NASCAR dropped an awesome "thanks for saving our legend" gift over the weekend ... donating tickets to the first responders at Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s plane crash -- and seems they loved the gesture!

44-year-old Junior was involved in a fiery plane wreck last week, where he, his wife, his daughter and two pilots miraculously survived when their aircraft went down in Elizabethton, Tennessee.

Everyone involved in the accident thanked the town's first responders for making sure they all got out OKAY ... and as a present, NASCAR gave them tix to Saturday night's Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway.

"We had a great time with our first responder family at the BMS night race!" The Carter County Sheriff's Office said.

"A big thank you to NASCAR for giving us and all the agencies that responded to Dale Jr.'s plane crash free tickets!"

Dale also chimed in with a thank-you message of his own -- breaking his silence on the crash -- writing Monday, "We are truly blessed that all on board escaped with no serious injuries, including our daughter, our two pilots and our dog Gus."

"I am thankful for the quick response of my pilots, local law enforcement, emergency personnel and hospital staff."

Chris Brown doesn't have to worry about a criminal case against him in Florida anymore -- the charge for allegedly sucker punching a photographer has been dropped.

It's a huge win for the singer, who got arrested last year after the altercation with a photog in a Tampa nightclub called AJA Channelside. We got some video of the alleged incident, but the State's Attorney's Office tells us, "After a thorough review of the facts and information from the alleged victim, our office determined there was insufficient evidence to prosecute."

More specifically, sources with knowledge of the case tell TMZ ... the photog "lacked credibility."

In case you need a refresher, Chris was booked to appear at the club, and according to club management ... Chis and co. were pissed the photog was snapping pics of them when they'd already tried shutting him down and refused any photos. Apparently, the guy kept at it while Chris was in a DJ booth, and CB allegedly lost it.

The photog says Chris socked him in the mouth, and caused some gnarly injuries. Chris was able to leave that night uncuffed, but about a year later ... he was nabbed by cops on an open warrant for his arrest when he returned to the Sunshine State.

As we reported, officers were waiting in the wings at Chris' concert in West Palm Beach last year, and after he was done performing ... they took him in to the station, where he posed for this mug shot. He was released shortly afterward on $2,000 bond.

Chris has gotta be happy about this -- considering he's still got an open rape investigation going on in France. He has not been charged there.

Two days before he died, Jeffrey Epstein made sure his affairs were in order -- signing a will that lays out where he's putting $577 million, and who's calling the shots.

Epstein signed his will on August 8 -- 2 days before his body was discovered at Manhattan's Metropolitan Correctional Center -- and the doc was filed last week in the U.S. Virgin Islands ... where the ex-hedge fund manager owned 2 islands worth tens of millions.

The eerie timing aside ... Epstein's will lays out the total amount he's dumping into a trust ... a whopping $577,672,654. Keep in mind, the trust might already have even more cash in there -- we just don't know as the trust docs aren't public.

As for who stands to inherit that massive fortune -- there are no beneficiaries listed. Although, he does list "next of kin" as his brother, Mark Epstein ... but that doesn't guarantee he's inheriting anything. Again, the trust would spell that out.

The docs, first posted by the New York Post, say his executors are Darren Indyke and Richard Kahn ... each of whom will get $250k for carrying out Epstein's final wishes.

Here's a quick breakdown of Epstein's assets, per the will. $56 million-plus in cash, a little over $14 mil in fixed income, nearly $113 mil in equities, about $195 mil in hedge funds and private equity ... not to mention 6 properties/estates worth well over $178 million.

The BIG3 was ON FIRE over the weekend -- with a ton of huge stars hitting the American Airlines Center in Dallas for the BIG3 Ballout ... capped off with a live performance from T.I.

The place was rockin' ... with Ice Cube, LL Cool J, Gary Payton and more showing support for the league's intense 6-game showcase just 1 week before the playoffs begin. The championship game is on Sept. 1 at Staples Center.

The basketball action was solid -- with stars like Tri-State's Amar'e Stoudemire and Aliens' Greg Oden battling it out on the court ... where things got pretty chippy between the 2 big men.

