Boxing

Odell Beckham Jr. got on the phone and delivered a hell of a pump-up speech to Canelo Alvarez before his fight against Gennady "GGG" Golovkin ... telling the star boxer to straight up "kick his ass!"

The convo happened via FaceTime on Friday -- the day before the Canelo-GGG trilogy fight will go down -- and OBJ was super hyped to hop on the horn with the fighter.

The NFL star told Canelo he's actually the reason he in fell in love with boxing.

"Big fan of you!" OBJ said on the phone. "You made me like boxing."

"Let's go ahead, let's kick his ass," the Rams wideout added. "Let's show him one, two and the third one is all you."

Canelo appreciated the love ... and promised to deliver a victory "for you, my friend."

The two sports giants have never met each other -- but Odell told Canelo he was hoping to catch up with him in person soon.

The Canelo-GGG tilt, meanwhile, is slated to happen at T-Mobile Arena in Vegas on Saturday when Alvarez will be defending several belts -- including the WBA Super title.

This will be the third time the two have fought -- back in 2017, their bout ended in a draw, and in 2018, Alvarez won by majority decision.

Alvarez is the favorite to win this weekend -- both at the sportsbooks ... and, clearly, in Odell's heart!

Kofi Kingston is in awe at how fast Logan Paul has transitioned into a WWE Superstar ... telling TMZ Sports the YouTuber's skills in the squared circle are unreal!

We recently caught up with Kofi -- a 14x WWE tag team champ -- out at LAX, and he told us Paul's star power, coupled with his ability to pick up the craft quickly, makes him a perfect fit for WWE.

"To me, it just makes sense," Kingston said. "When you think about how popular Logan Paul is and even his entire story. His come-up and what he's been able to do in the world of boxing and entertainment in general, it would only make sense for us to be hand in glove."

Kofi praised Paul -- who alongside The Miz, wrestled his first match against Rey and Dominik Mysterio at WrestleMania 38 -- saying, "he has a bright future ahead of him."

"To see what he did in the ring is very impressive," Kofi said.

"Especially as a performer who has seen a lot of people and has gone through the whole learning process, he shouldn't be that good, that quickly."

Kingston -- 1/3 of the "The New Day" -- said he takes Logan's word when he says pro wrestling is harder than boxing  ... adding it's a "true art."

"Well, I've never been a professional boxer, but it's awesome to hear him say that and kind of put respect on the grind that is WWE."

Kingston also said Big E's injury -- where he was dropped on his neck by Ridge Holland following a botched move -- reminds him how scary it is being a WWE performer.

"With E's situation and him breaking his neck ... you're reminded of just how dangerous what we do is," Kofi said. "It only takes one second for everything to go awry."

Tyron Woodley's ready to give the people what they want ... a fight between the future UFC Hall of Famer and YouTube star-turned-boxer, KSI!

Some backstory -- KSI blasted out a poll to his 8 million Twitter followers, asking a simple question ... would you like to see me fight T-Wood, Dillon Danis, Slim, or Dr. Mike in January?

And, the winner (at the time we're writing), with 264,446 votes or 36% of the followers polled ... Tyron Woodley. So, we asked the MMA star if he was interested in the fight.

"KSI, I like that he's energetic, he's all into it, he's all over the place but he's gonna get f****d up playing around me. My new slogan is 'don't get f****d up by having me f****d up' and he's had me f****d up for a long time talking shit about my name."

40-year-old Woodley then sent a message directly to the 29-year-old YouTuber.

"KSI, I know you watching because you watch everything I do. You probably was a fan of me like everybody else. If you're watching this, you wanna be a fighter, you want the respect, get the full training camp to yourself as you requested."

"I'll get the full training camp. January, we can get it cracking. We can get it cracking in White Castle. We can get it cracking in U.K. We can get it cracking in Vegas."

As for the fighter's resumes ... Woodley, of course, is one of the best MMA fighters of all time.

But, KSI isn't a scrub. He recently fought twice in one night ... albeit against overmatched opponents. He knocked out Swarmz and 2-5 pro boxer Luis Alcaraz Pineda at the O2 Arena in London.

Woodley also broke down some of what he was dealing with behind the scenes leading up to the second Jake Paul fight, and he expressed interest in a scrap with Tommy Fury.

Bottom line ... Tyron is anything but retired, and he's ready to dole out an ass whoopin'!

