Fights

Jon Jones is one step closer to his next fight ... because Anthony Smith tells TMZ Sports his manager is already talking with the UFC to get a deal done.

30-year-old Smith has clawed his way to becoming the #3 ranked light heavyweight after taking out Rashad Evans, Shogun Rua and Volkan Oezdemir in his last 3 fights.

After Jones beat up Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 232 on Saturday, he and Smith talked trash to each other during the post-fight show on FS1.

Now, Smith says he ain't just blowing smoke -- he wants smoke -- and his manager, Jim Walter, is already speaking with the UFC honchos to hammer out a deal.

No word on when the fight would go down but Smith says he'll brawl with Jones "any time, any place anywhere ... I'll fight Jon this weekend if he wants to."

Smith says he respects Jones as a fighter but wasn't super impressed with his 3rd-round victory over Gustafsson -- saying, "I've seen him look better."

Of course, there are other fighters angling for a shot at JJ -- including #6 ranked contender Corey Anderson ... but Smith says no one wants to see that fight because Jones will beat his ass.

We asked Smith if he had a message for Jones -- "I'm ready. I'm ready and you know it. And I know it. I'm the only one that's gonna push you."

Ronnie Ortiz-Magro has been named a "person of interest" in an alleged burglary at the home of his baby mama, Jen Harley, hours after the couple broke up following a nasty fight at a Vegas club ... TMZ has confirmed.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Ronnie and Jen got into a huge fight a little after midnight during a NYE party. We're told Jen set off the fight when she spilled a drink on Ronnie's shoes, and Ron eventually stormed off.

We're told when Jen got home later that night, she found her home ransacked ... someone smashed a flat-screen TV, a vase, pictures and glass frames. Jen told cops she believes Ronnie broke in and started wreaking havoc, because whoever did it let themselves in. Ronnie and Jen do not live together.

Law enforcement sources say Ronnie is not a suspect, because there are no witnesses or video evidence he committed the alleged burglary, but we're told cops would like to speak with the "Jersey Shore" star.

As for the night's timeline ... we're told Ronnie and Jen started fighting at 2:15 AM, police arrived at Jen's home at 3:32 AM, but Ronnie was not there.

Floyd Mayweather beat the hell outta Tenshin Nasukawa this week ... and he's already flaunting his earnings from the fight -- showing off stacks of Yen in his Rolls-Royce!!!

Floyd annihilated Tenshin in an exhibition boxing match in Japan on Monday -- with the scrap lasting just two minutes ... and Mayweather says he pocketed $9 MILLION from the bout.

So, yeah ... that's around a cool $68,000 per second!!!!!!!!

Didn't take long for TBE to show off the winnings ... 'cause in vids he posted Tuesday -- he bragged about his dope cars and then flashed the Yen he pocketed from the fight.

"Y'all guys tell me, should I take this truck out today? My G-Wagen? My Tonka toy? Or should I take my Rolls-Royce truck out today. Now, y'all gotta decide. Let me know."

The bills were 10,000 banknotes ... and Floyd had AT LEAST 14 stacks laid out on his driver's seat and center console.

Some have called the whole fight a farce ... dude was way bigger than the Rizin superstar -- and many have wondered if it was all fixed from the beginning.

The Conor McGregor-Khabib rematch WILL go down in 2019 -- so says Dana White ... who tells TMZ Sports it'll happen as long as everything goes according to plan.

The UFC honcho popped by the TMZ offices last week ... and told us there are still some hurdles to clear -- but he thinks Khabib-Conor II will get set sometime in the next 12 months.

"As long as everything goes right, this fight should happen."

Of course, Khabib and Conor are still facing suspensions for their roles in the brawl that broke out at UFC 229 ... and guys like Tony Ferguson and even Max Holloway could get shots at Khabib before Conor does.

But, Dana says if everything lines up the way he thinks it will ... the rematch will happen.

Khabib dominated Conor at UFC 229 on Oct 6 -- forcing the Irishman to tap out in the 4th round.

After the fight, Conor gave a round-by-round breakdown explaining why he lost the fight -- but gave credit to Khabib and vowed to return "with my confidence high."

Floyd Mayweather's fight with Tenshin Nasukawa is a complete joke and is nothing but a money grab ... so says Bob Arum, who RIPPED Floyd for even taking the fight.

"It is a non-event. It is not a sporting event," Bob tells TMZ Sports.

Arum was out at Craig's this week when he made sure to stop for our photog, to crap all over Mayweather's highly-anticipated New Year's Eve exhibition in Japan.

"That's pretty much a joke, isn't it? I think so. I think so. Because, it's not a real fight ... the people who are watching that nonsense are pretty well jerks."

In fact ... Bob tells us he thinks the ONLY reason the tilt is going down is 'cause Mayweather straight-up NEEDS the cash!!

"He needs money for Christmas and the New Year, and this is a good way for him to make some money. God knows Floyd always needs money!"

Khabib's manager tells TMZ Sports Floyd Mayweather has been texting him CONSTANTLY ... saying the boxing legend has been "begging" for a fight with Nurmagomedov!!!

