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Joey Chestnut is looking to destroy as many drums and flats needed to secure a victory this weekend ... telling TMZ Sports he's got his sights set on reclaiming the chicken wing championship!!

Jaws is slated to compete in the U.S. Chicken Wing Eating Championship in Buffalo on Saturday ... going up against some of the top competitive eaters in the world, including the past two winners of the event -- Geoffrey Esper and Miki Sudo.

Joey -- who's won the contest six times over the course of his career -- says he's focused on taking back what's his ... admitting he's frustrated he hasn't won since 2018.

Chestnut hints at the awesome vibes and bars in Buffalo as one of the reasons he's come up short in years past ... saying he might love the city TOO much.

"When I go in there early -- and the people are so nice -- it's hard to not have a good time there," Jaws says. "So this year, I need to go in there and I need to control myself a little bit and make sure I don't have too much fun when I get in to Buffalo."

Chestnut -- who once ate 413 wings in a 12-hour span -- says he's felt so much support from the fans over the years ... while also acknowledging there's a little bit of pressure that comes with having all eyes on him.

Michael Jordan's personalized book from famous author Harper Lee is on the market ... and his custom copy of "To Kill A Mockingbird" is going for five figures.

Harper sent Michael an autographed copy of her classic work back in 1995, when 'TKAM' was celebrating its 35th anniversary and MJ was playing basketball for the Chicago Bulls.

Michael's signed copy reads ... "To Michael Jordan - best wishes, Harper Lee."

Harper mailed a small number of autographed special edition copies to celebs she was connected with ... and the NBA superstar was among that special group.

MJ kept his signed copy in his library when he was married to Juanita Vanoy, and when they divorced in 2006 she got the book as part of their divorce settlement.

The book was ultimately purchased by a private collector ... and now it's going up for sale over at Moments In Time.

Pras is just as surprised as longtime Fugees fans about their reunion tour -- he says he actually learned it was going down from TMZ Hip Hop!!!

We caught up with Pras in Bev Hills on heels of the news he's joining Lauryn Hill's "Miseducation of Lauryn Hill 25th Anniversary Tour" -- a 17-date nationwide trek that will also feature the talents of Wyclef Jean to make the cipher complete.

We asked Pras about a potential follow-up to the group's Diamond-selling classic album "The Score" ... or even his own solo works.

But he was so caught off guard by the tour, that he seems to be more concerned with nailing the rehearsals for the time being!!!

It's been a topsy-turvy year for Pras ... he was found guilty of federal fraud back in April, and still has a prison sentencing day looming over his head.

He says he can't speak on the case much, but did retain new legal counsel and he's confident in the work they're doing for him.

Pras might have been clueless ahead of time, but fans are buzzing following the tour announcement -- if not for Lauryn's album legacy then for her reputation of starting her shows extremely late ... something Pras doesn't think will be an issue this go-around.

Like "The Score," L-Boogie's 'Miseducation' is also certified Diamond and has long been considered one of the G.O.A.T .albums ever recorded.

Trinidad James is sticking to his guns that Gunna is the hottest thing out ... at least as far as male rappers go!!!

We caught Mr. All Gold Everything in Bev Hills this week, and he doubled down on his recent comments that Gunna's the hip hop king of the summer.

Plenty of people accuse Gunna of leaving Young Thug high and dry amid the YSL RICO case ... but not Trinidad, and he's not letting emotion cloud his judgment.

Trinidad says Gunna's recent album, "A Gift & a Curse" displays all the top qualities you'd want in a rapper, and has the numbers to prove it.

He's also frowning on the street politics that have Gunna on the outs with his peers ... and thinks some of Gunna's success is owed to his public haters streaming his music in private.

Gunna’s single "Fukumean" is now his biggest solo hit ... earning him his first No. 1 on Billboard's Hip Hop Songs Chart and going Platinum earlier this month.

Kim Zolciak's estranged husband Kroy Biermann has filed new docs in their ongoing divorce saga ... and now he's asking the judge for permission to sell their Georgia home, ASAP.

