Club Shay Shay - Claressa Shields Part 1 - Club Shay Shay

Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
First American woman to win Olympic gold medal in seventeen.

Speaker 2 (00:02):
I keep my stuff on me. That's that gold baby,
and they have you. That's my own round. Keep them
in that purse in Nasonality All my life.

Speaker 3 (00:11):
Grunning all my life, sacond Frights, Hustle, pic Price, Want
a slicet, Brodys to swape all my life, Poppy grinding
all my life, all my life, running all my life,
sacri fights, hustle, patic Price, one slice, Doctor Brodys, the
swash all my life, Poppy grinding all my life.

Speaker 1 (00:34):
Hello on, Welcome to another episode of Club Sha Shay.
I am your whole Shannon Sharp and we're on the
road at Sweet Science Fitness at Lanta Boxing Club right
here in Atlanta, Georgia. The lady that's stopping buy for
conversation with drink today is one of the world's best
active female boxing pound profound with an undefeated professional record.
She holds nineteen major world championships Fanny five way classes.

(00:55):
She holds the record becoming a two, three, four or
five division world champion, and the was a professional fight.
She's the first and only fastest boxer in history to
hold four major world titles in boxing in three way classes.
She's the first ever undisputed woman's heavyweight champion. She's the
most watched woman's professional boxer in history. She's the first
American to win Olympic gold medal. She's the seventeen years

(01:17):
of age and she won back to back gold medals.
She was inducted to the USA Boxing Alumni Association Hall
of Fame. Her gloves were enshrined into the International Boxing
Hall of Fame. From Blint Street to global fame her
she is the Globe the greatest of all time.

Speaker 4 (01:34):
Coach of ships.

Speaker 1 (01:39):
Larry Holmes used the jab. He was trying to do damage.
A lot of people use the jabs as a range finder.
Clitch go. It was a range finder because he's trying
to drop the right hand. So he was pool, that's
what he's trying to do. Larry Holmes was pos.

Speaker 4 (01:53):
That's me.

Speaker 2 (01:55):
That's my jabrh So you try to do our jab? Yes,
uh snappy powerful.

Speaker 1 (02:00):
So I'm pushing.

Speaker 5 (02:05):
Almost or am I?

Speaker 2 (02:07):
So we're gonna bring your legs on there you go
and put some of the weight on your back, right
back leg, because what you're gonna do when you push off,
you want to make sure that you that your waistand
in the middle of.

Speaker 5 (02:16):
Here, so when you push off, you're going forward. But
you still.

Speaker 2 (02:19):
Just take a little step so you can back up
something because you're real tall. So get your stands together again.
Let me see but you I'm out there. Yeah, So
when you take your step, you're gonna hit the back.
You're gonna take a short step probably about right there.

Speaker 5 (02:31):
Go that's the good jab.

Speaker 1 (02:33):
So you draw. They gonna feel it though, I'm just wait, that's.

Speaker 4 (02:41):
One of the ones.

Speaker 5 (02:42):
Third, like that's like a clicker.

Speaker 2 (02:43):
You push off your back leg the way that you
really want to push off and really get it. Ah,
that is gonna it's gonna stick them, you know what
I'm saying, Like, make them say what's UPO.

Speaker 5 (02:59):
You have more power if you push off that back leg.

Speaker 2 (03:05):
And then when you throw your right So when you
got this hand here, you get that hand up, so
you're gonna pull this shoulder back. Switch positions and put
that shoulder in front. That's where the power comes right there.
But keep that foot down. You're not moving into the
front when you throw it. When you go one, push
it there because you push it off both So one

(03:25):
switch positions on the shoulders. Let's go, so being legs,
some one pull the back yes.

Speaker 4 (03:34):
Okay, yeah, I know you're.

Speaker 5 (03:36):
Gonna feel that power.

Speaker 1 (03:38):
Yeah, no, I don't want to feel it. I want
them to feel it.

Speaker 5 (03:41):
Well, you're gonna feel it when you throw it.

Speaker 1 (03:43):
Okay.

Speaker 5 (03:43):
To make sure your jab is up here where your
where your head is that?

Speaker 1 (03:46):
Yeah? Okay?

Speaker 5 (03:47):
One almost again, go it's that was more stronger that was.

Speaker 2 (03:56):
Let's go again one more time. Your jab a little soft, POD's.

Speaker 1 (04:04):
Stop.

Speaker 5 (04:06):
Stop.

Speaker 1 (04:07):
Yeah, you remember telling me that jab fall You said
you see the bag still move it thirty second you're.

Speaker 5 (04:14):
Definitely shaking it up.

Speaker 1 (04:16):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (04:16):
So now that we got that jab, we got that right,
they're gonna get our hooks.

Speaker 5 (04:20):
We're gonna pull this shoulder back now and make the
l with this hand, the l up the case.

Speaker 4 (04:24):
Yeah there you go.

Speaker 2 (04:26):
All right, So let's try again one, two, three, and
make sure that when you twist back on that hook.

Speaker 4 (04:32):
Twist it goes there.

Speaker 5 (04:34):
So it's got it tworking the hip and the on shoulder.
Watch yourself. Let's go. Keep that foot down, you move it,
keep that foot right where it's head.

Speaker 1 (04:50):
Pivot with it.

Speaker 5 (04:50):
Yeah, you can pivot, believe it.

Speaker 1 (04:51):
But I'm gonna pick it up.

Speaker 4 (04:53):
You don't pick it up.

Speaker 5 (04:54):
Don't pick it up. Back up something. Let's go a sweats.

Speaker 1 (05:02):
I need to wrap.

Speaker 4 (05:05):
Doing that hoop ba hey.

Speaker 5 (05:07):
The hook is is a real sneaky punch. Yeah, everybody
worry about that jab that right here?

Speaker 4 (05:11):
What is that hooked?

Speaker 1 (05:12):
Nah on the upper cut.

Speaker 4 (05:15):
The upper cut is coming because that's.

Speaker 1 (05:16):
The one you don't see. See sometimes you can even
catch that hook coming out.

Speaker 5 (05:19):
There right because it's up top. But this one coming
from Monday cut you right on that butt right there.

Speaker 4 (05:25):
Yeah, you sweating already?

Speaker 1 (05:28):
Yeah you see that?

Speaker 5 (05:30):
Not ready? The last score is we gonna have that
jaz step with it that too.

Speaker 4 (05:37):
You're gonna put that three on them and the upper
cut down.

Speaker 5 (05:39):
Everybody's gonna be like, but the uppercut you're making a
U here, so it's coming from here here. If you
want to go to the body, bring your legs, are
gonna go to the head, you.

Speaker 4 (05:49):
Bring your right so the jab, but keep your chin down.
Okay when you throw that uppercut, you don't want to
come here, oh boom and throw it ever cut.

Speaker 5 (06:05):
You're gonna just twist it so that don't put that
look up front put that look up front. Boom. Now
when you twist here, boom, make this upper putt you
gonna hear them the poor enough is right there.

Speaker 1 (06:16):
That's your upper pupp m h man. Don't hurt my
wrists throwing the hook.

Speaker 4 (06:22):
Oh you put that, you put that to work on it?

Speaker 1 (06:24):
Yeah, I did.

Speaker 4 (06:25):
Just come close, keep your fits close. Make sure you
don't have mo open.

Speaker 1 (06:30):
I did. That's what happened.

Speaker 5 (06:32):
Okay, Well, well, I don'ly hurt my hand. I only
hurt my hand whenever my hand is open or it's
not like when you close it all the way it
should hurt.

Speaker 1 (06:39):
Well, I think is what it did is that I'm
never hurt.

Speaker 4 (06:47):
That was soft on one two three. So mm hmm.

Speaker 5 (06:58):
Keep that hand down.

Speaker 4 (07:02):
You done through like seven.

Speaker 5 (07:03):
Punches one two three four. We're bringing that upper club
right here, so right there in the middle of the body.

Speaker 1 (07:13):
But I'm trying to hit him with his chance for
as are.

Speaker 5 (07:15):
You going to the head? Yeah, oh, we're still bringing
it up. Just don't bring it over here. The head
is where your head is, all right, because you're lighting
them up one two three upper come here.

Speaker 4 (07:26):
There we go. Perfect.

Speaker 5 (07:28):
It's actually pretty good.

Speaker 1 (07:30):
That's pretty good.

Speaker 4 (07:31):
They're really not ready for the right.

Speaker 5 (07:37):
Hey, I can't get you gonna call me?

Speaker 1 (07:41):
I'm coming that what I did he handle that?

Speaker 5 (07:46):
He told me to know what He's gonna buaild me
out too, I'm coming.

Speaker 4 (07:50):
It's it's no no, that was good.

Speaker 5 (07:54):
You want you want any more?

Speaker 1 (07:55):
No? I want them?

Speaker 4 (07:58):
That would you asked?

Speaker 1 (07:59):
The watch some good? What we got? What you got?

Speaker 4 (08:03):
What I got for you?

Speaker 5 (08:04):
I got you a Christian woe had And I couldn't
figure out your size. But this is a two X.
I feel the two and I don't know if you
were matching, you know, but it got the pants to it.

Speaker 4 (08:15):
To the side, yeah, to the side.

Speaker 1 (08:17):
I don't know about the pass, but I don't know.
I don't know. I think these are these women to
as so they men two eggs.

Speaker 2 (08:27):
They're you in six, but you know what, you got
a football body, so they might not.

Speaker 5 (08:32):
I don't know.

Speaker 1 (08:34):
I think I don't know what y'all think. Y'all think
I'm gonna be y'all thin I'm gonna be able to
do this.

Speaker 4 (08:38):
I think get the hoodie.

Speaker 1 (08:39):
I think I'm gonna pick the hoodie.

Speaker 4 (08:41):
I don't know about the arms though, Man, you're huge.

Speaker 1 (08:45):
The hold on, hold on, I thought we're getting this.
We'll we'll, we'll get we'll talk about this in the ring.
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It's good to be right, Chlorissa. You born in Flint,
grew up in Flint. As a little girl growing up,

(10:11):
what did Clarissa want to be?

Speaker 5 (10:14):
My first dream was to be a singer like Aaliah.

Speaker 1 (10:16):
Okay.

Speaker 5 (10:17):
My second dream was to be a mom. My third
dream was to be a boxer.

Speaker 1 (10:22):
You've always wanted to be a boxer.

Speaker 5 (10:23):
Yes, well, those were like the dreams in order before
I started boxing. I wanted to be a singer and
I want to be a mom.

Speaker 1 (10:29):
Mom.

Speaker 2 (10:29):
But at a young age. I started boxing when I
was eleven years old, so I think at the age
nine or eight, people are asking.

