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The two star running backs of the NFL, Adrian Peterson and Le’Veon Bell, will be facing each other in a boxing ring, this summer, according to ESPN. Both Peterson and Bell have signed up contracts for a boxing exhibition which will be held on July 30 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. Check out the best bookmakers for betting on football.
Peterson and Bell will be fighting on the undercard of the event called Social Gloves 2, which is promoted by YouTuber Austin McBroom. They are not the only ones who will be duking it out; McBroom will fight fellow YouTuber AnEsonGib in the main event, while rapper Blueface will be fighting against former NBA player Nick Young on the undercard.
While this fight exhibition will be their first time competing in a boxing ring and give them some experience in boxing, this will not be considered the former All-Pro running backs’ professional boxing debut.
It was then revealed Bell has always been passionate about boxing. He used the sport as cardio training and improved his stamina during his time with the Pittsburgh Steeler, though he thinks boxing is a little different than football. His interest in boxing started to develop during his time away from football back in 2018.
“I try to find ways to be healthier,” he said when discussing his boxing regiment. “I want my body to be in great shape so as the season approaches, you’ll start seeing that form to take shape.”
As an NFL free agent, he has played eight games last season; five with the Baltimore Ravens and three with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Despite of his association with both aforementioned teams, he’s still best known for his tenure with the Steelers.
Bell was an All-Pro during the 2014 and 2017 seasons and has been the leader of the leaders of the Buccaneers’ defense since the team was going 2-14. In 2016, he broke the rushing records of the Steelers’ regular season and postseason.
The 37-year-old Peterson is a former MVP and has played four games last season, juggling his time between the Tennessee Titans and Seattle Seahawks due to being a free agent.
Petersons has said that he plans to retire as a member of the Minnesota Vikings, which is the team that drafted him back in 2007. He was an All-Decade performer for the 2010s and won his third rushing title in 2015 at 30 years old. Check out the best new sportsbooks for betting on football.
“I was here a decade – some great memories, some everlasting friends. I’m just forever indebted to the state of Minnesota. I’ll definitely be retiring a Viking, for sure,” he said according to Ben Goessling of the Star Tribune.
Andrew Gamble of the Daily Star thought that both Peterson and Bell could head to NFL training camp once their exhibition bout is completed.
However, this seems an unlikely scenario since neither of them received interest from teams during their offseason program, which features a roster size of 90 players. It is considerably far larger than the official 53-man roster that was submitted for the start of the season.
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