Fights

CM Punk ain't lettin' his 2 UFC ass-whoopings stop him from training to fight ... 'cause his teammate and UFC star, Anthony Pettis, says Punk is STILL hitting the gym hard.

TMZ Sports talked to Pettis -- the former UFC lightweight champ who's moving up to welterweight to fight #2-ranked Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson on Saturday at Fight Night 148 -- about his Roufusport gym mate's fighting future.

"He is still training. I don't know what his plan is. I know he's doing some movies and a couple other things, but I'm not sure if he plans on fighting again or what. But, I know he's still training ... That dude's a hard worker."

Remember, Punk was dominated and choked out by Mickey Gall in September 2016 ... before returning to face Mike "The Truth" Jackson.

Punk lost to Jackson via a unanimous decision ... but looked like a much-improved fighter.

Pettis says he respects the hell outta CM Punk ... even with an 0-2 record.

"Not many people in the world can do what he did. I mean, it's on the biggest stage, and he fought some good guys too. It's not like he was fighting scrubs. He's fighting good guys in the UFC."

"He's training with killers. He's training with me, Woodley. He comes in day and day, and he's getting his butt kicked, and coming back, showing up, so I give him props, man. No matter what, he did it."

We also talked to Wonderboy -- who hasn't fought in 10 months after sustaining an injury fighting Darren Till -- about exactly how he plans to become champ by the end of 2019.

Mike Tyson says Conor McGregor needs to quit talkin' UFC ownership and focus on what made him a superstar to begin with ... telling TMZ Sports the fighter should do just that -- FIGHT!!!

As we previously reported ... The Notorious demanded a piece of the UFC in a rant at a Chicago bar last week ... following up on what he's been saying for YEARS.

"Give me my rightful shares in the UFC company. That’s all I ask," Conor said at the time.

Tyson says Conor's WRONG ... 'cause ownership is a whole different kinda game ... and Mike seems to think McGregor should get his money the ol' fashioned way -- by kickin' ass.

Jussie Smollett's fighting to stay outta prison, but one of the brothers who allegedly helped him stage the infamous "attack" is fighting his ass off in the boxing ring -- and just rung up another W.

Abel Osundairo competed again Thursday night in the semifinals of the prestigious Chicago Golden Gloves Tournament at Cicero Stadium. He didn't score a first-round knockout like he did in the quarterfinals, but Abel still secured a unanimous decision -- and he's moving on to the finals, slated to go down next month.

After the match ... Abel was met by a horde of reporters. Abel didn't say much with his mouth but he did let his eyes do a lot of talking. Just ask this reporter who got a bit of a death stare.

Nevertheless ... Abel -- who wore a white robe with the American flag emblazoned on the back -- has proven he's got potential as a powerful southpaw. His vicious jabs set up a brutal knockdown in the first round. As we first said after his win last weekend ... pretty clear that Abel held back a LOT during the "attack."

As for Jussie's fight -- he's pled not guilty on the 16-count indictment, and is awaiting trial.

BTW ... the Chicago Golden Gloves Tournament is arguably the most elite amateur tournament in the country. It's been around since 1923 and some of its past champions include Muhammad Ali, Joe Louis and Sonny Liston.

3:59 PM PT -- Victim Giovanni Arnold's attorney, Daniel Szalkiewicz, tells us, "Our office was deeply upset to learn that the NYPD has decided not to prosecute Cardi B, Offset, or any of their body guards following their actions last year after the Met Gala."

He continues, "Both my office and my client cooperated with the NYPD at every opportunity but had not heard from them since the weeks immediately following the incident ... We hoped that those responsible for Mr. Arnold’s injuries would be charged accordingly. It appears that was wishful thinking."

"What the NYPD did today was endorse violence. They have given Cardi B, Offset, and all celebrities a license to assault people who say things they don’t like; and that is a dangerous precedent to set."

The security team for Cardi B and Migos is off the hook in an alleged assault on an autograph seeker at last year's Met Gala.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... the rappers' security guards won't face any charges, and the assault case has been closed. We're told the alleged victim refused to be interviewed by NYPD detectives. That's despite the fact he was clearly seen on video catching a beatdown.

TMZ broke the story ... Cardi, Offset and Quavo were all leaving a Met Gala party when the melee began. The rappers were accused of ordering their security team to put hands on an overzealous fan.

None of the security guards was ever arrested, and it was only CB and the Migos rappers who were facing potential criminal charges -- but now, everybody's walking away scot-free.

There's still a civil lawsuit, though. The fan's lawyer, Daniel Szalkiewicz, filed last May claiming he suffered injuries to his face, neck, back and body.