Speaker 5 (10:35):
Me like what do you want to be? And I
remember saying like, I wanted to be a mom and
I want to have ten kids. That was like a
big thing that my family used to laugh at me about,
still laugh about to this day.

Speaker 1 (10:44):
You come from a big family.

Speaker 2 (10:45):
Well, my mom has four of us and then my
dad has like seven.

Speaker 5 (10:51):
Okay, yeah, so.

Speaker 1 (10:52):
You come from a fairly large family. So growing up,
So what was what was it about boxing that drew
you to this sport?

Speaker 5 (11:00):
Me versus you one on one? That's it?

Speaker 4 (11:03):
You know.

Speaker 2 (11:04):
I had played basketball, I played soccer, I ran track,
cross country. I was doing everything, but it was like
I hated when they will say, oh, we got a
team trophy, but it was second place. Like I would
win a race, right, but we will still get second
place because all the points talied up and this other
team got more, right, you know. And then basketball that
I want to pass you the ball, and then you know,
girls get rough with you, you get rough with them back,

(11:25):
but I guess I'm too rough. And then I really
enjoyed cross country, but I mean running five miles three
to half a mile a.

Speaker 5 (11:33):
Lot of time, Like who want to do that?

Speaker 1 (11:34):
Right?

Speaker 5 (11:34):
And it seemed like with boxing it just made me
feel really good, like I felt very strong. I had
got my first bruise there.

Speaker 2 (11:44):
So you grew up liking to fight, Yeah, I liking
knowing that you said you could beat me up.

Speaker 5 (11:51):
And you said you was better than me.

Speaker 2 (11:52):
But if I get in the gym and I work hard,
and me and you fight, I beat you. I liked
it being like, there's nothing you can say about me,
say about me beating you up, because that's literally like
what happened. Like there's no people I said, oh I
got robbed, this and that, But it was like I
getting the ring and dominate everybody. So it's like you
saying you can beat me, and I say, okay, let's
do it. And it's a woman versus woman, or a

(12:14):
lot of times growing up it was me versus a man.

Speaker 1 (12:18):
That's what I'm saying is but in boxing, okay, I
understand points. If you knock somebody out, okay, option you win.
But in a street fight that's a whole different thing.
So you grew up, You grew.

Speaker 5 (12:28):
Grew up fighting a little girl the parts, yeah up
and street fighting.

Speaker 2 (12:32):
Yeah yeah, that's how I initially got in a boxing
But I started getting into fights at school because I
was being bullied.

Speaker 5 (12:40):
I was never the person to start the fight. I
was actually scared to fight when I was younger.

Speaker 2 (12:44):
Oh so my anger drove me to fight after being
picked on for a very long time.

Speaker 1 (12:49):
I read that you had like a speech impediment. You
didn't talk until you was five, You stunned until you
were nine, So how was it? How were you communicating?
If you're non verbal, you didn't really speak until you
was five years of age, you communicate?

Speaker 5 (13:01):
I used to just cry. My mom used to scream
at me, like, say what you want? If you're hungry,
Say you're hungry, if you want to go outside? Say
do you want to go outside? And I used to
just start crying.

Speaker 2 (13:11):
I think it took for me to get taken it
by my grandmother Joanne, who really took her.

Speaker 5 (13:17):
Time to me. Yeah, who understood me.

Speaker 2 (13:20):
Taught me a little bit sign language because they thought
I was deaf, but I wasn't.

Speaker 5 (13:24):
I just didn't want to talk.

Speaker 1 (13:25):
And did you know you could speak? So when you
were by yourself, okay, in front of your parents or
or with your siblings, you didn't say anything. But when
you were alone, did you speak? Did you hear your
own voice? Did you speak and say anything?

Speaker 2 (13:38):
I was able to think, but as far as in
getting it out, it used to take a lot. So
my grandma was very patient with me. She put me
in a speech and pepmine class in school and your
management class also. But my grandma was just like she was.

Speaker 5 (13:54):
Sweet, but she was a no nonsense lady. I feel
like I'm a lot like.

Speaker 1 (13:56):
Her right because the thing else, I had a cousin
that stuttered bad, and my grandfather used to always tell him,
and not in the nicest way, slow.

Speaker 5 (14:05):
Down, over, slow down, start over, think it then say.

Speaker 2 (14:10):
So I had to get in the like, you know,
when your emotions right, you just feeling and you want
to get it out. But it was like, you have
to feel, think, then talk.

Speaker 1 (14:20):
And the more upset you get, the faster you want
to speak, and the more you stutter, and the yeah worse,
and the worse it get.

Speaker 2 (14:27):
Yeah, because then you just be saying to them, what
are you talking about? So for me, I had to
get in the concept of that. But when I found journaling,
to me it was like if I could write something
that I understand and that you can read, I don't
even have to talk to you anyway.

Speaker 1 (14:43):
So did the kids make fun of you when you
had would you talk in front of kids that? Once
you started communicating at the age of nine, would you
did you? Would you talk in front of kids? Is
that something that they made fun of you about because
I had a speech impediment and I go to speech
class and I sounded normal to me because to my ear,
I'm like, okay, bro, what is it. Why is it

(15:03):
that you guys about What are you saying? I'm saying
the same thing that you would say. I didn't. I
didn't get it right.

Speaker 2 (15:10):
No, So for me, that's why I got into a
lot of fights. People making fun of me, stuttering, people
making fun of me how I used to talk and
how fast I used to talk because my mom talks
really fast. So it just was the thing of I
started getting into fights for that reason. People picking on
me by my hair, about my clothes because I didn't
grow up with the best clothes, you know, and stuff

(15:32):
like that.

Speaker 5 (15:32):
So that's what made me start start fighting.

Speaker 2 (15:35):
To just I think the first part I got into,
I beat somebody up pretty bad, and I just remember
after that they wanted to be cool, like they left
me alone, right, you.

Speaker 1 (15:45):
Know, Okay, I kind of like, if I whip your tail,
you will leave me alone. In the word to get around,
don't bother claristle.

Speaker 2 (15:53):
Don't mess with listen the boys not the messing with Clarissa.
The girls have the mess with Clarists like it was
a it was a They ain't like leave her alone
because for some reason, I guess when you're quiet, you
become like a like a victim people and they feel
like they can mess with you. So for me, you know,
I stayed in myself, but.

Speaker 5 (16:09):
People just come up. Well, these kids, you know, they're
they're so mean. Nowadays, they used to walk up and
copy my work, grabbing paper, ball it up and throw
it away. So now the teacher's asking me what happened.

Speaker 2 (16:19):
I'm trying to explain it, and then this other kid
can speak better than me, saying that I'm lying.

Speaker 5 (16:23):
I'm like, no, I did my work. She took my
work and bought it up and threw it in the trash.

Speaker 2 (16:29):
So after going through that for a while, I think
I think my first fight was when I seen somebody
bully and my little sister who can talk and my
I SUPs used to beat me up when I was younger.
So when I see somebody you up, and yeah, my
sisters to beat me up.

Speaker 5 (16:45):
Brown used to beat me up, yep, but.

Speaker 1 (16:47):
You fell bad. So they taking your homework. They're copping
your homework. Taking it, then all your homework, throw it
in the trash. So now when it comes time to
turn the homework in, you ain't got no homework. They
got homework. You trying to playing the situation and the
teacher's like, yeah, this is a situation where the dog
ate your homework. I get it. Yeah.

Speaker 2 (17:04):
Yeah, Well she's believing the other kid because they're getting
it out and I'm stuttering like other and I'm like,
you don't know what I just said, Like she took
my stuff, copied it, bought.

Speaker 5 (17:14):
It up, and through it.

Speaker 2 (17:15):
And it seemed like that used to aggravate me. So
I got I think I threw a chair out of.

Speaker 5 (17:19):
Kid before and not a teacher ms. I have really
bad angry issues when I was a kid.

Speaker 2 (17:24):
It took a while, I think probably like sixteen fifteen.
I finally was like, okay, I got control of this right.

Speaker 5 (17:32):
Yeah, it took a while.

Speaker 1 (17:34):
You mentioned your dad was in prison. You said you
didn't see him for the first time until he was nine,
Until you were nine years of age, did you understand
did you know why he went to prison, and did
you understand that him being incocerated limited your ability to
see him?

Speaker 2 (17:52):
So growing up where I grew up at, nobody really
had a dad. So it's like you don't miss that
on something that you that don't nobody else have either.
So it was like the community like we all just
had our moms, you know, and you can't miss him
that you never had. So my dad went to prison
when I was two, got out when I was nine,
and when I met him, I mean, honestly, me and
him gave me a whole new perspective of who I was.

Speaker 5 (18:15):
Like my dad laughed real loud, and I used to wonder,
like why is my laugh so loud? You know? Why
am I?

Speaker 2 (18:19):
So you know, stern and mean, and my dad is
the same way, Like I think I get a lot
of my attitude from my dad, and I get my
sassiness and my fast twitch from mom.

Speaker 1 (18:30):
Yeah, did you know who he was when you saw it?

Speaker 5 (18:33):
Yeah?

Speaker 2 (18:34):
I had seen pictures of him for a long time
and we look alike. So I had seen pictures of him,
and when I met him, and he just was he
started talking. When my dad first saw me when I
was nine, well he saw hi when I was two, boy,
and he saw me again when he got out.

Speaker 5 (18:48):
He just started crying and smiling real big, and.

Speaker 2 (18:51):
He had braids, he had corn rolls to the back
and they threw like a big old welcome home party
for him. And when my dad see me and my
he just started crying and he hugged both of us.
And that was probably the first time that I really like,
let a grown man hug me, because I was more
of like, don't, don't, don't nobody touch.

Speaker 5 (19:09):
Me, you know. But my dad came home hugging me
and giving me kisses all the time. He's made me
kissing my lips.

Speaker 2 (19:15):
I'd be like, lips and then I think, I think
one day I bought my face up when I kissed.

Speaker 5 (19:22):
He said why you do that?

Speaker 2 (19:23):
I said, Dad, you breast white cigarettes? Like just can
we kiss on the forehead and stuff? And he was
like yeah, So now when ever I seen my dad,
you see me, we kiss on the forehead, We kiss
on lips.

Speaker 5 (19:31):
No more.

Speaker 1 (19:34):
Did did kids make fun of you about your child,
about your dad being in prison? With that? Did not
anybody know? Did anybody know your dad was in prison?

Speaker 5 (19:41):
Nobody cared because nobody had their dad. We all was
in We always in school, and we talked about our moms.