According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, Kroy's asking for an emergency hearing to authorize selling the $3 million family pad, citing their serious financial troubles.

The sale of the house -- where he says they've lived for their entire marriage -- could help cover what Kroy describes as "significant debt" they've built up over the years. He even mentions how he sold some of his stuff just to cobble together mortgage payments, and avoid a foreclosure auction earlier this year.

Kroy, through his lawyer, Marlys A. Bergstrom, says despite the "financial devastation" Kim brought to their family, he continued to make monthly payments on the place to hold off the auction ... but says it was a struggle every month.

The former NFL player claims he sold some of his designer backpacks, and other personal items to help come up with the dough, and even begged Kim to sell her purses -- something he says she refused to do.

Well, he admits she did sell some things, but he adds this dig ... "Ironically, she has been selling purses, hers and her daughters' and other high end fashion items including her infamous wigs. However, none of the funds garnered from the sale of these items have gone towards the mortgage, or any other bills."

A man in Wisconsin says his ankle is now home to an infection and horrific wound brought on by a botched surgery -- and now that he's suing over it, we've obtained some super gross pics.

Nestor Vega is the patient behind the lawsuit, and he claims during a procedure to treat a car accident injury, he heard a loud noise and feared a fragment from a device used to drain his wound had broken off under his skin.

Vega claims one doc told him his fears were unlikely and reassured him by saying ... "Even if it did, it should be sterile, and it's small enough of a fragment, so it shouldn't cause any issues like an infection or anything."

But as Vega claims, there was indeed a fragment of a medical device left behind in his ankle and it caused a painful and debilitating infection.

Vega's lawyer, B'Ivory LaMarr, shared images with TMZ that he says show the aftermath of infection ... and it's extremely graphic. Think rotting pork chop.

In his suit, Vega claims he kept complaining to doctors about a pain in his ankle but they brushed him off until a follow-up visit revealed the fragment lodged in his body.

Vega claims the fragment caused the infection that turned his ankle into a disgusting mess ... and he's going after the surgeons, Froedtert Memorial Lutheran Hospital, and the Medical College of Wisconsin for damages.

Ariana Grande is making a change in managers ... she's leaving Scooter Braun.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... the singer is leaving both Scooter and his management company, HYBE. One source put it this way, "Scooter's team is spinning the story. Ariana is leaving both Scooter and Hybe. There is absolutely no truth to her staying."

Scooter has been managing Ariana for years, and she's one of his biggest clients.

Ariana's departure comes on the heels of another big-name exit for Scooter ... Demi Lovato already peaced out. Idina Menzel also left back in January.

Ariana has unfollowed Scooter on social media, so it doesn't seem it's particularly amicable.

Braun has said he's stepping back from day-to-day management and, as we reported, he was negotiating with several clients, including Ariana, for a new structure ... but Ariana says she's now gone.

There have been rumors Justin Bieber might be leaving, but we're told Justin is still under contract with Scooter's company and they are negotiating a possible new deal. We're told Ariana might still have an existing contract with Braun so we don't know how that will play out.

Ariana's a big name on the open market now, and it will be interesting to see who becomes her next manager.

Rapper Hi-Rez, who created the now-viral Donald Trump AI rap track, says he had no political agenda while making the former prez's out-of-prison song ... he just wants to put a smile on people's faces.

Hi-Rez joined us on "TMZ Live" Thursday, taking us through the process of making "Donald Trump - First Day Out" -- something he put up online for fun after Trump's mug shot made the news. The song has become a hit, charting #2 on iTunes with north of 3 million views.

In case you didn't know, rappers who get out of jail often put out a "first day out" song, talking about where they're at after becoming free once again ... and when his buddy suggested Trump would be a perfect subject, Rez jumped right to the AI tools to start cookin'.

He tells us he wrote the song in half an hour with no political bend -- his mission was actually bringing the warring sides of America together for a laugh.

