Fights

Dana White's giving fans a first look at his new slap fighting org., Power Slap, and if you like seeing people get knocked out ... this is the sport for you!

The 30-second video ran during UFC 280, right before Islam Makhachev and Charles Oliveira fought in the main event ... and it's intense!

The video features the One Eyed Wolf from Barstool's Rough N Rowdy, and other competitors, in some cases literally slapping the snot out of other athletes.

Power Slap's debut is getting closer. They announced an introductory press conference in November ... and just last week, the Nevada State Athletic Commission voted to license White's org.

The sport has been around for years, but has been mostly underground ... that is until the UFC honcho got involved.

If you've never seen a slap fight ... it's what it sounds like. Two competitors stand across a small table from one another and take turns slapping each other until someone can't continue or they quit.

Slap fighting in the past has sometimes featured big size disparities between competitors ... something the UFC will eliminate with weight classes.

And, UFC exec Hunter Campbell sees an opportunity for huge growth ... much like with the UFC decades ago. The promotion ultimately sold for $4 billion.

"After testing it, it became clear to us that there's massive potential here as a sport, not unlike the early years of the UFC," Campbell told ESPN.

Jake Paul is giving those picking Anderson Silva to win on Oct. 29 enough time to reconsider ... telling TMZ Sports they're going to lose all their money!!

We spoke with the Problem Child -- who's currently the betting underdog against the former UFC champion -- about his highly anticipated upcoming bout ... and despite having a ton of respect for his opponent, Paul tells us he's out for blood once they hit the ring.

"I'm knocking this guy out," Jakey P says ... adding the fight won't last past five rounds. "I'm promising everyone that."

"Come back to this interview, everyone, after the fight, and they'll say, 'Wow, he predicted the future,'" he added. "I have a crystal ball in my room and I can see it."

Jake says he's excited to prove people wrong on Saturday night ... and has a message for those putting their hard-earned money on Spider.

"You shouldn't have done it. You should've invested into something else."

"And everyone who bet on me?? Good stuff, man. You're gonna have some dough, maybe a new car, maybe your rent paid."

Jake also dishes on those downplaying the fight considering Silva is 47 years old ... and he explains why it's actually an advantage for Anderson.

"Suga" Sean O'Malley is already a UFC star, but Dana White says he could reach Conor McGregor-like levels of fame ... as long as he keeps winning in the Octagon!

TMZ Sports talked to the UFC honcho just days before he headed back to Fight Island in Abu Dhabi ... where UFC 280 is going down Saturday afternoon (in the USA). O'Malley isn't shy about his desire to be a global star, so we asked Dana if Suga had what it took.

"100% and it's all about winning those key fights. He needs to win this fight this weekend against Petr Yan. He beats Petr Yan, watch what happens on Sunday," Dana said.

"It will be crazy, but yeah, Conor, on his way up, won all of the key fights he needed to win. It's not for a title or anything but Petr Yan is the number-one-ranked guy in the world."

Dana says, keeping with the McGregor theme, a win vs. Petr would be equivalent to Conor's epic KO of Jose Aldo in 2015.

O'Malley is 15-1, with his sole loss coming against Chito Vera in August 2020 (depending on who you ask, the loss was controversial). He's the #11 ranked bantamweight.

As for Yan, he's the #1 ranked 135-pounder ... and while he's coming off a loss to Aljamain Sterling, it was a very close fight.

Speaking of the champ, Aljo is also on the stacked 280 card. Sterling is fighting #2 ranked T.J. Dillashaw.

The guys aren't exactly friends. In fact, we spoke to Aljamain earlier this month, and he called T.J. "Pill.J DillaRoid."

We asked Dana if he felt confident Dillashaw wasn't taking any banned substances.

"T.J. is absolutely positively clean. These guys are all being tested by USADA and when you're coming off what T.J. is coming off of, I'm sure he's getting hard by USADA."

Of course, Dillashaw was popped for a banned substance, EPO, in early 2019. He received a 2-year ban from the sport.

There's more. We also talked to White about the main event, Charles Oliveira vs. Islam Makhachev.

There's a dream scenario amongst many fans. Oliveira beats Makhachev, and then Khabib Nurmagomedov comes out of retirement to avenge his brother's loss.

Possible?! We asked Dana.

"That's hilarious. I love it. Believe me, that would be everybody's dream scenario, including mine if he beats Islam," White said.