Speaker 2 (19:47):
You know what I'm saying, like, our mom's gonna pick
pick us up. Mom, come to parents, take the conferences.
You know, it was our mom that was involved in
my life. So nobody like I was saying, like, how
can you miss out on something that you never had
now that I have my dad. When my dad did
get in my life, I did want to spend more
time with anybody and be around with them more. And
you know, my dad taught me how to run to

(20:08):
get in shape for boxing. You know, he take me.
He'd be on his bike or in his car in
every other block. He'll have me sprint. He has had
his whistle that was so loud and annoying, and when
he blew the whistle, that's when you spread hit it.
That's when you sprint. So my dad will tell me
I ran two math, but really I ran four.

Speaker 5 (20:25):
And my dad was like that I trick you to
run it further than Yeah, what you thought you was going.

Speaker 1 (20:30):
Let me askow you qu I mean you and I
think people that go through things there are the best
people to got to give advice. So what advice would
you give young kids dealing with a situation that they
have a parents incarcerated and to deal with that that
they're not going to be around. They don't know if
it's going to be a year of two years, five years,
Like you said it was seven years in between two
years old and not nine years old and dealing with

(20:51):
your dad. How would you advise kids to move forward?
Obviously each situation is different. Yeah, what were some of
the advice that you wouldn't uh impart on some younger generation?

Speaker 2 (21:02):
For me, I don't think that any of us can
control our childhood, you know, because we're kids, you know.
But I think that long as kids understand that you
make the decisions for your life whatever. Like I think
the younger you start, the better. So if you want
to be a dentist, a doctor, a scientist, whatever.

Speaker 5 (21:22):
Nurse, you can start that at a very young age.

Speaker 2 (21:25):
And I don't mean like start having a job, but
I mean, like start making those choices that will get
you there, knowing that when it gets to a certain age,
nobody controls your life anyway. I mean I moved out
when I was about thirteen and I was living with
my boxing coach. So that was a decision that I
made because I'm like, you know, the Olympics is in
four years, so I gotta start getting ready for the Olympics.

Speaker 5 (21:44):
So I always tell like.

Speaker 2 (21:46):
My advice is know that it doesn't matter who your
parents are or where you come from.

Speaker 5 (21:51):
Your life is about your decisions.

Speaker 1 (21:53):
Right.

Speaker 5 (21:53):
And I grew up poor, so me always believing in
believing in God and getting baptized.

Speaker 2 (21:59):
But my twenty eleven, you know, for I've got an
other plans I have for you, Plans to give you
a hope and plans to prosper and have a great future.

Speaker 5 (22:08):
And so that's how I thought about.

Speaker 2 (22:10):
Like, right now, things may be going bad, but it
will get better. So I always tell kids, like, listen,
whatever you want to be, your life is your life,
no matter your situation or your circumstances. You have crackea appearance,
you know, parents who abuse alcohol, drugs, whatever, But how
you decide to make your life is on you. And
when it turns out good, you can say you made

(22:31):
the right decisions.

Speaker 5 (22:32):
You know, that would be my advice.

Speaker 1 (22:34):
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my family got one tradition. We crowded Granni's kitchen. Everybody's
talking loud, laughing, playing space, trying to outcook each other
and you know what, I've got pictures to prove it.
And Granny's sweet potato pie, my nephew wearing that same
ugly sweater every year. That's good stuff right there. And
you know what if I told you you could relive

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(23:40):
That's Aurorframes dot Com promo code shay Sha. This exclusive
Black Friday Cyber Monday deal is the best of the year,
so order now before it ends. Support the show by
telling them club, Shayshay sent you your mom. You mentioned
your mom, your mom had had a drinking problem, battle addiction.
What was that like? What I mean because like little girls,

(24:02):
a lot of times little girls want to be just
like their mom. They you know that would you said
your life really turned around when you went and lived
with your grandmother. Yeah, was that your maternal grandmother? That
was your mom's mom.

Speaker 5 (24:16):
Yeah, yeah, my mama.

Speaker 1 (24:17):
So can you contrast the differences between your mom is normal,
she's not. She's not intoxicated or she's not under the influence,
as opposed to her just walking around being normal.

Speaker 2 (24:29):
Well, my mom is a lot like me, but she's
way more quiet. My mom don't hug people. She's really quiet.
She don't say much. She just kind of observed everything.
And she's very sassy. She's very sassy, Okay.

Speaker 5 (24:43):
And.

Speaker 2 (24:45):
Sometimes she can be a pushover, you know, sometimes to
her friends, people that's close to her, she would push over.
But when she get when she get that liquor in there,
she Mike Tyson, what.

Speaker 5 (25:00):
Tell me you're the truth? Listen, mam, Mama will knock
you aside your head. Hey, listen. If you did something
to her when she was sober. When she when she
used to drink, She'll let you know.

Speaker 2 (25:12):
And it could be a month ago, two months ago.
You've been and forgot it even happened. Maybe she called her,
you ain't answer the phone. Maybe you you did something
to her. And I'm telling you, she gonna remind you
when she get that stuff in her and and uh,
if you're around, she gonna go upside your head.

Speaker 5 (25:29):
She to your hair with that with that cane she got. Listen,
my mama will hit you.

Speaker 2 (25:35):
She ran up right only one time if that came,
I said, Mama, chill off real, you know.

Speaker 5 (25:39):
But my mom.

Speaker 2 (25:40):
But that's the difference though, Like when she's when she
used to drink, she used to get real, real aggressive,
real men, and she can and my mom can really
fight like she'll she.

Speaker 1 (25:48):
Can, So you get it from your mama for real
though her.

Speaker 2 (25:51):
My mom and my dad used to underground street. But
my mama she like I don't know, it's like she
starts to fight. It's kind of like my little sister,
you know, like they be starting to fight, like what's
wrong with y'all?

Speaker 5 (26:01):
Man? Right, But that's the difference.

Speaker 2 (26:03):
So my mom, you know what it took four I
think when I when I turned seventeen and I won
the Olympics, my mom.

Speaker 5 (26:12):
Completely stopped drinking. You know, she stopped drinking.

Speaker 2 (26:17):
She became more like now she like to hug me sometime,
all that stuff, But she never was like that, wow,
when I want the Olympics. I feel like it made
her feel like she yeah, yeah, she did something good.
And I want her to know that she did do
something good and that I turned out to be all right,
even though my childhood wasn't all that great.

Speaker 1 (26:33):
Have you ever had a conversation with your mom about
what transpired in your childhood and what went on? You
had a conversation with her, So what did she say?
Did she apologize like Chris, I'm sorry. I know I
did the best I could. I might have not been
the best mom, but I just want you to know
that I loved you and I'm proud of it.

Speaker 5 (26:51):
Well, when I was five and I had got you know.

Speaker 2 (26:57):
The R word, Yes, No, Families don't talk about that
stuff for a long time. So when it happened to
when I was five, we didn't talk about it until
I was sixteen, almost seventeen. So when we talked about it,
me me growing up as a kid and being taken
it by my grandmother and live with my grandmother most
of my child after being five, what I knew and

(27:20):
what I felt, I guess was.

Speaker 5 (27:24):
Was like.

Speaker 2 (27:26):
Was it was it inaccurate or was it emotionally flawed?
I don't know, but I felt that she picked the
abuser over me, and I grew up with that.

Speaker 1 (27:37):
Yeah, did you tell him? Well?

Speaker 2 (27:42):
I told my aunt, and my aunt told my grandma.
That's how I got taken me by my grandma. But
from my knowledge, I I thought that I had to
move with my grandma because my mom chose him.

Speaker 5 (27:53):
That that was what.

Speaker 1 (27:54):
I that's what you interpreted that, Yes.

Speaker 2 (27:57):
Because you know they say keep kids out of grown
folks business. So I'm just with my grandma. So I
go from being around four or five kids every day,
my brother and my sister, now with my grandma and
just me and her.

Speaker 5 (28:07):
You know how this is with grandma?

Speaker 1 (28:08):
Yeah, grandma straight.

Speaker 2 (28:09):
Grandma just cook and you watch movies and you don't
go outside much.

Speaker 5 (28:13):
A grandma is you know?

Speaker 1 (28:15):
Yes, his grandma absolutely.

Speaker 5 (28:17):
You know, And so that was how I interpreted.

Speaker 2 (28:20):
So when it finally got when I was like sixteen,
I'm doing all these interviews getting ready for the Olympics.
I just beat the world champion Mary Spencer's a lot
going on and they can ask me like, you know,
who are you? How was your upbringing? And I just
was like, listen, I had a rough upbringing, but that's
all over now I'm about to win the Olympics, right.

Speaker 5 (28:37):
But for some.

Speaker 2 (28:37):
People interviewing you like, that's not enough, right, So they
kept digging. Yeah, So they kept digging and digging, and
I was like, I don't want to tell anybody about
what happened to me, because one, I don't want to
make my mom look bad. But then but then two,
if my in my mind, if my mom you know,

(28:58):
didn't believe me or took your side, and then what
I'm looking like telling the world that and they don't
take my side, you know, or they don't understand or
believe me. So I spoke with my mom about it,
and you know, she let me know. She like, she
told me she broke it with that guy. After a
year after it happened, she.

Speaker 5 (29:12):
Couldn't believe it. She never chose over me.

Speaker 2 (29:15):
I moved my grandma because he threatened to kill me.
That's why I moved my grandma. So my grandma, like
I said, she's very stern. She ain't gonna play with you.
So my grandma took me in just to keep him
from hiring me. And also too, he got beat up
by a lot of my cousins, He got jumped on,
he heard, he got pistol whiped.

Speaker 5 (29:34):
A whole bunch of stuff happened to him. So it
was a thing of like.

Speaker 2 (29:38):
All this grown folk stuff is going on in me
as a kid, I didn't know. So when I turned sixteen,
my mama told me, and yes, she apologized, you know,
she apologized, let me know that she loved me, that
it was okay to talk about it and get it out.

Speaker 5 (29:52):
And me being able to talk about it is what
made me feel if it was the way off my shoulders,
it really was, because it was like a deep secret
that I was hiding, and I just remember kind of
like I don't know if I was blaming.

Speaker 2 (30:07):
Myself or what, but it was like, dang, I always
felt like, you know, like like I wasn't good enough
to be with my siblings, to be with my mom.
But I'm grateful for my grandmother because she, I mean,
taught me how to clean up you know, shower, keep
your clothes to get the folge your clothes, hang your
clothes up.

Speaker 5 (30:25):
I told me how to cook, you know, like my
grandma already.

Speaker 1 (30:29):
Talked about you want a ten kids, so she's like,
well you want.

Speaker 5 (30:33):
My grandma wanted me to sing.

Speaker 2 (30:35):
My grandma used to always give me mic sets for
Christmas and trying to make me sing and stuff. But
I was always shy because I was singing in front
of her. But when it came like, you know, like
when the family, my grandma used to be like Coco,
I said, sing it makes it.

