Fights

Mike Tyson says he now understands why so many people around boxing have compared Tank Davis' fighting style to his own, saying their "stoutness to the ground" and the way they throw power punches are very similar.

56-year-old "Iron" Mike joined Babcock on the TMZ Sports TV show (airs weekdays on FS1) ... where he talked about everything from the comparisons between him and "Tank," to whether Davis will have trouble with Ryan Garcia's height Saturday night.

"Tank is very comfortable fighting taller people because when he fights he catapults himself, and pushes himself in the air, so it makes it very difficult to stop his attack cause it's very awkward when you're in the air, normally you have no power. But, the way which he catapults himself, it's almost like a gun being fired. He flies right into you with every ounce of power."

FYI, Gervonta is giving up between 5-6 inches to Ryan, and also has a shorter reach. Length, in boxing, typically provides an advantage.

Mike continued ... "I understood them now when they say he fights like Mike Tyson 'cause he flies through the air which is normally bad positioning, you have no power in the air. But, for him and myself, our stoutness to the ground, as I said before, catapults us like being shot like a bow and arrow and the force is unstoppable."

As for Gervonta's other weapons ... Tyson says he's more than just a power puncher.

"Tank has a lot of arsenal, he's got a lot of ammunition in his arsenal, and he can box. He's a great boxer, he's a great, aggressive fighter, he has a great jab, and he's an all-around good fighter."

"They call him short 5'5", but he can do it all pretty much."

That's not to say Mike doesn't believe Ryan can win the fight ... or have dangerous weapons of his own.

There's much more ... we also talked to Tyson about the potential of him returning to the ring. Mike says a big check is important, but most importantly he'd want to put together a big-time event, and he believes that means an exhibition fight with Evander Holyfield.

The Ryan Garcia and Gervonta 'Tank' Davis super fight is FINALLY here ... and Oscar De La Hoya tells TMZ Sports the winner stands to become the face of boxing!!

The two superstar boxers will meet in the ring at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday and ODLH wholeheartedly believes Ryan (23-0, 19 KOs) is gonna prove he's the real deal, and not just some Instagram boxer.

"I feel that Ryan Garcia is a special fighter," the former boxing champ said. "I think he's gonna do something special Saturday night and be the face of boxing."

Of course, this may seem like favoritism from De La Hoya (Garcia is under ODLH's Golden Boy Promotions), but the 50-year-old legend says Tank, too, can become the biggest star in the sport with a win.

"If he's doing something special Saturday night, he will be the face of boxing. He will be the man." Oscar said about Davis.

"That's how important this fight is. We're gonna find out who is the very best and who's gonna carry the sport on their shoulders for years."

ODLH credited both fighters for their strength, speed, and boxing IQ, and that's why he believes it's a 50-50 fight.

"This could be the fight to save boxing," De La Hoya said. "It excites me that the sport, because of this fight, is gonna grow."

"I strongly feel we're gonna see some record-breaking numbers come Saturday night on Pay-Per-View."

We also talked to Tank about the fight ... and the 28-0 boxer says while the fight could go to a decision, he's confident he can put Garcia down for his 27th knockout.

The youth wrestler who clocked his opponent in the face following a match earlier this month has been cited for assault ... TMZ Sports has learned.

The Oak Park Police Dept. tells us the 14-year-old eighth grader was officially issued the citation on Thursday ... after he admitted to officers he punched his counterpart because "he was angry that he had lost the match."

The boy is now facing fines and penalties depending on the outcome of an adjudication hearing in Oak Park, Ill. next month.

As we reported, the incident went down on April 8 at Oak Park River Forest H.S. in Oak Park, Ill. ... after a 14-year-old SPAR Academy wrestler had won a match, 14-2, and had looked to shake hands with his opponent out of a show of sportsmanship.

Cops tells us ... when they arrived on the scene following the altercation, the victim had sustained a bloody nose from the cheap shot, but declined further medical care.

Police say all parties cooperated with the ensuing investigation.

It's unclear if the puncher will face further discipline -- such as a lifetime ban from wrestling -- but MMA legend Chael Sonnen told us this week he was hopeful the boy would avoid any sort of lengthy time away from the mat.

"This was a terrible moment," Sonnen said, "but it could also be a teachable moment."

Bradley Beal is now being dragged to court over his tiff with fans following a game against the Magic last month ... TMZ Sports has learned a lawsuit was just filed against the Wizards star on Tuesday.