Dana also provided some caution to people who think Islam's going to roll right through Charles.

"[Oliveira's] one of the guys that's sort of slips under the radar and people don't realize it. He's on an 11-fight win streak. He's got the record for the most finishes in UFC history, he's got the most submissions in UFC history, tied for overall UFC post-fight bonuses. He has most Performance Of The Night awards in UFC history, most submissions in both UFC lightweight and featherweight history!"

"I mean the guy has records on top of records on top of records! It's incredible."

We also spoke to Makhachev earlier in the week ... and talked about all things Charles Oliveira, backup fighter Alex Volkanovski, and UFC 280.

Shawn Michaels got a chance to train Logan Paul one-on-one... and the WWE legend was so impressed with the YouTuber's talent and commitment to wrestling, he tells us he's down to train Logan anytime!

Michaels joined Babcock on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weekdays on FS1) ... and the Hall of Famer says he was shocked with 27-year-old Paul's performance at WrestleMania 38.

"I saw him at WrestleMania and just thought he did a fantastic job," Michaels said. "I was honestly like everybody else at 'Mania, a fan, and I thought he did a heckuva job."

Logan, a big fan of the Heartbreak Kid, expressed interest in training with the legendary wrestler ... and on Thursday the men finally got together at the WWE Performance Center in Florida.

"Just getting a chance to speak with him, clearly, he's a bright young man," Shawn says, adding, "He's fully committed to what he does, and certainly fully committed to this, and I appreciate that."

Physically, Michaels was also impressed ... "[Logan's] clearly athletic as heck. So he's naturally gifted in a lot of areas."

And, because Logan was such a good student, Shawn had a blast.

"It was a heckuva lot of fun. I thought it was incredibly productive. I will say I'm someone who knows of him, but didn't know too much about him, but I've come to appreciate and like him quite a bit cause again he's very passionate about this and committed, and again, when you got that kind of moldable clay to work with, it's really fun."

As far as working together in the future, Shawn says he's open and willing to train Logan again.

"Our performance center down here will be open to him anytime, and if there's anything I can do to help him," Michaels says.

Ric Flair is on the fence about whether he'll ever wrestle again ... telling TMZ Sports he'll "never say never" to taking another match -- but for right now, he's retired.

Of course, the 73-year-old Nature Boy and his son-in-law Andrade El Idolo whooped Jay Lethal and Jeff Jarrett in what was billed as his "Last Match" back in July ... but as recently as September, he's flirted with the idea of coming back once again.

We spoke with Flair about whether he's 100% done ... and even Naitch isn't too sure if he'll ever return.

"I don't know," Flair told us out in LA this week. "I've already promised [I was done] once. Right now, I'm not doing anything. But, never say never."

Flair even gives us a flex to prove he definitely still has the muscles -- but given the health issues he had leading up to and during the last match, it's understandable why he's not adamantly vowing to come back.

Flair previously said he passed out twice from dehydration during the event ... and leading up to it, he had plantar fasciitis.

In the meantime, Naitch -- who was hanging with manager Darren Prince -- has been working alongside Mike Tyson for his "Ric Flair Drip" cannabis ... and he says it's been "raining money" since his partnership with Tyson 2.0.

If it really is the end of Flair in the ring ... he had one of the most memorable careers ever.

Terrifying scene in the AEW on Tuesday night ... "Hangman" Adam Page -- one of the org.'s biggest stars -- was taken out of the ring on a stretcher and rushed to the hospital after he landed awkwardly during a match.

Thankfully, however, AEW officials say it appears the wrestler is already on his way to making a full recovery.

The scary incident went down during Page's scrap with Jon Moxley at AEW Dynamite in Cincinnati, Ohio ... when he was struck in the head by a forearm while running at full speed.

Video from the event's broadcast shows the blow was so violent, it caused Page to come down on his head, unprotected.

Page lay on the mat for several moments after being struck -- and quickly, it became apparent to the ref that something was seriously wrong. The match was stopped, and trainers raced in to tend to the 31-year-old.

Page was eventually strapped to a stretcher -- and Moxley grabbed a mic and told the crowd to pray for his rival.

AEW officials released a statement saying Page was taken to a nearby Cincinnati trauma center ... and diagnosed with a concussion. But, fortunately, they added he was discharged shortly after.