Speaker 5 (30:51):
I'm like Coco. That's why I wear it on my shorts.
My shorts.

Speaker 1 (30:55):
Yep. I think I read where you said that your
mom would intoxicated sometimes, that you would walk around for days.

Speaker 5 (31:02):
Looking for Yeah, we have to go get her.

Speaker 1 (31:04):
Yeah, I mean you're a child, Claris, do you I mean,
do you really like you did you realize at the
time I'm a child that this wasn't normal. And I
understand that you said most kids in Flint didn't have
their father, but the most kids in Flint probably wasn't
walking around the neighborhood trying to find their mom either.

Speaker 5 (31:22):
Well, it's me and my sister. And I'm the second
oldest out of my siblings. So I have a big
brother who's first older than me, but I'm like his
big sister too. He called me his little big sister.
So I've always kind of like been the oldest.

Speaker 2 (31:34):
So when it comes to our mom, my job has
always been to protect her.

Speaker 5 (31:39):
So she gone for.

Speaker 2 (31:40):
A couple of days and we don't know where she
at and we don't know about her safety. We're not
gonna call the police and stuff. We get out there
on the streets and we and we'll go find her.
And it was always a thing of see my sister
spend more time a mom than me, So I would
tell her, think of.

Speaker 5 (31:55):
Your memory, what house dies y'all went to? In what streets?
Because Flint ain't that big, right ten minut and it's
north ten minutes, south minute east minute, so you can
go around a whole Flint probably within four hours just
walking around and hit the whole and hit the whole thing.
So that's just how we used to go get her.
And when we go get her, everybody knew like.

Speaker 2 (32:15):
I was real mean, I was real mean, Like I
was real mean, I was rough, and I would fight you.

Speaker 5 (32:22):
So people knew, like, hey, she here to get. Yeah,
I'm here to get I'm here to get my mama.

Speaker 2 (32:28):
And I go on there, I get her and we'd
go home and like I say, you know, but she
was grown. She was always good, but it was more
of a thing like it was my job, you know.
I mean, sadly, it was my job. And I wouldn't
choose anybody else but my mama.

Speaker 5 (32:43):
Like my mama was. She's a great she's a great person.
You know.

Speaker 2 (32:46):
She just dealt with something that she couldn't she couldn't
defeat at the time.

Speaker 1 (32:50):
That do you think that's one of the reasons why
you're as resilient as you are is because of the
things that you had to overcome in your own childhood.

Speaker 2 (32:58):
Absolutely, that's why I have a no back down attitude,
don't I don't take disrespect. I know that mentally, I'm
tougher than a lot of people. I know heart, the
heart that I got. Other people don't got it in
them that they couldn't survive. People talk about me inside
of the ring, you know, but outside of the ring,
I know that you guys.

Speaker 5 (33:18):
People couldn't make it through what I made it through.

Speaker 2 (33:20):
And then when it come inside the ring, and then
that carries I got a note quick attitude. I'm very tough,
I'm very skilled, I'm mean in there, and I don't
take no for an answer. I don't back down. So
I know that with all of that together, combined with
hard work and prayer, that that's why I'm undefeated and unbeatable.

Speaker 1 (33:41):
Growing up, did you did you cook as a child?
Did you look as that or did you once you
got older and had to cook? Because you know, I
read that your mom used to sell to fuel her addiction,
that she would sell the food stamp. So now that
did your research. That makes that makes it very very
difficult for you to get food because you're reliant on
that assistance. And now, man, what are we gonna eat?
And you have to make something out of nothing.

Speaker 2 (34:03):
Listen, when we didn't have food stamps, I wasn't really
that good at cooking back then. I probably hadn't had
had an idea from watching my grandma. But me and
my sister my brother used to split a pack of
Raymond noodles. We break it down the four pieces, we'll
cook it.

Speaker 5 (34:16):
And that's how I used to do it. I used
to go without eating, eating a whole lot to make
sure that they ate.

Speaker 2 (34:23):
So that was well, Like I said, I'm the big
sister though, so it's not a thing of I kind
of felt like, once again, like that's my job.

Speaker 5 (34:29):
Like I just moved my.

Speaker 2 (34:30):
Little sister to Atlanta, her and her three kids, what
two weeks ago. She has an apartment five minutes from me. Now,
like it's I don't know, it's not. It's not my
job to take care of them, but it's my job
to make sure that everybody is good, if that makes sense.

Speaker 1 (34:45):
That's normally the oldest, the oldest daughter. She normally takes
on the mother's role. My mom is the oldest, and
so when my grandmother was she my grandmother would go
to the fields with my grandfather. It was my mom's
job to raise the other kids. You took that on. Okay,
my mom's not here. Now I got to be the mom.

(35:06):
I've got to make sure they're dressed, get them ready
for school. I've gotta make sure, I gotta I gotta fight.

Speaker 5 (35:10):
I just want everybody to turn out all right. You
know what I'm saying. Everybody ain't gonna be famous.

Speaker 1 (35:15):
How did you? How did how did where did that
come from.

Speaker 2 (35:18):
I mean, I just I just loved my siblings and
they loved me before I had anything.

Speaker 5 (35:23):
I think me and my sister are a complete opposite.
But it's needed, it's needed, you know.

Speaker 2 (35:28):
I'm like sunlight and she like darkness, you know. And
but but I think that, you know, before my fights,
if my sister don't call me or she not in
the back room, I don't really feel like the beast
that I am. Like she she's seen the beasts before
the makeup and the hair, and I always like for
her to remind me of that. And sometimes she in
the back room, she like, hey, you' whoop her ass

(35:48):
and whoop your ass. Im like he was like you
can't beat me.

Speaker 5 (35:52):
I'm no longer. But it still sounds good, you know.

Speaker 1 (35:56):
So so let me ask you a question, like when
you were like, hu, did you eat a lot of
school because I mean, yeah, wool lunches.

Speaker 5 (36:03):
We definitely relied, bang.

Speaker 2 (36:05):
We definitely relied on the school school lunch. And listen,
I have friends. I'd be like, hey, man, let me
buy a dollar.

Speaker 5 (36:11):
I'll pay you back.

Speaker 2 (36:14):
And some of my friends still be like, you know,
you on me a dollar twenty five cent from when
I when I bought it some pieces.

Speaker 5 (36:20):
I but I really don't remember.

Speaker 1 (36:24):
Your grandmother passed away. Do you remember where you were
when you got the news that your grandmother had passed?
And I can just imagine because I know I had
my grandmother for forty three years and I still remember
it to this day like it was yesterday with my
sister called and said she and and grand is gone.
So what because the woman that gave you basically everything
but life. She took you in when you were at

(36:45):
your most vulnerable, when you were at your lowest, and
she helped you become the woman that we see sitting
here today talking to me.

Speaker 5 (36:55):
I can't think about.

Speaker 2 (36:56):
You know, my grandma was my best friend, and when
she passed, it really it really hurt my heart.

Speaker 3 (37:04):
You know.

Speaker 5 (37:04):
I really wanted to go with her, you know, because
I was just like, I gotta be stuck here with
the rest of this stupid family, and she was the
best one to me. I wear coco on my shorts
for her. I wear the Betty Boop socks. I try
to carry her memory and you know, hold myself to
it to a to a high standard, you know. But

(37:26):
my grandma was she was everything to me and I
where was I at when she passed? I had just
seen her two weeks prior, and I knew she was
about to pass.

Speaker 1 (37:36):
She had cancer.

Speaker 5 (37:37):
She fought cancer like four times, had overcame it, then
they kept coming back, and this time I get it
took over her. It took over everything, basically. And I
just remember I've seen her two weeks before she passed,
and she was like, you know, she was my granny
was really really really really funny and sarcastic.

Speaker 2 (37:58):
But she told me, she said, Coco, when I when
I go to make sure they bury me, you know,
bury me, you know, face down, And I was like
what She was like, yeah, so everybody can kiss my ass.
It was like, I mean I was I think I
cried that day when she was telling me that. But
I remember when she sat, I started laughing and she
was like, for real, Coco, she said, at my freedom,

(38:18):
don't looks and don't let everybody come up and kiss
a hug on me. She said, you know, I ain't
like people like I don't like these people. I said, Grandma,
you gotta to stop. You're not going nowhere. And then
but she passed probably two years before I won the Olympics.
But she but she knew I was going, She knew
I was getting prepared for it. She kept my robe
hanging outside her house. I had a gold rope that
said t rex on it. And you know, just I

(38:43):
never really more. My grandma passed it until a few
until a few years ago because it was too hard
to deal with. But her birthday's coming up, November fifth, six,
and she passed away December twenty first, So November fifth,
I think it's November fifth or six, one of them days.

Speaker 5 (39:00):
We're gonna set her birthday.

Speaker 2 (39:01):
I always had a family come, We're gonna do a
big we gonna do a big dinner. And then on
her day that she went to be the Lord, December
twenty first, we let off balloons and everybody say, what's
their best memory of her? And we all got some
funny memories with Grandma so and and and I can
say that I.

Speaker 5 (39:16):
Was a favorite. You know, my grandma. My grandma loved me.

Speaker 2 (39:20):
And she she let me know back then, you know,
that I was that I was worth the trouble.

Speaker 5 (39:25):
You know.

Speaker 2 (39:26):
She let me know that even though I was different,
that I She was always talking about equal rights and
equal pay for women. This is this is when I
first got in the boxing, and I really didn't understand
why she was preaching it so much to me, but
she was always on it, and it kind of prepared
me for when I turned pro for the inequality that
we have to go through and all the fights and
the challenge that I had to had to overcome. I

(39:48):
feel like she mentally like she prepared me because the
stuff that she was saying, I kind of was like
jotting down in my.

Speaker 5 (39:54):
Head as notes.

Speaker 2 (39:55):
So and it really helped me in the amateurs to
get equal pay for the win who was on the
Olympic team, so it really helped them. But it's just
something that she kind of instilled in me, like instilled
in me on stand on your word, finish what you start.
Losers never quit, and quitters never win. Like my grandma
is still allot in me, you know. And she just

(40:16):
was like always, hey, try to talk it out, but
if you but if you can't lay it out, hey,
if you can't talk it out, lay him out.

Speaker 5 (40:27):
And I was and I'm a true believer in that.

Speaker 2 (40:29):
I think that I've tried to squash a whole other
of beef with people and It's like, you know what,
we usually got to fight.

Speaker 5 (40:34):
This ain't gonna work.

Speaker 1 (40:36):
We can't get along. We will get it on.

Speaker 5 (40:38):
Let's go.

