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Ryan Garcia says he knew he was going to knock out his opponent on Friday night -- which he did, BTW -- so he sent a little prayer up to the man upstairs on behalf of the guy.

We talked to the lightweight boxing sensation Friday at an after-party following his vicious one-punch, first-round knock out of Francisco Fonseca -- and Ryan tells us point blank ... he knew it would happen, and actually asked God to wake the dude up sooner than later.

ICYMI, it was a spectacular hit, and now Ryan's the talk of the town in boxing. People are calling him a phenom, and also the new poster boy of the sport. You can see why.

Word around the ring is ... Floyd Mayweather's protege, Gervonta 'Tank' Davis, took about 8 rounds or so put down Fonseca not too long ago -- and Ryan did it in a matter of seconds.

Obviously, the chatter about a potential matchup here is in full swing -- but Ryan doesn't wanna rush things, and actually wants to prove himself first with other opponents. Check it out ... he gives a list of names of guys he'd like to see first before Tank.

Spoiler ... sounds like he's confident he can take all of them down, and has a message for Floyd too.

BTW, Ryan had a subtle tribute to the late Kobe Bryant and his daughter, Gianna, on his trunks during the Valentine's Day bout -- and he broke it down for us here too.

Three people were shot outside Kandi Burruss' Georgia restaurant, and it appears cops know the identity of the culprit.

It happened Friday night at around 8 PM. A man walked into the Old Lady Gang restaurant in East Point and began firing.

A police official said the shooting was not random. Based on the police statement, it appears a man who was shot inside was the target, and then 2 other people with no connection were also hit.

Police are on the hunt for the suspect, but they say they don't have a motive.

Chaos erupted at the restaurant, which is just outside Atlanta. Kandi and her husband, Todd Tucker, own Old Lady Gang ... a popular eatery that features Southern cuisine.

J.J. Watt is preparing to be a married man today!!!

J.J. and fiancee Kealia Ohai are getting hitched Saturday at a fancy hotel in the Bahamas, and lots of family and friends are on hand for the nuptials.

The couple was hanging at the hotel all week with their broods, hanging by the pool and celebrating during meals.

A big tent was erected Friday for the ceremony ... it's pretty extravagant -- a tent with chandeliers.

As TMZ Sports reported, J.J. and Kealia took out a marriage license this week in Harris County, Texas. They have exactly 90 days to seal the deal, but we're told that all goes down this evening.

J.J. and Kealia got engaged 9 months ago. They started dating 2 years ago.  BTW, Kealia is a soccer star who plays for the Chicago Red Stars.

Congrats!!!

Jonah Hill has mad skills in the water, which is incredible ... considering it was a great fear of his until just last year.

Jonah hit the sand with his surfboard just before 10 AM Friday in Malibu.

Pretty impressive ... considering the waves off PCH can be pretty intense.

He joined around 20 people who were catching waves as they enjoyed the sunny SoCal weather. Sorry Chicago, sorry New York, sorry New Hampshire, sorry Vermont, sorry South Dakota ... and especially sorry North Dakota.

After surfing for an hour, Jonah mugged with some of his fellow surfers before braving Pacific Coast Highway for the ride home.

Back in August, when Jonah started surfing, he said, "Been terrified to surf my whole life. Totally random fear and at the same time always been a secret dream of mine."

Kendall Jenner, Bella Hadid and Justine Skye grabbed some grub Friday ... presumably to celebrate Galentine's Day.

The famous trio hit up Whole Foods in the Big Apple. Judging from the shopping cart, it doesn't exactly look like a feast, but not everyone has to gorge on V-Day ... or G-Day.

They were all in NYC for Fashion Week, which ended Wednesday. Unclear whether Kendall hooked up with Ben Simmons at some point Friday. It seems pretty clear they're back together.

Anyway ... they looked great traversing the aisles of Jeff Bezos' pricey store.

It's snuggle season and these famous faces have recruited their four-legged friends to join in on the festivities!

From celebs such as Zendaya and Hailey Bieber to Eric Decker and Sean Gunn it seems like everyone could use some love and affection ... and maybe a lint roller too!

These fur babies sure are getting spoiled by their parents, and it seems like they have no shame in sharing their connection!

Join in on some of the lovin' yourself by scrolling through our gallery of stars cuddling their furry friends! Get a good look at whose all nuzzled up!

J.J. Watt and his fiancee, Kealia Ohai, are planning to say their "I Dos" soon ... like, possibly this weekend soon.

The Houston Texans star and the Chicago Red Stars soccer star applied for their marriage license this week in Harris County, Texas ... which means they have 90 days from the date they filed for the license to tie the knot.