Best rotation ever??

Mike Tyson and Ric Flair were on cloud nine Tuesday night ... 'cause the two sports legends smoked doinks together after attending a cannabis conference in Chicago -- and judging by the vid, it was some GOOD stuff!!

The Nature Boy posted a clip alongside Iron Mike ... lighting up blunts on camera, smoking and giggling together out in the streets.

"Smokin' That Ric Flair Drip All Night Long With @miketyson! WOOOOO!" Flair captioned the video.

Tyson and Flair became partners in Mike's "Tyson 2.0" business earlier in the year -- and the two collaborated on Naitch's "Ric Flair Drip" cannabis line, according to Benzinga.

Flair and Tyson smoked multiple blunts on stage at the conference, according to Benzinga ... where Mike and Ric touted the benefits of smoking marijuana over using drugs like Xanax for pain relief.

Flair said during the event that smoking pot was a much better way to manage the pain he was experiencing due to the stress the wrestling industry put on his body.

This isn't the first time the two legends blew down ... Mike and Ric smoked with Rick Ross at a Benzinga Cannabis event in April -- after the boxer famously beat up a man on an airplane.

Jake Paul isn't duking it out with Anderson Silva 'til next month, but he's already got his eyes on his next opponent after Spider ... telling TMZ Sports he wants to "slap the Stockton out of" Nate Diaz!!

37-year-old Diaz hinted at making the switch to boxing after his big win over Tony Ferguson on Saturday ... which certainly got Jake's attention, considering Nate's UFC contract has ended.

We spoke with Paul at his news conference on Monday ... and asked if going up against the California native was a real possibility after his Oct. 29 bout.

"100%, 100%," Jake said. "I'll slap the Stockton out of him."

Paul says he's not looking past Silva, though ... adding he's a "crazy tough opponent" who he respects a ton.

Jake has been super complimentary of Diaz as well ... tweeting out praise for him over the weekend.

"Nate Diaz is a muthuf***in legend and would have slapped the s*** out of Khamzat [Chimaev]."

There are other guys Jake name-drops ... and they all sound like pretty good matchups.

Jermall Charlo just scored a big win in his assault case ... prosecutors tell TMZ Sports they're dropping the felony charge against the star boxer.

According to court documents, Charlo was accused of roughing up a family member during a Sept. 5, 2021 incident in Fort Bend County, Texas. He was eventually arrested over it all back in February, and charged with felony assault.

But a spokesperson for the Fort Bend County District Attorney's Office tells us they filed a motion to dismiss the case on Monday "based on the reason that we cannot prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt."

"Evidence developed in a way that did not support the charge to conclusion," the spokesperson said.

Charlo's attorney said in a statement Monday the 32-year-old was "very happy" with the decision.

"Nine witnesses came forward to say Charlo never hit his 21-year-old nephew," said Charlo's lawyer, Kent Schaffer. "Jermall is very happy. He can concentrate on preparing for his next fight now that this distraction has been removed."

Another Charlo -- Jermall's twin brother, Jermell Charlo -- is still facing legal troubles related to the case, however.

Prosecutors tell us Jermell -- who was hit with a misdemeanor charge after he was accused of telling the alleged Jermall victim during the incident, "I will kill you with my bare hands" -- is still facing a misdemeanor charge of making a terroristic threat.

Jake Paul says Dana White still owes him a million-dollar check for beating Ben Askren, but the Problem Child is once again proposing a friendly wager with the UFC honcho ... saying he's willing to put $5 MILLION on the line when he fights Anderson Silva.

Jake and Spider were holding a news conference in L.A. on Monday ahead of their October 29 bout in Arizona ... when Paul mentioned how his nemesis thought he'd never take on the challenge ahead of him.

"Dana White did not think I'd take this fight," Jake said minutes ago. "And Dana, I know you're watching, bro. You still owe me a million dollars from when you bet against me on Ben Askren."

"I want you to come out of hiding, stop being a bitch and make a bet against me and Anderson and actually pay up this time because you didn't think I would take this fight."

"So let's make a bet," he added. "Let's put a mil, let's put two mil, let's put 5 mil on it. But I bet you won't, Dana, because you're a bitch."

As for a bet between Jake and Anderson ... Spider says he hates tattoos, so a body ink bet is off the table. With that being said, Jake says he'll get clever and figure something out.

