Boxing

The tragic death of Anthony Joshua's trainer, Kevin "Latif" Ayodele, has resulted in an outpouring of support for the boxing star's longtime friend ... with more than $180,000 raised to help build a mosque in his honor after he was killed in a car crash in Nigeria.

The fundraiser was launched on Monday by SPOT Project, just hours after Ayodele and another member of Joshua's team, Sina Ghami, died when the Lexus SUV they were in slammed into a stationary truck on the side of the road. Joshua suffered minor injuries in the accident.

"I’m absolutely shocked that he died today and I want to be part of the people who help keep his legacy alive," the fundraiser’s website said. "This is why we’ve decided that we want to build a masjid and uphold his legacy."

Bad news out of the boxing world ... renowned heavyweight fighter Anthony Joshua was reportedly injured in a deadly car wreck in Nigeria -- just 10 days after he knocked out Jake Paul in the ring.

The accident occurred on the congested Lagos-Ibadan expressway in Ogun State in southwest Nigeria on Monday, when Joshua's vehicle "collided with a stationary truck," according to media reports, citing a police statement.

Joshua was a backseat passenger in the vehicle with 3 other people -- two of whom were killed, according to the reports. The boxing superstar was reportedly taken to a hospital for treatment after suffering minor injuries

Videos posted on social media show Joshua sitting dazed inside the car moments before being pulled out by Good Samaritans.

One of Shawn Porter's kids might be following in his boxing footsteps -- the former champ tells TMZ Sports his two-year-old son is already showing signs he's got the bug!!

Porter opened up on his fam with us ...  claiming out of all his kids, his youngest is the one who puts on the gloves and throws punches.

"The other two, I think they're gonna move on into some other things," Porter said, "But, this baby right here, he might be a scrapper."

Jake Paul is set to take a much-needed hiatus from the ring after breaking his jaw against Anthony Joshua last week ... but it sounds like he'll be staying busy outside the ring -- 'cause El Gallo has a bad case of baby fever!!

Paul spared a few minutes of his time on Logan's "Impaulsive" podcast not long after undergoing surgery on his jaw ... where they asked him what's next following his loss.

"I'm gonna take some time off to go support Jutta [Leerdam] at the Olympics," Paul said of his fiancée. "Then she's gonna move to Puerto Rico. Move her here. Maybe go snowboarding or something."

33 MILLION people tuned in to watch Jake Paul get knocked out by Anthony Joshua on Friday ... with Most Valuable Promotions sharing the official viewing numbers from the Netflix event.

According to Paul and Nakisa Bidarian's organization, the main event scored an estimated average minute audience of 33 million Live+1 viewers globally from start to finish.

To compare, Paul vs. Mike Tyson grabbed 108 million global viewers in November 2024.

The co-main event between Alycia Baumgardner vs. Leila Beaudoin also had a good amount of folks glued to the screens ... with an estimated 15 million global viewers.

What's next for Jake Paul after losing to Anthony Joshua?? First of all, some time off to heal his broken jaw ... but Most Valuable Promotions co-founder Nakisa Bidarian tells TMZ Sports El Gallo still wants to make up for his loss to Tommy Fury at some point in his career.

We caught up with Bidarian fresh off Friday's event in Miami ... and he said despite the knockout in the sixth round, there were plenty of wins for Paul.

"Every single MVP fighter won on the card other than Jake, but in my mind, Jake won in many other ways as well by showing his heart, his courage, and actually outboxing, from my perspective, Anthony Joshua in round one and round four."

Terence "Bud" Crawford's retirement this week shocked many, but not Shawn Porter ... 'cause he tells TMZ Sports the boxing champion had been talking about hanging up the gloves for "a long time."

In fact, Porter says Crawford began talking about the end of his boxing career just before their 2021 fight at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas.

"I knew once he fought Canelo [Alvarez], he felt like there was nothin' left for him," Porter said.

Jake Paul revealed some more details about his jaw surgery after Anthony Joshua knocked him out during a grisly match Friday night ... telling fans he had "some teeth removed" and even some plates added into his face!

The YouTuber-turned-pro-boxer shared the update on Instagram while thanking fans for their love and support alongside a snap from the hospital bed. He penned ... "Surgery went well thanks for all the love and support. 2 titanium plates on each side. Some teeth removed. Have to have only liquids for 7 days."

Jake Paul's jaw may have taken a beating Friday night, but you couldn't tell from looking at him Saturday ... because he seemed ready to let loose at a big after-party!

