Fights

Chris Brown doesn't have to worry about a criminal case against him in Florida anymore -- the charge for allegedly sucker punching a photographer has been dropped.

It's a huge win for the singer, who got arrested last year after the altercation with a photog in a Tampa nightclub called AJA Channelside. We got some video of the alleged incident, but the State's Attorney's Office tells us, "After a thorough review of the facts and information from the alleged victim, our office determined there was insufficient evidence to prosecute."

More specifically, sources with knowledge of the case tell TMZ ... the photog "lacked credibility."

In case you need a refresher, Chris was booked to appear at the club, and according to club management ... Chis and co. were pissed the photog was snapping pics of them when they'd already tried shutting him down and refused any photos. Apparently, the guy kept at it while Chris was in a DJ booth, and CB allegedly lost it.

The photog says Chris socked him in the mouth, and caused some gnarly injuries. Chris was able to leave that night uncuffed, but about a year later ... he was nabbed by cops on an open warrant for his arrest when he returned to the Sunshine State.

As we reported, officers were waiting in the wings at Chris' concert in West Palm Beach last year, and after he was done performing ... they took him in to the station, where he posed for this mug shot. He was released shortly afterward on $2,000 bond.

Chris has gotta be happy about this -- considering he's still got an open rape investigation going on in France. He has not been charged there.

Daniel Cormier is still emotionally devastated after his UFC 241 loss to Stipe Miocic ... saying, "I am so sorry to all I have let down."

Of course, Cormier lost his heavyweight belt to Stipe after he was knocked out in the 4th round of their main event on Saturday night ... a fight DC was winning before things turned.

Now, Cormier has had a few days to process the loss and issued an emotional statement on social media.

"It’s been a couple of days and I can’t stress the disappointment," Cormier says ... "I am so sorry to all I have let down."

"To my wife and kids I am so sorry you guys had to experience that, I never wanted y’all to see that and the hurt you guys showed breaks my heart everytime I think about it."

"My coaches I am sorry, i appreciate the work and time you’ve spent with me. My fans, thank you guys for all the love and support you have guided me to all these amazing accomplishments."

"Stipe Miocic and his team, congratulations on a tremendous victory, you showed so much heart and grit, you are the definition of Cleveland tough."

As for Cormier's future, the 40-year-old legend says he's still contemplating his fighting career -- and "I will decide what I am gonna do now, and as soon as I decide you will all know right away."

Cormier is one of the all-time greats in the UFC and a surefire Hall of Fame when he does decide to retire ... with signature wins over studs like Anderson Silva, Rumble Johnson, Stipe Miocic, Derrick Lewis, Dan Henderson and more.

Dominick Cruz hasn't fought in 962 days, but he's NOT retired ... he wants his belt back, now -- and he's ready to go through UFC champ Henry Cejudo.

The 34-year-old former champ has battled serious injuries -- a broken arm, torn shoulder ligaments -- and hasn't fought since UFC 207 in December 2016 ... but when TMZ Sports talked to Dom in L.A., he was crystal clear ... he ain't hanging up his gloves.

"I'm definitely not done. I'll absolutely be back."

Cruz is the 2x UFC bantamweight champion and the longest titleholder in the division's history -- and he wants his strap back.

"I want the title. The current titleholder right now called me out."

Remember, Cejudo called Cruz out after his UFC 238 win over Marlon Moraes in June.

"[Henry's] the champion, we're both Arizona natives. We're both on the same national wrestling team," Cruz told us ... "If he wants to be the best, he has to beat the longest reigning champion in the division."

"Anybody who has the title, if you wanna be the best, you should be trying to fight me."

FYI -- If the fight's gonna go down, it'll have to wait. Cruz and Cejudo both have injured shoulders -- and will be sidelined til 2020.

Question is, can Dom -- who has only fought 4 times since 2012 because of injuries -- beat the guy who took down Demetrious Johnson and T.J. Dillashaw?

