Fights

Here's a peek into the mind of Dana White ... we asked the UFC president if Conor McGregor could fight Jorge Masvidal when he returns to the Octagon, and while DW didn't seem into that fight, there is an opponent he likes for The Notorious.

"I really like Chandler vs. Conor after Chandler's last fight. There's plenty of fights to make. I don't know if that's the one. We'll see what the landscape looks like when Conor gets back."

Of course, Chandler's last fight was at UFC 274 last month ... when Iron Mike knocked out Tony Ferguson with a front kick 17 seconds into the 2nd round. It was one of the most brutal KOs ever.

Conor hasn't fought since UFC 264 in July 2021 ... when he gruesomely broke his leg while fighting Dustin Poirier.

"I'm just saying after his last [Octagon] interview, his last fight, Conor's ranked number 8. [Michael's] ranked number 5. It makes a lot of sense right now," Dana said.

As for a timeline for McGregor's return, Dana says he's getting closer, day by day.

"I think he's getting better. He's starting to ramp up his training, and I'm hoping the end of this year, early next year."

We also talked to the UFC boss (and future UFC Hall of Famer, Valentina Shevchenko) about UFC 275 ... where Valentina is fighting 19-1 Taila Santos in the co-main event.

Shevchenko hasn't lost in 5.5 years ... and Dana says she's arguably the greatest female fighter of all time.

If Valentina wins (she's a huge favorite), White says he's open to making Shevchenko-Nunes 3 (that loss in 2017 was to Amanda).

As for the main event ... 42-year-old light heavyweight champ Glover Teixeira is fighting 29-year-old rising star Jiri Prochazka.

The card also features a rematch of a fight many people believe to be the greatest women's MMA scrap ever ... Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Weili Zhang.

Their first fight was March 2020 ... a knockdown, drag-out, 5-round war which Weili ultimately won by split decision.

But, many fans felt Joanna should've been the victor.

That was the last time Jedrzejczyk stepped foot in the Octagon.

Oscar De La Hoya isn't just campaigning for a Ryan Garcia-Gervonta Davis fight ... he said this week he also wants to launch a campaign for himself -- to be the next mayor of Las Vegas!

The former boxing champ was answering a series of questions from fans on Inside Boxing Live With Dan Canobbio this week ... when one of the listeners wanted to know if he was planning on running for President in 2024.

Remember, De La Hoya told us in 2018 that he was seriously considering running against Donald Trump in the 2020 election. That, obviously, didn't happen ... but De La Hoya told the questioner on the show one in '24 won't either.

"No," ODLH said with a laugh. "No more presidential run."

But, the 49-year-old did reveal he's planning on running for another government position -- mayor of Sin City.

"There might be some opportunities in Vegas to run for mayor," De La Hoya said. "Imagine that?"

De La Hoya revealed he's building a home in Vegas -- so the move, which he seemed pretty serious about, would make sense for him.

"It’ll be interesting to see if I can make a run for mayor in Las Vegas," he said.

Of course, Vegas is where some of the biggest boxing matches happen -- which is perfect for ODLH and his Golden Boy Promotions.

Canobbio pointed that out ... saying, "Make that fight -- Ryan Garcia vs. Tank Davis. You're the Mayor. You can pull strings. Gives you even more power."

WWE star Cody Rhodes just showed off more of his gnarly pec injury ... and somehow, it looks even worse than it did when he wrestled Seth Rollins inside a "Hell in a Cell" match over the weekend.

In the photo Rhodes posted of the injury Wednesday morning, you can see the bruising from the torn muscle in his chest now extends all the way from his sternum down to his wrist.

It's pretty gruesome ... especially considering Rhodes also revealed on Tuesday night that it started out as simply a small bruise.

As we reported, Rhodes initially sustained the injury during weight training ... but was able to still wrestle Rollins on Sunday regardless.

In the match, Rhodes withstood multiple strikes to the injury, and eventually beat Rollins.

On Monday, around 24 hours after getting in the ring with Rollins, he was "attacked" by the superstar again on "Monday Night Raw", which put even more stress on the ailment.

Oscar De La Hoya says he's ready to make Gervonta Davis an even richer man than he already is -- by blessing Tank with the biggest check of his career -- and all he's gotta do is fight Ryan Garcia.