Lil Uzi Vert found himself in the middle of a stolen puppy case in Pennsylvania -- but he's not the wanted dognapper, and it sounds like cops didn't do their due diligence.

The rapper's photo appeared Thursday in a Facebook post from the Wilkes-Barre Township Police Department alerting the public to a puppy that had been taken from a pet store.

Problem is ... Lil Uzi Vert is NOT the suspect.

Cops have since taken down the post with Uzi's photo and replaced it with a different man with face tatts -- who is the actual suspect accused of swiping a pooch from Brookside Pups.

The Uzi version lived on the internet for about 30 minutes -- enough time for the FB post to be flooded with comments about the Philly artist.

So why the confusion? Brookside Pups tells TMZ ... the guy who allegedly grabbed a puppy and fled Thursday afternoon has Lil Uzi Vert's face as his profile picture on a social media account, which they sent to cops.

Police are blaming the pet store for providing them with the photo of Lil Uzi Vert.

Brookside Pups says police took down the photo once they realized the face tattoos on Lil Uzi Vert didn't match the suspect's. The store sent a new photo for cops to share.

Roc Nation says Uzi was nowhere near Philly at the time and the incident has left them fuming ... telling us, "The Wilkes-Barre Township Police Department should be embarrassed and ashamed for disparaging [Uzi's] character. This grave error could’ve had significant repercussions on Uzi’s career and epitomizes how Black men can be wrongfully charged and arrested by police departments across the country."

And just in case anyone's got it twisted, they add ... "Uzi loves all animals and this serious mistake has deterred the apprehension of the kidnapper. Our collective hope is that the puppy is safely and promptly rescued."

Christine Baumgartner dice que Kevin Costner está completamente equivocado: el hombre que le dio $20k, que resulta ser amigo también de Kevin, no es su novio.

Christine testificó durante la audiencia de divorcio este jueves en Santa Bárbara y se refirió a su viaje a Hawái en julio, donde fue fotografiada con Josh Connor.

Como informamos, Josh es un viejo amigo de Kevin y Christine, y fuentes cercanas a ambos nos dijeron que no estaban saliendo.

Ella lo confirmó en el estrado, diciendo a bocajarro que Josh no es su novio y que mientras estaba en Hawai compartió habitación con una buena amiga desde hace mucho tiempo.

TMZ publicó la noticia ... Kevin se refirió a Christine diciendo que había recibido 20.000 dólares de "su novio" ... y Christine testificó que Josh le dio esa suma porque estaba preocupada por el dinero. Con lágrimas en los ojos dijo que le dio 10 mil dólares a su madre, y finalmente devolvió los otros 10 mil dólares a Josh.

También habló del alquiler de 40 mil dólares al mes en Montecito. Su abogado le preguntó cuán cerca está del agua, y Christine dijo: "No se puede ir andando con una tabla de surf".

Como informamos por primera vez, Christine se quejó en los documentos, que la casa de alquiler se encuentra en el lado de la montaña de la autopista sin vistas panorámicas o acceso a la playa. Ella testificó que sólo la alquila por 6 meses porque no sabe cuál será el resultado del divorcio.

Christine Baumgartner says Kevin Costner's got it all wrong, the man who gave her $20k -- who also happens to be friends with Kevin -- is not her boyfriend.

Christine testified during Thursday's divorce hearing in Santa Barbara and got into her July trip to Hawaii, where she was photographed with Josh Connor.

As we reported, Josh is a longtime friend of both Kevin and Christine, and sources close to Josh and Christine told us they were not dating.

She backed that up on the stand, saying point blank Josh is not her BF -- and added that  while in Hawaii, she shared a room with a longtime female best friend.

TMZ broke the story ... Kevin referenced Christine getting $20,000 from "her boyfriend" ... and Christine did testify that Josh gave her that sum because she was worried about money. She tearfully said she gave $10k to her mother, and eventually returned the other $10k back to Josh.

