Fights

Rocky fought Drago in the Soviet Union ... and Kelvin Gastelum's fighting Robert Whittaker in Australia -- and just like "Rocky IV," Gastelum says he's gonna beat the hell outta the home-country hero.

TMZ Sports talked to Gastelum -- whose favorite boxer is Rocky Balboa (yes, we all know he's a fictional character) -- days before fighting Whittaker, the UFC middleweight champ ... in his home country.

Gastelum lives in California ... and traveled 8,000 miles for this fight. So, he's expecting everyone on the continent to be rooting against him.

Sounds a lot like "Rocky IV" ... but Kelvin says he ain't worried.

"It's all good. Look what happens at the end. Rocky turns everybody over on his side, and he wins the fight."

Gastelum says that's precisely what he's gonna do ... but instead of a crushing knockout blow, he's gonna "rip his head off" and take his belt.

"I plan on taking that 12 pounds of gold. It's a long flight home. I don't plan on going empty-handed."

They want it?! They're gonna get it -- with Dana White saying he's 100% down to greenlight a Conor McGregor vs. Cowboy Cerrone fight in 2019.

In fact, Dana tells TMZ Sports ... that fight would probably happen before the Conor vs. Khabib rematch.

We spoke with the UFC honcho as he was gearing up for UFC 234 in Australia -- and asked about plans for Conor and Khabib now that they've been disciplined by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

And, with Conor and Cowboy calling each other out on social media, we asked Dana if that's a fight he wants to make.

"If these two want to fight each other, they both deserve it. They've both earned it. Let's do it!"

White says he was VERY impressed with Cowboy's big victory last month over Alexander Hernandez and thinks Conor is the perfect reward.

As for Khabib ... Dana says he thinks the likely fight is with Tony Ferguson -- and if he gets through T-Ferg, it's POSSIBLE he could go up in weight and fight Tyron Woodley. MAYBE.

Meghan Markle's dad is forcefully pushing back against claims he's refusing to reach out to his daughter ... TMZ has learned.

A close friend of Thomas Markle tells TMZ ... all the claims made by Meghan's friends about his relationship with his daughter are "bulls***" ... and Thomas can prove it.

In a recent People story, Meghan's friends claimed Thomas refused to call or text his daughter since she entered the British Royal Family ... but we're told Thomas says that's complete "nonsense."

We're told Meghan's dad texted a loving message on her wedding day, and they spoke over the phone the day before the royal wedding -- with Meghan expressing worry for her dad's health issues, and Prince Harry wishing him well.

However, our sources say things drastically changed after Meghan and Harry tied the knot ... because we're told the Duke and Duchess of Sussex stopped communicating with Thomas and went radio silent.

We're told Thomas tried reaching Meghan multiple times by text ... to no avail.

Bottom line ... Thomas hasn't heard from Meghan for months.

We've just obtained photos of the injuries Bow Wow says he sustained at the hands of his girlfriend -- before they both got arrested -- and they include some deep bite marks.

A source close to the situation tells TMZ ... Bow Wow is still recovering the knock-down, drag-out fight he and Kiyomi Leslie Holden got into last weekend in Atlanta.

We already knew from his mug shot that Bow Wow's face was scratched to hell ... but now we can see what looks like at least one nasty bite, and several scratches on his torso.

As we reported ... Bow Wow was arrested in Atlanta early Saturday morning for allegedly hitting Leslie, and she was also arrested for allegedly striking him.

We broke the story ... in 911 audio released from the incident, Kiyomi Leslie claims Bow Wow hit her multiple times, took her phone and refused to let her out of a bedroom in their apartment.

An additional 911 call was made by the apartment building's manager, claiming a resident heard a male voice saying he would, "Slap the f**k out of this bitch."

Former boxing champ Rocky Lockridge -- who later had the most famous appearance on the show "Intervention" -- has passed away at age 60, his family confirms.

Family members tell us Rocky died Thursday morning from complications from a stroke he suffered a while back.

Lockridge was a stud fighter back in the '80s -- racking up multiple titles with victories over guys like Roger Mayweather.

But, he later became addicted to crack cocaine ... and his family brought him on the A&E show, "Intervention," in an effort to get him cleaned up.

During one famous scene, family members were pouring out their hearts to Rocky and he belted out a cry that went viral. It later became an Internet meme known as "best cry ever."

Rocky's son Ricky Lockridge confirmed his father's passing and said, "It is with great pain but a whole heart that I tell you family and friends that my father Ricky Lockridge aka Rocky Lockridge has passed away."

"All he wanted was to be in the comfort of his home with friends/ family. God has called him to walk through the gates of heaven."

Lockridge had reportedly been in hospital care for the past few weeks.

Blac Chyna's personal life is a mess right now and, until she gets it together, Dream should stay with Rob Kardashian ... and that's coming from Chyna's own mother.

Chyna's mom, Tokyo, tells TMZ ... her daughter's on a downward spiral, following recent incidents involving cops at her home and, of course, her short-lived relationship with rapper Kid Buu -- who allegedly got violent with BC. Mom's also concerned about his rap sheet.