Speaker 1 (40:40):
Glarissa. You you've overcome a lot. I mean, in back
and researching to you and reading your story. You try
to commit suicide twice at thirteen and sixteen? What was
going on so bad in your life that you say,
you know what, it's better if I go someplace else
then have to deal with what I'm dealing with here.

Speaker 2 (41:01):
You know, I think that at thirteen, I was just angry,
you know, kind of confused about like why am I
kid having to go through all of this stuff? You know?
But I think at sixteen, when I tried to do
it, it was simply because heck, I thought my chance to
go to the Olympics was over. It wasn't because I
was still undefeated. But I think two or three weeks

(41:22):
before this big tournament to fight my way to Olympics,
my mom, you know, being intoxicated, a door fell and
hit me right on the eye like a corner.

Speaker 5 (41:31):
It fell like it was off the hinders and it fell.
It made my eye real big. I couldn't see out
of it.

Speaker 2 (41:37):
And this turn one was up in three weeks and
this was my only chance to make it to Olympics.
So that's when I was like, if I can't go
to if I can't fight my way up out of here,
and I gotta stay.

Speaker 5 (41:49):
Here because this this.

Speaker 2 (41:50):
Done happened, you know, I would rather just you know,
just go. And I was I was gonna, I was
gonna cut my wrist. When I was in a closet
and I one of my friends, well, I was I
made a post on Facebook or something and one of
my close friends, Aliah called me and she was like,
whatever you're thinking about doing, don't do it. She was
my best friend, she's still living my best friends now.

(42:13):
And I was in my closet and she was like, going, well,
I was sitting down. She was like, go in the closet, going,
go and pray.

Speaker 5 (42:20):
She was like, what are you doing.

Speaker 2 (42:21):
I'm like, listen, I got this knife. I'm like, I'm
tired of being here. Like, if I can't fight my
way up out of here, I'm not about to live
like this.

Speaker 5 (42:28):
It's overWe and.

Speaker 2 (42:29):
She was like, go in your closet and pray, and
she spoke to me on the phone for hours and
I fell asleep in the closet, woke up, I still
clo still big as hell, and I just remember my
mom being she was sober now. She came, you know.

Speaker 5 (42:47):
And asking me what happened to my eye?

Speaker 2 (42:48):
And I was like, you did it the door hit
me in the face when you was acting crazy or whatever.
And then I just remember from there and then my
then my coach came and he was like, we're gonna
have to ice this.

Speaker 5 (43:00):
You might not be to be able to go to
the tournament, and blah blah.

Speaker 2 (43:04):
And I believe the first I think my eyes stopped
being black maybe a day before that tournament started or
the day of.

Speaker 5 (43:11):
But it was like I.

Speaker 2 (43:12):
Still went and fought five days back to back to
back and fought my way to the Olympics, and that's
all I really wanted to do, you know, at sixteen, I.

Speaker 1 (43:21):
Don't think I looking at it and people to go through. Obviously,
when people decide to take their own life just because
they're in a lot of pain, but I fact, I
don't think they realized the pain that they're in. Imagine
that the pain that you do that the people that's
left behind, no, absolutely, because they're asking questions, what is
it what was going on so bad? And now for

(43:44):
the rest of their lives, they're asking these questions and
they're having to deal with the pain that you thought
that you couldn't overcome.

Speaker 5 (43:51):
I think that too.

Speaker 2 (43:53):
When I was that young, I felt like I didn't
know what depression was. You know, we all know what's sad,
and it says that when we're mad, but we don't
know what depression is. And you know, depression is when
you having them suicidal thoughts, them bad thoughts, you know them.
Like for me, when I went through depression, it was
like I I'm always a big advocate for myself and
always beking positive and up and uplifting, and then it's

(44:16):
like when you get depressed, that same work that was
being uplifting and that was being positive now is being negative.
Now it's being and then it's and then it's your voice.
And that's what's hard for me to deal with. But
once I, like I said, figured out, listen, you know things.

Speaker 5 (44:36):
Every day.

Speaker 2 (44:37):
Every day it's not going to be a sunny day, right,
but that doesn't mean that it's like mud either, you know,
So I had to differentiate that and then just know
that listen, it gets better. It's I mean, I always
tell myself when when I'm going through something, I'm like,
there's somebody going through something worse. I always tell myself that,
and people when they come in with their problem, I say,

(44:58):
you know what if somebody don't work anything, I'm being sarcastic.
I'm like, I'm for real, it's somebody doing way worse
than you.

Speaker 5 (45:04):
I seen somebody.

Speaker 2 (45:05):
I've seen somebody sleeping under a bridge with with a
with a cover, with with like with like dirty clothes on.
At least you want somebody house and you able to
lay down and get and you know, get some food.
Day out there sleep on a concrete and acting people
strangers for money.

Speaker 5 (45:20):
It's people. There's always some one doing worse than you.

Speaker 2 (45:23):
And I always try to tell myself that when I
when I they's are getting hard, And I tell people
that who come to me complaining about things being hard.

Speaker 1 (45:33):
You go to the Olympics, okay, obviously, the swelling goes
down your eyes. It's okay. And you go to the
Olympics and you said, and you had to fight five
consecutive days, and you want and you make your way
to the Olympics. I'm going to the Olympics. Lifelong dreams
is a culmination. But I just don't want to go.
I don't want to bring that gold medal back absolutely,
So now you switch it like, Okay, I gotta do this.

(45:54):
I gotta do this. So now what's what's your what's
your mind set?

Speaker 2 (46:01):
I mean, it was no other option for me. I
don't think I would have lived flying home with a
silver or bronze medal. I don't think I could have. Yeah,
I would because it was my dreams since I was
thirteen years old to go to the Olympics. So now
that it's finally here and at the Olympics.

Speaker 5 (46:16):
I'm like, yo, this is yeah. It was. It was
really it was really surreal.

Speaker 2 (46:22):
And all I remember thinking is everyone around me, even
close on the USA team, was doubt me because of
my age. But I had the best skills, I had
the most power, and I was the most determined and
I was one of the hardest workers. And I was like,
I'm going to win this gold medal and having my
coach Jason crush fit with me.

Speaker 1 (46:44):
Man, can you know you couldn't lose it?

Speaker 2 (46:47):
Okay, listen, it's impossible. It was impossible then, and it's impossible.
Now he comes to my fights. Now, I make sure
that he got tickets and stuff. But Jason, when I
tell you, like a a mass scientist with boxing, and
not only that, he was a mass scientist with me.
He knows how my brain worked. He knows what to say,

(47:07):
when to say it.

Speaker 5 (47:08):
He knows how to communicate with me, even if I
can't hear, if I can't see, if listen, they get
me holding up covering my eye because I can't see
it, and they be like, how many fingers you got up?
And he'll figure out a way.

Speaker 2 (47:19):
To make me say two, even though even though I
don't see nothing like he just is a mad scientist.

Speaker 5 (47:25):
And I mean the way that he trained me, the
belief that we had in each other, really.

Speaker 2 (47:31):
Made my first Olympic run. I mean it it was hard,
don't get me wrong, but we dominated, you know. And
I always say we because I don't think I could
have done it without him. And before my grandmother passed,
she told me, she said, whatever you do, you keep
on listening to that Jason.

Speaker 5 (47:48):
She always talking about you. Always listen to him.

Speaker 2 (47:50):
Even though when I was having a bad time or
I was in a bad mood, she said, whatever Jason say,
that's what you do. Always listening to Jason. My grandma
was a big she's a big advocate him.

Speaker 1 (48:01):
Did you you lost the amateur But that was before
the Olympics are after limbers, before four Uh, that was China, China.

Speaker 5 (48:08):
She wanted out China.

Speaker 1 (48:10):
But he didn't go then.

Speaker 5 (48:11):
Nope, he couldn't make it for financial purposes. He had
no money.

Speaker 1 (48:15):
You but let me ask you a question, had he
been there, do you believe you lose that fight?

Speaker 2 (48:19):
No, I don't believe I would have lost because we
wouldn't do our homework. We wouldnt knew how tall she was,
we wouldn't knew who was the judges. He made sure
he did his homework all the time, and we always
had a game plan.

Speaker 5 (48:30):
You know. He never let me get comfortable. He'd be like, yeah, yeah,
this fight was good, but next fight, you gotta fix
X y Z. You know so.

Speaker 2 (48:38):
But you know what, even though I feel like I
didn't lose that fight against her and the amateurs, I
feel like it was needed. I never asked God to
be undefeated and to win the gold medal. You gotta
be very specific with your prayers. I asked God that
I said, listen, I want to I want a chance
to fight for an Olympic gold medal. I didn't say

(48:59):
I wanted to be undefeated or unscathed or anything. I
just said I want to fight for it, for the
gold medal. So this was a tournament before the Olympic
gold medal, and I feel like.

Speaker 5 (49:08):
Well before the Olympics. So I feel like had I
not lost, then I would have lost at the Olympics.

Speaker 2 (49:17):
So it was like, I can take that defeat because
it built a different It built a different.

Speaker 5 (49:21):
Fire in me.

Speaker 2 (49:22):
Like it wasn't even just toward her, you know, like
towards Savannah. It was like I literally want to bite
off all y'all heads, Like I want to get so
in shape and I want to get so strong that
even when we get to the Olympics that if the
ref don't stop to fight, I knock you out or
I beat you so bad to where you quit. Like
I got in really great shape for the Olympics. And

(49:45):
I lost that fight three weeks, three months before the Olympics.
And I mean for three months. I ran six miles
one day, four miles and neck six miles the next
day four miles and necks six four six four, went
to the gym twice a day, sparred four or five
times a week, like I was a dog. And that's
what that lost happened again. Yeah, I'm like, this has

(50:08):
never happened again. That's why now I still train like
a dog.

Speaker 5 (50:11):
Now. It's like I'm always feeling.

Speaker 2 (50:12):
Like training like I'm the underdog, Like like I don't
like I like I have everything to fight for and
nothing to lose, Like that's how I that's how I train,
you know. But that happened then I was like, you
know what it made me. It made me a better fighter,
and it made me just want to hurt people more,
which is part of my job.

Speaker 1 (50:33):
It seems like you take both the most pleasure out
of that part right there.

Speaker 5 (50:37):
Yeah. Yeah, people get hitting, they face shinning, even they face. Man,
people be talking too much. Listen, listen.

Speaker 1 (50:48):
To sell it.

Speaker 5 (50:49):
Mike Tyson said, everybody got a game plan till they
get hitting them out. And you know what a lot
of a lot of these.

Speaker 2 (50:56):
Internet folks that be on the internet doing this stuff,
they wouldn't be doing that if we can reach through
that phone and just give them a yeah, give them
a good old Do.

Speaker 1 (51:05):
You be wanting to tell some of the people on
the internet say, glove up.