Tyron Woodley is calling out Conor McGregor because he feels it's the only fight that makes sense for BOTH guys ... and he's "dead ass serious."

"I want to fight Conor," Tyron said on "The Hollywood Beatdown."

"I'll fight him in Ireland. I'll fight him in the f*cking back alley of a White Castle ... want to go to Russia? Want to go to the TMZ newsroom?"

"Quit being a bitch ... let's fight."

So, why would Conor take that fight?

Woodley points out that both guys are coming off losses in world title fights -- and since they're close in weight, it makes sense for them to battle while they wait for their shot to get their belts back.

Of course, Conor has said he wants fights with Nate Diaz and Cowboy Cerrone in addition to a rematch with Khabib Nurmagomedov ... but Tyron says none of those fights are happening any time soon.

"Looks like we dangling around Conor ... come get this smoke."

Woodley's last fight was 3 weeks ago when he lost the welterweight belt to Kamaru Usman, who seems to be on a collision course to fight Colby Covington next.

Tyron says it doesn't make sense to refight other contenders he already washed in the welterweight division ... so Conor is the next best thing to a rematch with Usman.

In fact, Tyron says he's healthy and hungry and ready to fight right now ... as long as Dana White can get Conor to sign a contract.

Tyron and Conor have had beef before -- when they got into an altercation behind-the-scenes at the UFC 205 press conference back in 2016.

UFC's Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson says it's "disappointing" his friend, T.J. Dillashaw, tested positive for a banned substance ... saying, "He doesn't seem like the type of guy who would do that."

Dillashaw has already relinquished the UFC bantamweight championship after officials say he failed a PED test following his January fight against Henry Cejudo.

And, while officials aren't identifying the substance they allegedly found in Dillashaw's system, Thompson says the situation is a reminder to fighters to be very careful what they put in their systems.

"I know T.J. We've hung out a lot. He doesn't seem like the type of guy who would do that," Thompson says.

"But, that goes to show man, you gotta check everything that you take."

It's obvious Thompson doesn't think Dillashaw intentionally cheated -- and says he hopes T.J. can "get this thing worked out."

For now, T.J. has been suspended 1 year by the New York State Athletic Commission. Dillashaw says he's conducting his own investigation to find out what went wrong.

Adrien Broner has been ordered to stay away from social media star Andrew C. Caldwell after making a video implying he would shoot Caldwell in the face if he made a pass at him.

Caldwell filed a request for a temporary restraining order against the boxer Thursday morning in St. Louis -- which was granted by a judge. Broner must stay at least 500 feet from Caldwell.

As we previously reported, Broner threatened to "punch the testosterone" out of Caldwell earlier this week -- claiming Andrew had been contacting him online in an attempt to hook up. Caldwell has said Broner was the initiator.

Broner denied that -- and posted a "P.S.A." video online in which he threatened to shoot ANY gay person in the face who tried to make a pass at him ... saying he's aggressively homophobic.

Caldwell took the video as a personal threat -- and in court docs obtained by TMZ Sports, he wrote, "[Broner] says on social media that he coming to St. Louis to kill me."

The judge felt Caldwell had a reasonable fear and granted the temporary order -- which also requires both Broner and Caldwell from posting bad things about each other on social media.

Ronda Rousey giving a big middle finger to her employer is exactly what she shoulda done ... so says The Miz, who tells TMZ Sports her anti-wrestling rant was MONEY.

Rousey went scorched earth on WWE in a "non-scripted" tirade earlier this month ... saying "Wrestling is scripted. It’s made up. It’s not real. None of those bitches can f*cking touch me. The end.”

She also went off on fans, her coworkers, people from Ohio ... basically anyone she could think of, Ronda put in a metaphorical body bag.

The whole rant was crazy ... and some people think Ronda went TOO far ... but The Miz says it was perfect.

"She's making noise, she's making headlines and you're talking about her, so everything's working about it," The Miz says ... adding that it's great hype leading into the year's biggest event.

"It's WrestleMania season. You do whatever you have to do to get people watching ... right now, she's doing exactly that."

The Miz says all signs point to Ronda being part of the main event at WrestleMania 35 ... and the rant certainly helped generate buzz.

Aljamain Sterling WANTS ALL THE SMOKE ... telling TMZ Sports he deserves first crack at T.J. Dillashaw's vacated UFC bantamweight title -- and FLEXING at his competition.

"It's obviously unfortunate for [T.J.]. But, his misfortunes are now my fortunes," Funkmaster says.