Ezekiel Elliott says the security guard he pushed in a Las Vegas altercation demanded $500,000 in an attempt to extort him ... this according to police docs obtained by TMZ Sports.

The Dallas Cowboys star's attorneys say they were emailed a complete list of demands from 19-year-old Kyle Johnson and his father, Kelly Johnson, after Zeke shoved Kyle at the Electric Daisy Carnival last May.

Police docs show Kelly emailed Zeke's attorneys just days after the altercation with AT LEAST 14 things he wanted from the running back to stay quiet on the incident ... including $500,000 cash.

The list of demands featured a public apology from Elliott, a press conference with Elliott and Kyle, $25,000 for the junior college football team Kyle played for, and signed jerseys from Zeke, Amari Cooper and Dak Prescott.

The demands list also included -- among several other things -- tickets to Cowboys games (both home and road), Ohio State games and a meet and greet with Jerry Jones and his son.

Police docs show one of Elliott's attorneys responded to Kelly's email with a phone call ... and Kelly claims in that conversation the attorney told him "what [he] was doing was extortion."

According to the docs, Kelly said after that conversation he decided to take Kyle's story to the public ... allowing Kyle to do an interview with a Los Angeles TV station on May 28.

Kelly and Kyle eventually filed a criminal complaint against Elliott over the incident ... but according to the docs, prosecutors felt they could not move forward with charges against 24-year-old Elliott.

There's more ... in the docs, Kyle admits Elliott not only apologized to him after shoving him during the May incident, he gave him a hug and took a picture with him.

In an affidavit from Elliott in the docs, he echoes that story, saying, "I had no intention to push and/or harm or intimidate Kyle Johnson."

"After Kyle Johnson fell and I was finished speaking with the officers nearby, I immediately apologized to Kyle and he indicated to me that he was not hurt."

Elliott added, "We gave each other a hug and he asked me to take a picture with him, which I was happy to do as there was never any intention to harm or hurt Kyle."

We've reached out to Kelly regarding the docs, but so far, no word back yet.

As for Zeke's camp, when reached by phone Friday, they declined to comment on the matter.

Elliott is currently holding out from Cowboys camp seeking a new contract. His team kicks off the season on Sept. 8 against the New York Giants.

Errol Spence says he's got his eyes on a BIG FISH after he dispatches with Shawn Porter in September ... and that big fish is no other than Manny Pacquiao.

Spence and Porter are set to tangle on September 28, but when we got Errol out in L.A. he said Shawn is just the appetizer, and he's looking for a full Filipino meal.

"I'm looking for the Manny Pacquiao after this."

It makes sense ... after Manny punished Keith Thurman he automatically became the biggest money fight in the welterweight division, and a path to superstardom for up-and-coming fighters.

There has been some talk that Pac Man's next fight will be a rematch with Floyd Mayweather, but Errol says he hates the idea of that fight, and he's got a reason.

"I don't wanna see it. Floyd made enough money, let the young guys make some money."

BTW ... Errol isn't the only one fighting in September who wants a piece of Manny, we talked to Porter on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weeknights on FS1) and he said he'll be Pac Man's huckleberry too.

Careful guys ... one fight at a time.

Khabib Nurmagomedov wants Daniel Cormier to retire after fighting Stipe Miocic.

TMZ Sports talked to The Eagle days before his AKA gym mate headlines UFC 241 on Saturday.

It'll come as no surprise Khabib thinks Cormier will win ... what might shock you, KN says this should be Daniel's last trip to the Octagon.

"Honestly I want him retire, honestly. He have job, he have money. He's like one of the greatest athlete who ever compete in the UFC."

"I really want him to retire. Because 40 years is not like 30 years. I really want him to win this fight and say, 'Hey, I enjoy with you guys long time. Right now, I have to stop this.'"

