Fights

Tom Aspinall admits he won't be at his cardiovascular peak for his upcoming title fight -- he wasn't planning on being in an Octagon Saturday night -- but the UFC star says he's healthy enough to leave The World's Most Famous Arena as interim heavyweight champ!

TMZ Sports talked to 30-year-old Aspinall, the #4 ranked UFC heavyweight, days before his scrap with 31-year-old Sergei Pavlovich, ranked the #2 contender, during UFC 295's co-main event at Madison Square Garden ... and we asked the fighter from the UK how close he'd be to 100 percent.

"I can't lie and say I'm at my fittest ever because I'm not. But also there's been times when I haven't had a fight that I've been way further away than what I am now. I've still been training. I've been training every day," Aspinall told us.

Tom added ... "Two and a half weeks is enough time to switch on your mind. To get in the mode of fighting, to mentally prepare yourself. I'd say I'm around 80 to 90%. I feel good."

Of course, Aspinall got a phone call from the UFC on October 24 ... with news that Jon Jones wouldn't be able to fight Stipe Miocic after suffering a serious injury to his pec. Tom was offered an interim title fight against Pavlovich, who had already been contracted to serve as the backup for the original Jon and Stipe fight.

Despite Sergei having been in camp already, and Tom not ... he said yes, and here we are!

We asked Aspinall how difficult a decision it was.

"It wasn't really a tough decision to be honest. I don't know why. I think for anybody else it maybe was. That's the fight that I wanted. That's the fight I've been asking for. I wouldn't be asking for it if I felt like I didn't want it.

"Obviously, in an ideal world, I would've liked longer to train. I would've liked longer than the short amount of time, but I believe everything happens for a reason, and I believe it's gonna help me somehow, whatever that is I'll find out Saturday. And I'm very much looking forward to it!"

Pavlovich is one of the scariest fighters in the promotion. He's only lost once as a professional and has won 6 UFC fights in a row. His last loss was to now-retired MMA legend Alistair Overeem in 2018.

Segei's known for his incredible knockout power ... finishing 83% of his fights by knockout.

Aspinall's no slouch, either. He's 13-3, and an incredible athlete ... especially considering his massive frame (he's 6'5", 262 lbs.). Tom's beaten the likes of Marcin Tybura, Alexander Volkov, and Andrei Arlovski since joining Dana White's promotion in 2020.

Adding to the massive moment ... the fight's going down at MSG, where legends like Muhammad Ali have fought over the decades. Aspinall's from Manchester, but we asked him if he cared about UFC 295's distinguished location.

"I personally know that Madison Square Garden is the most prestigious arena in the world for a combat athlete. I think that's globally known. There are two places that I wanted to fight being a UK guy, I always wanted to fight in the O2 Arena. I've headlined the O2 three times now," Aspinall said.

Gal Gadot's screening of a new film about the October 7 Hamas terror attack on Israel turned into a battleground of sorts ... as protestors clashed outside the Los Angeles theater where it was shown.

About 150 people attended Wednesday night's screening of the extremely graphic 47-minute film titled, "Bearing Witness to the October 7th Massacre," at the Museum of Tolerance. Media reports indicated Gadot -- who was supposed to host the event -- was MIA.

During the viewing inside, mobs of pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli demonstrators arrived outside, waving flags and shouting at one another.

Witnesses shot cell phone video of the rapidly devolving situation, which soon erupted into violence.

Check out the footage posted to X ... protestors are seen going at it, throwing wild punches and tackling each other to the ground. One woman can be heard screaming, "Free Palestine!"

LAPD officers were dispatched to break up the fights and quell the tension. It's unclear if anyone was injured or arrested, but we've put in a call to the LAPD. So far, no word back.

Earlier this week, news reports surfaced that Gadot was planning to host the L.A. screening -- which was met with backlash.

The gruesome footage in the film was intended to show the truth of what happened that day amid many skeptics.

Un visionado facilitado por la actriz Gal Gadot sobre el ataque terrorista del 7 de octubre de Hamás en Israel se convirtió en un campo de batalla cuando manifestantes de diversos lados se enfrentaron afuera del teatro de Los Ángeles donde se mostró.

Alrededor de 150 personas asistieron a la proyección de 47 minutos, que era extremadamente gráfica y se titula "Testigos de la masacre del 7 de octubre", en el Museo de la Tolerancia. Los medios de comunicación indicaron que Gadot, que se suponía que iba a presentar el evento, no estuvo presente.