The influencer-turned-boxer attended a party thrown by Celebrity Sports Entertainment at a private mansion in Miami ... and, he looked like his usual self while walking into the affair -- shaking hands with guests and strolling through like nothing happened, though he did keep the chatter to a minimum.

JP posed for pics ... putting up his fists like he's ready for another fight despite Anthony Joshua knocking him out.

Jake Paul might have a broken jaw -- but he's already looking for his next fight ... seemingly summoning Canelo Alvarez to the ring after being KO'd by Anthony Joshua Friday night.

Check it out -- the YouTuber turned pro boxer confirmed he's got a double fracture in his jaw from Joshua's punch .... even posting his X-ray to prove it. In the same breath, he stunningly hinted at a match against Alvarez, captioning the pic ... "Double broken jaw. Give me Canelo in 10 days."

Clearly, Paul's not too worried about healing. He even poked fun at the matter from the hospital bed by lip-synching to audio saying ... "I'm a little f***ed up but will you take care of me forever and ever?" His brother, Logan Paul, hopped in on the fun as he stood seriously beside Jake's bed.

We told you all about the fight in Miami -- it was a pretty sloppy face-off, mostly controlled by Joshua, especially in the later rounds. Jake was dropped by Joshua 4 times, finishing him off with several shots in the 6th round.

The time for talking is over ... Jake Paul and Anthony Joshua are just hours away from stepping into the ring, and former heavyweight champ David Haye, who will be on the mic for Netflix, is providing El Gallo with the blueprint for victory!

TMZ Sports chopped it up with Haye just a few days before the highly anticipated scrap, and we asked him to throw on his analyst cap.

"[Jake] has to try to get the big man tired," Haye told us. "He's got a counter punch and you know, he's got to avoid taking Anthony Joshua's right hand down the pipe. Ask Francis Ngannou about how hard that is. And Francis Ngannou is a big man, [former] UFC champion."

Former boxing star Shawn Porter says there's good news and bad news for Jake Paul ahead of his fight against Anthony Joshua -- The good?? The "fixed fight" chatter will end after Friday. The bad?? It's probably because it'll be a rough night for him.

The 38-year-old champ joined TMZ Sports ahead of the big bout going down in a matter of hours on Netflix ... and he broke down his thoughts on El Gallo taking on the biggest challenge of his life -- an active former heavyweight champ and Olympic gold medalist.

Porter says anyone who actually fights knows Jake's bout against then-58-year-old Mike Tyson wasn't fixed -- the legend was simply old and not in shape. Joshua, on the other hand, is as fit as it gets.

Terence Crawford hasn't been retired for a full week, but he's already got another fight on his hands -- albeit a legal one -- 'cause the legendary boxer has been sued by a prominent jeweler who claims Bud lied to him and screwed him over.

In the lawsuit, filed on December 18 and obtained by TMZ Sports, 38-year-old Crawford is accused of hitting up Mazza New York in February 2024 for several custom pendants for him and his team (we previously reported when Bud copped 'em).

According to Mazza, Crawford became interested in a $139k Patek Philippe Aquanaut watch while in the store, but rather than buying it flat out, Mazza claims Bud suggested he pay $35k, and then would cover the rest by promoting the jewelry store on his trunks during a fight.

Mazza says he agreed, however, when Crawford's August 2024 fight against Israil Madrimov rolled around, the jeweler claims the logo "had completely fallen off" by the 4th round.

The No. 1 pound-for-pound boxer in the world is hanging up his gloves -- Terence Crawford just announced his retirement from the sport.

38-year-old Bud shared the news on his Instagram on Tuesday ... saying, "Walking away as a great with nothing else left to prove. #CrawfordERA."

Crawford ends his career with a perfect 42-0 record ... capping it off with a massive win over Canelo Alvarez in September after moving up in weight to secure his third undisputed championship. 41 million people watched the epic showdown and unanimous decision victory on Netflix.

Chrisean Rock might be reconsidering becoming a pro boxer, 'cause she just learned what it was like to get hit in the face by one of the world's best fighters -- when Ryan Garcia accidentally rocked her during a sparring session!!

Yes, the welterweight boxer sparred with Chrisean during his Kick stream on Monday ... and his natural instincts kicked in at one point in the friendly session.

At first, Garcia (24-2) was letting Chrisean throw all her punches, but when he tossed a quick one back, it landed -- leaving Chrisean in shock.