Claressa Shields and Papoose have been very public about when their relationship began, but resurfaced posts involving Shields’ former fiancé Tony Richardson have added another wrinkle to an already complicated love story. Check out Claressa Shields and Papoose’s relationship timeline inside.
Baller Alert reports that the couple’s relationship timeline got messier. Shields says she met Papoose on July 6, 2024, at a boxing match in Newark. Papoose has given the same date. But with Papoose’s marriage to Remy Ma already unraveling and Shields still publicly referring to Richardson as her fiancé weeks after that meeting, the timeline has become a major part of the conversation.
HotNewHipHop also shared a timeline as the couple’s relationship became a highlight of 2025 and nearly every headline exploring the depths of their relationship. Scroll below to see how they got here.
Claressa Shields & Papoose Relationship Timeline
July 6, 2024: The Meeting
Source: Terrell Groggins / Getty
Shields has repeatedly identified July 6, 2024, as the day she met Papoose at the Shakur Stevenson versus Artem Harutyunyan fight in Newark, New Jersey. Papoose has also said they met at that event. Shields recalled that he approached her as a fan of her boxing career before they connected online.
July 2024: Things Start Moving
Source: Jerritt Clark / Getty
Shields said she invited Papoose to her upcoming fight in Detroit. The two began communicating through DMs and eventually exchanged romantic poems. According to their accounts, the connection developed from there.
December 2024: Receipts Hit The Internet
The relationship became public in a much messier way when Remy Ma shared alleged text messages involving Papoose and Shields. Remy characterized Shields as the other woman, while Papoose pushed back with allegations concerning his marriage. The competing claims remain allegations from the people involved.
February 2025: Papoose Shows Up
Papoose walked Shields to the ring before one of her fights, making his support very public. Shields later praised the way he communicated with and supported her.
May 2025: Shields Makes It Official
During an appearance on The Breakfast Club, Shields openly discussed her relationship with Papoose. She said she felt secure with him because he had been truthful with her from the beginning. She also said she did not hold ill will toward Remy.
July 2025: Baby Plans Enter The Chat
On The Pivot, Shields revealed that she and Papoose had already discussed having a child. She said she planned to have a baby the following year while continuing her boxing career.
September 2026: Now About That Timeline
Baller Alert shared resurfaced posts, showing Shields publicly calling Tony Richardson her fiancé in January and May 2024. Then, on August 3, 2024, she celebrated Richardson’s birthday while referring to him as “my man.”
That post came 28 days after the July 6 meeting Shields and Papoose have repeatedly identified as the beginning of their connection.
The posts do not prove when Shields and Richardson ended their relationship, and they do not disprove her account of meeting Papoose on July 6. What they do is leave one very obvious question hanging: when exactly did the previous relationship end?
And that is the part of the timeline the internet is still trying to piece together.