Tokyo didn't mince words -- "It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see something is terribly wrong."

As TMZ first reported ... an anonymous person called cops last month, saying Chyna was intoxicated and neglecting Dream. Cops later determined everything was fine ... besides BC having a falling out with her makeup artist.

There was also Chyna's fight with 'Love & Hip Hop' star Alexis Skyy over Rob -- and the cherry on top for Tokyo ... BC's fling with Kid Buu.

You'll recall, she jetted off to Hawaii with her new BF. Our Rob sources said he had no idea, and couldn't reach his baby mama when it came time to hand off Dream. Chyna disputes that.

Of course, Chyna's vacay went to hell when she and Buu got into a fight. Cops were called, but neither was arrested. As we told you, Chyna's now ex-BF has faced allegations of physically abusing a woman before.

All the drama makes Tokyo think BC's judgment is clouded, and it's in Dream's best interest to be with dear ol' Dad.

However, like any mama bear ... Tokyo's still defending Chyna against Kid Buu and has a stern warning for him. Watch.

Do you like UFC star Israel Adesanya!?!?!

IT DOESN'T MATTER IF YOU LIKE HIM ... because he busted out The Rock's legendary PEOPLE'S ELBOW during his open workout on Wednesday -- and it's fantastic!!

Adesanya was getting the crowd in Australia hyped up for his big fight with Anderson Silva at UFC 234 on Saturday ... and put on a little tribute to his favorite WWE superstars in the process.

First, he busted out Stone Cold Steve Austin's famous Stone Cold Stunner -- then after laying the smackdown on his training partner, gave the crowd a little People's Elbow.

CAN YOU SMELLLLLLLLALALALALALA ... WHAT ISRAEL ADESANYA IS COOKING?!!!

Smells like awesome.

When Anderson Silva steps into the Octagon to fight Israel Adesanya this weekend ... it could be the end of his legendary career if he gets knocked out ... so says Dana White.

The two UFC stars are facing off at UFC 234 in Australia on Saturday -- and with Silva about to turn 44 years old, we asked White if a violent loss would essentially mark the end for the Spider.

"I don't know. I would probably imagine [it would be the end]," White said ... noting, "But, who knows with this guy."

White explained that Silva is such a fierce competitor and fitness-aholic, that it's possible he would take another fight ... but either way, he's a lock for the UFC Hall of Fame.

Silva has been suspended for testing positive for PEDs in his career, but White says despite his mistakes, the guy is one of the best fighters in MMA history ... and deserves to be enshrined.

The twist ... if Silva BEATS Adesanya, White says he'll likely get a shot at the middleweight title.

Of course, the man who holds that belt is Robert Whittaker -- who's fighting Kelvin Gastelum in the main event at UFC 234. So, winner gets winner.

Bow Wow's girlfriend claims the rapper hit her several times, took her phone and refused to let her out of a bedroom during the 911 call she made to cops.

In the call -- obtained by TMZ -- a distraught Kiyomi Leslie Holden tells the operator she was assaulted by Bow Wow and fled his apartment to make the call. Kiyomi Leslie claims cops showed up for a previous disturbance before the actual arrest, but Bow Wow and two of his friends refused to let her out of a bedroom to speak with officers.

An additional 911 call was made by the apartment building's manager who claimed a resident called her to complain about the fight. The resident allegedly heard a male voice saying he would, "Slap the f*** out of this bitch."

As we reported ... Bow Wow was arrested in Atlanta early Saturday morning for striking Kiyomi Leslie, but Kiyomi Leslie was also arrested for hitting him.

WWE superstar Mustafa Ali took a REAL shot to the face during a particularly brutal match with Randy Orton on Tuesday -- and now he's got the massive shiner to prove it.

It seems the injury was suffered in the opening moments of his match with Orton on 'Smackdown Live' -- when Orton was stomping Ali's face in.

It appears Orton's boot caught Ali in his left eye -- and you can see it starting to swell up as the match went on.

Orton ultimately pinned Ali after hitting him with the RKO -- but it wasn't over yet ... Samoa Joe invaded the ring and kicked Ali in the face again ... sending him flying.

After the match, Ali posted a pic of the damage with the caption, "Just trying to catch your eye."

Jake Paul wants to fight Soulja Boy for $20 MILLION ... and he's telling TMZ Sports that he'll cough up his own 20 milli to make it happen!!!

ICYMI -- the social media superstar and rapper traded jabs in an Instagram Live session last week ... with Soulja offering Paul a HUGE chunk of cash to get him to square up in the ring.

Paul tells us this was no publicity stunt -- he really wants a piece of Pretty Boy Swag ... and as for the money, he'll have no problem putting up the $20 milli if Soulja can't swing it.

FYI -- you're sitting down, right? -- Paul can put his money where his mouth is. The dude reportedly made $21.5 million in 2018 alone, according to Forbes.

Of course, Jake knows his way around the ring ... he easily handled Deji in his first YouTube super fight and called out Chris Brown right after taking him down.

