Che Kenneally thought she was going to get into a fight on July 25, but when Alrie Meleisea withdrew from her bout with the WBA light heavyweight champion the Aussie may have gotten something better.

A career-altering fight with one of the sport’s pound-for-pound best, Claressa Shields.

There aren’t any contracts signed or advanced talks happening for a Shields-Kenneally matchup, but after “The Fight Mum” saw the Meleisea bout scrapped, she got on a plane to Detroit for Shields’ July 26 title fight with Lani Daniels. And during a media workout, the two prospective rivals met.

“It was definitely worth the trip over,” said Kenneally. “I was looking at just getting my name out there, letting the world know that The Fight Mum does exist and I'm a world champion. I did want that media coverage with Claressa Shields, but I also was there to support women's boxing.”

There was no pushing and shoving, no insults and nothing to go viral about that meeting. And that’s the way Kenneally (5-0, 3 KOs), mother of 3 1/2-year-old Havana, wanted it. She’s a fighter, and with a world title in her possession she could be an attractive foe for a belt collector like the G.W.O.A.T. They also have shared a promoter — Salita Promotions.

Shields is now a free agent but appears to be on good terms with Salita.

“Salita Promotions signed me as a fighter and that was my first time meeting them,” Kenneally said. “I wanted to have that face-to-face interaction and let them get to know me and who they're working with. So there were a lot of great things that came from that. And it was great to see first-hand Claressa’s weaknesses.

"You know how they say, never meet your idols you’ll be disappointed? It was one of those moments for me. I looked at her and I was like, 'What the hell? She's just a human.' And I just pointed out so many things that I can beat her on and that she falls short in. She's got a lot of flaws and I'm going to capitalize on them, and I can't wait to have that fight. And I can't wait for everyone to see ‘The Fight Mum’ in action and show everyone that she is in the wrong weight division. She doesn't belong in my division, and I'm going to let everyone know that and I'm going to show everyone that.”

Bold words from a fighter with just five pro fights. And while Kenneally has been boxing since childhood, it’s hard to match up with Shields’ amateur resume, which includes two Olympic gold medals. But, as the old saying goes, that’s why they fight the fights, and the time may be right for the 30-year-old from the Gold Coast to make her move.

Shields, also 30, has not been tested since her 2022 war with Savannah Marshall (another Kenneally target), and as she’s moved up in weight for her last three fights she really hasn’t been tested in wins over Vanessa Lepage-Joanisse, Danielle Perkins and Daniels.

Perkins, a then-unbeaten former college basketball player, was expected to give Shields a fight in February, based on her athleticism and a solid amateur background, but it didn’t play out that way. Some might say that Shields is just steamrolling, yet she may be getting bored. And what better time to catch a fighter slipping than when they think they can’t lose?

“The girls that are fighting her are out of their weight divisions,” said Kenneally. “I think they're just lazy. They should be two weight divisions lower. I'm an athlete. I've called myself a professional athlete since I was 10 or 11. I've been doing athletics internationally since I was 11. Shotput, discus, hammer, high jump, long jump, triple jump, I've competed in all those sports and won all those sports worldwide in the throwing events,and I played rugby. So I am an athlete.

"I've been brought up doing athletics and doing things that all contribute to boxing. My whole life has been sports. People say I haven't had many fights, and I haven't been in the game for long, but I've done so many other sports that have contributed to why I am good at boxing and why I am powerful.”

And at 6 feet, Kenneally could pose some stylistic problems for the 5-foot-9 Shields. Perkins is a 6-foot athlete who wasn’t able to trouble Shields, but the Aussie is confident that she’s the one who will put a mark in the multi-division champion’s loss column. For now, though, Kenneally just wants to fight anyone.

She’s gone more than a year since her last bout in 2024 against Angie Paola Rocha, and that fight only went three rounds. So getting a fight, any fight, is of the utmost importance. And Kenneally promises that she won’t get caught napping by an unheralded opponent while looking ahead to Shields.

“I just want to fight anyone, and I'll fight anyone,” she said. “[Shields] is the biggest name in women's boxing at the moment, and I want the biggest fights, but I know, and everyone's told me, that I have to work my way up there. But there's no one who wants to fight me, no one in my division that will step in the ring with me. So I'll just keep going for her and I'll take out whoever's in my way and I've come to terms with that. We train for Claressa Shields, and anyone underneath that is just a steppingstone.”

At least there are some solid stones available. For the Rocha fight, Kenneally weighed 170 ¼, which means a drop to super middleweight isn’t out of the question. Trainer/manager Fidel Tukel even said they would meet Shields at 160 if necessary. But at 168, there’s Marshall, Shadasia Green and Franchon Crews-Dezurn, and Perkins would be a solid test at light heavyweight.

In other words, the future could be bright if Che Kenneally can get a big fight.

But in the meantime, it’s work, work, work for “The Fight Mum,” who hopes to be back in action against someone in October or November.

“I enjoy being in the gym,” she said. “I love training. It's like my second home, so it's not a chore for me to get in here. But I'm the world champion and I have a reputation to uphold and a standard that expected of me. So I have to stay in the gym to stay ready and to take last-minute opportunities when they do come up or they're given to me. That might be my only opportunity to get a fight and I don't want to be turning anything down because I haven't been in the gym. So I think that keeps me going.”