Fights

4/4-- Conor seems to want to put all this behind him and get back to fighting with his fists instead of his fingers ... tweeting, "I want to move forward, with my fans of all faiths and all backgrounds."

"All faiths challenge us to be our best selves. It is one world and one for all."

"Now see you in the Octagon."

4:00 PM PT -- TMZ Sports spoke with Khabib's manager, Ali Abdelaziz, who has a message for Conor if he continues to run his mouth.

"You're gonna get yourself f*cked up, your whole team f*cked up, your security f*cked up," Abdelaziz says.

"Get your sh*t together, boy, before you get everybody f*cked up. But, we don't want violence. We don't promote violence. We are promoting peace. Enough with the hate."

3:22 PM PT -- Conor and Khabib's boss, Dana White, is not happy with the 2 fighters ... saying he's aware of the social media back-and-forth and has reached out to them to handle the situation.

"The ongoing situation has escalated to a level that is unacceptable," White says.

"As such, we are taking the necessary steps to reach out to both athlete camps and this situation is being addressed by all parties internally

10:18 AM PT -- Khabib just fired back at his arch nemesis ... clearly alluding to the reports that McGregor is under investigation for sexual assault in Ireland (Conor's rep bashed the report as a "rumor," but did not address the allegations).

"Rapist, you are Rapist," Nurmagomedov tweeted.

"You are a hypocrite who is not responsible for your actions. Justice will find you. We will see."

Conor McGregor personally attacked Khabib's wife -- and seemingly mocked Muslim tradition -- tweeting a photo of the UFC champ and his bride ... and calling her a "towel."

McGregor went on a Twitter rampage Tuesday night ... unleashed a fury of Tweets directed at Paulie Malignaggi -- who slapped his good friend, Artem Lobov, earlier in the day -- and Nurmagomedov.

“Don’t be scared of the rematch you little scurrying rat" ... McGregor wrote.

Conor dug in, getting personal ... posting 2 photos from Khabib's wedding day -- along with the caption, "Your wife is a towel mate" -- appearing to make fun of Khabib's wife's clothing.

McGregor deleted the message minutes later.

Khabib and his wife are devout Muslims ... and his manager, Ali Abdelaziz, took the insult as a direct slight at Khabib's religion.

"Talking sh*t, this guy is insulting someone’s wife and making fun of her religion and belief. He doesn’t realize he’s insulting 1.5 billon Muslims. Religion and family is a no no. You’re fucked Connor, let’s see what the media is going to say now. He’s a rapist, and a bitch."

Conor's used racially and religiously charged rhetoric to sell fights and belittle fighters in the past ... so it's possible this entire incident is an attempt to goad Khabib into a rematch.

Conor McGregor and 26 other dudes have stepped in the cage with Khabib ... and exactly zero have walked away with anything besides an L ... but he's never fought Justin Gaethje.

The 30-year-old UFC star -- who's fresh off his insane KO of Edson Barboza -- laid out his blueprint for winning the lightweight title ... and it runs squarely through Dagestan.

"I'll take the winner of [Dustin] Poirier and [Max] Holloway. That's the fastest way to Khabib. I want Khabib. I want to fight the Russian. That's who I want to fight."

Dustin and Max are fighting for the Interim title at UFC 236 on April 13 ... and Gaethje is ready to fight whoever comes out on top -- with the ultimate prize being a crack at Nurmagomedov.

Justin says he's got something NOBODY else who's stood in the Octagon with Khabib has had ... the ability to whoop his ass.

"He's gonna have to fight a stand-up fight with me. He's not gonna be able to take me down."

Standing up with Gaethje -- who was an All-American wrestler in college -- is usually a bad idea 'cause he's known for his powerful hands ... but so was McGregor (and we know how his fight with Khabib turned out).

"Conor was terrified of being taken down."

Ex-NFL star Shawne Merriman is jumping from the gridiron to the cage -- launching an MMA promotion -- and he's considering fighting ... TMZ Sports has learned.

We talked to Shawne -- a 6'4", 265 lb. linebacker who made 3 Pro Bowls in his 8-year career -- about the creation of his new promotion, Lights Out Xtreme Fighting.