TMZ Sports talked to Ryan's longtime promoter about Tank after Davis' contract with friend and promoter Floyd Mayweather reportedly expired ... and we asked Oscar about the possibility of working with Gervonta.

"Tank, I know you had your last fight with Floyd Mayweather, and I respect Floyd Mayweather, and think he did a tremendous job with your career. But, I'm ready to offer you a multi, multi, multi, multi million-dollar offer to fight Ryan Garcia."

FYI, that's four multi's if you're keeping track at home.

What exactly does that mean? We asked ODLH how much money he believes the fight's worth to Tank.

"It'll be the biggest purse that Tank Davis has ever made," Oscar responded.

It's interesting ... Oscar doesn't make the play to sign Davis flat out, but rather promotes what would be a MASSIVE fight.

27-year-old Tank (27-0, 25 KOs) vs. 23-year-old Ryan (22-0, 18 KOs) is a fight that boxing fans have wanted to see for a long time.

De La Hoya even says he's ready to split TV and other revenue with Gervonta's partners ... all in an effort to book the bout.

"Let's make this fight happen. Everybody makes a shitload of money, and we give the fight fans what they want to see."

But, before a fight with Tank, KingRy -- a southern Cali native -- will take on Javier Fortuna at Crypto.com Arena (fka Staples Center).

Oscar, who has a statue outside the building, says he expects the crowd to be chock full of celebs.

YouTuber and boxer Austin McBroom is looking for redemption when he puts on his next boxing event at Crypto.com Arena in July ... enlisting Pro Bowl running back Le'Veon Bell and a former Lakers star to fight on the card.

TMZ Sports spoke with the social media superstar ahead his July 30 fight -- a professional bout against AnEsonGib -- and he's dropping some major hints on the huge names involved.

Among those names include the former Steelers star, some high profile musicians and even a popular ex-NBA hooper ... but aside from Bell, McBroom was tight-lipped on revealing who exactly he was talking about.

Of course, McBroom's Social Gloves' first attempt at the boxing game -- the Battle of the Platforms -- resulted in lawsuits and fighters claiming they didn't get paid ... but the 30-year-old says he's learned his lesson and is ready to put on a hiccup-free show.

"This time around, we're working with people who have been doing this for a while. We have a new team, new streaming partner, everything is new," McBroom tells us. "Guys that are really experienced and I've been very blessed and fortunate to have another shot at this."

"Everything in the past is behind us -- no lawsuits, fighters are paid and we're ready to do this thing the right way and put on a show how it was supposed to be put on the first time around."

McBroom is hellbent on making this a great experience for everyone involved this time around -- hoping to sell out the arena and sell around 300,000 Pay-Per-Views.

As for his own fight, McBroom says he's expecting to make light work out of Gib ... which he hopes will pave the way for a fight against Logan Paul's old opponent, KSI.

Terrifying moment involving a professional boxer in South Africa ... the previously unbeaten fighter became disoriented and started punching air, as if he saw a fighter that didn't exist.

Video of the incident hit social media on Sunday ... showing Simiso Buthelezi fighting Siphesihle Mntungwa for the WBF African lightweight title. In the 10th round of the fight, Simiso was easily winning, when something went very wrong.

A few seconds into the final round, Mntungwa falls through the ropes. When he gets up, the ref tells the men to continue fighting.

However, Buthelezi turns to the referee, and squares up to him, as if he is the opponent. Seeing this happening, the ref shuffles to the side.

Buthelezi then advances to the corner of the ring and starts throwing punches at the air ... as if he were fighting an invisible opponent.

The ref did a great job, sensing something was wrong ... and immediately ended the fight.

Buthelezi was taken to a local hospital where he is reportedly in stable condition.

As for why he had the reaction he did ... that's currently unclear.

Most importantly ... get well soon, Simiso.

Adrien Broner is putting all his fake supporters on notice ... callin' them out for going MIA on him -- and vowing to be a champion again soon enough.

The 32-year-old welterweight made the guarantee in a lengthy post on his social media page Monday morning ... saying he's been "working my ass off alone" the past two and a half months in order to start the journey back to the top.

In the post, Broner -- who's slated to return to the ring on July 23 -- called out everyone who used to be in his corner while he was a rising star in the sport ... saying he's fine with training alone now, as long as everyone keeps "the same energy when I’m back CHAMPION!!!!!!!"