"[Page] will remain in AEW's concussion protocol," the org. said. "AEW and Hangman Page are grateful for the exemplary response and care of staff and local medical personnel and are appreciative of the love and support of fans everywhere."

Several stars in the wrestling world wished Page a speedy recovery ... including Big E, who recently suffered a serious neck injury in a similar in-ring incident.

"Praying for Hangman," he said.

Alabama WR Jermaine Burton allegedly struck a female Tennessee football fan in the head following the Crimson Tide's upset loss on Saturday ... and the incident was captured on video.

The clip, posted by Emily Isaacs on TikTok, appears to show Burton hitting the fan as she walked by him after the game. Isaacs says she's the woman in the video.

"Jermaine Burton smacking me in the head while walking past him after their loss Saturday. 👍," the TikToker wrote in the caption.

Another fan claims they had a similar incident with Burton after the game. A fan posted video online, and it appears JB took a swipe at him, too.

Burton -- who transferred from Georgia in January 2022 -- had 2 catches for 49 yards in the loss.

Of course, to describe the aftermath of the game as hectic would be an understatement. It was the first time Tennessee beat Bama in 16 seasons. Tenn fans even ripped the goalpost down from Neyland Stadium and threw it in a nearby river.

So, yeah ... insanity. The University of Tennessee was even fined $100K for allowing their fans on the football field.

We reached out to Univ. of Alabama and Knoxville police, but so far, no word back.

Here's more proof fighters are insane.

Bare-knuckle boxer Nathan Decastro shared several gruesome photos of his face, which was absolutely smashed during a recent bout in London, and Nathan's pissed ... but not because he was hurt. He's livid the doctor stopped the fight, suspecting a broken orbital bone.

Decastro -- who holds a Bare Knuckle Boxing record of 2-1 -- ate several shots to his left eye during his fight against Lorawnt-t Nelson at the BYB 12 London Brawl event on Oct. 16.

The blows caused the 31-year-old's eye to swell up like a balloon ... and caused the ringside physician to call the fight at the end of the 3rd round.

The super middleweight fighter was furious Nelson took home the win ... and Decastro expressed his frustrations the next day with photos of his bloody injury, saying "I am f***ing devastated."

"I never complain. I just get on with each and every fight!" Decastro said on social media.

"That said the ref was poor I’ll not get into that as everyone can see it for themselves!"

"The doctor stopped the fight in the corner after the 3rd round because of my eye a suspected broken orbital which absolutely broke my heart."

Decastro -- a former British champion -- says he begged officials to let the fight continue (he believes he was winning the fight, despite the damage to his face), but to no avail, the fight was called off.

"I'm willing to go to the death," Decastro said, "but they stopped it against my will I begged to carry on, I would of win the fight but it was taken out of my hands!"

Olivia Wilde appears to be confirming her "special" salad dressing that a former nanny claims set her ex, Jason Sudeikis, off -- that, or she's just trolling.

The actress/director posted an excerpt from rom-com queen Nora Ephron's memoir "Heartburn" -- which touches on a meal she makes ... including a salad. Ephron says there's a unique vinaigrette she'd learned, which Olivia seems to be suggesting might be hers as well.

Here's the recipe ... 2 tablespoons of Grey Poupon mustard with 2 tablespoons of good red wine vinegar. While whisking with a fork, you add 6 tablespoons of olive oil until the vinaigrette is creamy. Word is, it's good for greens like arugula, watercress and endive.

OW didn't add any more context to her post -- which went up on her IG Story -- but on the face of it ... it's, at the very least, acknowledging part of what her nanny has alleged.

Just a refresher ... the woman, Erika Genaro, told DM that Olivia was whipping up this dressing and a salad while she was preparing to go see Harry Styles for a dinner date -- which triggered Jason and spurred him to start filming her in their kitchen.

Olivia allegedly told him he was scaring her, and Jason asked why she was leaving him and their kids. Then, according to the nanny, he laid out behind her car to stop her from going.

The exes came together with a statement, denying any truth to what their ex-nanny had claimed -- but now, Olivia has sorta watered that down by leaning into it ... joke-y or not.

Genaro has gone on to allege even more things since -- including the notion that she was still acting lovey-dovey with Jason while having already started her relationship with Harry ... including allegedly sleeping in the same bed naked and sending flirty texts.

The nanny also alleges Olivia gave away their family dog, Gordon, to their dog walker within weeks of meeting Harry -- supposedly so she could have more free time to be with him.