In the docs, Kyler Briffa alleges he was the man who Beal got physical with during a March 21 altercation inside Amway Arena in Orlando, Fla.

Briffa says he and a friend got courtside seats to the Wizards vs. Magic tilt -- and were eventually allowed to go inside a team tunnel following the contest to interact with Washington players as they made their way into the visitor's locker room.

Briffa claims things were going fine -- until his friend made a comment to Beal about losing a bet during the game.

According to the suit, Beal "stopped, turned around, walked back toward the unsuspecting [Briffa] and without a word, intentionally struck the side of [Briffa's] head knocking his hat off of his head."

Briffa claims the hat flew "5-6 feet behind him." He then says Beal started to bully, threaten, intimidate and humiliate him in front of other fans -- which included children.

He added that he believed Beal "was attempting to provoke a physical altercation."

In the suit, Briffa says it was all finally broken up by a Wizards staffer -- who escorted the shooting guard away from the area.

Briffa says he suffered emotional distress and pain and suffering from the incident. He's suing Beal for assault. He's also suing the Wizards for negligence. He's asking for more than $50K in damages.

For Beal's part, he generally acknowledged the incident during a season-ending interview with media members earlier this month ... saying he never appreciates being heckled over gambling and betting.

Police, meanwhile, said they launched an investigation into the incident ... though no charges have been filed.

A youth wrestler in Illinois was socked in the face while trying to shake hands with his opponent following a match earlier this month ... and the blow was so violent, police are now investigating.

The altercation went down at the "Beat The Streets" tournament on April 8 at Oak Park River Forest H.S. in Oak Park, Ill., where kids from ages 8-to-18 were participating in a wrestling competition.

In video of the incident shot by The Wrestling Spot at the event, you can see an 8th grader from SPAR Academy and his opponent finishing up on the mat during a 125-128 pound freestyle third-place match -- when things suddenly took a disturbing turn.

The video shows as the SPAR wrestler -- who won the match 14-2 -- looked to shake hands with his opponent ... he was leveled by a cheap shot to the face.

The strike connected flush, and the SPAR wrestler -- wearing an orange and tan singlet -- crumpled to the floor.

TMZ Sports has learned he suffered a nose injury and has since been forced to wear a face mask at events while it heals ... but, fortunately, we're told he's somehow doing OK.

"He is making the best of the situation and is already back to training," SPAR Academy founder Justin Pearch told us Tuesday.

"As you may know, wrestling matches can get heated but nothing leading up to the punch would give cause to such bad decision-making on the opponent's part."

"It’s not tolerated in our sport and Spar Wrestling will never condone that behavior," Pearch added.

As for cops, an Oak Park Police Dept. spokesperson said Tuesday the incident is under investigation ... and the parents of both minors are cooperating.

U.S. law enforcement's decision not to charge anyone in the death of Shanquella Robinson has her family outraged -- but they're not ruling out a lawsuit to seek justice in civil court.

TMZ spoke to the late North Carolinian's mother and sister -- Sallamondra and Quella, respectively -- who told us how they're feeling in the wake of last week's news that U.S. officials are closing the book on this case without holding anyone accountable.

As you can imagine, they're devastated, but, more than anything, they're confused ... as results of different investigations -- both here and in Mexico -- are vastly different.

As you might have heard ... there were 2 autopsies done after Shanquella died this past fall near Cabo San Lucas. The initial one was conducted by Mexican officials almost immediately after she was pronounced dead and, reportedly, her cause of death was "severe spinal cord injury" and instability of her vertebrae ... suggesting she'd suffered trauma.

Considering there's a widely-circulated video showing Shanquella taking a beating from a woman she was vacationing with at the time. Her family thinks it's a no-brainer to connect the dots and assume one thing might've caused the other -- namely, that the attack might've played a part in their loved one's death. Apparently, U.S. investigators felt differently.

Shanquella's family says the feds did their own autopsy -- once her body was embalmed and shipped -- and conceded there was swelling in her brain, but ultimately determined an official cause of death was inconclusive.

The fact the feds seem to be relying on their autopsy findings -- which are undoubtedly less accurate than the more timely Mexican one -- is a discrepancy that has yet to be properly explained ... according to the family's attorney, Sue-Ann Robinson (no relation).

Sue-Ann tells us justice wasn't done, because, she believes, U.S. prosecutors punted. She also says the family isn't giving up and will continue to seek ways to pursue criminal charges.