Don't expect Dana to respond to Jake's offer -- 'cause as he told TMZ Sports last week, he's sick of talking about the guy.

Robert Kraft had a champion in his corner as New England kicked off its 2022 season ... with the Patriots owner hosting none other than Mike Tyson in his suite.

Iron Mike was on hand at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, FL. ... where he watched as the Pats fell to the division rival Dolphins, 20-7.

Mike had a seat right next to Kraft, who was sitting next to his son, Jonathan, -- and the two appeared to be chummy throughout the game as the Pats and 'Fins duked it out on the field.

No word on what exactly led to the meetup ... but Mike and Kraft seemed to have a lot to talk about throughout the duration of the game.

The day didn't go without an awkward moment, though -- At one point, Tyson went to give Kraft a fist bump, who missed the cue, but the two managed to clean it up at the end.

Ryan Garcia is officially a homeowner ... TMZ Sports has learned the star boxer has copped his first house -- an amazing, $3 million crib in Southern California.

The pad is located in Porter Ranch, roughly 30 miles north of downtown Los Angeles, and Garcia just sealed the deal on it this week.

The two-story property features 3,680 square feet and comes with five bedrooms and six bathrooms.

The outside has a luxury pool, spa, an outdoor fireplace ... and insane views of L.A.

There's a cool bonus, too ... it's fully designer furnished -- so the super lightweight boxer can move in ASAP.

Garcia's buyer's agent, Brandon Soufer of The Agency, was pumped about the deal ... saying on social media, "Congratulations to my brother @kingryan for purchasing his first home with me."

"I am honored to have had the opportunity to be a part of this big step in your life. Cheers to many more accomplishments together for us to celebrate. Love you my brother."

Garcia deserves to treat himself ... the 24-year-old just won in July after knocking out Javier Fortuna in 6 rounds and continues to add on Ws to his undefeated record (23-0).

Adrian Peterson and Le'Veon Bell came face-to-face for the final time ahead of their highly anticipated boxing match on Saturday ... and they look ready to brawl!!

Peterson and Bell, two current/former(?) NFL running backs, both weighed in for the Social Gloves 2 event in Los Angeles ... and locked eyes with one another before they go to war in the ring.

AP -- who was known for his bruising style as a running back -- displayed a great physique ... weighing in at 218 pounds according to the scale.

Bell -- who was more known for his shiftiness coming out of the backfield -- hit the scale and appeared to be in awesome shape for a guy who ran for over 6,500 yards in his career.

LB weighed in at 204 pounds on the scale ... so he's conceding a 14-pound weight difference to Peterson when the two collide on Saturday.

But, the video of both future Hall of Fame running backs sparring this week has boxing fans encouraged that both men will deliver a good, solid fight.

Dana White is making one thing clear -- he's absolutely FED UP with Jake Paul ... telling TMZ Sports he has no interest in talking about the YouTuber's fight against UFC legend Anderson Silva.

It's no secret -- the UFC honcho and Jake have become hated rivals in recent years ... with Paul constantly calling him out for how he runs his business, and White criticizing the Problem Child's relevance and talent in combat sports.

After his fight was announced this week, Jake posted an old clip of Dana, who previously said he doubted Paul would ever call out Anderson, hyping up Silva's skills in the boxing ring. Now that the fight's been made, we had to ask White about the matchup.

Well -- we tried, at least ... before White cut us off.

"I don't care about that. I literally was saying the other day, everybody keeps asking me about Jake. This guy's not even in my sport!!"

"I don't care."

What Dana DOES care about is UFC 279 on Saturday ... where Nate Diaz and Khamzat Chimaev are set to duke it out in Las Vegas in one of the most anticipated fights of the year.

Adrian Peterson ain't done with football yet ... the future Hall of Famer says he still wants to play -- and he revealed to TMZ Sports he's got his eye on joining one of the three big Super Bowl contenders this year.

The former Minnesota Vikings star -- who's training his ass off to fight Le'Veon Bell in a celeb boxing match this weekend -- said despite his newfound goals in the ring ... he's hoping someone gives him a call to play football later this season.

Specifically, the running back said he's targeting the Bills, Rams and 49ers.

"There's a couple teams out there," A.P. admitted out in L.A. on Wednesday while gearing up for his big fight night with Bell. "Buffalo Bills would be a good team. The Rams, I don't know what need they'll have at running back. San Fran would be a good look."