Clearly, Jake will happily settle for Soulja Boy.

11:43 AM PT -- The Steelers issued a statement saying they were just made aware of the incident involving Brown today, and are currently gathering information.

11:08 AM PT -- Brown's attorney, Darren Heitner, issued a statement calling the allegations "baseless and false."

He added, "It's unfortunate that the media is trying to use distractions like this and prior stories in an effort to tarnish my client's name and reputation. We have no further comment."

Pittsburgh Steelers superstar Antonio Brown was involved in a domestic dispute in January -- but he was NOT arrested ... TMZ Sports has confirmed with police.

Our sources tell us a woman contacted the Hollywood Police Dept. in Florida in mid-January and made a report alleging misconduct by Brown.

The details surrounding her allegations are unclear -- but we know cops investigated.

A rep for the Hollywood Police Dept. tells TMZ Sports, "Mr. Brown was involved in a domestic dispute. No arrests were made."

We've reached out to Brown's camp for comment multiple times -- so far, no word back.

It's just the latest in a string of off-the-field drama for Brown -- who's not only been feuding with the Steelers, but he's also being sued over an alleged furniture-tossing tirade back in April.

TMZ Sports broke the story ... the man behind the lawsuit claims Brown almost killed his 22-month-old son by throwing furniture off the balcony of his Florida apartment.

Brown claims the man is lying and has said in a statement, "I'm innocent."

Antonio has been in Florida training for the NFL season -- he's from Miami.

Soulja Boy vehemently denies attacking the woman who filed a police report against him, alleging kidnapping ... and, we're told he says this is a simple case of a woman scorned.

Sources connected to the rapper tell TMZ, the alleged victim -- Kayla -- is flat-out lying when she says Soulja beat her and then took her in his garage and tied her to a chair for 6 hours.

Our sources say the real story is this ... Soulja had been dating Kayla but ended the relationship, and she was irate. They say Kayla came to Soulja's house on Friday night, heavily under the influence, and crashed her car in his driveway ... hitting the curb.

A crowd of people were partying inside the house and heard the crash. A woman who is Soulja's manager then came outside and told Kayla she was not welcome and she should leave. Our sources say, Kayla then attacked the manager and the 2 began fighting. We're told Soulja never went outside his home and never even saw Kayla.

As for Kayla's injuries ... we're told it was at the hands of Soulja's manager, who was defending herself against the attack.

Soulja's people call Kayla's allegations "100% fabricated."

The police took a kidnapping report Saturday from Kayla and are still investigating.

Conor McGregor better keep his head on a swivel ... 'cause Khabib Nurmagomedov's manager says a rematch is going down ON SITE ... telling TMZ Sports, "This dude better beef up security everywhere he goes."

We spoke with Ali Abdelaziz about the state of the rematch after the Nevada State Athletic Commission handed down the punishments for the post-UFC 229 brawl ... and Ali says it's going down whenever, wherever.

"This fight will happen in the street, in the parking garage, under a bridge ... this sh*t is not over. It's not. Especially when you keep running your mouth."

Conor's been vocal on social media since the NSAC hearing ... saying he threw the last punch and continuing to go after Khabib's guys.

Ali's not fazed by the smack talk ... and gives a bit of his own.

"Conor McGregor is a f**king full-blown, piece of sh*t, scumbag. That's what people want."

Of course, Dana White told us last month the rematch "should" happen in 2019 ... that is, if these dudes don't find each other first.

President Trump has been keeping up on the news about the Jussie Smollett attack, and says it's horrible.

The President spoke Thursday morning from the Oval Office and when a reporter asked him about the "Empire" star's case, he replied, "That I can tell you is horrible. I've seen it ... last night. It doesn't get worse, as far as I'm concerned."

It was a pretty brief response ... he didn't elaborate on any details of the case.

Remember, Jussie says his attackers yelled, "MAGA country" as they fled after beating him, pouring bleach on him and putting a rope around his neck.

Unfortunately, Trump was not asked specifically about the MAGA remark.

Kacy Clemens -- son of MLB legend Roger Clemens -- says bouncers at a Houston bar beat him so badly during a New Year's Eve event, they may have destroyed his pro baseball career.

Clemens and his pal, Conner Capel, have sued the Concrete Cowboy in Texas -- claiming they were just hanging out when bouncers singled them out and ordered them to move out of a spot in the bar while they were trying to order their first drink of the night.

Both men are minor league baseball players -- Kacy is a 1st baseman in the Blue Jays organization and Conner is an outfielder with the Cardinals organization.

The guys claim they complied with the bouncers' orders -- but the hired muscle manhandled them anyway, eventually beating them so ferociously they sustained serious damage to their faces and bodies.

In fact, Conner says he suffered a fractured skull -- and took photos of the bloody aftermath.

A lawyer for the alleged victims has suggested Kacy may have injured his throwing arm in the incident. He also claims Conner will have to see a neurologist for at least 5 years.

According to the lawsuit, cops showed up at the bar that night and determined neither Kacy nor Conner were intoxicated. One of the bouncers was arrested for assault.