"I see a lot of people left me and think I won’t be champion again," Broner said. "Now it’s just me @coachmikestafford and @vithecutman and I wanna keep it this way ain’t no hard feelings to nobody."

"Some of the closest people switched up on me and I’m fine with they decision," Broner added, "cause I know I'm a hustla I started this S*** alone and I’m go finish this s*** alone."

Broner will take on Omar Figueroa (28-2-1) in Chicago in the July matchup ... and it's slated to be his first fight since his controversial win against Jovanie Santiago in February 2021.

Broner has had a rocky road since the victory -- he was famously arrested in October.

Cody Rhodes is built different ... the son of WWE Hall of Famer, Dusty, defeated Seth Rollins in a "Hell in a Cell" match after tearing his pectoral muscle earlier in the day.

WWE announced the news on its "Hell in a Cell" kickoff show ... saying Cody had his right pectoral tendon "completely torn off the bone while weight training."

Still, the 36-year-old wrestling star proceeded to fight Seth ... inside, arguably, the most dangerous match in WWE history.

As the match was about to start, Rhodes took off his robe ... showing off the gruesome injury.

Fans were astonished at how bad Rhodes' injury appeared -- his pec was severely discolored and jarring to the eyes -- but that didn't stop Rollins from laughing at the injury and targeting the area during the match.

Cody even took a kendo stick right on the pec ... leaving him writhing in pain (maybe part of the show, maybe not).

Regardless, fans were super appreciative of Rhodes ... and gave him a standing ovation for the tenacity and resiliency after delivering 3 Cross Rhodes finishers to secure the victory.

Jon Jones' first fight at heavyweight should NOT be for an interim title ... UFC heavyweight contender Jairzinho Rozenstruik adamantly tells TMZ Sports 'cause it just ain't fair!

We asked 34-year-old, 6'3", 255 lb. fighter -- ranked 8th in the division -- about the possibility 34-year-old Bones Jones gets a crack at an interim belt ... a fight that would be his first in the division.

"I'm hearing people calling for an interim title. What is fair, what is unfair, who is gonna fight for it?" Jairzinho asked.

"And, then I heard names like Stipe [Miocic] and Jon Jones. I still think that's unfair to put them in an interim fight instead of real fighters who are keeping the division up and running."

Of course, Jones hasn't fought since beating Dominick Reyes in February 2020. Jon's plan was to move up a weight class and fight champion Francis Ngannou, but the parties couldn't agree on money.

Instead, Ngannou fought and beat former training partner Ciryl Gane. Unfortunately, Francis hurt his leg in the lead up to the fight (and 5 rounds with Gane didn't help), and now needs surgery on his leg.

Often, a UFC interim belt is created when a champ is injured for an extended period.

Dana White was asked in March whether Jon could lock down a fight with Stipe for the title, and the UFC honcho responded ... "I haven’t thought about it at all, but yeah, it sounds like something we would do.”

FYI, Stipe hasn't fought since losing to Francis in March 2021.

We also asked Rozenstruik -- who has only 3 career professional losses -- about his clash with #7 ranked contender, Alexander Volkov, at UFC Fight Night Saturday night. Jairzinho has some advice ... don't blink.

"I definitely think it's a first-round, second-round fight. I definitely think it's a first-round, second-round fight."

Rozenstruik also talked about the prospect of him fighting Jones ... though, he doesn't believe it makes sense for Jon due to Jairzinho's awesome power.

And, down the line, JR, who lost to Ngannou just 20 seconds into their UFC 249 fight, would like to make things right with the Predator.

The people of Australia have a lot to deal with when it comes to vicious wildlife -- but very rarely do they have to square up with the country's national animal, the kangaroo -- which makes a new video that much more shocking.

The clip starts out with a man seemingly running for his life, until you see what's chasing him ... a full-grown roo! The man trips, and the animal stomps on him before turning back around the two square up.

From there ... the guy grabs a stick to try and defend himself, but it doesn't phase the kangaroo -- the animal stays on the attack.

Finally, the man grabs the animal by the arm and wrestles it to the ground before putting his weight on the animal and calming it down. Unclear what started the attack or how it officially ended ... but certainly not a battle you see every day.