Speaker 2 (51:08):
I do, but you know I have though I have,
you know, troll pulled up on me one time. She
got the hands hold on you a come on, Clarisse, nah, man,
come on, no, no, don't listen.

Speaker 5 (51:21):
First of all, the gym is a sanctuary.

Speaker 2 (51:24):
That's so while I'm training and getting ready, it's best
you keep the internet beef on the internet. Don't ever
come a where I'm at, where I'm getting ready for
a real world championship fight, fighting for millions of dollars.
You want to come up and pull up on me
talking that trash to me face to face? Oh no,
you want your ass look and I'm give you just
what you want.

Speaker 1 (51:41):
That woman they had no skills though.

Speaker 5 (51:43):
She says she was a boxer.

Speaker 1 (51:46):
She says she could be in the fight, but an astronaut.

Speaker 5 (51:48):
But you know what, No, this girl had been trouled
me for two years. Now.

Speaker 2 (51:52):
You know when somebody try you so much that you
recognize they face. Yeah, that was a situation like that.
It wasn't just no Red knew exactly. I said, what
the what the hell is what the hell going on
with me?

Speaker 5 (52:02):
Here? I thought I got set up that man, wasn't
a minute, it's going out. And then I seen her.
I said, I walked, I walked, I walked, I walked
right a tour. I said, what the hell are you
doing here? She was like, I told you I'm gonna
give you that work. I'm coming out. She's like, I'm
she said, I'm here to knock you out. Let's let's go.
I said what. Yes, Now, in my mind I was

(52:28):
like what.

Speaker 2 (52:28):
But I I told her off the jump, I wasn't
gonna spark with her. I said, man, I'm not sparring, man,
get out, you know, get out my gym.

Speaker 5 (52:35):
I'm finished. Train. I got and it was a sparing that.

Speaker 2 (52:37):
I had two dudes. They're waiting for me to spar
with them. I had six rounds of one and three
with the other one. I'm like, man, I'm gonna sparre
you gone. I'm gonna spar these dudes. And she was like,
got the being disrespectful cussing me out. I started cussing
her out and.

Speaker 1 (52:51):
Getting the ring.

Speaker 5 (52:51):
Before I knew it, I just was like, well, glove
on up. Then I said, I ain't got nothing to say,
glove on up. She gloved up. I gloved up. Fight
over thirty seconds.

Speaker 1 (53:00):
You're not that.

Speaker 5 (53:01):
I beat the hell out of her. She quit, she quit.
I hit her with a big shot.

Speaker 2 (53:07):
She went down. Was no, she was like covering up.
I hear it with a big bite shot and I
hit her in the head again. And then she like
started doing something. I don't know if she was like
taking a knee or what, but she stopped fighting back.
And you know me, as a fighter, we don't fight
folks who don't fight back.

Speaker 3 (53:23):
No.

Speaker 2 (53:24):
Did I want to grab her and do some more
stuff to her, yes, But the sportsmanship and the classiness
in me said, let me let this girl go hand
live and.

Speaker 5 (53:31):
Get on the fight here. Yeah.

Speaker 2 (53:34):
But you know what, I would love to do that
to a bunch of girls that were talking trash though.
I mean, if they ever want to come to gym
and spar with me, I get in with him just
to make him be like you disrespectful, you in your.

Speaker 5 (53:43):
Mouth, You're not.

Speaker 1 (53:47):
I can't believe.

Speaker 5 (53:48):
I can't I believe it.

Speaker 1 (53:52):
I know you do, Shannon.

Speaker 5 (53:54):
We live in the world today. Too many folks is
okay with being disrespectful.

Speaker 2 (53:59):
Too many folks they are, And I'm going to sport
that where listen, you talk it, then you walk it.

Speaker 5 (54:05):
That's what opponies do. I don't even want to talk
trash back and forth with you. We ain't gonna fight.
It don't even make sense. That's why a lot of
the internet beef.

Speaker 2 (54:11):
I' be like, you know what, let me go ahead
and just sit this one out, because she's not gonna
fight me. She's gonna get on here every day, makes abliminals,
make posts, talk trash.

Speaker 1 (54:21):
She can't really trying to see me.

Speaker 2 (54:22):
No, she ain't trying to see me because when I
when I take this jacket off, these traps and everything
by biggie yours.

Speaker 5 (54:29):
You know right now you see my shoulders.

Speaker 1 (54:31):
Yeah, you win the first American woman to win Olympic
gold medal in seventeen.

Speaker 5 (54:37):
Yeah, I brought it too. I keep my stuff on me.
That's that gold baby. Yeah, first one, uh huh.

Speaker 1 (54:47):
This was in London in twenty twelve. Yeah. And then
you go back to follow it up in Rio. Yeah,
twenty sixteen.

Speaker 2 (54:51):
That's real, and they head you that's my own round.
Keep them in that purse in nationality.

Speaker 1 (55:02):
So did you when you get back did you go back?
So you go back to school and you a gold.

Speaker 5 (55:06):
Medal with yeah in the twelfth grade.

Speaker 1 (55:09):
Mm hm, you were in high school, so you I
was popular? Popular?

Speaker 5 (55:13):
Yeah, I was popular.

Speaker 1 (55:15):
The guy.

Speaker 2 (55:19):
They've been trying to holler before the make up and
the hair, been trying to holler.

Speaker 1 (55:22):
Trying to get at you, like that Cris oh so
coch so that.

Speaker 2 (55:29):
Coco was hot, you know, But no, I was always
too like I was like up and up in school.

Speaker 5 (55:35):
I was the jock.

Speaker 2 (55:36):
I was in honest classes. I like, I was a
smart kid. I was famous. I had a documentary crew
following me around, so it was more of a everybody
knew me and I was still at the time I was.
At the time, the only thing I was confident.

Speaker 5 (55:53):
About was boxing.

Speaker 2 (55:54):
So I spoke about boxing, holler, knocked people out, beat
them up. But I wasn't into the whole yeah, because
I was in a gym full of guys, and all
we cared about is who got who got around the
track faster, who sweated the most, who hit the butt
back harder, and who wanted sparring.

Speaker 5 (56:12):
That's what we cared about.

Speaker 2 (56:13):
We didn't nobody was like, oh, rest you didn't have
your lashes done today, or rest you got you know
you like, oh, you're sweaty and like your hair's in
the at for nobody.

Speaker 5 (56:24):
Nobody cared.

Speaker 2 (56:25):
I mean they had seen me look that look that
same way from the time I was eleven til I
was seventeen. I mean I went to Olympics and water
Queen Latifa, cleup braids to bat like. I wasn't trying
to be no glam model. I was just trying to
trying to fight and win. That's all that really mattered
to me.

Speaker 1 (56:40):
But your coach would like, you have a boyfriend?

Speaker 5 (56:42):
No boyfriend? I had a boyfriend.

Speaker 1 (56:47):
How you bore that?

Speaker 5 (56:49):
Well? Lying? But I think of my biopic, I had
the boyfriend I had. We had been I guess since
I was fifteen sixteen until I was probably about twenty
two twenty one, A long time. I was a relationshs
type person.

Speaker 1 (57:06):
I mean, hey, hey he was when you when you
was I mean.

Speaker 2 (57:11):
Yeah, but you know how these young boys is y'all
the same aid?

Speaker 5 (57:15):
But you know how these young boys is Oh, and
like I said, I was very stern. I don't play
under that.

Speaker 2 (57:21):
And and I'm always too like a girl, like if
it's ever, if it's ever a thing between me and
another woman.

Speaker 5 (57:27):
I'm gonna always tell you to go with other women.

Speaker 2 (57:29):
Yeah, because the fact you've met thought, you thought about that,
You thought about me with another woman.

Speaker 5 (57:33):
In your mind, you thought like, oh, who should I pick?

Speaker 1 (57:35):
Please?

Speaker 5 (57:35):
Don't pick me because I'm a doggie.

Speaker 2 (57:38):
Yeah, I'm a dog You just oh, you think you
like me and her? You want to fight with me
and her. You want a lie to both of us.
All yeah, I'm gonna dog you.

Speaker 1 (57:46):
Oh come on, don't be like that.

Speaker 2 (57:48):
No, gotta give it to him how how they want it.
But that's why it was like, I'm more of a
I can't be No. I found out early on that
I can't be a pimp, like I can't be.

Speaker 5 (58:00):
Like a girl to have multiple guys.

Speaker 1 (58:03):
And damn you you're a one guy woman.

Speaker 5 (58:05):
That's it.

Speaker 2 (58:06):
I don't want to have multiple men, and I don't
want multiple men having me and having somebody else like now.

Speaker 1 (58:12):
You gonna feel some type of way.

Speaker 5 (58:14):
Oh no, I'm gonna get rid of you. I don't
play that it's me or look it's me or nothing. Okay,
So you like me, We together and we're making this work.
If you want to go out and cheat and stuff,
I'm like we don't.

Speaker 2 (58:28):
We don't got to be exclusive because I'm turning down
all the type people.

Speaker 1 (58:31):
Yeah. Yeah, because they tried to get a Coco too.
Now yeah, you know I could have the roster too,
but I chose you.

Speaker 2 (58:37):
But exactly so that's why i'd be like back then,
I was like, no, this ain't this, ain't that. So
he was there at the beginning, but he just.

Speaker 1 (58:45):
Did he did he try to come back.

Speaker 5 (58:47):
I ain't gonna put his business something.

Speaker 2 (58:52):
You know what, I don't think that no guy who
I've ever been with has not. If I've always broken
up with them, I've never got broken up. I was
broken up with them. So I feel like, no, god
I've ever been what has ever been like? Oh if
I tried to get back with them or they want
to get back with me like.

Speaker 5 (59:07):
They always tried to. So I mean, but I don't.
I don't blame them. I'm fine. He find as hell popping. Yeah, Dick,
you know I'm saying natural, I don't blame them.

Speaker 1 (59:20):
Are you the first person in your family graduated high school?

Speaker 2 (59:23):
No, my mom graduated, my grandmother, my aunt. Out of
my siblings, I'm the first out of my siblings and
my Lilder brother got his GED.

Speaker 5 (59:38):
He's the youngest.

Speaker 2 (59:39):
I believe my older brother got his GED when he
was in prison, because he did.

Speaker 5 (59:44):
He did a bit too.

Speaker 1 (59:46):
So I mean you're the first. I mean, think about it.
You're the first for your siblings to get to high school.
And you mentioned the others and going back and get
a GED. But that, well, that was not something that
you said. You're the second oldest. That's not something that
you're thinking about at the time. You had a singular
focus the Olympics. The Olympics, huh, and school is just
a part of the you know, I gets Okay, I'm
gonna go. I'm here, I'm gonna go get my high school,

(01:00:07):
my high school diploma. But the main goal, your main focus.
And you say you are a student, so similar school
came easy to you.