Sue-Ann says the family will keep pressuring elected officials -- including President Biden -- to do the right thing and force the U.S. Attorney's Office's hand in taking action ... as that appears to be the only thing they can do to reopen Shanquella's case, criminally. We're told the family was offered the option to exhume her body for a third opinion, which is still an option.

Of course, there's also the possibility of civil legal action ... something the family tells us they are absolutely considering. Fact is, they personally know the friends who vacationed with Shanquella, and they believe some of them know more than they've revealed.

Mike Tyson isn't 100 percent done with boxing ... the former heavyweight champ -- who last fought Roy Jones Jr. in 2020 -- tells TMZ Sports he's still open to fighting again if the price is right.

We spoke with the boxing legend this month about a potential rematch with Jones Jr. -- who just lost to former UFC star Anthony Pettis on April 1 -- and he didn't close the door on a return to the ring against the Hall of Famer at all.

In fact, the 56-year-old told us, "I could be persuaded."

Then, when we asked about another possible rematch, one that would pit him against his former rival, Evander Holyfield -- Tyson said the same thing.

Iron Mike wouldn't reveal the dollar figure that it would take to persuade him to agree to future bouts with the boxing legends ... though he did say he has been recently approached by people in Saudi Arabia who want "me to do this stuff too."

"I don't know," he said ... before adding, "When I see the money people for the end of the product, my mind works clearer. I can't express myself right now financially."

Tyson fought Jones Jr. in a wildly successful exhibition match back in 2020. He also fought Holyfield twice in two memorable tilts in 1996 and 1997, but lost both bouts.

Tyson had previously agreed to an exhibition match with Holyfield in 2021, but negotiations fell through.

A Connecticut man turned into a real-life version of Superman as he heroically fought off a group of violent carjackers trying to steal his car ... and the savage brawl was all caught on video.

Check out Ring camera footage showing one of the suspects sneaking up to a red Infiniti parked in a driveway while chatting on a cell phone in Rocky Hill, CT, on April 10.

He opened the unlocked driver's side door and jumped behind the wheel of the car, but he didn't get very far because a homeowner who lived nearby ran up to him and ripped him out of the seat.

The two started going at it, throwing punches at one another and wrestling on the ground. Two more assailants then entered the picture and continued beating the homeowner.

One of the attackers lost his shoe while kicking the homeowner, who kept defending himself. The aggressor scooped up his sneaker and proceeded to whack the homeowner in the head with it.

Then a fourth attacker joined in the melee and got in a few licks before the entire crew could no longer trade blows with the homeowner and decided to flee in a getaway car.

Investigators were still looking for the perpetrators as of this morning.

As for the homeowner, he was not seriously injured by the assault. It wasn't clear if he was also the owner of the car that was almost jacked.

WrestleMania 39 is over ... but Dolph Ziggler is already eyeing a spot on next year's card, telling TMZ Sports he's down to fight UFC star Conor McGregor on "The Grandest Stage of Them All" at WrestleMania.

We spoke to Dolph -- whose last WrestleMania match was in 2020 against Otis -- out in Beverly Hills recently ... and the former WWE Intercontinental Champion is already imagining what a feud with McGregor looks like on the heels of the WWE and UFC merger.

"Why not make it a best of 3?" Ziggler asked. "Octagon. Boxing match. Wrestling. Fighting. WWE. And then set it all up for the best out of seven at WrestleMania."

"That's just where the money is, but not everybody can go and back it up. But some of us can," said Ziggler, the 2012 men's Money in the Bank ladder match winner.

ICYMI -- McGregor posted a pic of him holding a WWE and UFC championship belt with the hashtag, "It's inevitable," one day before WWE sold to UFC's parent company, Endeavor.

After Vince McMahon announced he sold WWE and joined forces with UFC to create a new $21 billion sports company ... Ziggler wasted no time going after The Notorious.

"ABSOLUTELY AMAZING #WrestleMania PS: If I can drop 45 more pounds, I can drop anyone talking trash! seems even easier to get the deal done now, right @TheNotoriousMMA," Ziggler tweeted.

So, will we see Ziggler vs. McGregor at WrestleMania 40 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia next April?!?

Drake Bell had a falling out with his estranged wife and told his family he was going to get drunk and hang himself ... at least according to the 911 call in which he was reported missing.