A viral video of a young woman getting beaten up has led the internet to believe it could possibly be Zendaya -- but based on the visual evidence we've seen ... it's likely BS.

This clip made the rounds this weekend ... it's 7 seconds long, and it shows somebody wailing on this poor girl inside of an apparent store somewhere. After they're done punching, they resort to kicking, sending the woman flying back and knocking her head against a wall.

Indeed, it's incredibly brutal -- and there's no context whatsoever, as far as we can see, that points to where or when this happened, who exactly was involved, or why.

What people do believe they see here, however, is someone who appears to resemble Zendaya -- at least from the quick glimpses of this girl's face you can make out in the video. Yes, we'll admit ... it does look a bit like the actress -- especially from her 'Euphoria' scenes.

Again, there's no telling when this might've been from -- or if it's even Zendaya at all, frankly -- but FWIW, Z isn't rocking this length of hair at the moment ... she's got a much shorter 'do right now, as you can see in recent pap shots of her out and about in Massachusetts.

Her shoe-wear is also different than what's in this video -- rainbow-colored Crocs. Zendaya's got sneakers on here ... and has publicly said she'll either rock tennis shoes or heels, not much in between. Zendaya's never been snapped in Crocs from what we could find.

The bottom line is this ... there's no clear evidence this is, in fact, Zendaya -- and yet, Twitter's got her trending right now since they think it could be her. Zendaya or not though -- others have pointed out that those who are mocking this are sending the wrong message.

Even if it's just a doppelganger ... the filming and recirculation of an assault on a woman of color is something many see as a disturbing trend -- with this just being the latest example.

We've reached out to Zendaya's camp for comment. She hasn't spoken up on this quite yet -- but if it isn't her, it might be worth debunking ... 'cause this thing is running rampant.

Camila Cabello put on a great performance before the UEFA Champions League Final this weekend -- pristine in presentation ... but exactly the opposite of what was unfolding outside.

The singer was tapped for the opening ceremony show at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis just north of Paris -- where Real Madrid was facing off against Liverpool in a huge showdown between Europe's best soccer teams ... a must-see match fans were dying to see.

That might even be literal, because tons of prospective gamers were outside the stadium shortly before kickoff -- while Camila was doing her gig -- and desperately trying to get in by any means necessary ... with several of them hopping gates and having run-ins with security.

Some of these videos are absolutely insane -- people are climbing over each other and risking it all just for a chance to get inside. Unclear if these are people who purchased tickets and were turned away, or if they're simply hooligans trying to take it in for free.

At any rate, the cops and security officers on hand weren't having any of it ... pepper spraying people who were trying to rush the gates and who wouldn't back down. There are some reports (and videos) of minors getting tear gassed as well.

Even the cops themselves were trying to wipe the residue from their eyes ... that's how much they fired off, it seems.

As for Camila ... it appears she was completely oblivious to the pandemonium happening just a couple hundred feet from her on the pitch -- and paid it no mind, doing what she was there to do ... sing. Even if she knew what was going on, it's not really her problem.

BTW, she killed it during the show ... performing for a packed stadium and putting on an elaborate spectacle with backup dancers and a grand entrance to set everything off.

While no one is faulting her for continuing on with the ceremony, some are pointing out it's funny that the contrast here is so stark -- and frankly, it is. A lesson learned ... get to your seats early and often. Also, Euro soccer fans are low-key bonkers for the beautiful game.

Ric Flair is gearing up for his in-ring return ahead of his final wrestling match this summer ... and if you think the WWE legend isn't bustin' his ass in the gym, check out the clip "Nature Boy" just posted.

Naitch shared video of him getting some work in on the rowing machine and the air bike ... in addition to mixing it up with the battle ropes.

"Success Is The Sum Of Small Efforts Repeated Day In And Day Out! WOOOOO!" Flair captioned the workout video.

Of course, the 73-year-old has been doing everything in his power to get in wrestlin' shape ... since announcing the last match of his storied career will be happening in July.

Ric joined Babcock and Mojo on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (weekdays on FS1) and opened up about his motivation for taking another match in his mid-70s.

The 16-time World Heavyweight Champion hasn't competed inside the squared circle since 2011 ... when he fought the icon Sting on TNA Impact Wrestling.