What's interesting ... Watt's been posting on his social media the past few days from an undisclosed tropical-looking location. You know, the type of spot perfect for a wedding ... especially right around Valentine's Day.

If they do end up getting hitched this weekend, it will be almost 9 months after they got engaged -- J.J. popped the question back in May 2019.

Of course, this came more than 2 years after the couple became Instagram official in early 2017.

Jussie Smollett is facing a new round of criminal charges in Chicago, and AA seat-gate has polarized the flying public. So we gotta ask ...

Two members of Machine Gun Kelly's crew are still feeling the sting over their involvement in a 2018 brawl ... 'cause they just got indicted by a grand jury.

MGK crew members Brandon Allen and John Cappelletty have each been slapped with 2 counts of felony aggravated battery for unleashing a can of whoop-ass on the actor Gabriel "G-Rod" Rodriguez ... this according to the Fulton County D.A.'s Office.

The case had been under misdemeanor review by the Fulton County Solicitor General's Office but it got kicked up to the D.A.'s Office for felony review ... and clearly the D.A. felt felony charges could be warranted and got the case to a grand jury.

If convicted, the crew members face up to 20 years in prison.

TMZ broke the story ... Allen and Cappelletty were busted back in October but G-Rod didn't just want justice against them. He also sued MGK claiming the rapper's the one who ordered the attack.

Pete Rose belongs in the Hall of Fame 'cause he's one of the greatest baseball players ever, and Cooperstown ain't the morality police ... so says Rudy Giuliani.

TMZ Sports talked to the former NYC mayor (and Donald Trump's attorney) in the city on Sunday ... and asked him about the president's Tweet imploring baseball to put Rose in the HOF.

Giuliani doubled down on Trump's message ... saying "Charlie Hustle" has more than paid the price for betting on baseball -- a cardinal sin in MLB -- over 30 years ago.

"I've long believed that Pete Rose has been left out long enough to make up for whatever he did wrong. It is a Hall that's supposed to recognize baseball accomplishments. He's one of the best of his era."

FYI -- Rose was a 17x All-Star, NL MVP, 3x World Series champ and has 4,256 hits -- more than any other MLB'er.

Giuliani went on to say the National Baseball Hall of Fame is full of guys who weren't the best people off the field ... but the HOF is about playing ball, and nothing else.

"I would say the Hall of Fame is to recognize great baseball players. Some of them may be moral, some may be average, some may be immoral. I don't think we're telling children to copy their behavior if we say they're great baseball players."

"So, it gets a little silly when we use it as a justice system."

It's a long shot, but Rose's standing within baseball could be changing ... 'cause just last week, he petitioned MLB commish Rob Manfred and requested reinstatement.

Don't let these two almost identical images of Justin Bieber distract you from the task at hand ... keep your focus as you try and find the sneaky switches that have been made to this yummy, yummy pic!

The singer was spotted out in New York City, just before the release of his new album, "Changes" ... and we have made a few of our own changes to this picture! Now it is up to you to see if you can figure out the differences between these two super-similar snaps!

The plans for Kobe and Gigi Bryant's Staples Center memorial are getting locked down and details for the service will be unveiled Friday.

Sources familiar with the planning tell us event organizers are working closely with Kobe's family to finalize who will speak at the service, and which singers and entertainers will take part.

We're told tickets will be available to the general public, although there will be a number of invited guests who get tickets first, including family, friends, players, NBA officials and, we're told, season ticket holders.

We're told the seats that remain will be sold to the public at a price that reflects the memories of Kobe and Gigi. We're told one of the options being discussed was to sell the upper bowl seats at $24.02 -- 24 representing Kobe's number and 2 representing Gigi's. The net proceeds will go to a charity selected by the family. Whatever the price ends up being, our sources say it will reflect and honor Kobe and Gigi.

We don't know which charity will be the beneficiary, but the Mamba Sports Academy was recently renamed Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation. As we reported ... Vanessa Bryant says the decision for the name change -- "Because there is no #24 without #2."

Our sources say there will be extra precautions taken in printing the tickets to make sure they can't be scalped.

The memorial is set to be televised live on multiple networks, and as we told you ... the streets around Staples will be closed for security and traffic control, so law enforcement is encouraging people who don't get tickets to stay home and watch it on TV.

Though the memorial is being held Feb. 24, Kobe and Gigi were buried in a private family service near the family’s Orange County home last week.

Days later, Vanessa opened up about losing both her husband and her 13-year-old daughter, saying ... "I can’t process both at the same time. It’s like I’m trying to process Kobe being gone but my body refuses to accept my Gigi will never come back to me."