She also discussed the $40k/month Montecito rental she's moving into Friday. Her attorney asked how close it is to the water, and Christine said, "You can't walk there with a surfboard."

Kevin Costner has come out swinging in his divorce from Christine Baumgartner, claiming she has become so unreasonable she has engaged in a "relentless jihad" against him ... and he threw in that her "boyfriend" gave her thousands in cash.

Costner is in court right now, along with Christine, fighting it out over how much child support he must pay her.

The actor claims Christine is bubbling over with animosity, accusing him of being a cheapskate when in fact he has shelled out way more than a million dollars since she filed for divorce.

The most interesting nugget in the docs ... Kevin says Christine has been deceptive in terms of how much money she has, referencing $20,000 "her boyfriend recently gave her." The docs don't identify the boyfriend, but sources familiar with the case say Kevin believes the man is Josh Connor, one of Kevin's good friends who recently took a trip to Hawaii with Christine.

Sources connected to both Christine and Josh have denied the 2 are in a romantic relationship.

Kevin claims Christine has secretly taken $105,000 from him to pay her lawyers. He's also re-alleged she has padded her child support bills by including hundreds of thousands of dollars for her plastic surgery, private trainers and "unallocated credit card expenses" which were for her, not their kids. In fact, Kevin claims her plastic surgery bills alone total $188,500 a year.

Costner says Christine -- who originally asked for $248,000 a month in child support -- has padded the bill simply because Kevin can afford it, and it has no relationship to their kids' needs.

Kevin has claimed the actual amount she needs is around $63,000 a month.

Costner, who says Christine has been engaged in "baseless character attacks" on him, says she's more than capable of getting a job, saying, "She has no plans to seek employment or engage in any income-generating activity." He accuses his 49-year-old estranged wife of demanding enough child support so she doesn't have to work again.

Kevin Costner ha salido a la palestra por su divorcio con Christine Baumgartner, alegando que su ex esposa se ha vuelto tan poco razonable que se ha comprometido en una "yihad implacable" contra él. Y añadió que su "novio" le dio miles de dólares en efectivo.

Costner se encuentra ahora mismo peleando en los tribunales con Christine por la pensión alimenticia que debe pagarle.

El actor afirma que ella está llena de rencor y lo acusa de ser un tacaño, cuando en realidad ha desembolsado más de un millón de dólares desde que esta solicitó el divorcio.

La primicia más interesante en los documentos es que Kevin dice que Christine ha sido insidiosa en términos de cuánto dinero tiene, haciendo referencia a unos 20.000 dólares que "su novio le dio recientemente". Los documentos no identifican al novio, pero fuentes familiarizadas con el caso dicen que Kevin piensa que el hombre detrás es Josh Connor, uno de los buenos amigos del actor que recientemente hizo un viaje a Hawai con Christine.

Fuentes relacionadas tanto con Christine como con Josh han negado que ambos mantengan una relación sentimental.

Kevin asegura que Christine le ha quitado 105.000 dólares en secreto para pagar a sus abogados. También ha vuelto a alegar que entre las facturas de manutención incluyó cientos de miles de dólares para cirugías plásticas, entrenadores privados y "gastos de tarjetas de crédito no asignados" para ella y no para sus hijos. De hecho, Kevin afirma que sólo las facturas de cirugía plástica ascienden a 188.500 dólares al año.

Costner dice que Christine, que originalmente pidió $248.000 al mes para sus hijos, ha aumentado la factura simplemente porque Kevin puede permitírselo, y no tiene ninguna relación con las necesidades de sus hijos.

Según el actor, el monto real que necesita debiese ser de unos 63.000 dólares al mes.

Costner, quien piensa que Christine se ha embarcado en una serie de "ataques sin fundamentos hacia su persona", dice que ella está más que capacitada para encontrar un trabajo. Su alegato: "Ella no tiene planes de buscar empleo o participar en cualquier actividad que genere ingresos". Acusa a su esposa, de 49 años y separada de él, de exigir una pensión alimenticia suficiente para no tener que volver a trabajar.