But, despite the 11-year layoff, the "Nature Boy," whose wrestling career began in the '70s, isn't showing any signs of age or ring rust.

In fact, the "dirtiest player in the game" has posted a series of training sessions with former TNA superstar Jay Lethal ... where he shined in vintage Flair fashion.

"I Will Prove Once Again, That To Be The Man, You've Got To Beat The Man!" Flair said at the time.

When we talked to Ric -- who nearly died after a medical emergency in 2019 -- he told us the final match wouldn't be happening if doctors didn't medically clear him.

"I don't have any aches or pains," Ric said. "I know I've had the health issues, but I asked 40 different doctors, and I decided I'm only gonna listen to one."

"Not necessarily the one that was gonna give me the right answer, but that I felt the most comfortable with," he added.

Naitch says he'll never be 100% of the wrestler he was in his prime ... but he says he's pretty damn close, and after watching the new workout footage, we ain't gonna argue with him.

Nick Diaz ain't done yet ... the UFC legend tells TMZ Sports he's gunning to return to the Octagon this year, and he's looking to challenge the very best in the world, Kamaru Usman.

We recently talked to 38-year-old Nick at Represent HQ in SoCal ... and asked the older Diaz bro -- who has fought once since the beginning of 2015 -- if, and when, he wanted to fight.

"We're working on the end of the year," Diaz says.

Nick told us he's "focused on my training right now" ... but made it clear he isn't interested in fighting his way up the rankings against fighters looking to make a name for themselves.

"I don't need to go in there and get my ass whooped by one of them young guys anyway, and it's not that I won't win," Nick says, admitting, "It's just I'm not motivated."

It makes sense ... Nick's been in the sport for over two decades, and has shared the Octagon with everyone from Georges St. Pierre, Anderson Silva, BJ Penn, Diego Sanchez, and Robbie Lawler.

FYI, Ruthless' was Nick's last fight ... a loss by TKO at UFC 266 in September 2021. Before and after the bout, Diaz talked about being unhappy with how the fight was scheduled. However, Nick made no excuses for the actual outcome.

As for who he does want to fight, Nick has someone in mind.

"I wanna fight for the title. I don't wanna do all this -- I'm 38 years old."

Of course, the titleholder is also the top pound-for-pound fighter in the MMA world ... Kamaru Usman. The Nigerian Nightmare hasn't lost since May 2013.

How would Nick fare against the world's top pound-for-pound fighter?

The love for Deontay Wilder in his Tuscaloosa hometown will last forever ... 'cause the city just immortalized the heavyweight boxer with a life-size statue!!

The 42-2 fighter was surrounded by his family and fans on Wednesday when he removed the sheets off the new "Bronze Bomber" figure that's located in front of Tuscaloosa Tourism and Sports offices on Jack Warner Parkway.

"It's me!" Wilder said while hugging the sculpture.

The statue -- designed by Caleb O'Connor -- looks exactly like the heavyweight boxer ... from his braided hair and mean grin all the way down to his shorts and shoes.

The 36-year-old knew the honor was coming ... and said in the days leading up to the event this week that it would be "a monumental moment" for him.

"For the first time in my life, I'm at a loss for words," Wilder said. "This is generational wealth. This is black excellence. This is greatness."

Wilder's boxing career started in Tuscaloosa when he turned 20 ... and he later went on to become the WBC heavyweight champ from 2015 to 2020.

Chuck Liddell says Brendan Langley should turn his crummy situation into potential cash ... telling TMZ Sports he thinks the ex-NFL player should try pro fighting after his wild brawl with an airline employee last week.

The UFC star watched the vid of Langley and a United Airlines worker duking it out while at LAX on Tuesday ... and it wasn't hard to tell, despite the unfortunate circumstances surrounding the fistfight, the Iceman was impressed with Langley's power.

So much so, Chuck said he believes Langley -- a former Denver Broncos third-round pick -- should seriously consider trying to make a career out of throwing his hands going forward.

"Those fights are doing well," Liddell said of amateurs, viral video stars and celebs getting in the ring. "Turn him into a fighter. Have him fight somebody!"

Liddell says a YouTuber would make sense as a potential opponent for the 27-year-old.

Langley, meanwhile, could be looking for the work ... the Calgary Stampeders announced Tuesday afternoon that they have suspended their wide receiver indefinitely after the fight.