Speaker 5 (01:00:15):
Yeah, except for uh, what what was it? Science?

Speaker 2 (01:00:18):
I never I never understood science, but everything else came
pretty easy.

Speaker 5 (01:00:24):
Listen. I would get all a's and b's, and you're
like a D in science, damn a C in science.

Speaker 2 (01:00:29):
Like I think the highest I got on g P
A I got a three point I got a B
one time, so I got a three point three point
eight and I was trying to get a four point
zero this specific market period because I just like.

Speaker 5 (01:00:41):
This is this is that, get it. I'm gonna get it.

Speaker 2 (01:00:43):
And I got a three point eight because I got
a freaking B and science. So I just was like, yes,
science sucks for me.

Speaker 5 (01:00:50):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (01:00:50):
No, you mentioned earlier that you fought your grandmother, you know,
you fought for equal pay. Hell, I'm doing I'm boxing.
We boxing this same amount. I'm boxing. I'm in here putting,
you know, putting my life on the line. I'm practicing,
I'm in the gym, I'm running, getting up early in
the morning. And in twenty sixteen, the men used to
get three times to pay the Olympic. The Training Committee

(01:01:13):
correct with twenty twelve.

Speaker 2 (01:01:15):
Yeah, I think they used to get twice more before
we got.

Speaker 1 (01:01:18):
Yeah, and you're like, nah, that's that's ain't right.

Speaker 2 (01:01:20):
Well, I was winning every tournament, so that didn't make
sense to me. Yeah, And you don't really know what
the other guys are making until you ask them. So
when I found that out, I just was like, huh
So going back from my second Olympic gold medal, I
let them know like that I wouldn't go back unless
these things changed and they were all four because they
knew they kind of needed me to want to go. Yeah, yeah,

(01:01:44):
you know, I don't think USA boxing has had an
Olympic gold medalist before me since two thousand and eight,
which was andre ward or was it four two thousand
and four andre Warden? I mean, well, we had some
bronze melers, some silvers, what gold we don't? Yeah, yeah,
I had got twenty twelve and twenty sixteen. I'm the

(01:02:04):
only goal.

Speaker 1 (01:02:05):
For those years, right, And you know, us a boxing,
we used to be the beieve's knees.

Speaker 5 (01:02:11):
Listen.

Speaker 2 (01:02:12):
I think I think Shakor Stevenson should be an Olympic
gold mellonist.

Speaker 5 (01:02:16):
I was there. I seen the fight.

Speaker 2 (01:02:18):
He went against the Cuban, and I think Court is
a better fighter than a Cuban. But he came out
with the silver. But in my mind, Shakoor is like
bomb dot Com, like this dude can really fight. He's
in shape, he's focused, and he was just young. But
I felt that he won the fight. I felt like
he won the fight, but it was it was so close, right,
you know, But I felt like Shakurt won it and

(01:02:39):
he should not if anything, even though he got the silver.

Speaker 5 (01:02:43):
In my mind, he's an Olympic champion.

Speaker 1 (01:02:45):
But we've seen a rob too. What Roy Jones just
got his metal back from the eighty eight.

Speaker 5 (01:02:49):
Yeah, I saw that.

Speaker 1 (01:02:50):
That was crazy crazy. I mean I remember watching that.

Speaker 5 (01:02:53):
No he did, which is like.

Speaker 1 (01:02:58):
I don't but it was in soul. Did he having
to be safe to be.

Speaker 5 (01:03:02):
Well that's so Korea?

Speaker 1 (01:03:03):
Yes, yes, wow man.

Speaker 5 (01:03:06):
Yes, but you know stuff like that. I just can't
believe it.

Speaker 2 (01:03:08):
Even though even with May wasn't you know what I'm saying,
getting le brons, but but that.

Speaker 1 (01:03:12):
Was but that was in the US.

Speaker 5 (01:03:13):
That was in Atlanta, Yeah, in a Lena. But that's
what I'm saying.

Speaker 2 (01:03:17):
Like for me, people don't even understand, like how terrified
I was. I had just to me got robbed right
before the Olympics, and now I'm going to the Olympics
and I'm like, oh god, these girls is taller, they bigger,
they more known, like what I'm gonna do?

Speaker 1 (01:03:30):
Yeah? And the older you're seventeen, Yeah, I think you
ain't fighting. No, you ain't fight no more teenagers. Them
women twenties in the twenties and you fighting them twenties thirties.

Speaker 5 (01:03:39):
The girl I fought against for the Olympic gold medal
twenty twelve. She was thirty four. I was seventeen.

Speaker 1 (01:03:45):
Theoretically she old up to be your mom.

Speaker 5 (01:03:48):
Really yeah. But she was strong though.

Speaker 2 (01:03:52):
That's when I'm like, ooh, these these older women got
some strength on him.

Speaker 5 (01:03:55):
I'm like, she got that old woman. Hey, you know
they grabbed me. Hold up, she was strong.

Speaker 1 (01:04:02):
So what so what you gain? Okay, you going there
and you're fighting a lady that's double your age, your coaches,
so so what was your game plan in the gold
But you're like, Okay, I've gotten through all this for
the gold medal. This is everything. This is everything that
I prayed for. This is everything that I've hoped for,
and this moment is here now. So were you calm?
Were you relaxed? So? So give me your thought process

(01:04:23):
up leading to that gold medal match.

Speaker 5 (01:04:25):
I was very focused. I was calm, and I was ready.

Speaker 2 (01:04:29):
I knew that the girl I was fighting against had
hammer fist, she could punch, but awesome knew too.

Speaker 5 (01:04:36):
I was fast, lightning.

Speaker 2 (01:04:38):
I know I had a really good head movement, and
I knew that if I got in the right distance
and arrange with her, I would be more stronger than
her than her against me. So I went in there
and just coach told me to have fun. He said,
have fun and beat her up. I went here and
I had fun and I and I beat her up.

(01:04:59):
But I remember the first the first round, she called
me with a shot, and I remember, oh, that's it.

Speaker 1 (01:05:05):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:05:06):
But she had been putting girls down at the Olympicy.
She had been dropping them, getting getting.

Speaker 5 (01:05:11):
A counts on them.

Speaker 2 (01:05:12):
And then she hit me and I kind of shook
my hair a little bit. I'm like, oh, it's good.
And I was like, oh, yeah, she want to fight.
She thinks she's just big like that.

Speaker 5 (01:05:21):
And I said, okay. But the way that her punches
were coming so.

Speaker 1 (01:05:24):
Slow, you can see them.

Speaker 5 (01:05:25):
By the time she do two.

Speaker 2 (01:05:26):
Punchers, I already had landed before six. So I'm gonna
light her up and then sit on summer. When I
started sitting.

Speaker 5 (01:05:32):
On them, it was over. Yeah, seventeen. But man, I'm
telling you, like that girl was strong. I wonder what
she's doing now, you toilet pover.

Speaker 1 (01:05:43):
So what country you think have the best fighters?

Speaker 5 (01:05:46):
America? Really, America has women, even women America.

Speaker 2 (01:05:52):
Wow, Now, if we're talking about a lot of these
American girls sometime they don't show up on those big senies. Yeah,
you know, when you got the world championships in the Olympics,
these girls won't won't show up, but they'll turn pro
and become world champions, you know.

Speaker 5 (01:06:10):
I think America has.

Speaker 2 (01:06:11):
Girls who are tough, slick, great upbringing, and we have
a great USA Boxing program to help us get prepared
to win, to win these tournaments. I think that the
other girls in the other countries they just I don't know,
maybe they're used to those bigger moments or something. But
I feel like as far as in skill and everything,
I feel like America.

Speaker 5 (01:06:32):
Has the best fighters.

Speaker 2 (01:06:33):
And then I have to say second is the UK
and we all know Kay Taylor from Ireland, you know,
but the UK and Ireland kind of you know, But yeah,
I guess it's my top three.

Speaker 1 (01:06:45):
But you know, the thing is is that amateur boxing,
Olympic boxing is different than pro boxing, way different. And
so you I mean, because you see like some of
these guys that like didn't have great amateur backs ground
become world champ You see some Olympic champions don't do
nothing in pro.

Speaker 5 (01:07:06):
Well, I think that all comes with are you a
complete fighter. Okay, you know what I'm saying.

Speaker 2 (01:07:12):
I knew when the amateurs and thems like before I
learned about the point system.

Speaker 5 (01:07:17):
I then used to sit down more on my punches
and pick my shots more.

Speaker 2 (01:07:21):
Well, then you get to Olympics and all they care
about is who's laying the most points and who and
who has the.

Speaker 5 (01:07:26):
Effect the punching.

Speaker 2 (01:07:27):
So you have to fight the point system in order
for you to win a fight. Now, when you turn pro,
it's back to how it was at the beginning, which
is more taking my time setting my punches. But I've
been doing something else for the past six six seven years,
so I have to switch that to turn pro. And
then you have to adjust to the no heager in
the pro yes, And that's difference.

Speaker 1 (01:07:48):
What because you whither, you seeing your peripheral you.

Speaker 5 (01:07:52):
Can see more with the head you're off, but you
feel more too. Absolutely, you know you see amateurs in
there and fight on the inside and thought the combination.

Speaker 2 (01:08:01):
You're not gonna see that in the pros because you
got you got a head, bud, you got I mean,
you got elbows, you got listen, I got hit with
a shoulder in pro box a shoulder you know she
was doing something and I and I came in that
girl and hit me my.

Speaker 5 (01:08:16):
Jaw her with her damn shoulder.

Speaker 1 (01:08:18):
So you ever get mad in there? Oh? You you?
Oh you? Oh you're doing that now?

Speaker 2 (01:08:22):
Okay, I don't get mad how the rain. I may
look mad, but I'm not. I'm actually very happy and
want to show off my skills and show you what
I got, you know, but I know that I'm very strategic,
so I know that once you get mad, you can't
really think. So I don't think I've got mad in

(01:08:43):
a professional fight since my pro debut. But that's because
she kept pushing me on the floor.

Speaker 1 (01:08:48):
Damn.

Speaker 5 (01:08:49):
Yeah, but that's really strong.

Speaker 1 (01:08:52):
She pushed you down.

Speaker 5 (01:08:53):
She was rough, but it.

Speaker 2 (01:08:54):
Was like, you know, you sitting her thumb punches and
then you just see somebody just go boom.

Speaker 5 (01:08:58):
So it was like, what the hell I thought he
was punching?

Speaker 1 (01:09:00):
Hey, did you tell you're not gonna say anything?