"Me and him have been texting each other for the last month," Ali Abdelaziz says ... "He's very much begging for the fight."

Of course, the potential tilt has been talked about for months -- ever since Khabib and Ali called out the boxer after beating Conor McGregor back in October.

But ... seems Floyd is getting deadly serious about putting pen to paper on a contract for the scrap -- 'cause Ali says he's been blowing up his phone.

"If he say he did not, I'm going to put everything online. Don't lie, Floyd! Do not lie, Floyd!"

The holdup on Ali's end?? The money ... 'cause Abdelaziz tells us, "At the end of the day, if he want it, the fight is here. I like this fight. But, he has to come a little bit better. He knows what I'm talking about."

Kanye West just launched another attack on Drake ... this time railing on him for following Kim Kardashian on Instagram.

Kanye just posted, then deleted, this ... "I  never knew till this morning that Drake followed my wife on Instagram back in September." But, that wasn't it ... he went on, "I had to bring this up because it's the most f-ked up thing of all and I just saw it this morning."

Kanye and Drake have been at war recently. As you know, Kanye and Kim accused Drake of making physical threats to their family.

As for why Kanye's so pissed off today ... you'll recall, a lot of people thought Drake was insinuating he had slept with Kim after she was with Kanye. The song that triggered all of this ... "In My Feelings," where Drake talks about Kiki -- that's Kim's nickname.

Drake didn't ramp things down with "SICKO MODE," where he took shots at Kanye.

In Saturday's posts, Kanye added, "Imagine having a problem with somebody and they follow your wife on Instagram. We truly wish this man the best and pray that he will find the same happiness that we have.  Love everyone."

The brutal decision wrestler Andrew Johnson was forced to make didn't have to end the way it did, because dreadlocks can be reattached ... but not in his case, because we've learned all the hair that was cut off was thrown in a dumpster.

Fact is ... dreadlocks can be reattached in a number of ways. It's a process that typically takes a few months to complete, but it's doable. Dreads can be fused together, even after some are cut off.

We're told almost immediately after the referee for Andrew's wrestling match gave him the impossible ultimatum, the dreads were swept up -- no questions asked -- and thrown in the trash.

Sources connected to Johnson's family tell TMZ, Andrew has done nothing with his hair since it was butchered at the meet. He's gotten a bunch of offers from various hair care professionals, but so far he's made no decisions.

As we reported, Andrew and his family have not decided whether to pursue legal action against the referee or the school. They're waiting for the results of the investigation by the New Jersey Attorney General's Division on Civil Rights.

Jon Jones wants to see Conor McGregor get another crack at Khabib -- telling TMZ Sports he LOVED the first fight ... and really hopes Dana White locks 'em both in for a rematch.

"I would love to see that again," Jones said after the UFC 232 press conference ... "That was a great fight."

Of course, Khabib dominated Conor during the Oct. 6 bout at UFC 229 ... ultimately submitting the Irishman in the 4th round.

But, Jones believes one fight shouldn't define an athlete -- and he's confident McGregor still has the skills to compete with the best in the world.

"Wins and losses happen when you're fighting at the level that guys like Conor and I are fighting at ... it happens and it's a big part of the game but its not a race."

"As a martial artist, one fight never defines an athlete. It's a journey. It's about how you finish the race."

Alexander Gustafsson says he's "ready for war" -- telling TMZ Sports he guarantees victory over Jon Jones at UFC 232 on Saturday ... "I will dominate every round."

Alex has been cool, calm and confident despite all the drama surrounding the rematch -- and explains he wasn't surprised when Jones tested positive for PEDs again.

"This guy gets confidence by putting sh*t in his body," Alex says ... "He's always been like that, I'm not surprised."

For his part, Jones denies using steroids for the Gustafsson rematch -- and says he only tested positive for an extremely tiny amount of oral Turinabol which was still in his system from a previous incident.

Jon Jones says Daniel Cormier's attack on his wife's "flat" booty doesn't faze him at all -- telling TMZ Sports ... Cormier is right!

The UFC rivals have been going back and forth on social media -- but things got crazy personal on Dec. 23 when they brought their wives into the feud.

Jones started it ... saying to Cormier, "I could slap your wife on the ass and you could literally do nothing about it. You're my bitch D.C. that will never change."

Cormier responded ... "You couldn't do sh*t you steroid abusing junkie! I swear I would never touch your wife's flat ass lol."

So, when we saw Jones after the UFC 232 press conference on Thursday, we asked if Cormier crossed the line by going after his wife's cakes.

"He said my wife got a flat ass? She DOES have a flat ass ... but I love it!

He continued, "Oh, I love it. It's nice. It's good. I love my wife's flat ass!"

2:45 PM PT -- Dana White says the decision to move UFC 232 from Las Vegas to Los Angeles cost roughly $6 million.

White says he did NOT want to cancel the fight and worked to find a venue where it could happen when problems arose in Nevada.