Just to be clear, these guys are tight (as you could see when DC came into the TMZ office). It's not that Khabib thinks DC's lost a step ... he believes Cormier's been so successful outside of fighting, he doesn't have to risk his body anymore.

Question is, will DC actually hang up the gloves?

Khabib doesn't think so.

"I think, no. Know why? He's like Olympic athlete level. These people cannot say 'I'm finished.'"

Nurmagomedov continued ... "I don't think he's gonna retire after this fight. Me, Coach Jav, all team, we really want him retire, cause we love him."

If DC doesn't listen ... and he fights again, there's a good chance the opponent would be Jon Jones.

Anthony Pettis and Nate Diaz have beef... BUT, AP says that doesn't mean he won't spark a J with Diaz after they fight.

Their relationship is icy -- there's been bad blood between the fighters for awhile -- and they're gonna duke it out Saturday night at UFC 241.

"We're not cool. Me and Nate are not cool," Pettis tells TMZ Sports ... "I mean we never had any kind of relationship other than him throwing his middle fingers up at me. So, you do that to me, then I'm assuming we have a problem."

So, yeah, they ain't friends ... which made Pettis' answer to, "Would you smoke with Nate after the fight?" surprising.

"F**k yeah. Hell yeah. Honestly after this fight is done, there's no beef," he says, "I'm gonna settle it in the Octagon, and if we spark one up, we spark one up."

It could happen.

Diaz isn't shy about his love for weed, and even lit up a joint (it's unclear if it was marijuana or CBD) at his open workout on Wednesday.

Pettis loved it.

"That's dope, that's dope. Hell yeah. I support that. I smoke weed too."

UFC star Paige VanZant tells TMZ Sports she is officially BACK after multiple surgeries on her broken arm ... saying she's been cleared to start training again.

.... And, her first opponent was a TMZ staffer!!!

PVZ stopped by the office to break the great news ... telling us after that 2 arm breaks and 3 surgeries since January 2018, she finally got the green light to get back in the Octagon.

It's been a tough time for Paige .. who initially suffered the injury against Jessica Rose-Clark at Fight Night 124.

Paige tells us she's gunning to take her next fight before 2020 hits ... but doesn't have any particular opponents in mind.

VanZant -- who has 12 career fights -- tells us she wants to keep fighting for years to come ... saying she won't consider herself a "professional fighter" until she has 20 fights under her belt.

That's important 'cause she has a lot of opportunities outside the Octagon ... she's already been in the S.I. Swimsuit Issue and on "Dancing With The Stars."

But, enough business talk ... we know there's a lot of folks out there who wanna see a TMZ staffer get choked out ... and luckily, we got our in-house crash test dummy, Lucas, willing to step up for the task.

Daniel Cormier's fought Jon Jones, Stipe Miocic, Rumble Johnson and Derrick Lewis ... and when it comes to grappling, Khabib's stronger than every one of them.

DC came into the TMZ offices earlier this week and joined the guys on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weekdays on FS1) ... and we asked him about his training sessions with Khabib.

DC and Khabib are close friends and gym mates at American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) in San Jose, CA ... and they've trained together for years.

So, how does the 155-pound UFC lightweight champion fare against the 250-ish-pound heavyweight champ?

"The other day we started to grapple, and Khabib jumped on top of me. And, I'm like okay, I'm just gonna get up when I want to, but that is not the case," Cormier says.

"He is literally the strongest person I may have ever felt."

DC -- who's facing off with Stipe Miocic at UFC 241 on Saturday -- says when Khabib gets a hold of you, it's basically impossible to get loose.

"It was amazing to me to think a guy that weights 175, 180 pounds, was able to do that to me. It's positional control, it's strength. He's a phenomenal athlete, man."

Khabib Nurmagomedov tells TMZ Sports Conor McGregor should be arrested and thrown behind bars for socking an elderly man in the face.

You've seen the video by now ... The Notorious uncorked a vicious straight left to the temple of a man in a Dublin pub -- all because the dude rejected a shot of Conor's whiskey.

