Le'Veon Bell vs. Uriah Hall: Fight Odds, Live Stream, Predictions
After a successful exhibition bout, former All-Pro running back Le'Veon Bell will make his professional boxing debut on Saturday against former UFC fighter Uriah Hall at the Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona.
Bell scored a fifth-round knockout over fellow former NFL running back Adrian Peterson in his exhibition fight. Now, he'll see a serious step up in competition against a former UFC fighter.
The bout is set to take place as part of the undercard for the pay-per-view headlined by Jake Paul and Anderson Silva.
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The spectacle can be seen on Showtime Boxing Pay-Per-View for $59.99 in the United States. The fight can also be live-streamed on Fite.TV.
When: Saturday, October 29
Where: Desert Diamond Arena, Glendale, Arizona
Start Time: Main Card starts at 9 p.m. ET
Odds: Hall -480 (wager $480 to win $100); Bell +330 ($100 wager wins $330), via FanDuel Sportsbook.
Bell is technically still a free-agent running back after playing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Baltimore Ravens last season. However, he's adamant that he's committed to his second career in boxing.
"During the season, I've been getting calls," Bell said, per Grant Gordon of NFL.com. "During the season so far, at the beginning of the season, asking me to come on [their] team, and I've just been declining, because I've been trying to take this boxing seriously."
Bell showed some promising skills in his debut win over Peterson. He was fluid in his combinations, had good head movement and, of course, showed the power to put an opponent away:
Of course, that's going to be more difficult with an experienced combat sports veteran in the other corner.
Hall has 28 professional MMA fights under his belt with a career record of 17-11 that includes 13 knockout wins. Unlike some of the MMA fighters who have attempted a transition to boxing, like Ben Askren and Tyron Woodley, Hall is a striker first and foremost.
He has notable wins over Anderson Silva, Chris Weidman and Gegard Mousasi.
Hall's style in MMA was heavy on kicks, though, so it will be interesting to see how he makes the transition. According to him, it's a move he thought about before his career in MMA took off.
"I’m a competitor, man," he said in his pre-fight press conference. "This is a different stage. I’ve boxed before. Actually, a long time ago I did some amateur boxing. I said, ‘Listen, pique my interest to do something like this.’ My coach did, so I was like, alright, I’ll do it. I’m a competitor."
Throughout his MMA career, Hall has shown a knack for counterpunching and explosive power. Now, he'll have a chance to show he can bring that into the boxing ring.
The 38-year-old's experience and MMA-level striking make him the favorite despite Bell being eight years younger and coming off a knockout win.
The pace of the fight will be interesting to watch. The bout is only scheduled for four rounds, which could be a problem for Hall, who is used to having three five-minute rounds to enact his game plan.
While neither of these guys is likely to rise all the way to championship status, the fight does add two more non-traditional fighters to the pool of combatants for cards like this one.
Hall has expressed interest in fighting Paul, and Bell appears to be committed to making a name for himself in the boxing ring. The winner of this one would make sense as a future opponent for Paul.
Prediction: Hall defeats Bell via decision
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