Of course, Dillashaw announced he gave up the title Wednesday morning after testing positive for a banned substance following his January fight (and loss) with flyweight champ Henry Cejudo.

As for talk that Henry should get the shot to come up in weight and fight for T.J.'s belt ... Sterling says simply, "F*ck Henry. Stay your ass at 125!"

Aljo -- who's only 29 years old and has won 5 of his last 6 UFC fights -- says he's been training like a maniac and has proven to be a worthy contender.

Sterling is also dead serious about a rematch with Marlon Moraes -- who knocked out Sterling during a Dec. 2017 fight by way of a DEVASTATING knee to the head.

Moraes is currently the #1 ranked bantamweight -- and Sterling is #3 -- which is why Aljo is stating his case to Dana White to let them battle it out for the belt.

7:03 AM PT-- The New York State Athletic Commission has suspended Dillashaw for 1 year and fined him $10,000.

UFC star T.J. Dillashaw says he's been informed of an "adverse drug test" following his January fight with Henry Cejudo ... and he will be giving up his UFC bantamweight title so he can "deal with this matter."

Dillashaw isn't specific about what P.E.D. he tested positive for following his Jan. 19 loss at the Barclay's Center in Brooklyn -- but says he's "disappointed" and trying to figure out what happened.

"To all my fans, I wanted to be the first one to let you know that USADA and the NYSAC have informed me of an adverse finding in a test taken for my last fight," Dillashaw says.

"While words can't even begin to express how disappointed I am at this time, please know that I'm working with my team to understand what has occurred and how to resolve this situation as quickly as possible."

"Out of fairness and respect to the rest of my division, I've informed the UFC that I'll be voluntarily relinquishing my title while I deal with this matter. I want to thank all of you in advance for the support."

You may be wondering why Dillashaw still has a belt after losing to Cejudo -- that fight took place in the flyweight division ... so T.J.'s belt wasn't on the line that night.

Story developing ...

Conor McGregor says he OWES Nate Diaz a third fight -- purely out of respect -- and states definitively, "The trilogy will happen."

McGregor was standing on the bar at Binny's Beverage Depot in Chicago when he told a bunch of his fans why the rubber match NEEDS to happen. TMZ Sports has the video.

"He fought me, he beat me. He gave me a rematch at the exact same weight, there was no hesitation, that's a true fighter right there," McGregor said.

"I have nothing but respect ... I owe him the trilogy now and the trilogy will happen."

Of course, Conor first fought Diaz at UFC 196 in March 2016 -- where was choked out and submitted in a legendary, bloody brawl with the fighter from Stockton.

Diaz agreed to a rematch at UFC 202 in August 2016 -- where Conor emerged victorious in a 5-round major decision.

There's been talk of a third fight for years -- but Conor has been chasing bigger money fights with guys like Floyd Mayweather and Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Conor still has a TON of options -- he's only 30 years old and wants rematches with Floyd and Khabib ... but it seems a trilogy with Nate is high on his priority list.

The UFC has gotta be excited about it too ... considering McGregor vs. Diaz I is the 3rd most bought pay-per-view fight in UFC history ... and McGregor vs. Diaz II is the 2nd biggest.

The #1 PPV of all time? McGregor vs. Khabib.

Conor recently talked about how he NEEDS to get the Khabib rematch too ... and famously posted a post-fight breakdown pointing out what he did wrong -- but many people think he needs to get a win under his belt before he steps back in the Octagon with The Eagle.

The other issue with Conor ... he says he wants OWNERSHIP shares of the UFC before he takes another fight.

What will the UFC do? It's a great question ...

YBN Almighty Jay is getting his stolen Rap-a-Lot Records chain back ... thanks to some VERY strong words from label honcho J Prince, and some help from French Montana.

TMZ broke the story ... Jay's chain was snatched -- along with his wallet and shoes -- during a brutal NYC street brawl. Now, we've learned French and fellow Bronx rapper Hocus45th had a Monday night meeting in L.A. with J Prince ... and returned the stolen chain and pendant. We're told FM and Hocus flew in from NYC to hand-deliver the piece.

J Prince tells TMZ ... "It was never about the chain, it was about the name that was built off of blood sweat and tears."

We're told French connected Hocus45th and KT (the big dude in white) with Prince so they could see eye-to-eye on getting the jewelry back to its rightful owner. We're told Hocus' name carries a lot of weight in the Bronx, so he was able to recover it from the guys who allegedly robbed Almighty Jay.

After their productive meeting -- which included J Prince Jr -- we're told the men are moving forward with #MobTies ... J Prince's term for his allies.