Draymond Green says he did not pay attention to the chaos that ensued after TMZ Sports posted video of his practice attack on Jordan Poole ... admitting he has no idea how much it "blew up" because he doesn't spend time on the Internet.

The Golden State Warriors star detailed what exactly went down on Friday, October 7 -- the morning we published the violent altercation -- and he says he wasn't scrolling through the thousands of tweets and Instagram posts reacting to the video.

"I don't really read many tweets at all," Green said on NBA on TNT. "And, so I was just chilling at home with my children. If you want me to be honest with you, I still don't know how much the world may think it blew up."

Green makes it clear he never cared for anyone's opinion ... and the aftermath of the Poole altercation didn't change that.

Green says he received some solid advice following the incident ... adding he was told to "look at all the upsides."

"Like, the world has seen one of your worst moments," he says. "Look at the upside and I can live with that."

As we previously reported, Green spent a few days away from the team as a result of the incident ... and was fined, but not suspended.

Roy Jones Jr. is returning to the ring ... the boxing legend has inked a deal with Celebrity Boxing, and now the promotion is seeking a big-name social media star or celebrity for the Hall of Fame pugilist to fight!

We're told 53-year-old Jones Jr. recently signed a contract with CB founder Damon Feldman, who's pumped over the signing.

"We are so excited. It's our biggest event ever, and we're looking for a big opponent for Roy," Feldman told TMZ Sports.

Roy last fought in November 2020 against Mike Tyson ... an 8-round exhibition match that was declared a draw. Most fans agreed it was a fun fight ... and a good event.

Prior to the fight with Iron Mike, Roy was last in a ring professionally in February 2018 ... when he defeated Scott Sigmon by unanimous decision.

Now, RJJ will again return to the squared circle.

Celeb Boxing has put on fights with famous people in the past ... for example, Lamar Odom vs. Aaron Carter fought last year.

But, this is next level for CB  ... Roy Jones Jr. is one of the most talented fighters to ever step foot in a ring. He held multiple world titles in four different weight classes.

Roy beat the best fighters up and down numerous weight classes in incredible fashion ... including wins over Felix Trinidad (2008), Antonio Tarver (2003), John Ruiz (2003), James Toney (1994) and Bernard Hopkins (1993), just to name a few.

When mountain climbing isn't dangerous enough, add another life-threatening element -- an attacking bear ... a terrifying encounter the climber captured on video.

The wild interaction went down earlier this month at Mt. Futago in Japan, where the climber was descending a rocky ridge when he was suddenly face-to-face with a charging black bear that was seemingly protecting a cub.

You can see and hear survival mode kick in for the climber ... who punched, kicked and screamed at the bear as it came within inches of his face, and then tumbled down to a ridge below him.

Although he was able to ward off the bear's initial attack ... the guy had to keep fighting it off with punches and kicks at the animal's head -- and all while managing not to fall off the face of the cliff.

After about 30 seconds, the bear ran off with its cub in tow, disappearing into the brush.

For his part, the climber says he was the one invading the bear's territory ... but he had no choice but to defend himself after the bear attacked.

Izzy Drake, the social media troll who Drake has distanced himself from should probably just throw in the towel on the whole clone thing ... as well as any chances at a boxing career.

Izzy took a pounding in Atlantic City over the weekend via a Celebrity Boxing match against YouTuber/rapper M2thaK.

Izzy was originally supposed to fight Lamar Odom ... but claims real Drake paid him off NOT to fight, which Lamar has denied. M2thaK came out the gate swinging, connecting plenty of jabs to Izzy's noggin.

The fight was far from a professional bout, both fighters contributed to their own knockdowns, slipping all over the canvas.

But, M2thaK managed to stay consistent for all three rounds ... and the refs unanimously handed the dubya to M2thaK -- and his fists of fury.

Following the fight, M2thak taunted Izzy with the newest addition to his jewelry collection ... the golden Celebrity Boxing championship belt, gloating about how Izzy's pride got left on the mat.

No matter what happens between Anderson Silva and Jake Paul, 47-year-old Spider will NOT be retiring after their boxing match, the UFC legend tells TMZ Sports.

We talked to the MMA G.O.A.T. about his upcoming scrap with 25-year-old Paul -- going down on October 29 in Phoenix, AZ -- and asked Silva if this could be the last fight of his historic career.

