'It's all or nothing' - Hartlepool's Savannah Marshall gearing up for O2 Claressa Shields fight

Savannah Marshall during a Boxxer media workout on a boat on the River Thames. (Photo by Eddie Keogh/Getty Images).

Last month Marshall’s undisputed middleweight title fight with Claressa Shields was postponed following the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

Hartlepool’s fighting champion Marshall was set to headline an historic night of boxing at London’s O2 arena when going up against long-time American rival Shields for the undisputed crown in the middleweight division.

Marshall and Shields were set to main event the first ever all-female card in the UK, which also included WBO and IBF lightweight champion Mikaela Mayer facing WBC and IBO champion Alycia Baumgardner in another undisputed bout, while Durham’s Georgia O’Connor was also set to feature on the undercard.

The event was rearranged for this coming Saturday, October 15, and Marshall is gearing up for the biggest night of her life.

Reflecting on the decision to postpone, Marshall told Sky Sports: "I had a week off, and I needed it. More mentally.

"All the emotion of fight week, the fight actually getting cancelled, so I felt emotionally drained and I didn't get out of bed for a couple of days after, so I really needed that week to just kind of forget about boxing.

"I was disappointed. I was trying to be positive but I was disappointed, I was upset. The 'it always happens to me' kind of vibe."

Marshall added: “Training has been really hard, it's been brutal.

"For me when the fight did get pulled straightaway I thought, 'Oh God, I couldn't handle another month of training'. But obviously it's not a case of just going back and hammering it again.

"Because I was already tapering down, my fitness was already there. It's all been about keeping sharp. I can't get any fitter, so it's just about maintaining the fitness."

All eyes and focus are now firmly fixed on Saturday at the O2.

Marshall added: “I can't allow myself to overlook this fight, to overlook Claressa.

"Even if there's a rematch, I'll never get a fight as big as this, ever. Ever.

"There is no rematch clause. She says there is but there is no rematch clause. There'll be a rematch if there's demand for a rematch.

"For me, I get one roll of the dice. And it's all or nothing.”