Unlike Dana White, Merriman tells us -- if the opponent was right -- he'd be down to fight ... despite co-owning the biz.

The former Chargers star isn't new to mixed martial arts ... he's been around the combat sports game for years -- and was even scheduled to take a bare-knuckle fight in late 2018 before things fell apart.

Merriman isn't the 1st famous former athlete to launch an MMA promotion ... Oscar De La Hoya started Golden Boy MMA last year and put on Chuck Liddell-Tito Ortiz III.

Lights Out Xtreme Fighting's 1st card is going down May 11 in Burbank.

Kamaru Usman and Ali Abdelaziz ran up on Colby Covington before the manager threw a punch during their casino buffet altercation ... new video obtained by TMZ Sports shows.

We broke the story ... Usman and Covington -- who HATE each other's guts -- faced off at the Palms Casino Resort only hours after Kamaru beat Tyron Woodley at UFC 235 ... winning the welterweight title.

In the original video published by TMZ Sports in March, it was unclear -- outside of their disdain for each other -- exactly what sparked the fight.

However, the new video clearly shows Ali Abdelaziz confronting Covington -- who's in line at the buffet -- as Usman tries to hold Ali back.

It's clear Colby -- who almost immediately retreats and takes out his phone to record -- doesn't want to fight.

At one point, Abdelaziz charges and appears to knock Colby's phone to the ground ... before later throwing and seemingly landing a punch to Covington's chest.

The heated altercation lasts about 2 minutes ... but Kamaru never puts hands on Colby.

Covington previously claimed Abdelaziz threatened to shoot him during the altercation ... but if that happened, it's not evident in either video.

The bad blood between Colby and Kamaru goes wayyy back -- several years -- with the 2 fighters getting into it almost every time they're in the same room.

As for a fight in the Octagon ... Usman recently told us he was already in talks to make a Colby fight with Dana White and the UFC.

We reached out to Abdelaziz ... who declined to comment.

Paulie Malignaggi just "bitch slapped" and promised to kill Conor McGregor's good friend, Artem Lobov ... and the guys ain't even scheduled to fight yet.

Malignaggi -- a former world champion boxer in 2 weight classes -- was at a promotional event for Lobov ... a former UFC fighter who's fighting in the Bare Knuckle FC this weekend.

Paulie recently signed with BKFC as well ... and he wasted no time making his presence known.

The 2 fighters came face-to-face at Mendez Boxing Gym in NYC on Tuesday ... where Malignaggi smacked the hell outta Artem, before yelling, "that was a bitch slap for a bitch" ... and telling Artem, "I'm going to put you in a body bag."

This ain't random beef ... Lobov is one of Conor's best friends -- and McGregor and Paulie have major issues.

Remember, Paulie was one of Conor's training partners as he prepared for the Mayweather fight ... but the relationship went to hell after footage of The Notorious getting the best of the former boxing champ was published.

Lobov clapped back on Instagram ... saying, "I am told you got a sly cheap shot in, I thought that was a mosquito!"

"You know you get killed in a minute if the people werent there, You will be paying with your broken jaw!"

Conor McGregor vs. Anthony Pettis -- a match made in fight Heaven -- according to Pettis, who says fighting The Notorious would be a "dream fight" for UFC fans.

We talked to Pettis -- days after moving up to the welterweight division and starching Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson -- about his next move ... and he says Conor makes a whole lotta sense.

There's just 1 problem ... Pettis says if Conor's actually mulling quitting, fighting him is a very bad idea.

"Man, I wouldn't talk him outta retirement. If someone wants to retire, don't get in the Octagon with me," Pettis tells TMZ Sports ...

"It's gonna be a bad one. I'm too hungry right now. I'm too motivated. I just knocked out the #3 in the world at 170 pounds. If you're trying to retire, don't entertain a fight with me."

But, if Conor's just using the threat of retirement as a negotiating ploy, Pettis is all the way down to fight ... and he thinks it'd be a helluva entertaining match up.

"I go for the kill. He goes for the kill. We both have a flashy striking style with a great ground game.".

Ya hear this, Dana?