White says once they found out The Forum in L.A. was available, they booked it and the rest is history.

Alexander Gustafsson just went off on Jon Jones to his face -- saying the guy is a "terrible" cheater who's spewing "bullsh*t" about his positive PED test.

The two exchanged shots at the UFC 232 press conference -- Gustafsson says he's convinced Jones is a cheater, but didn't want to back out of the Dec. 29 fight because he wants to beat the guy's ass.

"I'm here to fight," Gustafsson said ... "He will eat it Saturday night."

UFC 232 was supposed to go down in Las Vegas -- but was moved to L.A. after Jones tested positive for Turinabol, an anabolic steroid.

Jones has insisted he only had trace amounts of the PED in his system -- remnants of the last time he tested positive. He's adamant the Turinabol in his system is not new.

The UFC -- along with the California State Athletic Commission and other officials -- believe Jones, which is why the fight was greenlit in CA.

During the event, Jones doubled down on his claim that he's not a cheater and will eventually be vindicated by tested organizations.

Jones says it's "hilarious" that people think PEDs are the reason for his success.

Good news ... high school wrestler Andrew Johnson is doing well and in "pretty good spirits" after the haircut incident earlier this month -- but we've learned the family is still weighing their legal options.

Johnson has gone under the radar ever since the Dec. 19 wrestling match when referee Alan Maloney (who is white) told the 16-year-old black wrestler to either chop off his dreadlocks or forfeit the match.

But, a source closely connected to the family put it this way -- "Andrew is in pretty good spirits. He hopes for things to return to normal and he's looking forward to competing with his wrestling team again soon."

There are reports the family has already decided not to pursue legal action over the incident ... but sources with direct knowledge say those reports are inaccurate.

In fact, we're told the family is considering all options. One thing they want before making any decisions ... the findings of the NJ Attorney General's Division on Civil Rights. That Division is in the midst of its investigation into the incident.

Johnson's teammates at Buena Regional High School in New Jersey had a scheduled meet Thursday -- but Johnson did not participate because he's felt overwhelmed by the media attention.

Several huge stars have tried to reach out to Johnson to lend their support -- and some UFC fighters have offered to personally train him -- but it's unclear if Johnson has spoken with anyone yet.

As for the ref, sources connected to Maloney tell us he's adamant he was following the rules and race had nothing to do with the situation.

The Buena Regional High School wrestling team announced it will NOT compete in events refereed by the man who forced Andrew Johnson to cut his hair before a match earlier this month.

The Buena Regional school board held an emergency meeting in New Jersey on Wednesday with board members and concerned community members ... and that's where the announcement was made.

As we previously reported, referee Alan Maloney (who is white) told the 16-year-old black wrestler to either cut off his dreadlocks or forfeit the match during a Dec. 19 event.

Johnson -- who was only given 90 seconds to make his decision -- opted for the haircut ... and video of the shameful moment went viral.

Maloney's camp insists the ref was only following strict guidelines about hair maintenance -- and was not being racist.

As for Johnson, Buena has a wrestling match scheduled for Thursday morning -- but an attorney for the student says he will NOT compete because he's overwhelmed by the media attention.

He's already built like a superhero ... now MMA star Sage Northcutt has a real shot at landing a role in a Marvel superhero flick!

Northcutt recently parted ways with UFC after his contract expired and signed with the ONE Championship.

Sage says he has no bad blood with UFC and praised Dana White -- but says one of the perks of his new company is ONE is sponsored by Marvel, and they're hoping to take advantage of that relationship.

"[The people at ONE] were talking about, one of the incentives for me fighting for them was getting me into movies, commercials, all sorts of stuff like that."

Acting ain't new for Sage ... he told us in the past he was working with an acting coach -- and even campaigned to play Ivan Drago's son in "Creed II."

Marvel movies are HUUUGE -- "The Avengers," "Guardians of the Galaxy," "Black Panther" are just a few of their monster hits -- and a role in their movies could launch the MMA star's acting career.

"That'd be pretty sick."

Stay tuned ...

Deontay Wilder may have created a big-time movie role for himself -- because Michael B. Jordan tells us he LIKES the boxer's idea of playing Clubber Lang's son in "Creed 3."

Remember, Wilder -- the heavyweight champion of the world -- recently told TMZ Sports he's gunning for a Hollywood career ... and suggested playing the offspring of Mr. T's famous character in "Rocky III."

Hey, Michael B. is already playing Apollo Creed's son ... and "Creed II" was all about Ivan Drago's son ... so why not let Clubber's kid get in on the action???

"It's a good idea! It's a cool idea," Jordan told us in L.A. ... while praising Deontay Wilder.

Michael B. told us the 'Creed 3' storyline is still up in the air -- so it seems like Wilder has a real shot. Plus, Michael pointed out how Sylvester Stallone and his crew have always loved using real boxers in the 'Rocky' movies.

The one big issue ... Michael pointed out Deontay (at 6'7") is way bigger than Clubber Lang ... since Mr. T is only 5'10".