It's more good news for Jay. Our sources say he's still recovering from multiple stab wounds suffered in the attack.

San Francisco Giants CEO Larry Baer will NOT be charged with any crime stemming from his physical altercation with his wife ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Sources tell us officials thoroughly investigated the altercation -- combing through multiple videos and interviewing several witnesses -- and ultimately determined Baer's action's did NOT constitute a crime.

The SF District Attorney's office gave us the following statement ... “After a careful review of the relevant evidence, including multiple videos, statements from several witnesses and the parties themselves, the evidence does not support filing criminal charges.”

TMZ Sports posted video showing Baer in a physical altercation with his wife in a public park -- ultimately knocking her to the ground in a struggle to pry a phone out of her hands. You can hear her screaming, "Oh my god. Help!"

Larry has taken a leave of absence from his job with the Giants while cops and the MLB investigate the situation -- and has expressed remorse.

“I am truly sorry for the pain that I have brought to my wife, children and to the organization. It is not reflective of the kind of a person that I aspire to be, but it happened and I will do whatever it takes to make sure that I never behave in such an inappropriate manner again.”

Baer's wife, Pam, has publicly supported her husband ... calling the incident a non-issue and has insisted they are still happily married.

Baer has been involved with the Giants organization for decades. He was named chief operating officer in May 1996, team president in October 2008 and CEO on January 1, 2012.

It finally happened ... Ronda Rousey's MMA star husband is beating people up in WWE now too!

Ex-UFC heavyweight Travis Browne was sitting ringside at 'Raw' on Monday night where Ronda was battling Dana Brooke, who's dating NBA star Enes Kanter.

There have been rumblings for a while that Browne would get involved with WWE in some capacity -- and Monday night, it finally happened ... when he got out of his seat and threw a haymaker at a security guard who was trying to restrain Rousey.

Browne pulled Rousey into the crowd and personally escorted her into the tunnel -- it's the first time he's been featured as a relevant player in a WWE match.

Could this mean a bigger role for Browne in the future? Maybe an in-ring debut?

It's possible. In fact, Browne has previously told TMZ Sports he's all the way down to become a pro wrestler ... saying he'd "love to go out there and work with my wife."

Browne is 6'7" and 255 pounds -- he's a BEAST -- and Vince McMahon knows a golden opportunity when he sees one.

Dallas Cowboys defensive end Tyrone Crawford -- a defensive team captain -- shoved TWO police officers while they were making an arrest during a bar brawl in Florida, TMZ Sports has learned.

Crawford was at the Coyote Ugly Saloon in Panama City on March 15, when things got violent around midnight. Sources tell us Crawford's crew had gotten into it with bar staff.

The fight was epic -- in a bad way -- multiple people suffered bloody injuries, including bar staff. One employee suffered a broken foot in the melee.

Cops raced to the scene ... and witnessed 8 to 10 people still fighting outside, this according to the police report obtained by TMZ Sports.

The report does not mention Crawford by name, but we've spoken with witnesses who are adamant Crawford was a key player in the incident.

At one point, Crawford -- 6'4", 285 pounds -- bull rushed his way through two cops and aggressively put his hands on TWO officers who were in the process of handcuffing one of the alleged combatants.

Multiple cops swarmed Crawford and restrained him -- while pushing him away from the arrest scene.

The incident involving Crawford was captured on the bar's surveillance video and shows the scene play out clear as day.

Despite the chaotic scene, Crawford was NOT arrested.

UFC champ Kamaru Usman says he REALLY wants to punish Colby Covington in the Octagon ... telling TMZ Sports the hatred is real and it's time to beat some respect into him.

Usman says Colby has been trolling him for months -- spitting out some of the most disrespectful insults Kamaru's ever heard. Usman says the guy crossed a line and needs to pay.

"Every opponent that I've faced, I've never really had ill will towards ... I've never had bad blood to where I was in there maliciously trying to hurt them. This is a guy that I have that towards."

Of course, the two almost threw down at a buffet line in the Palms hotel the day after Usman beat Tyron Woodley for the UFC welterweight title ... but it got broken up.

Kamaru says he only approached Colby that day to address their beef face-to-face ... but Colby got scared and "grabbed an old lady and put her in front of him."

Usman says, "You can't be that troll and then when I see you in person you want to hide behind an old lady!"

So, when will they throw down? Kamaru says there have already been talks with Dana White about making the fight happen.

The only problem ... Kamaru is concerned Colby is a moron who will say something stupid to piss off the powers that be at the UFC, who will take the fight away from him.