We talked to Khabib -- who's prepping for his massive UFC 242 fight against Dustin Poirier -- and he went off on his archnemesis.

"These people, they have to go to jail. I told you, this guy have no class. No respect," Nurmagomedov tells us.

"This is very bad for sport. Some things he doing good for sport, but right now he without his mind. He lose his mind. It's crazy."

"Government have to smash him. This is my opinion. 'Cause I'm really, really mad about this video. I don't understand how you can punch old man."

This is just the latest in a string of violent incidents involving McGregor ... and The Eagle wonders what mayhem Conor could cause next.

Rob Zombie reacted violently to a female fan who reached across a barricade and grabbed his shirt in the middle of a show ... grabbing and pulling the woman's hair, then shoving her away ... and TMZ has the video.

The hairy situation went down on Wednesday night during the heavy metal rocker's set at the Budweiser Gardens in London, Ontario.

In the video, you see Rob singing and walking down an aisle in the middle of the packed crowd when the overzealous fan reaches her hand over the barricade and tugs at his shirt. Rob flies into a rage, yanking on her flowing hair before pushing her back into the scrum.

After the hair pull and shove, Rob continues on his way ... with his body guard in tow.

Rob is touring with Marilyn Manson ... so you can imagine their crowds like to get rowdy.

Conor McGregor uncorked a shot to the head of an elderly man in an Irish bar in a dispute over whiskey -- Conor's whiskey -- and TMZ Sports got this video showing the violence.

The absurd attack went down at The Marble Arch Pub in Dublin on April 6. Conor walked in and lined up cups for bar patrons ... looking to buy a round of his Proper Twelve for everyone. The problems started when the guy opted out. Conor placed a cup in front of him not once, but twice ... and he still refused.

Unclear if words were exchanged between them, but after Conor downed a shot with the other drinkers, he unexpectedly threw his notorious left fist right in the face of the old man who rejected the booze.

Two people immediately grabbed McGregor and pulled him out of the bar. The violence was reported to cops, who announced back in April they'd opened an investigation. It's unclear if that's still active, but there are no reports Conor was ever charged -- even though cops have reportedly seen this video.

Perhaps most odd of all ... the poor, old pub patron who got socked didn't even get knocked off his stool. People are just tougher in Ireland, apparently.

The video is just the latest evidence of McGregor losing his cool and acting like a thug outside the Octagon. He dodged felony charges in New York last year when he smashed a bus window with a dolly, injuring several UFC fighters onboard the vehicle.

And, you'll recall ... one month before this Dublin incident, Conor smashed a phone out of a fan's hand in Miami. He was arrested for robbery and criminal mischief, but the charges were eventually dropped, and he settled a civil suit with the victim.

We've reached out to McGregor's camp, but so far ... no word back. We also called The Marble Arch Pub and they had no comment.

Conor hasn't fought in the UFC since losing to Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 229 in Las Vegas. But, UFC honcho Dana White told reporters Wednesday he expects talks for McGregor's next fight to begin shortly after Khabib and Dustin Poirier square off in Abu Dhabi next month.

Just a thought, but Dana might wanna sign that old man from the Dublin pub. He can take a punch!!!

Rapper Roddy Ricch allegedly grabbed his girlfriend during a heated argument at his home, and now he's facing possible felony domestic violence charges.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... the Compton MC got into a verbal spat with his girlfriend early Sunday morning at his Los Angeles pad. We're told the dispute eventually turned physical, and sources say Roddy put his hands on the woman during their argument.

Roddy was arrested and booked for felony domestic violence. We're told the alleged victim did not need medical attention.

The 20-year-old rapper was released on $50,000 bond.

Roddy Ricch has made a name for himself in the West Coast rap scene ... his music videos are getting millions of views on YouTube, and he was featured on Nipsey Hussle's hit track, "Racks In The Middle." Roddy's also working on a collab with Drake.

