Claressa Shields is going down the scale in weight and arguing for a change that she believes will allow the women to move up the pay scale.

Shields says the women should fight as many minutes as the men. Men fight three-minute rounds. Women fight two-minute rounds.

Shields (9-0, 2 knockouts), a two-time Olympic gold medalist, asked for the extra minute during a conference call for her bid at a third title in third weight class, junior middleweight, against Croatian Ivan Habazin (20-3, 7 KOS) on October 5 in a Showtime-televised bout.

“I think the thing to understand is that women will always get paid less than the men unless we fight the same amount of time,’’ said Shields, who believes she would have more knockouts if she had more time to break down opponents.

Shields said the change could be implemented gradually. She suggested that a starting point could be 12 two-minute rounds or 10 three-minute rounds for title fights. Under current rules, a women’s title fight is scheduled for 10 rounds, two minutes each.

“I think that one of those has to change within this year to get us on the road to equal pay and equal opportunity as far as getting the big knockouts we can get,’’ Shields said.

Shields said she hopes to ask the various regulating agencies and ruling bodies to consider the change.

“We’re just trying to figure out what’s the best way to go to the organizations about it,’’ said Shields, who will fight Habazin in Flint, Michigan, her hometown. “We don’t know if we want to go over and tell them, ‘Hey, maybe we could start off with 10 three-minute rounds, or maybe we can start off with 12 two-minute rounds. We’re just still going to try to figure it out and try to go with the best way to where it’s safe for the other world champions and also see what they agree with.

“I’m going to have a talk with all the girls who are world champions to kind of like have a vote on what they want to do because this is not just about me. I want it to about the other women, too, what they’re comfortable with.’’