And, with so many players in the league looking to make the jump back to the NBA, it's a pretty big deal to have Dallas Mavericks honcho Mark Cuban sitting in the front row.

By the way, Lisa Leslie's Triplets squad is currently in 1st place -- with stars like Jannero Pargo and Joe Johnson, who just set a BIG3 record for points scored in a season (175).

The Triplets are 7-1 through 8 weeks  -- with Stephen Jackson's Killer 3s squad in 2nd place with a 5-3 record.

Wendy Williams wasn't fazed at all by 50 Cent's attempt to deny her entry at his big pool party ... she still got what she came for.

Sources close to the talk show host tell TMZ ... video of Wendy appearing to have trouble getting into Fiddy's Tycoon party at BarCode in New Jersey Sunday doesn't tell the full story. We're told she got in with no trouble, along with her son, Kevin Jr., and they kicked it with Snoop Dogg.

Our Wendy sources say she took her son to the party for his 19th birthday because he's a huge Snoop fan, so she wanted to get him a photo with the rapper. Snoop was part of the lineup headlined by 50 along with guys like Jacquees, Fabolous and Trey Songz.

We're told her plan went down without a hitch -- security with the Elizabeth, NJ police department escorted her and her son inside directly to Snoop's section ... no run-ins with 50. As for Snoop ... he was his usual awesome self and showed them nothing but love.

However, our sources say Wendy did find out afterward that 50 Cent had put her on the blacklist for the party, but because of her connection with "her family town" of Elizabeth ... she didn't have any issues.

Of course, 50 paints a different picture of what went down. He shared the video of Wendy outside the club Sunday and wrote, "you can’t just show up to my PARTY if you been talking about me."

Fiddy added, "B*TCH wait out side" ... but to be fair, he never claimed she got turned away and never got in.

Our Wendy sources say only stayed at the party for about 20 minutes -- she bailed after she successfully introduced her son to Snoop and went to get food.

As for the beef between 50 and Wendy ... it's been a war of words for a couple years now, and it doesn't look like it's any closer to being squashed. We're told it's not going to stop Williams from doing whatever the hell she wants to do, though.

Aziz Ansari is in much calmer waters now when it comes to the dating scene -- and he and his GF are partaking in one of the finest parts of European culture ... topless beaches!

The comedian was on the Spanish island of Formentera Sunday with his girlfriend, Serena Campbell ... they've reportedly been dating for at least a year now. Serena started out in a two-piece, but quickly ditched the upper half as they headed for the ocean.

Worth noting, Serena's from Denmark -- so this topless thing is nothing new for her.

One of the first times Aziz and Serena were spotted out in public was in 2018 when they showed up together at the U.S. Open tennis championship in NYC.

He's also made reference to her in his latest stand-up special, "Right Now," which is currently airing on Netflix. He joked that people still have something to say about him being in an interracial relationship -- whether it's blatant racism, or fake woke-ness.

One thing's for sure -- Aziz being tied down should certainly help with keeping him out of the headlines over his 2017 #MeToo moment, which many people feel was unwarranted, anyway.

Elton John wants the media to back the hell off of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle -- and warns if the harassment continues they'll end up like Princess Diana.

Sir Elton is livid about various reports and criticisms of the Royal couple going on gas-guzzling private jet trips -- most recently to Elton's home in France -- while advocating for environmental issues.

The famous singer says he's "deeply distressed" over the "distorted and malicious" accounts of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex visiting him last week, and feels the need to protect Harry and his family "from the unnecessary press intrusion that contributed to Diana’s untimely death."

Elton says the couple's recent private vacay at his home was his way of providing them a peaceful break after a hectic year and their dedication to charity ... but it required a private jet ride for security reasons.

Because of Harry's commitment to the environment, Elton says he ensured the flight was carbon neutral -- by contributing to Carbon Footprint (a company supporting renewable energy) -- so the haters can shut it.

Elton insists it's time for the attacks to stop, saying, "cease these relentless and untrue assassinations on their character that are spuriously crafted on an almost daily basis."