Jon Jones has never lost (that DQ doesn't count) and he's DOMINATED almost everyone he's fought -- but he ain't the G.O.A.T. ... so says Daniel Cormier.

DC -- who's fighting Stipe Miocic at UFC 241 this Saturday -- joined the guys on the "TMZ Sports" TV Show (airs weeknights on FS1) ... and was asked who he considers the greatest mixed martial artist ever.

The UFC heavyweight champ said himself -- along with Mighty Mouse and GSP -- were best ... but it was who DC said wasn't in the conversation that was more shocking.

"I really do believe when you break down the greatest fighters of all time, anyone with any accusation against their name should be omitted."

No Jon Jones. No Anderson Silva.

"I like Anderson. He's a great guy, great champion. Jones, a great fighter. But, any time you have anything attached to your name, I think you should be out. You're not supposed to do it that way," Cormier says.

"But, Georges St. Pierre, Demetrious Johnson, I think those guys along with myself should be considered the greatest fighters of all time."

Remember, Jones was flagged by the USADA in 2016 and 2017 ... leading to multiple suspensions. He also had his UFC 214 win over Cormier stripped.

FYI -- Jon has never wavered, insisting he has never cheated.

As for Silva ... he was popped for a banned substance in 2017, and was subsequently suspended.

Spider has also adamantly denied intentionally taking anything ... instead saying he ingested a tainted supplement.

Bottom line, with Daniel and Jon, it's obvious there's no love between 'em ...  which brings up the trilogy fight.

We asked DC if it'll ever happen ... or if his Miocic superfight will be the last in his HoF career.

Tyson Fury tells TMZ Sports nobody likes Anthony Joshua anymore ... and it's all because "he got knocked out by a fat guy!"

The Gypsy King hilariously clowned AJ to our camera guy out in NYC on Tuesday ... saying after Joshua took that infamous L to Andy Ruiz in June -- he lost ALL of his clout.

"Everyone's like, 'This guy who's ripped got knocked out by this little fat guy,'" Fury says. "And now, nobody likes him anymore."

The clip is laugh out loud funny, Tyson is seriously a character ... but he also keeps it real with us when he tells us all the juice in his rematch with Deontay Wilder will be squeezed out if either ends up losing like Joshua in their upcoming fights.

"It kills the rematch because people are not interested in beaten fighters," Fury says. "That's what we saw with AJ versus Ruiz."

Tyson added, "It's the cliche of the world: Everybody loves a winner. And, when you're no longer a winner, you don't get no more p***y!"

Fury is set to square up with Otto Wallin on Sept. 14, while Wilder will fight Luis Ortiz in a rematch of their own in November.

The Wilder-Fury run back is set for Feb. 22, 2020 ... and Fury tells us to get pumped for it, because it's "the biggest fight on earth!!"

Vicente Luque OBLITERATED Mike Perry's nose and he didn't quit ... and that's why he says Platinum's the toughest dude he ever faced.

Luque landed a big knee directly to Perry's nose during their fight Saturday night -- literally crushing it -- turning the fight into a blood bath.

Perry kept fighting.

TMZ Sports talked to Luque ... who was blown away by Perry's toughness.

"Obviously, I wanted to get the finish, but it didn't happen that night. Mike is so tough. As tough as they come. For sure the toughest guy I've faced 'til now."

That's a big deal -- Luque once beat Thiago Santos -- the guy who just pushed Jon Jones to the brink of defeat while fighting on a bunch of torn ligaments in his knees.

And yeah, Vicente says Perry is tougher than Santos.

The fight was a war ... and the guys pummeled each other ... so friends is probably the last thing you'd expect they become, right?

Wrong ... 'cause Luque tells us they've actually talked about training with each other.

"[Perry] talked about training, and that's something that in my mind is super positive. I love training with different guys. He's a guy who has a lot to teach me, for sure."