Jordyn Woods chowed down in London Friday, as two families broke ties in the wake of her cheating scandal.

Jordyn was clearly seeking out cameras ... her choice of restaurants was a tried-and-true paparazzi hangout -- Mr Chow.

She was dressed for attention in all leather as she grinned for all to see.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch -- aka Calabasas -- it appears Jordyn's cheating scandal has ruptured the once-deep relationship between Jada Pinkett Smith and Kris Jenner, and Kim and Khloe Kardashian. Jada unfollowed them Friday, and we're told it's all over the Kardashian's strong reaction to Jordyn's hookup with Tristan Thompson.

As you know, Jordyn appeared on Jada's "Red Table Talk," where she talked about Tristan, cheating, etc. Jada and Jordyn are like fam, and it's clear Jada wasn't buying into the rage the Kardashians felt over the scandal.

The final straw seemed to be the promo for the upcoming season of "Keeping Up with the Kardashians."

Mind you ... the Pinkett Smiths and the Kardashians were super close over many years. Jada was especially tight with Kris -- they even vacationed together.

Undefeated boxing superstar Terence Crawford has a wish ... and that wish is also undefeated, and also a boxing superstar -- Errol Spence, who Crawford says he wants, no, HAS to fight.

Spence just dispatched Mikey Garcia in a 12-round beatdown that made many believe Errol is the very best fighter in the world at 147 pounds.

Crawford -- who's gearing up to fight Amir Khan on April 20, says that ain't so ... and told us there's only one way to prove he's actually the guy and that's going to make the fight with Spence.

Some boxing experts say Crawford vs. Spence would be the biggest fight in the sport.

"I want the fight. Let me just say that right now," Crawford tells TMZ Sports ... "Just to show the world I'm the best welterweight in the division."

Both men want to lay claim to being the next big money fighter in boxing now that Floyd's out to pasture, but to do that, they gotta go through each other ... which means they gotta make a deal.

Some say Crawford is too small to handle Spence ... and Crawford wants those people to SHUT THEIR LIPS ... saying he's got everything he needs to beat Errol.

"I feel confident matching up with anybody. I can box, I can bang, I can switch, I can punch, I'm not slow."

There is a serious rupture in one of the most enduring relationships in Hollywood, because Jada Pinkett Smith has made a move signaling what could be the end of her relationship with longtime, close pal Kris Jenner, as well as Kim and Khloe Kardashian ... TMZ has learned.

Jada has JUST unfollowed Kris, Khloe and Kim on Instagram, and our sources say it's all over the fallout involving Jordyn Woods.

As you know, Jada and Will are all but family to Jordyn ... she calls Will her Uncle. Jordyn broke her silence over the Tristan Thompson scandal by appearing on Jada's "Red Table Talk" show, and Jada was sympathetic.

We're told Jada has made it clear to a number of people ... she feels everyone should put it behind them, but clearly, the Kardashians are still angry, as you can see from the promo for the new season of "Keeping Up with the Kardashians." In the promo, you hear Khloe say Jordyn "ruined" their family.

As you know by now, after Jordyn hooked up -- in some form -- with Tristan last month, she became persona non grata with the Kardashian family. Jordyn had been living in Kylie's guest house but was almost immediately declared unwelcome. She hasn't even come back to pick up her stuff.

Jada and Kris have been tight for many, many years ... even vacationing together.

We're told the conflict goes way beyond Instagram ... the relationship itself is severely fractured.

It's interesting ... Khloe initially blamed Jordyn for the hookup, tweeting, "You ARE the reason my family broke up!" But, later she backtracked, saying, "But Jordyn is not to be blamed for the breakup of my family. This was Tristan's fault."

Jada is still following Kylie and Jordyn. We're told Jada is a strong source of support for Jordyn.

Amir Khan says Terence Crawford's record is INSANELY deceiving -- claiming his 34-0 record is littered with tomato cans ... not REAL talented fighters.

In fact, Khan says if he fought the kind of bums Crawford has beaten, he'd be undefeated too!!

Yeah, that's some hot fire from Khan who's set to square off with Crawford April 20 at Madison Square Garden ... a fight where Khan is widely seen as an overwhelming underdog.