As you know, Elton and Diana were very close friends, and clearly ... he's looking after her son like a protective papa bear.

Moments after Cedric Benson crashed his motorcycle into a minivan Saturday, several bystanders slammed on their brakes and raced to the scene to try to save the ex-NFL star's life, new video shows.

The raw footage is graphic so we're not publishing it -- instead, we've cut screen grabs showing the efforts to save Cedric and his female passenger ... with one person even using a fire extinguisher to put out flames on the former running back.

As we previously reported, Benson and his passenger were riding a BMW motorcycle on a popular highway in Austin, Texas at around 10:20 p.m. when he collided with a white minivan.

In new footage obtained by TMZ Sports, you can see at least 6 cars have pulled over near the crash and a handful of people raced over to Cedric to help out.

The video shows Cedric's burning motorcycle propped against the driver's side door of the mini van, which is fully engulfed in flames. Cedric and his passenger are down on the road nearby.

The person who shot the video notes that no emergency personnel had arrived when the video was being shot -- you don't see any flashing lights.

One good Samaritan grabbed a fire extinguisher and tended to Benson, who appeared to be smoldering from the wreck.

Fire and rescue arrived a short time later -- but it was too late. Benson and his passenger were pronounced dead on the scene by law enforcement officials. No cause of death has been officially released.

36-year-old Benson had sadly posted a picture of his bike on Instagram just hours the before the crash, saying, "My Saturday evening."

We've reached out to the Austin Police Department for comment on the new footage ... and they say they'll have more details on the accident later Monday.

DMX has a surefire way of guaranteeing your girlfriend/fiancee takes you back after a bad fight ... just propose to her again in front of lots of people. Trust, it works.

The Dog recommitted to his most recent baby mama, Desiree Lindstrom, this weekend at their son Exodus' 3rd birthday party at Sky Zone. It's kinda funny and super sweet ... X turned a same-day breakup into a renewed engagement. And, she said yes!!!

Check out the vid ... DMX tells a crowd of friends and fam that he and Desiree had just broken up that same day, which is why she was wearing her engagement ring around her neck.

He gets a little choked up before getting on bended knee and whipping out a new engagement ring, complete with a case and everything. Like they say, X gon' give it to ya.

Desiree accepts his proposal anew, and they kiss and pose for pictures. Clearly they're back together ... and back on to get married (we think). Sources tell us DMX and Desiree have been engaged for nearly 4 years now, about half of their 8-year relationship.

And, yet, no walk down the aisle that we're aware of. Maybe this will serve as a prompt kick in the ass that'll get the wedding bells going sooner than later.

The actress who paid for a billboard to catch Tyler Perry's attention can now say it was worth every penny ... because she scored a gig on his new TV project.

We broke the story ... Racquel Bailey told TMZ, despite receiving a light scolding from Perry for going the billboard route, the stunt landed her an audition. Of course, it was a happy coincidence that Tyler was already familiar with her work.

The story has an even happier ending now -- sources close to Racquel tell us she officially got cast 2 weeks ago in TP's new show for BET called "Sistas." We're told she shot with Perry last week in Atlanta and will appear in the finale of season 1, and possibly in season 2.

Our sources say Bailey plays a police officer who had a past relationship with one of the lead characters. Perry was on set directing the episode in which Bailey will appear ... a dream come true for her.

The success of the billboard doesn't stop there either. We're told after it went viral, Racquel was contacted by several casting directors and got about 20 auditions ... which led to booking 2 roles even before the "Sistas" gig.

She has more major auditions coming up with some big-time directors and we're told she's incredibly grateful to Perry for giving her a boost.

Surprise! The Rock is a married man -- he finally worked up the courage to say "I do" to his longtime girlfriend, and it went down in his home state of Hawaii.

Dwayne Johnson and Lauren Hashian tied the knot Sunday after more than a decade of dating, and they both wore white -- a beautiful full-length gown and veil for her ... and a button-down with white pants for him to really rock the island vibes.