TMZ obtained the 911 call, where someone from Orlando PD explains why cops were deeply concerned for Drake's well-being.

The officer is speaking with another department, trying to get a location on Drake's cell phone, characterizing the situation as a "possible attempted suicide" and saying ... "Basically, there is a celebrity who had a falling out with his wife."

Cops in Orlando say they got involved because they were told Drake was in an Orlando hotel room and had been texting family back in California, threatening suicide.

TMZ broke the story ... Drake was reported missing by police in Florida on Thursday, with Daytona Beach police saying he was MIA and was "considered missing and endangered."

Cops said Drake was last seen Wednesday night, driving a 2022 gray BMW ... and we obtained a photo of him with his son Tuesday at SeaWorld in Orlando.

Drake was ultimately found safe and sound Thursday afternoon, and he later addressed the issue on social media, saying ... "You leave your phone in the car and don't answer for the night and this?"

Given the content of the 911 call, and the situation, it seems like cops did the right thing.

Ja Morant is countersuing the teenager who says he was assaulted by the NBA star ... claiming the guy is lying about their July 2022 pickup basketball altercation -- alleging he's the one who was actually threatened during the incident.

The Memphis Grizzlies point guard spelled out his claims in new court documents that were filed in Shelby County, TN on Wednesday night.

In the docs, obtained by TMZ Sports, Morant acknowledged getting into a tiff with H.S. basketball star Joshua Holloway during the July 26 game at his home in Memphis, but says Holloway was the aggressor in the situation.

Morant says after things "got heated" during the game, Holloway intentionally threw a basketball at Morant's face. The teen then, according to Morant, "balled up his fists and walked aggressively" toward the NBA star "as if to attack him."

Morant said in the docs he did hit the boy, but claimed it was self-defense. He added that following an ensuing skirmish, Holloway yelled that he would come back to Morant's house and light it up "like a firework show."

Morant says he -- and other witnesses at the scene -- took that as "a threat to use a gun."

But, in the countersuit, Morant says Holloway then went to cops and lied to them about the situation, telling officers he was the victim. Morant says the boy also falsely told the cops Morant had a gun on his person following the altercation.

Morant said in the docs that once the boy's fabricated story became public through the media, it caused him ridicule and humiliation.

Morant is now countersuing Holloway for slander, battery and assault. He's asking for unspecified damages.

As we previously reported, Holloway sued Morant over the incident in September -- claiming the two-time All-Star and one of his good friends roughed him up in the confrontation at the pickup game.

Jake Paul is getting his wish -- the Problem Child will enter the boxing ring with ex-UFC superstar Nate Diaz later this year ... TMZ Sports has learned.

We're told the massive event is slated to go down on Aug. 5 in Dallas, TX ... and will be put on by Jake's Most Valuable Promotions and Nate's Real Fight Inc. The bout will be a DAZN Pay-Per-View.

Jake just posted about the fight ... saying, "August 5th we commemorate the funeral for Nathaniel Diaz as we send him in casket back to Dana [White]."

"Refreshments will be provided at the service. Black Tie Attire."

As we previously reported, Jake has wanted to fight Nate for some time now ... even challenging him to a boxing match AND an MMA fight after announcing his partnership with the Professional Fighters League.

He even told us on two separate occasions in 2022 he wanted Diaz ... even calling him out after beating Anderson Silva in October.

This will be Jake's first fight since losing to Tommy Fury via split decision in February ... and Nate's pro boxing debut.

Nate -- who recently became a combat free agent after his UFC contract expired -- has a long list of impressive wins over the course of his MMA career ... including victories over Conor McGregor, Tony Ferguson, Cowboy Cerrone and Anthony Pettis.

As for Jake, he's beaten former UFC stars Ben Askren, Silva and Tyron Woodley, as well as Nate Robinson and AnEsonGib.

Dramatic new video shows a white male security guard delivering a knockout punch to a black woman, who demanded reparations to cover her $1,000 grocery bill at Target -- and compared herself to Rosa Parks.

Surveillance video and body cam footage, first posted by the Daily Mail, showed security officer Zach Cotter clashing with customer Karen Ivery inside the store in Blue Ash, OH, last October.

As you can see, Cotter got into the middle of a heated argument between a store manager and Ivery, who allegedly asked for reparations to pay her eye-popping bill. Cops say Ivery told the manager she was "owed this" ... referring to the slavery reparations.