"No, no, definitely not," Silva told us without hesitation, continuing ... "I don't know when I'm gonna stop. I know one day I will stop. But not now."

"I try to challenge myself every day, and especially right now my kid started fighting, and I help my kid."

Anderson, who will turn 48 in April, has been fighting professionally for 25 years and is arguably the greatest mixed martial arts fighter to ever grace a cage.

Silva last fought for the UFC in October 2020 ... when he lost to Uriah Hall by TKO.

Despite losing his last 3 fights in the Octagon, Anderson has looked incredibly sharp in the ring.

Silva starched Tito Ortiz in September 2021, but the really impressive feat came against former boxing champ Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. ... who lost to AS by a split decision in June 2021.

Of course, Chavez's dad is arguably the most respected Mexican athlete ever.

As for Paul, he's 5-0 in the ring, with 4 knockouts. The first Tyron Woodley fight was the only bout to go the distance.

Despite the age difference, Silva is actually a slight betting favorite for the fight ... airing on Showtime PPV.

Bottom line, Silva clearly loves fighting, and walking away isn't even on his mind at this time.

Le'Veon Bell says he doesn't watch the NFL these days ... telling TMZ Sports his focus on his fighting career has his full, undivided attention.

We spoke with Bell outside DASH radio store in Hollywood Monday -- and the former Steelers RB told us he hasn't been keeping up with his old team amid their 1-4 start.

"I ain't gone lie, I have not watched one down of football," said Bell, who last played in the NFL in 2021 with Tampa. "I don't know nobody's record or nothing."

Bell -- who knocked out ex-NFL running back Adrian Peterson in an amateur fight last month -- is slated to make his pro boxing debut against MMA star Uriah Hall on October 29 in Arizona.

Despite Bell's impressive fifth-round KO of AP ... people aren't giving the 30-year-old a legitimate chance of beating Hall, one of the most feared men in combat sports, when they collide.

"Everybody sleeping on me," Bell said. "I'm glad I'm the underdog. This probably be the last fight I [will] be the underdog. My first pro fight probably be the last fight I'm an underdog."

LB may be all in on boxing at the moment, but the future Hall of Fame running back hasn't abandoned making music. In fact, he's already eyeing the perfect person for a collab.

How would Muhammad Ali, the undisputed OG of trash talk, feel about the slick-talking/fighting Conor McGregor?? He would've loved him ... so says The Greatest's grandson, MMA fighter Biaggio Ali Walsh.

24-year-old Ali Walsh, who recently signed with one of the top MMA promotions, PFL, tells TMZ Sports his grandpa wouldn't just have enjoyed mixed martial arts, he would've been a big fan of The Notorious!

"I think [my grandfather] would've loved it, especially when McGregor was in featherweight in UFC, when he fought [Jose] Aldo, that whole reign, he would've loved it, especially Conor's trash talk," Ali Walsh says.

"Poppy started the trash talk. He would've been super entertained. I think he really would've liked the sport."

Of course, Muhammad wasn't just known for his supernatural ability in the squared circle ... but also for his incredibly sharp tongue.

Ali made talkin' trash cool ... and though Conor may be a bit more vulgar, they're very much alike from the standpoint of getting inside their opponent's head.

Like his grandfather, Ali Walsh is a fighter ... but instead of choosing boxing like his brother Nico, he chose MMA.

Biaggio is new in the sport ... and has a 1-1 record as an amateur. He lost his first fight, but rebounded in his second fight, winning by first-round TKO.

Ali-Walsh will make his Professional Fighters League debut on November 25 ... and fittingly, it's going down at Madison Square Garden.

Of course, MSG was the site of many of Ali's legendary fights ... including the "Fight of the Century," Muhammad Ali vs. Joe Frazier I on March 8, 1971.

We asked Biaggio about fighting under the same roof as grandpa ... and while he thinks it's pretty neat, he was honest in saying it's not a huge deal.

"I think it's cool but at the end of the day, a fight's a fight. It's me, the ref, and another guy who's trying to hurt me, whether it's Madison Square Garden or in the back of someone's barnyard. It's cool that it's at Madison Square Garden but I don't care, honestly."

Considering Biaggio clearly has fighting in his blood, we had to ask how his grandpa would've fared as an MMA fighter.

"I think he would've done great just because of how strong he was mentally. A lot of it is mental, a lot of fighting is mental and he had the mental part. He had the heart and he had the will, so if you have the will, you can definitely get the skill."