The Rock shared the big news Monday morning, writing on IG, "We do. August 18th, 2019. Hawaii. Pōmaikaʻi (blessed)." He also shared a pic of himself dipping Lauren into a romantic kiss with an ocean backdrop.

His acting partner, Kevin Hart, was one of the first to congratulate him on wifing up Lauren.

The couple's been together since 2007, and they have 2 daughters together -- 3-year-old Jasmine and 1-year-old Tiana. Johnson also has an 18-year-old daughter from a previous marriage.

As for the timing of the wedding, it comes just weeks after The Rock announced he "quietly retired" from wrestling.

Congrats!

French Montana was the man of the hour at the grand opening of a restaurant Sunday night, and along with his pals, Drake and Fat Joe ... he was definitely living his best life.

The 3 amigos yukked it up while throwing back expensive shots of liquor at Papi Steak in Miami, and not that they need a special occasion to rage ... they were there celebrating French as Haute Living's latest cover man.

Montana's luxury lifestyle mag issue coincides with the upcoming release of his new album, and fittingly ... it touches on some of his famous friendships.

The event in his honor was part of the Hublot Collectors Dinner, which was also attended by Hublot President Jean-Francois Sberro, Haute Living CEO Kamal Hotchandani and author Deyvanshi Masrani. Tres bougie! The crew partied it up afterwards at David Grutman's club LIV.

French is in very good company, btw -- last month's cover man was NFL star and Super Bowl champ Julian Edelman.

Cristiano Ronaldo is publicly acknowledging he paid $375,000 in hush money to the woman who claims she was raped by the soccer star in 2009 -- but still adamantly denies wrongdoing ... and it's all spelled out in new legal docs obtained by TMZ Sports.

Kathryn Mayorga had claimed she took the money from CR7 back in 2010 as part of a private settlement -- and has previously said she signed a confidentiality agreement vowing to keep her mouth shut about the alleged incident.

As we previously reported, Mayorga claims she met Ronaldo at Rain Nightclub in the Palms hotel in June 2009 and went to party with him in his penthouse suite ... where he raped her.

She went to police, but never identified Ronaldo by name -- only describing him as a huge soccer star.

Back in 2018, she publicly ID'd Ronaldo and cops launched an investigation -- but officials ultimately decided NOT to bring charges against CR7 due to lack of evidence.

Ronaldo has adamantly denied the allegations.

Mayorga filed a civil lawsuit against Ronaldo -- and now, Ronaldo has filed new court docs asking a judge to throw out the case because they have a binding settlement agreement PLUS he claims the statute of limitations has LONG expired.

But, what's interesting ... in the same docs, Ronaldo finally acknowledges the amount paid to settle with Mayorga in 2010.

"Mr. Ronaldo paid Plaintiff the sum of $375,000 and both parties agreed to be bound by explicit confidentiality and non-disparagement obligations," the new court docs filed by Ronaldo state.

Several lines of the new court docs explaining the details of the settlement have been redacted -- but Ronaldo's point is clear.

He also says in the court docs the settlement money is NOT an admission of guilt ... but rather just the cost of keeping a legal dispute out of the media.

Justin and Hailey Bieber are thiiiiiissss close to finally pulling the trigger on a date for their formal wedding celebration ... we've learned it looks like the party will go down next month.

Sources close to the couple tell TMZ ... they're eyeing a date in September for close friends and family to help celebrate their marriage. The timing shouldn't come as much of a shock, since they got hitched last Sept. 13 at an NYC courthouse.

The shindig could serve as both an anniversary and wedding party.

Our sources say the exact day hasn't been set ... but JB and HB plan to send out invites in a week.

As for married life ... we're told Justin is in a great space both personally and creatively and couldn't be happier. Friends say he and Hailey are a perfect fit.

Justin posted a love letter to Hailey Thursday, saying, "I fall more in love with you every single day. You are the greatest thing that has ever happened to me. I would be lost without you."

Justin and Hailey have had 3 false starts on a formal wedding celebration ... the dates weren't working for some of the guests so the "save the date" had to be scrapped 3 times. But, this time it looks like a go.