Police say Cotter told Ivery she needed to chill or leave the store because she was acting aggressively. Instead, she charged at him, backing him into his office.

That's when Cotter hauled off and socked Ivery in the face, knocking her to the floor. Cotter then called police, who determined he acted in self-defense and Ivery was the instigator.

Ivery was cited for disorderly conduct, served one day in jail and paid a $110 fine.

Ivery told police she wanted to have a larger conversation about "how money works" and "how it's been working in our community in a very wrong way."

The March altercation between Jake Paul and Floyd Mayweather might have been a little more stressful than it initially appeared ... because new police video, obtained by TMZ Sports, shows a cop actually had to rush Paul to safety amid the chaotic confrontation.

The dustup went down outside of the Kaseya Center in Miami following the Heat vs. Cavaliers game on March 8 ... and in the new footage, you can see police seemed to be very concerned a real fight could break out between Paul, Mayweather and their entourages.

The video shows Floyd approached Paul first in the street near the arena ... before getting into a verbal spat with the social media star and his friends.

As the guys were arguing, an officer on the scene called for backup -- saying there could be "a fight" with "a couple celebrities." Seconds later, Jake can be seen in the footage taking off.

That's when the video shows a Miami Police Dept. officer racing toward Paul to make sure he was safe.

The cop can be seen in the footage ushering the 26-year-old back inside the NBA arena -- making sure no one followed. As he was taking Paul for cover, the YouTuber-turned-boxer told the cop, "They're trying to jump me."

For several minutes, the cop guarded the door as Paul and his team waited inside the building for a car to take them away from the area.

You can hear in the footage they believed Floyd had around 50 people with him.

Eventually, Paul made it out of the area without further issue.

Jake later took to social media to blast Floyd for running up on him with a bunch of his guards and his friends. Floyd's jeweler, meanwhile, told TMZ Sports later in March that Paul was "exaggerating" about the whole situation.

It seems like everything is good between Kyle Anderson and Rudy Gobert ... 'cause the two Minnesota Timberwolves teammates "hashed it out" after their on-court altercation on Sunday.

Anderson -- who signed with the Wolves last July -- told reporters on Tuesday that he spoke with Gobert right after the 3-time Defensive Player of the Year punched him during a timeout in their matchup against the Pelicans.

"We definitely hashed it out," the 29-year-old said. "That happens all the time in sports."

"I feel like people are acting like they've never seen it before. We're grown men. We're able to put it behind us."

Anderson continued ... saying he doesn't want the incident to be blown out of proportion.

"We're teammates at the end of the day. I don't want it to be a Kyle vs. Rudy thing. That's never the case. I always got my teammates' back, and we moved on."

Despite them making peace, the 7'1" center received a crucial one-game suspension from the Wolves and will miss the play-in tournament game against the Lakers on Tuesday.

This is a big blow for Minnesota as Gobert is their star player ... and averages 13.4 points and 11.6 rebounds per game. Wolves forward Jaden McDaniels is also out after fracturing his hand from punching the wall in Sunday's game.

Bradley Beal is finally opening up about the confrontation he had with a fan that's landed him in the crosshairs of a police investigation ... saying he believes the heckles over gambling bets have stepped over the line for him.

The NBA star didn't get into too many specifics about the March 21 altercation ... but he did speak generally about the incident during his season-ending interview with media members in Washington on Monday afternoon.

You'll recall, cops began investigating Beal after a fan inside a tunnel at the Amway Center in Orlando ripped the shooting guard over a lost wager following the Wizards' 122-112 loss to the Magic.

"You f***ed me [out of] $1,300," the fan screamed, "you f***!"

Beal then turned to the man and the rest of his group -- and knocked a hat off one of the guys' heads in response. The man later told police Beal had struck him in the head when he swatted the cap. Cops took a report for battery and began investigating.

Beal said Monday that while he understands the frustration of losing money -- he told reporters, "I go to casinos" -- he added that he doesn't want to be chirped over it all.

"I gamble, I understand that," he said. "But, I also understand it's probably a 99 percent chance I'm going to lose."

"I'm not sitting here about to get angry at the dealer or angry at everybody else."

Beal also said, "Nobody wants to lose money. I get it. If you keep it about sports, I'm all for it. But, I think it's when people start getting personal, talking about your family, talking about your character, your integrity towards the game. I think all of that, we can save it. We can really keep those comments to ourselves."