shields took to X with a fiery post, reigniting the long simmering tension between the two generational talents:

“What a great weekend of boxing

! Really motivated! Now @TheRealLailaAli I’m the GREATEST NOW! Be careful what you ask for ! You know I’ve been wanting to make you eat your words! You not a better boxer than me & at 175 I’ll put you on your back! BEEN READY FOR YOU! #GWOAT @claressashields”.

Ali not really interested in comeback fight

Laila Ali threw out an outrageous number because she clearly really does not want to come back and fight. She doesn’t have anything to prove. When she retired, she was considered the greatest women boxer of all time. She hasn’t fought since 2007. That’s a lot of ring rusts. We know that she works out and stays in the ring, but nevertheless, that’s a tall order to comeback and fight who many consider is the greatest women’s boxer of all time in Clarissa Shields in her prime. Which is exactly why she threw out that crazy number.

As much as fight fans would love to see them fight, there’s no way that they are going to generate 15 million dollars or 20 million dollars a piece. So this will always be one of those dream matches that we will never see as fans because this happened between two different generations.

This article first appeared on Dice City Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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