Khan says the so-called experts have it all wrong -- because he's faced (and beaten) MUCH better fighters than Crawford.

"Look at my resume, look at the people I’ve beaten. My resume is a lot better than Terence Crawford's. I've fought better opponents, beaten better opponents. Okay fine, he’s unbeaten, but I’m sure I would be unbeaten if I fought all the guys he did."

Khan does have some impressive W's on his resume -- with victories over legit stars like Zab Judah, Marcos Maidana and Paulie Malignaggi.

Amir's losses have mostly come by way of superstars like Canelo Alvarez and Danny Garcia.

"[Crawford has] not fought anyone like me," Khan tells TMZ Sports ... "This is his hardest fight on paper in his boxing professional career. That should say it all."

As for Terence, he has this simple advice for gamblers -- "If you wanna lose some money, bet on [Amir Khan]."

Not every WWE superstar is pissed about Gronk potentially joining the organization ... 'cause Bray Wyatt would welcome the newly retired NFLer with open arms!!

Becky Lynch just shaded the hell outta Rob Gronkowski earlier this week ... telling TMZ Sports it's bogus people like him or Ronda Rousey can just stroll into pro wrestling without having to work for their chance.

Wyatt ain't about that talk ... 'cause he says he LOVES the ex-Pats tight end ... and would jump on the opportunity to beat him up in the squared circle.

"I'd love to have Rob here ... he's a cool cat." Wyatt says.

There's also some history between the two ... Wyatt says his dad was roommates with Gronk's dad at Syracuse when they played on the football team, so they're very familiar.

Wyatt was at LAX with JoJo Offerman -- their first public appearance since announcing they're expecting a baby in June -- so we had to ask if baby Knash will follow in their wrestling footsteps.

Nate Diaz's tough guy image is just a front, 'cause he's all bark, no bite ... according to UFC star Justin Gaethje ... who says, "Gangsters fight, gangsters don't run their mouth."

TMZ Sports talked to Gaethje -- who's fighting Edson Barboza (that fight is going to be ridiculous) Saturday on UFC on ESPN 2 -- when JG opened fire on the Stockton fighter.

"The only thing that's been bothering me, Nate Diaz keeps talking so much shit but the dude won't fight," Gaethje tells us ... "It just amazes me how people think he's still a gangster."

"You can't talk and not show up. That's just funny to me."

Nate hasn't fought since losing to Conor McGregor in the rematch of their blockbuster fight ... and that was 951 days ago.

Dana White says he's offered Diaz a bunch of fights ... only to be turned down. Nate did agree to fight Dustin Poirier last year at UFC 230 ... but the fight was scrapped after Poirier got hurt.

Gaethje thinks Diaz has been running his mouth (it's unclear exactly what has Justin pissed off) ... so, we asked the logical question ... do you want to fight Nate?

If JG's right, don't hold your breath ... 'cause Nate ain't interested in anything more than running his mouth.

Heavyweight boxer Kubrat Pulev has been suspended indefinitely by the California State Athletic Commission for kissing a female reporter during a post-fight interview, TMZ Sports has confirmed.

A spokesperson for CSAC tells us Pulev will NOT be licensed to fight in CA until he appears before the Commission to address the incident in person.

We're told the next opportunity for Pulev to face the Commission will be in May -- though it's unclear if the Bulgarian fighter plans to attend.

Of course, Pulev is in very hot water for kissing Vegas Sports Daily reporter Jenny Sushe after knocking out Bogdan Dinu Saturday night in Costa Mesa, CA.

Sushe laughed it off during the incident -- but immediately lawyered up, hiring Gloria Allred and now she's considering taking legal action against the 37-year-old fighter.

As for Pulev, he initially brushed the whole thing off ... saying Jenny is a friend and they laughed the whole thing off together at an afterparty.

Obviously, Jenny doesn't feel the same way -- saying in a statement, "I did not encourage or consent to Mr. Pulev grabbing my face, kissing me, or grabbing my backside."

Here's Conor McGregor enjoying "retirement" ... sippin' on pina coladas and -- JUST KIDDING, THE GUY IS STILL TRAINING HIS ASS OFF IN THE RING!!!

