Claressa Shields has made serious allegations against a fighter and his coach after a video of the champion fighter being dropped was released.
“The GWOAT,” as she calls herself, was seen being planted by Latvian Arturs Ahmetovs in a sparring session back in 2018.
After the clip went viral, Shields then stated the Ahmetovs and his coach, Derik Santos, had tampered with the gloves.
Shields says she felt Ahmetovs’ hand, as she explained in a video interview, and felt no patent. Those claims have since been denied.
Speaking out after the session showed Shields getting dropped and badly hurt, Shields was irate at the decision to put out the footage.
Claressa Shields dropped in sparring
“[This was] Five years ago. The dude is just now putting the video out for clout. Man, he so weird,” said Shields.
Asked why she only mentioned the incident this year, Shields added: “I didn’t say anything [at the time] because I didn’t want my opponent to have information of me getting dropped leading up to my fight.
“But why keep a video hidden for five years and you so big and bad?
“I have no problem getting caught in sparring. It happens. I spar the majority of Men! But this dude Arthur and his coach Derrick Santos were embarrassed [when we sparred earlier in the week].
“The next time we sparred, he purposely wore gloves with no little to no padding. I can’t make this up. I couldn’t believe it.”
Glove tampering
She concluded: “I’ve never been KO’d in seventeen years, and I’ve been dropped twice [by Ahmetovs] all in a week of each other. I have no shame in that.
“But for a male fighter to literally take the padding out his gloves, he’s a punk. Him and coach Derik Santos are bad for the sport!”
If Shields’s claims are valid, similar to Deontay Wilder’s made against Tyson Fury, criminal proceedings could have been launched over the matter.
However, neither Wilder nor Shields have asked police to investigate what could have been a life-threatening situation – if proven.
Situations in the past, like the tragic story of Billy Collins Jr., have no place in the sport. Authorities should be allowed to dig deeper and get to the bottom of what really happened.
Fans on social media seem to be split, though. Some believe Shields conclusively. Others say she’s only making the claims to save embarrassment.
The argument continues.
