Boxer Sulem Urbina (C) took Caitlin Clark's side in her rivalry with...

The rivalry between Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese continues to divide opinions. Some support Reese. Others have sided with Clark, especially after how other players received her in the WNBA. Among her supporters is boxer Sulem Urbina, who sent a clear message to Reese and the WNBA.

The history between Clark and Reese goes back a couple of years. The first big clash between the two university stars occurred in the final of the 2022 NCAA Championships and repeated in 2023. The rivalry not only continued but intensified when both reached the WNBA in the 2024 Draft.

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The latest episode of this feud occurred just Saturday when Reese’s Chicago Sky visited Clark’s Indiana Fever. During the third quarter, Chennedy Carter hit Clark hard with his shoulder, with no play involved, which earned Carter a simple foul that the league upgraded after the game to Flagrant 1.

It surprised no one that Reese applauded her teammate’s action. However, the WNBA imposed a fine on her, which continued to cause controversy. After the entire episode, Chi-Barbie said that she gladly accepted her “bad guy” role. However, she also made it clear that she will not allow her contribution to the growth of the WNBA to be ignored.

Sulem Urbina’s response

“I’ll take that role. I’ll take the bad guy role, and I’ll continue to take that and be that for my teammates,” Reese said and continued, “I’ll look back in 20 years and be like, yeah, the reason why we’re watching women’s basketball is not just because of one person. It’s because of me, too.”

However, Urbina had a very clear response to Reese’s statements. The reason she and many other fans started watching WNBA games is Caitlin Clark.

“I started watching because of the way CC (Clark) and her (Reese) went at it in the championship,” Urbina admitted. However, she later emphasized, “Now I’ll be honest, after seeing CC play, I watch because of her.”

This will not be the end of the rivalry

Despite the words of Urbina and many others, the feud between Reese and Clark is far from over. The Sky forward admitted, “I’ve been dealing with this for two years now and understanding like, yeah, negative things have probably been said about me. But honestly, I’ll take that because look where women’s basketball is.”

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The bitterness between the two players is already dragging on others, like Carter, who downplayed the seriousness of her foul against Clark, saying, “We didn’t hit her like she was out on the streets. It’s just basketball.”

After their game this past Saturday, Indiana and Chicago will meet three more times in the regular season: June 16 and 23, and August 30. The table is set for a rivalry that could last years and dramatically increase the WNBA visibility.