Former NFL running back Le’Veon Bell shocked everyone when he announced that he would be retiring from football to pursue a career in boxing.
Many were skeptical that he would ever go through with this plan, but reports have emerged about his first-ever professional boxing match against some stiff competition with a high level of experience in combat sports.
According to NFL insider Adam Schefter, Bell will face off against former UFC middleweight Uriah Hall later this month.
The fight will be part of Most Valuable Promotions’ event on October 29th headlined by former UFC legend Anderson Silva facing off against YouTube sensation Jake Paul.
Bell is coming off his first exhibition matchup against another former NFL running back in Adrian Peterson, where he was able to get a fifth-round knockout over Peterson.
Considering neither Peterson nor Bell had any experience boxing before this fight just one month ago, many believe Bell is making a huge mistake by stepping in to face a fighter as credentialed as Uriah Hall.
Hall recently announced his retirement from MMA back in August, but it appears this opportunity against an inexperienced opponent like Bell in a different sport was enticing for him.
While Hall is not all that well-versed in boxing, his experience in the UFC as primarily a striker makes for a huge threat to Bell in this matchup.
It can certainly be argued that this matchup shouldn’t even have been sanctioned considering the huge disparity in combat sports experience.
Regardless, we will certainly see Le’Veon Bell face a far stiffer test later this month than what he previously faced in Adrian Peterson.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.