NFL legend put to sleep with brutal knockout blow in boxing debut

NFL legend Adrian Peterson has given and taken some huge hits in his time, but nothing could’ve quite prepared him for this. 

Widely regarded as one of the best running backs in the history of the game, Peterson decided to put his hand up to have a go at lacing up some gloves and stepping into the ring.

His first opponent was fellow iconic NFL running back Le’Veon Bell - setting up a huge exhibition fight between the pair.

But after the ending we all witnessed, let’s just say Peterson will perhaps think twice before stepping into the ring again.

It wasn’t a bout full of entertainment, with a scarce amount of jabs thrown by each fighter and neither able to throw many power punches.

That was until a big right hand from Bell caught Peterson flush in the fifth round and sent him down to his backside at California Stadium in Los Angeles. 

The referee dictated that Peterson could not continue and Bell was declared the winner by KO.

The fight was part of the sparsely-attended event that was headlined by two YouTubers Austin McBroom and AnEsonGiv, with Gib winning by KO in the fourth round.

For Peterson, it signalled a blow for the Hall of Famer who is still hoping he’ll be picked up by an NFL team.

He finished last season on the injured reserve list for the Seattle Seahawks. 

Meanwhile, the event signalled the introduction of Le’Veon Bell as a fighter after he revealed he would be leaving the NFL to pursue a career as a boxer.

Bell had rushed 6,554 yards in the NFL and spent six seasons with the Steelers where he broke records such as most rushing yards in a game, and most scrimmage yards in a season.

The 30-year-old spoke of his pride in his victory after the fight.

He said: “I had a great performance, I put in a lot of hard work. All the hate just motivates me, it was a badge of honour on my shoulder and I use it to be the best I can be.

"It's a lot different, in football, it's team orientated, don't get me wrong I have my team in my corner but when I'm in the ring it's just me and my opponent whereas in football I've got 10 other guys helping me. I'm so proud of myself because I worked so hard to come this far.

"I envisioned this happening and for it to come true, I'm not surprised, but I'm just so happy. Boxing is one of the biggest challenges I've ever had to pick up. 

"It's about how far you want to go, you have something inside you that says you need to keep going further and that's what boxing brings out of me, this is the perfect sport, I want to see how far I can go, I want to test my limits. 

"I've put my hard work and passion into this and if I put my heart into this I know I can be the best at it."