Peterson said while Buffalo, L.A. or San Francisco would be ideal -- the plan is to ultimately chase a ring somewhere this year.

"There's a lot of teams that have the opportunity to advance far into the playoffs that I've thought about," he said.

For now, Peterson -- who last played for the Seahawks in 2021 -- is solely focused on boxing ... as his match with Bell is scheduled to go down at Banc of California Stadium on Saturday.

Adrian tells us he isn't worried about the age gap between him and the former Pittsburgh Steelers star (37 to 30) ... and is hoping his power and awareness get him a win.

Adrian Peterson and Le'Veon Bell finally gave us a long look at their boxing skills ahead of their big fight night ... with both dudes hitting the mitts at a workout in L.A. on Wednesday.

The guys took to a local gym's canvas and threw combos repeatedly -- just three days before they'll scrap at Banc of California Stadium.

Peterson put on the gloves first, and while his workout was less intense than Bell's ultimately was ... he showcased what appeared to be some big power.

A shirtless Le'Veon went next -- and he looked good. He was smooth and precise while showing off a chiseled frame.

The guys' fight is all part of the Social Gloves 2 event -- and will take place just before YouTubers Austin McBroom vs. AnEsonGib square off.

Blueface will not be stepping into the ring with Nick Young on Saturday -- the rapper has not yet been approved for a boxing license ... and now event promoter Austin McBroom is scrambling to find a replacement with only 3 days until fight night.

TMZ Sports is told the 25-year-old Thotiana rapper received a letter from the California State Athletic Commission on Tuesday informing him his application for a pro boxing license in the state would not be granted until he appeared before the organization in October.

Obviously, that means Blueface can't fight Swaggy P on Saturday's Social Gloves 2 card at Banc of California Stadium in L.A.

McBroom is headlining the event with rival and fellow YouTuber, AnEsonGib. Adrian Peterson and Le'Veon Bell are also fighting.

Of course, Blueface has made headlines lately for several violent altercations with his girlfriend Chrisean. It's unclear if those incidents played a role in the denial of a license.

It's not the first bout Blueface has been pulled from ... he was taken off the recent KSI card at the O2 Arena in London, where he was supposed to fight FaZe Temperrr.

Now, McBroom and his partners are working tirelessly to find a suitable opponent for the 6'7" former NBA star.

Story developing ...

Austin McBroom is clearly ready for his fight this weekend ... 'cause he flattened one of his sparring partners in a recent training sesh -- and the YouTuber's violent KO punch was all caught on video obtained by TMZ Sports.

McBroom, who's slated to finally box AnEsonGib at the Social Gloves 2 event at Banc of California Stadium on Saturday night, showed off his improving skills in a workout just days ahead of the huge fight night.

In the footage, you can see McBroom probing his opponent -- before dropping him with a vicious right hand to the jaw.

The force of the blow was so heavy, the dude immediately crumpled to the canvas -- and nearly spilled out of the ring in the process.

McBroom has showcased his quick hands before -- pummeling Bryce Hall in their fight back in 2021 -- but he's clearly taken things up a notch.

He and Gib have exchanged trash talk repeatedly over the last few months in the buildup to the fight -- and the guys nearly came to blows in the TMZ office last week. Seems McBroom is more than ready to settle things once and for all this week.

A man who's been hit by both Adrian Peterson and Le'Veon Bell in his football career is weighing on the celeb boxing match between the two NFL stars ... and he's giving the edge to AP in the fight.

Orlando Scandrick -- the longtime Dallas Cowboys cornerback who played 11 seasons in the NFL -- says in his mind, Peterson is the safer pick if you're looking to bet on the match later this week.

"I've seen a couple of Instagram highlights and Adrian looks very, very strong," Scandrick tells us. "I know Adrian is very, very determined. I know he's a hard worker, he gives it all at everything."

"I mean, I'd be surprised to not see Adrian be victorious."

Bell and Peterson will square off on Saturday as part of the Social Gloves 2 event at Banc of California Stadium. The betting favorite is Le'Veon -- but it's clear, Scandrick, who played against both running backs multiple times in his career, sees the tilt going differently.

As for if Orlando would ever get in the ring himself, he told us there's no chance in hell.

He did, though, deliver a message to the guys ahead of the fight -- "Protect yourself!"