Durante el visionado en el interior, una multitud de manifestantes pro-palestinos y pro-israelíes salieron, agitando banderas y gritándose unos a otros.

Algunos testigos en la escena grabaron con sus teléfonos celulares la rápida evolución de la situación, la que pronto estalló en violencia.

Echa un vistazo a las imágenes publicadas en X, los manifestantes se ven enardecidos, lanzándose golpes y empujándose al suelo. Se puede escuchar a una mujer gritando: "¡Liberen a Palestina!".

Agentes de la policía de Los Ángeles fueron enviados para disolver las peleas y calmar la situación. No está claro si alguien resultó herido o detenido, pero nos hemos puesto en contacto con la policía de Los Ángeles. Por el momento no tenemos noticias.

A principios de esta semana, aparecieron reportes de que Gadot planeaba ser la anfitriona de la proyección en Los Ángeles de la película dirigida por Guy Nattiv, la que muestra la matanza de 1.400 israelíes por parte de Hamás.

Las truculentas imágenes de la película, filmadas por las fuerzas de defensa israelíes, pretendían mostrar la verdad de lo que ocurrió aquel día en medio de varios escépticos.

Ex-MMA fighter Javier Baez didn't just body slam a crazed knife-wielding assailant; he also "choked him out" ... telling TMZ his 15 years of pro training finally came in handy in the streets.

As we reported, the shocking clip making the rounds online shows Javier's attacker, Omar Marrero, didn't stand a fighting chance when he charged ... even though he had a 14-inch knife in his hand.

Javier tells us it all started while he was minding his biz, sitting in his car and talking to his fiancee -- he says that's when Marrero banged on his car window, shattering it.

He told Marrero to beat it, and warned he was going to call the police, but Omar brandished the giant knife -- and while some people would've driven off at that point, Javier stepped out of his car and the fight was on!

As you've seen, Javier body slammed Marrero to the ground, but what's harder to see is that he also blocked the knife by applying a chokehold ... which made the assailant pass out.

He then called the cops, and Marrero woke up with Javier's foot on his back.

With his amazing piece of ass-kicking going viral, Javier says he's getting a slew of calls from folks who want to hire him for personal and self-defense training.

8:38 AM PT -- Jake Paul is going off on anyone who is still hating on his boxing career after the big reveal ... telling any naysayers to simply "shut the f*** up."

"Boxer true and true, better record than me, more wins by KO than me, same weight."

Of course, haters gonna hate ... so it sounds like that'll continue no matter what.

Jake Paul is sending a direct response to his haters with his next opponent -- he just announced he's slated to fight pro boxer Andre August next month.

The Problem Child is going up against a 10-1 cruiserweight fighter with five knockouts under his belt ... and he's referring to the matchup as a serious challenge as he continues his quest to become a legitimate world champion.

"Ask and I shall deliver," Jake said Wednesday. "August has more KO’s then me, more wins then me, more experience then me, but I like to gamble."

"The path to world champ starts here. Just straight up boxing."

26-year-old Paul is 7-1 with four KOs in his career ... but many have criticized him for taking on older MMA fighters with little to no boxing experience.

The one boxer he actually has on his record is Tommy Fury -- and that's his only loss.

35-year-old August is by far the smallest name Jake has ever agreed to fight ... but he's exactly the type of opponent the purists would want to see him face off against.

The 5'10", 200-lb. Houston native last fought in August, when he won via unanimous decision. His only loss came in 2018. According to his Instagram page, AA claims to be a Texas state champion.

August addressed the upcoming event in a statement ... saying, "I don't talk very much. I’m all about that action! Jake Paul has the money, the fame, the team and the resources but he doesn’t have my hunger."

"When that bell rings, I am going to go straight to Jake Paul and ring his bell and send him back to YouTube for good."

The bout is slated to go down December 15 at the Caribe Royale in Orlando.

A former MMA fighter used his combat skills to open a can of whoop-ass on a knife-wielding assailant in self-defense... and the dramatic scene was caught on video.

Javier Baez drove back to his Miami apartment complex after a night out on Halloween ... and spotted Omar Marrero screaming and brandishing a knife in the parking lot, according to WPLG News.

After Baez parked his car, Marrero reportedly walked over and started hitting his window with the knife.

Marrero then opened the driver's side door and tried to slash Baez, who got out to dial down the escalating tension.

But it didn't work ... Marrero kept swinging the knife at Baez and retrieved a second blade from his vehicle nearby.