Jay-Z and his legal eagles are jumping to the defense of a Wisconsin man wrongfully, and violently, arrested -- and although cops know they nabbed the wrong guy ... he's still facing charges.

TMZ Hip Hop has learned Jay-Z's Team ROC org has enlisted powerhouse lawyer Alex Spiro to rep Jermelle English Jr. and his family ... in hopes of getting all charges dropped, and possibly to sue the Kenosha PD.

English was charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest back in July, after Kenosha cops investigating a hit-and-run burst into the Applebee's, slammed him onto the ground and deployed pepper spray in the presence of his 1-year-old child.

Applebee's employees recorded video of the whole violent encounter.

The video shows officers repeatedly pummeling English as he lay on the ground ... prompting several protests in the local area, especially once the full details -- that cops grabbed a completely innocent man -- were uncovered.

The true hit-and-run suspects were actually found later hiding inside the restaurant’s bathroom.

Team ROC Managing Director Dania Diaz tells TMZ Hip Hop, “The reckless arrest of Jermelle English Jr. and the careless endangerment of his infant child by the Kenosha Police Department is an absolute travesty ... the Team ROC team is here to support Jermelle and his family through this traumatic experience, demand justice and hold the Kenosha police officers accountable."

Kenosha PD's Leo Viola tells us the department is still undergoing an internal investigation, and plans to be extremely transparent with the public once it's completed. He adds, the Dept. initiated its probe without any outside pressure.

LeVar Burton's TV days are far from over, and ditto for expanding people's minds -- 'cause the dude is about to venture out on a Trivial Pursuit ... one that's almost a sealed deal.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... LeVar and his team are close to locking in terms on a new job he's been teeing up for a couple years now -- namely, as executive producer and host of the new Trivial Pursuit game show ... which is going to be aired on the CW.

We're told things are almost finalized between LeVar and the network, and that the series already has a 12-episode order. So, yes ... we're gonna see LeVar on the tube again in due time.

As for how all this came together ... well, our sources tell us that's actually all due to Hasbro -- the toy company that owns the rights to Trivial Pursuit, who initially brought him in.

We're told Hasbro honchos thought of LB after he got snubbed by Sony execs for the highly-coveted "Jeopardy!" hosting job -- which was a whole saga in and of itself. Remember, Sony never even approached him for the gig -- nor did they seriously consider him.

Obviously, Hasbro thought differently ... and the conversations kicked into high gear after the CW became attached to developing Trivial Pursuit into a game show. If you're unfamiliar, TP sees players answering a variety of trivia questions, touching on a bunch of categories.

It's kind of the perfect next chapter for the dude who hosted "Reading Rainbow."

The titans of late night are teaming up to talk shop on a new podcast -- all in an effort to support their striking employees -- and at least one union is totally cool with that plan ... on certain conditions.

A rep for SAG-AFTRA tells TMZ ... the just-launched "Strike Force Five" show -- featuring Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers and John Oliver -- is all good in their book ... assuming they stay within guidelines set forth by strike regulators.

This is how a SAG spokesperson put it ... "As long as the podcast does not promote struck work, it appears to be in adherence with the SAG-AFTRA TV/Theatrical/Streaming strike rules. Given that it falls within the strike rules, it is fine for them to produce this podcast during the strike."

In other words, it sounds like the hosts have their blessing to proceed ... but they should probably steer clear of certain topics if they wanna stay in the actors union's good graces. Obviously, the podcast itself isn't a straight-up promo of anything, but the challenge will be not sounding promo-ish if they discuss a certain movie or show that's in the zeitgeist.

Considering that's what they do as part of their normal jobs -- talk about certain films/projects -- it might seem like it will be tough to stay in SAG's good graces ... but, remember, the pod isn't live. They can always edit if the convo strays into promo land.

The podcast is a good thing, big picture -- any money earned is being donated directly to the late-night hosts' own writers ... who, of course, haven't been working since May.