Le'Veon Bell vs. JMX: Fight Live Stream and Predictions
Former Pittsburgh Steelers running back will make another appearance in the boxing ring on Friday night. This time, he has popular FIFA YouTuber JMX on the docket as he looks to get his second win in the ring.
Bell, who played eight seasons in the NFL with the Steelers, New York Jets, Kansas City Chiefs, Baltimore Ravens and Tampa Bay Buccaneers has been trying his hand at the sweet science since his retirement from football.
Thus far, he has had mixed results.
An exhibition bout against fellow former NFL running back Adrian Peterson resulted in a fifth-round TKO win. However, his professional debut against former UFC fighter Uriah Hall ended in a unanimous-decision loss for Bell.
Now, he'll take on JMX, who has a 3-0 record in his boxing career. He most recently defeated TikTok celebrity Ginty in an exhibition bout.
With Bell looking to bounce back after his first loss, JMX figures to be an intriguing opponent. Here's all the info you need to catch the bout as well as a preview and prediction.
Fight Info
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When: Friday, April 21
Where: XULA Convocation Centre, New Orleans, Louisiana
Start Time: Main Card starts at 7 p.m. ET (Main event approximately 9:51 p.m. ET)
Live Stream: DAZN
Preview
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As far as fights between celebrities and influencers go, this is an interesting matchup. Le'Veon Bell obviously has the advantage of being an elite athlete having played professional football. However, his last outing in the ring left a lot to be desired.
Hall kept Bell at arm's length with a consistent jab, and the former running back had very few answers. His inability to close the distance or mount much offense outside of a clean punch or two led to a ho-hum fight that failed to create buzz.
That being said, he appears committed to working at boxing and has dreams beyond this fight. He told Karisa Maxwell of Sporting News that he would like to have a bout with boxing legend Floyd Mayweather.
"I just want to see what it would be like to be in the ring with him," Bell told Maxwell. "I just want to see how I look. I gotta see it."
If Bell wants to continue this second career as a boxer, he's going to have to show some growth. Entertainment value is the name of the game in influencer boxing, and he'll need to put on a show here.
JMX seems to understand that. The British YouTuber last appeared on X Series 002, a co-promotion between KSI's Misfits Boxing and DAZN. He swung for the fences until he ultimately got the knockout victory.
He's certainly not the epitome of boxing technique and finesse, but he's clearly willing to trade blows, which is what stands out in this kind of spectacle.
Prediction
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This is a perfect next fight for Bell. As a former NFL running back with All-Pro credentials, he has enough name recognition to be successful in this age of celebrity boxing.
He can't afford to have another performance like the one he had against Hall, though. The former UFC fighter was clearly too much of a step up in competition after just one fight against another former NFL player.
Where Peterson didn't have any combat experience, Hall has been in the cage with some high-level MMA fighters, including a legend in Anderson Silva.
Even so, Bell wasn't totally dominated by Hall. He waded through the limited offense that Hall put in front of him and landed a few shots when he was actually able to close the distance.
That will be a challenge again. JMX is 6'5" and should have a considerable reach advantage. But he doesn't have nearly the experience or technique that Hall had.
This should be a good experience for Bell to figure out how to counter taller, longer fighters. If he finds his opponent's chin, it could be a big step back into the win column for him.
Prediction: Bell via second-round TKO
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