Baez wasn't intimidated, though, reverting back to his days as a mixed martial arts fighter and making quick work of Marrero.

Check out the video ... Holding one of the knives, Marrero charges at Baez, who lifts him up and body slams him to the ground. Baez then disarms Marrero and puts him in a chokehold.

Baez later told a WPLG reporter, "Once I started putting the choke in, he kind of just let it go because no one is worried about anything else but breathing when you’re losing air."

Baez added, "I was able to hold him down with my knee and call the cops, and he woke up, cops came, and it was good, easy peasy!"

Rick Ross is looking back at the infamous moment his ankle monitor sounded while meeting with President Obama inside the White House -- and, now at least, it brings him nothing but LOLs!!!

Complex's Speedy Mormon asked Rozay to detail the embarrassing moment during his co-interview with Meek Mill to promote their joint album ... and he recalled trying to maneuver around D.C. in spite of being on house arrest at the time.

We broke the story back in 2016 ... Ross was among the hip hop heavyhitters invited to the WH for Obama's Brother's Keeper youth initiative when the ankle monitor went off. He'd been fitted with the device after his 2015 arrest for aggravated assault and aggravated battery.

Rozay remembers hearing the thing beeping outta control, and says he slumped in his seat hoping no one would notice -- but, it's totally the Secret Service's job to notice. He says agents sprung into action seeking out the source of the noise.

Obama totally heard the ankle monitor and commented, but the MMG rapper won't spill the deets on what was said. Although, he seems to think Busta Rhymes, who was also there, will!!!

Also in attendance were J. Cole, Wale, Chance The Rapper, DJ Khaled, as well as Nicki Minaj, who was dating Meek at the time.

Meek says he was also on house arrest at the time ... and learned of the incident after Nicki came home cussing him out that he wasn't capitalizing off the moment.

Francis Ngannou isn't sending mixed signals ... he wants a rematch with Tyson Fury next, and if that means waiting a few months until The Gypsy King fights Oleksandr Usyk, he tells TMZ Sports that's exactly what he'll do!

The 37-year-old combat sports superstar joined Michael Babcock on the "TMZ Sports" show (airs weeknights on FS1) ... where the guys talked about Francis' future in the ring now that he's the hottest commodity in the sport.

"I would be willing to wait [for Fury to fight Usyk]. I know that they are going to fight, they had a contract already, so they are going to fight sometime in February instead of December 23, which is my fault," Ngannou said smiling ... "I shouldn't have cut him. He would've fought December 23, and maybe we would've run it back early next year."

Of course, Francis is referring to the cut he opened up on Tyson's head ... a big reason he won't be able to turn around and fight in less than 2 months. The cut has to heal.

So, a fight with Fury, barring the Usyk bout completely falling apart, will not happen until, at earliest, mid-2024.

In the meantime, Anthony Joshua, through his promoter Eddie Hearn, has said he's down to fight The Predator in Saudi Arabia on December 28. We asked Ngannou if he was interested.

"First of all, it's too soon. Secondly, my focus, as boxing is concerned, is a rematch with Tyson. That's the most important thing for me right now, everything else for boxing comes after."

In addition to AJ, Deontay Wilder and Joseph Parker are names that have been thrown out as possible future opponents for Ngannou.

All this doesn't necessarily mean Francis won't fight before Fury ... he just won't box. Remember, Ngannou is signed to PFL (as a fighter and Chairman of PFL Africa).

Last week we spoke to PFL CEO Peter Murray ... who previewed some of the promotion's plans for their superstar fighter.

There's also much more with Francis ... from whether he believes Fury trained for him to how his life has changed since the epic performance.

Heavyweight boxing star Jared "Big Baby" Anderson -- who Tyson Fury calls a future champ -- was arrested Monday in Ohio after cops say he was driving under the influence with a gun in his car.

Oregon (OH) Police Department tells TMZ Sports the arrest occurred a little after 1 AM after an officer allegedly saw Anderson driving his '23 Dodge Charger 55 in a 40 MPH zone, and initially pulled him over for speeding.

During the stop, the cop says he smelled "the faint odor of burnt marijuana," as well as alcohol on Anderson's breath. The officer also allegedly spotted an opened bottle of Don Julio tequila.

OPD says they observed Anderson's eyes, which were allegedly "bloodshot and glassy," so they administered a blood alcohol content test which came up .038, under the legal limit (.08).

As part of the stop, officers also conducted a search of his vehicle ... and located a firearm in the glovebox.