Just days after the UFC superstar announced his retirement "from the sport formerly known as 'Mixed Martial Art'" ... The Notorious was in a boxing ring -- and TMZ Sports has the vid.

You can see clear as day McGregor is still in great shape and still very ready to kick some ass ... sparring with a guy at Fight Club Gym on Wednesday in Miami and getting in some ab work.

Based on the footage, seems obvious McGregor is staying ready just in case he decides to unretire and get back to work in the UFC.

As we previously reported, McGregor has talked passionately recently about wanting rematches with both Khabib Nurmagomedov and Nate Diaz.

We recently spoke with UFC honcho Dana White who thinks Conor is serious about retirement -- since he's made so money already and seems to be successful in his Irish whiskey endeavor.

But, watch the clip ... does this look like a guy who's done fighting to you?

UFC star Ben Askren thinks Conor McGregor's most recent retirement announcement is a bunch of BS ... telling TMZ Sports it's either a publicity stunt or a negotiating tactic.

The Notorious appeared to call it quits in a late-night tweet on Monday ... saying "I’ve decided to retire from the sport formally known as 'Mixed Martial Art' today."

Some people like Dana White truly believe we've seen the end of Conor ... but Askren?? Not so much.

"I think there’s no way I’m buying it," Askren says. "This isn’t first time he’s tweeted out something like this." It's true ... Conor "retired" back in 2016 too.

Askren points out the timing -- right after the negotiations with Donald Cerrone falling apart ... and says it's essentially a big game of chicken between Dana and Conor to see who will cave first.

"If you look at Dana White's response that is a negotiating tactic back. He's saying, 'okay, bye, see ya later, have a great career'. So, it was kinda a negotiating tactic back saying, 'okay, fine have a great retirement.'"

So, if neither side comes to an agreement, have we REALLY seen the last of Conor? Ben says if he was a betting man, "you’re probably putting all of your money on the fact that you will see Conor fighting sometime in the future."

12:42 PM PT -- Conor McGregor's spokesperson, Karen Kessler, has issued a statement ... referring to The NY Times report about the UFC star's arrest as a "rumor."

"This story has been circulating for some time and it is unclear why it is being reported now," Kessler said in a statement first published by ESPN.

Kessler also addresses people trying to connect Conor's retirement tweet to the report about his arrest.

"The assumption that the Conor retirement announcement today is related to this rumor is absolutely false."

And then, she added a shot at the UFC ...

"Should Conor fight in the future it must be in an environment where fighters are respected for their value, their skill, their hard work and their dedication to the sport."

We should note the statement does not directly address the sexual allegations described in The NY Times report.

Conor McGregor was arrested in January as part of a sexual assault investigation stemming from an alleged incident in December at a hotel in Dublin, Ireland ... this according to The NY Times.

McGregor was released from custody and has NOT been charged with a crime, according to the report. However, The NY Times says officials are still investigating the case.

Local media in Ireland have been covering the situation for months but without naming McGregor as the suspect because of laws that prevent news outlets from naming rape suspects unless they have been convicted.

The accuser is a woman in her 20s who claims she had been hanging with friends in South Dublin before ending up at the Beacon Hotel on Dec. 10.

After the alleged sexual assault, the woman went to police and filed a report -- and was then taken to a nearby hospital where she was treated in the Sexual Assault Treatment Unit, according to local reports.

Unclear if a rape kit was administered but it seems to be the standard operating procedure for women who are treated in this particular unit.

According to local reports, cops tried to obtain surveillance footage to see if they could place McGregor at the hotel at the time of the alleged incident.

When approached by the media back in December, a police spokesperson said, "[Cops] are investigating an alleged sexual assault on a female which occurred in Dublin 2 in the early hours of this morning, Monday December 10th 2018."

"No arrests have been made and investigations are continuing."

So far, McGregor has not commented on the allegations.

30-year-old Conor McGregor is no stranger to the law -- he was convicted of throwing a steel dolly at a UFC bus last year.

He was also in an Irish court last year over a 2017 speeding incident.