She added ... "It feels wrong. Why should I be able to wake up another day when my baby girl isn’t being able to have that opportunity?! I’m so mad. She had so much life to live."

She concluded by saying ... "God I wish they were here and this nightmare would be over. Praying for all of the victims of this horrible tragedy. Please continue to pray for all."

A country singer under investigation for child sex abuse crimes has committed suicide ... TMZ has learned.

Daniel Lee Martin died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound ... this according to the Pasco Sheriff's Office in Florida.

Martin was arrested January 27th after the alleged victim, a child, told cops Martin exposed himself to them while the 2 were sitting on a sofa. Cops say the victim claimed Martin fondled himself and shared pornographic images. Cops went on to say there were numerous incidents where the victim spent the night at Martin's home.

He was released on $15,000 bail hours after his arrest.

Cops tell us they were attempting to serve a warrant at Martin's home Friday out of Tennessee, for 3-counts of sexual exploitation on a minor, along with aggravated sexual battery and solicitation of a minor to commit rape.

We're told when deputies entered the home, they found Martin dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Martin released several albums, including "All That I Am" in 2003 and "On My Way to You" in 2007.

Two cops walk into a bar, but they're refused service ... this ain't a setup for a joke, it allegedly happened in Vegas ... and now police are PISSED!!!

Here's the deal ... two Las Vegas Metro Police Department graveyard patrol officers say they were refused service from the bartender at The Lodge Cactus in Enterprise, NV when they stopped by Thursday for a bite on duty.

The officers say the bartender started shaking his head "no" as soon as they approached the counter, and motioned his fingers across his neck as if to say, "stop." The officers say they asked to take a seat and order some food, but claim the bartender told them, "We don't serve you guys here any more."

At first, the cops say they thought the bartender was joking ... but when they realized it was for real, they left the establishment without further incident.

Las Vegas Police Protective Association President Steve Grammas tells TMZ ... they are "disgusted" this happened, but believe restaurant management supports law enforcement and they're actively talking with ownership to resolve the issue.

The Lodge tells us folks from the corporate office came to the restaurant Friday, grabbed surveillance video and interviewed the bartender.

LVMPD also tells us ... it's a private restaurant and they can refuse service to who they want.

Vanessa Bryant just shared an emotional Valentine's Day message to Kobe ... saying to the Mamba, "To my forever Valentine, I love you so much."

"Missing you so much on your favorite holiday," she said in the social media post. "Te amo per sempre."

Along with the emotional message to the Lakers legend ... Vanessa also posted a throwback photo of the two, with Lauryn Hill's famous love song "Tell Him" playing in the background.

"Kisses to you and Gigi in heaven," Vanessa said. "Happy Valentine’s Day, my babies. With all my love, your boo-boo."

Kobe -- who passed away along with his daughter, Gianna, less than 3 weeks ago in a tragic helicopter crash -- would have surely loved the message.

Remember, Bryant is a HUGE Lauryn Hill fan ... even posting a picture with the Grammy winner and Vanessa back in 2018.

"@vanessabryant surprised me with a date night to see my sister Lauryn Hill at The Hollywood Bowl," Bryant wrote at the time. "Loved catching up with her. My wife is winning the battle of best date night ideas.. FOR NOW"

A public memorial for Bryant and his daughter is set to take place at Staples Center on Feb. 24. Vanessa is expected to attend.

Harriet Tubman's image on a debit card would stir plenty of debate -- but Harriet Tubman doing the "Wakanda Forever" pose on that card is really pissing off a lot of people.

OneUnited Bank -- which says it's America's largest black-owned bank -- announced the limited edition card Thursday ... in honor of Black History Month. The image on the card shows Harriet making fists, with her arms crossed over her chest.

It's the pose that was popularized in the movie, "Black Panther" a couple years ago. Y'know ... the gesture of solidarity for all citizens of the fictional African nation of Wakanda.

Despite the fact OneUnited is black-owned, the bank got dragged online, almost immediately after announcing the card. Most of the hate ripped the bank for making a buck off Tubman's image and pandering to black customers.

There's just one problem with all the outrage -- Harriet's NOT shouting out King T'Challa on the card. Not according to OneUnited Bank ... which says the gesture is American Sign Language for love.

They ain't lying ... that is ASL for love, although that fact is probably lost on millions of Marvel movie fans. Of course, that doesn't address the "cashing in" criticism.

We got "Dear White People" actor Obba Babatunde to weigh in on the issue, and his take is interesting. He tells us it very much seems like good intentions, but in this day and age ... it's easy for the message to misconstrued.