Speaker 5 (01:09:03):
Yeah, that's when I got mad. The last time I
got mad, like right, hello.

Speaker 1 (01:09:11):
Last year, the big story in the Olympics would be
Algeria Emoni khalif yeh.

Speaker 4 (01:09:15):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (01:09:15):
Yeah, transgender?

Speaker 5 (01:09:17):
Uh is it a transgender?

Speaker 1 (01:09:21):
That's why I mean, she's a benified her whole life.
If I'm reading it correctly, she's identified her whole life
as a female.

Speaker 5 (01:09:31):
I think she was born with the.

Speaker 1 (01:09:33):
Chrome x y chromatithing like that. Yes.

Speaker 2 (01:09:36):
So the reason why I why I still cleared away
from this because nobody knows the facts. But I don't
believe that in boxing amateur or professional, that they will
let in the average, that they will let a male
fight against women. I just don't believe that. I believe
that the story was taking out a proportion. All the

(01:10:00):
facts weren't there, and that's what we got. But emon
Kalief fights like a girl, so.

Speaker 5 (01:10:08):
And and I say that, just like not to just
like she's a gold mellist too. So I said that
to say, like, if she's.

Speaker 2 (01:10:17):
Always fought against these girls, why now is it being changed?

Speaker 1 (01:10:21):
Yes, her whole life, she grew up fight against women. Yeah,
y all of a sudden.

Speaker 5 (01:10:26):
Yeah. Yeah. So to me, I feel like.

Speaker 2 (01:10:31):
We we would have to go there to actually see
her and talk to her and hear what she has
to say about it.

Speaker 5 (01:10:37):
But I don't. I don't think that she identifies as.

Speaker 1 (01:10:41):
I'm never identified as a man.

Speaker 5 (01:10:43):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:10:44):
I think that she's she's a girl and that's why
now people say, oh that they want her to turn program,
fight against me or whatever whatever. But she from what
I know is it's a girl.

Speaker 1 (01:10:55):
From what I know going to an Olympics. Obviously, when
you go to the Olympics, you make the American team
and all these the NBA, Michael Phelps is there, you
meet Lebron, Jane, I mean, so what, so what is
it like to meet like, like, man, I'm most popular.

(01:11:17):
I mean, everybody know who theeds, these men are, these
people are so so what was that like for What
was that moment like for you walking in the opening ceremony.

Speaker 2 (01:11:25):
Honestly, I had thought to myself and this was such
a surreal moment. I thought to myself when I see
Lebron and everybody, I thought to myself, I said, Yo,
I'm with the best athletes in the world. And then
the DONA man said, ding Donge, you are here to
fight to be one of the best athletes in the world.

(01:11:47):
And that's when it hit me, like, yo, I'm really
a big deal.

Speaker 5 (01:11:51):
I know. I thought I was the stuff then, but
I'm really the stuff now. Yeah, look.

Speaker 1 (01:11:58):
You are but little woman shape like you said you
got shoulders, you got the body. I'm sure you've been criticized. Yeah,
what I.

Speaker 5 (01:12:11):
Mean, people it's crazy because they don't want you to
be a bean pole.

Speaker 1 (01:12:16):
They want you to be one hundred and five pounds.
They want you to be one hundred and twenty pounds
and be a Victoria's Secret Motel. What I don't.

Speaker 2 (01:12:23):
I really get confused because I feel like maybe it's
a preference, But I'm built like the bodies that these
girls in that these girls are getting in buying. Oh yeah,
you know, I'm thick at the bottom. I got a
big butt and nice legs. I gotta slim waist.

Speaker 1 (01:12:40):
Yeah.

Speaker 5 (01:12:41):
I may not be too big in a chest, but
I don't want to be beat in chests. And I
can move my.

Speaker 2 (01:12:44):
Arms, but my back and everything is strong because of
my sport.

Speaker 5 (01:12:49):
Yes, but when I put on a dress, I look
just as femline, just just as pretty, just as fine.

Speaker 2 (01:12:54):
So I don't really get I think the criticism come
from haters or people that's jealous, yeah, or wish that they.

Speaker 1 (01:13:01):
Were mean or something, which, like you, Serena went through
the same thing. I've seen it Serena, Like, oh she
looked like a man or she looked like this. Serena
was very muscular. I saw Serena when she was probably
in the early twenties, and she was I mean she
was in shot and shit, yes, yeah, yes, yes. And
now I guess you know, now they like, well, I
don't know where people. People used to say, oh, she

(01:13:22):
she looked like a man. She all this, and now
she she's done a one to eighty wortle body and
everybody's like, well, I don't know why she did that.
I like the old body, Well this is her body.
Let me.

Speaker 5 (01:13:32):
They always got something to say.

Speaker 1 (01:13:33):
Dude.

Speaker 2 (01:13:34):
You know, when I was fighting at one hundred and
fifty four pounds, I was literally all muscled like I
don't think I had nobody fed on me because it
wasn't anybody felt left to be there, right, So then
I go to one sixty my body was kind of
still the same. Now sixty eight seventy five, I got
I had to put on some must.

Speaker 5 (01:13:53):
To my legs and got a little bigger.

Speaker 2 (01:13:54):
I got a little wider in the and the wasting stuff,
and it's more of a this is what I have
to do for the weight class yet, right.

Speaker 5 (01:14:03):
But I only look really, I don't know I don't.
I don't. To me, I don't look strong like you.

Speaker 2 (01:14:11):
You know what I'm saying, Like, I mean, I look strong,
I look in shape, but I'm not like yeah, nah no,
but trying to make.

Speaker 1 (01:14:19):
It feel like they're feminine, Yes you are. You are
a I mean women athletes, they have bodies, they have yeah,
and they need that to be have functionality.

Speaker 4 (01:14:29):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:14:29):
So when I when I hear that stuff, as long
as I look in the mirror and I like what
I see, that's what makes me happy. People will say
that I look like I'm like one for I said,
that's a beautiful compliment. But I walk around at one
eighty one hundred eighty five pounds. You know what I'm saying.
I know that I'm stacked, and when it comes to
the fight, I lose my weight or whatever. But I

(01:14:49):
like walking around with my meat and having my having
my stuff, Like, oh, Pat love it.

Speaker 5 (01:14:57):
I was telling him that I'm a fighter at one sixty.
He's like, no, you're not. I'm for real. He's like, na,
we're not going around him on sixty.

Speaker 1 (01:15:04):
I mean, but as you get old, as you start,
as we start the age, it gets harder to take
that weight. Off and you're really trying to go back
down to that weight.

Speaker 5 (01:15:13):
If the competition is there.

Speaker 2 (01:15:14):
But that's nothing but a diet and nutrition team and
just a bit more running. But when when I have
a fight locked in and I and I have a
goal like hend age doesn't get in the way. I've
been working out my entire life. So it's actually easy
for me to lose weight.

Speaker 5 (01:15:29):
It's all about am.

Speaker 2 (01:15:30):
I going to lock in and focus and make the
sacrifices to lose the weight? But I went down one
hundred and fifty four and lost thirty five pounds or six.

Speaker 5 (01:15:37):
Weeks, So hey, am boss.

Speaker 2 (01:15:42):
But when you want to make history, I became the
fastest boxer to be three times Unsplitty champion in the
least fights. Yes, so I did that, But the sacrifice
was I had to lose thirty five pounds in six weeks.

Speaker 1 (01:15:56):
Is there is there a hereat is you're the head.
You're a heavyweight, so there ain't nowhere you can go.

Speaker 2 (01:16:01):
So now one seventy five and one seventy five plus
is different, right, So.

Speaker 1 (01:16:06):
You can go up another you can take it, you
can get another weight, you can get another division.

Speaker 2 (01:16:10):
Not at well, me and Danielle Perkins for that one
seventy five plus, right, Okay, so that's heavyweight, right, But
then it's weird because all right, we got different organizations, right,
and for the WBC they call one seventy five heavyweight,
but then other organizations called one seventy five light heavy.

(01:16:32):
So it's like when me and her fought, we fought
at one seventy five plus because the contract was at one.

Speaker 5 (01:16:38):
It was at one eighty because Danielle was a big girl.
I came in wearing won seventy three. Danielle came in
weighing that one seventy eight, and we fought for the
heavyweight under championship.

Speaker 1 (01:16:48):
Well, if you walk around at one eighty one eighty five,
she walk around at one ninety and one ninety five
maybe two.

Speaker 2 (01:16:52):
Danielle Perkins is huge. Daniel Perkins is huge. Like, listen,
I love that girl, okay. But when I was like
we was facing all for stuff, I'm like, yo, I
didn't know. She was just big, Like somebody ain't telling
me something. Hold up, I'm looking at her too.

Speaker 5 (01:17:10):
Like, and then she's so calm and trying to be
all nice to them. I'm like, don't be nice to me,
I'm gonna beat you up, and she just like Clarisa
were good.

Speaker 2 (01:17:20):
I'm like, no, I ain't know, id you about to
hit me? We is not we is not cool, but no,
she me fighting against her. Let me know, Like, yo,
even though I only came away in one seventy three
for our fight and I rehired you probably from like
one to one, it was like yo, I was able

(01:17:41):
to handle her strength, handle her size. Everything about her
was tough. Her bones was hard, she was tall, she
was strong, she was quicker than what I thought. Yeah,
I mean dan Yelle Perkins was I understand why she
only got six fights. People say, oh, she only had
five fights when.

Speaker 5 (01:17:58):
We fucked nobody to see yn't want to fight her.

Speaker 2 (01:18:01):
When I watched her fight and some of her fights,
these girls came in very confident in the first, second,
third round, But then you got to the fourth round
and you see these girls, it's like tired, and then
they face start getting blooded up and bruised, and I'm like,
this girl punching and this girl is punching for real.
And then these girls end up quitting or she stop them,
and I'm like, yeah, I gotta I I gotta I

(01:18:22):
gotta watch out for this one. And that was the
only one who I fall so far? Who I said,
I gotta watch out for this one.

Speaker 1 (01:18:27):
She was you feel like you going in the ring.
You're like, I'm confident I got you.

Speaker 5 (01:18:31):
Well, I had her too, but not. I was like
I had I had to watch her.

Speaker 2 (01:18:34):
I'm like, I can't step up in here, slip up
and you missed that one second?

Speaker 5 (01:18:37):
Hey, catch you with a shot. You're like, whoa you
know and be like.

Speaker 1 (01:18:43):
This concludes the first half of my conversation. Part two
is also posted and you can access it to whichever
podcast platform you just listen to part one on. Just
simply go back to Club Sha profile and I'll see
you there.

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Club Shay Shay - Claressa Shields Part 1

Episode Transcript

Host

Shannon Sharpe

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