Former Olympic boxer Claressa Shields is already seeing success after leaving the squared circle for the octagon.
Shields defeated Brittney Elkin by technical knockout 1:44 into the third round Thursday night in her mixed martial arts debut for the Professional Fighter's League. Elkin was in solid position after forcing Shields to the mat early, but Shields rallied in the final round and unloaded rights on Elkin after defending a takedown.
While Shields appeared to struggle at times on the mat, her striking, unsurprisingly, was on point. The 26-year-old connected on 90 of her 96 strikes.
Shields competed at the Olympics in London and Rio, winning gold in the women's middleweight division both times. She's the only American in Olympic history to win back-to-back gold medals in boxing. On top of her Olympic success, she also won a pair of World Championships in 2014 and 2016, as well as a gold medal at the 2015 Pan American Games.
Shields still has room to grow as a mixed martial artist, but her boxing skills are sure to make her a threat in the octagon against any competitor.