Joe Ramage: Incredible Savannah Marshall-Claressa Shields bout puts boxing back on the right track

It came from one of Boxxer’s backstage runners who are accustomed to staging showcase events almost on a weekly basis given the boxing schedule. But they were words which continued to ring around every corner of the building and in every conversation before, during and after Savannah Marshall’s historic undisputed middleweight bout with Claressa Shields. And they were right: it was incredible.

Marshall remained the talk of the train ride home, and the talk of a town doused in pride of their hometown girl, even in defeat. Yes, Marshall came up short via a unanimous decision to a masterful Shields, but she can hold her head high in what she achieved.

And the good thing is, Marshall knows it. The Silent Assassin, as she is known in the boxing world, is so often laser focused, at times too much so amid all of the glitz and glam of headline boxing.

Marshall has admitted in the past to feeling uncomfortable during ring entrances. Her two main event shows in Newcastle over the last year saw her almost race to the ring in order to get down to business more efficiently.

But Marshall has grown so much over those last 12 months. At the O2, accompanied by Lionesses star and Sunderland legend Jill Scott, she visibly was able to take in the magnitude of her achievements.

‘Oh Sav-ann-ah Marshall,’ came the raucous cries of a packed out arena. Marshall, almost uncharacteristically, broke into a wry smile with a sense of ‘wow.’ This was history.

Shields, to her credit, continued the immensity of the occasion by dancing her way to the ring. An incredible feat of confidence and belonging from the now undisputed middleweight champion of the world.

And it is here where you simply have to pay credit to Shields. A multi-time undisputed champion across weight classes. This was, at times, a boxing masterclass from the irrepressible American.

The way she glided around the ring to evade the forward approach of Marshall, and deliver her counter-punches so crisply, so smoothly, was boxing at its purest form.

In the week leading up to the fight, I was watching Shields’ press conference in the company of my mam. ‘She’s annoying,’ she said of Shields, who’s loud-mouthed, and at times brash, approach was all encompassing. But Shields proved with absolute clarity that she is not just a mouthpiece. She has the talent, showmanship and everything else to deliver on the biggest stage. As Marshall herself admitted, Shields proved she is the Greatest Woman Of All Time.

But it takes two to create what we saw at the O2. And Marshall, without question, played her part in a memorable night for boxing and women’s sport.

A week ago I wrote how Marshall and Shields could help put boxing back on the right footing, after the bleak events of Chris Eubank Jr and Conor Benn’s postponement, and they did so and then some.

Whether you are a boxing purist, a casual fan, or a supporter of women’s sport, Marshall and Shields created history in London and with their rivalry now tied at one win apiece, it would only be fitting if we get to do it all over again.