Boxing champ Terence Crawford says Olympic gold medalist Claressa Shields would 'do well' if she faced Conor McGregor

Current welterweight champion Terence Crawford defended Shields' confidence.
While Crawford didn't believe Shields would challenge a men's champion, he argues she would "do well" against someone with a bit less professional boxing experience such as Conor McGregor.
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Claressa Shields is one of the most dominant fighters on the planet, with two gold medals and an undefeated professional record. Most recently, Shields defeated Christina Hammer by a decision to unify the women's middleweight division.

After her win over Hammer, Shields was budding with confidence and argued that she could compete with some of the best men in boxing while speaking with TMZ .

"I spar with men," Shields told TMZ. "And, I mean, I drop men. I bust men nose. I beat men up all the time. If I was to say which is the guy, I think I could beat I think I could beat up Keith Thurman. I really do. I think I could beat up Keith Thurman, even though they're like 'oh, he beat Shawn Porter.' I think I can beat Shawn Portertoo, you know, skill-wise and just strength-wise. I think they may be stronger than me, but their boxing ability isn't like mine."

Shields went on to say she also thought she could give GGG a run for his money.

Shields' confidence was met with resistance from many in the boxing world, but current welterweight champion Terence Crawford didn't seem to think she was that far off.

"She's confident. She's confident in her ability and her skills, but that's pretty much what she's saying," Crawford told TMZ when asked about Shields' chances against a male fighter. "I don't think she'd really want to be in the ring with those fighters that she called out. But at the same time, it just tells you that she's so dominant in the female boxing world that she needs a man to fight. But I don't believe she would actually step foot in the ring with those guys. She's very confident, and it shows in the ring."

Crawford noted that while Shields likely wouldn't fare well against former champions, she holds her own in the ring with men while sparring all the time, and a fight with someone like Conor McGregor might be interesting to see.

"Man, I'm gonna tell you this. Claressa's been getting in the ring, sparring men since I've known her," Crawford said. "I feel like she could get in the ring and give anybody problems."

"I don't know. Conor McGregor is a man, but at the same time, she would do well against him."

You can watch Crawford's comments below.

McGregor announced his abrupt retirement in March but has already been in talks to return to the fight game since then.