According to Lucas County jail records, the 23-year-old was booked on two charges ... improperly handling firearms in a motor vehicle knowingly transporting under the influence, and operating a vehicle under the influence (OVI).

OVI can be used to charge a person operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs.

The news comes just days after Fury praised the 16-0 (15 KOs) fighter, calling Anderson the next star of the heavyweight division.

"Jared's the man. This is the future champ," Fury said ahead of his bout with Francis Ngannou.

"I said it three years ago. This is the heir to the throne.”

Anderson started boxing as a teenager and has won several championships ... from the Elite National Championships to the National Golden Gloves.

Despite losing to Gervonta 'Tank' Davis in front of the world, Ryan Garcia will still become a boxing superstar, according to his promoter, Oscar De La Hoya, who knows a thing or two about dominating the sport.

TMZ Sports spoke with the Golden Boy ahead of Garcia's return to the ring against Oscar Duarte on December 2 (streaming on DAZN) ... Ryan's first scrap since the April L to Tank.

"I have to commend Ryan for taking this tough challenge after his defeat," ODLH said.

"[Duarte] is coming off 11-straight knockout wins. I mean, that tells you a lot about him, but it also tells you a lot about Ryan's character."

Oscar says a win over OD in December will indicate the 25-year-old boxer is back on track ... and he'll be ready to go toe-to-toe with BK's own, Teofimo Lopez, for a world title.

What happens after that is up to Garcia, according to Oscar ... but the Hall of Famer is optimistic Ryan's headed places.

"I can see Ryan Garcia opening up the Sphere in Las Vegas," ODLH said. "I can see Ryan Garcia being a superstar."

For now, Garcia is focused on showing the world he's still elite  ... and he tells us he's prepared for what 26-1 Duarte will bring to the ring.

"I just gotta watch out for his aggression, his power. He's hungry," Garcia said. "Facing a guy like me, they're always gonna bring their A-game."

A pesar de perder ante Gervonta 'Tank' Davis frente al mundo, Ryan García todavía se convertirá en una superestrella del boxeo. Esto según su promotor, Oscar De La Hoya, quien sabe una cosa o dos acerca de dominar el deporte.

TMZ Sports habló con el Golden Boy antes del regreso de García al ring contra Oscar Duarte el 2 de diciembre (streaming en DAZN). El primer combate de Ryan desde la L de abril a Tank.

"Tengo que elogiar a Ryan por tomar este duro desafío después de su derrota", dijo De La Hoya.

"Duarte viene de 11 victorias consecutivas por nocaut. Eso te dice mucho de él, pero también del carácter de Ryan".

Oscar dice que una victoria sobre OD en diciembre indicará que el boxeador de 25 años está de vuelta y estará listo para ir mano a mano con Teófimo López por un título mundial.

Lo que ocurra después de eso depende de García, según Oscar, pero el miembro del Salón de la Fama es optimista respecto al destino de Ryan.

"Puedo ver a Ryan García abriendo la Esfera en Las Vegas", dijo Oscar. "Puedo ver a Ryan García siendo una superestrella".

Por ahora, García está concentrado en demostrarle al mundo que sigue en la élite y nos dice que está preparado para lo que Duarte (26-1) traerá al ring.

"Solo tengo que tener cuidado con su agresividad, su poder. Tiene hambre", dijo García. "Para enfrentarse a un tipo como yo, va a tener que ponerlo todo en juego".

Francis Ngannou signed with PFL earlier this year, and now the promotion has arguably the hottest combat sports star in the world ... so, what's the plan? We asked PFL's CEO, Peter Murray.

"In 2024 [Ngannou] will absolutely make his debut with PFL, and he'll return to the cage and MMA and we're putting that fight together as we speak," Murray told TMZ Sports just days after the Fury fight.

Remember, 37-year-old Ngannou signed with Professional Fighters League in May 2023 ... to a deal that allows him to fight MMA, while also taking boxing matches outside the promotion (hence the Fury fight). Francis will also serve as the chairman of PFL Africa.

Clearly, there are some big potential fights out there ... we asked Peter which were on his radar.

"Francis wants Jon Jones, and Jon Jones wants Francis. Francis wants Stipe [Miocic], and Stipe wants Francis. And there's a conversation going on with Deontay Wilder, whether it's boxing, whether it's modified rules. That could be exciting, so that's a real consideration."

Obviously, there are some massive hurdles when you're talking about Francis vs. Jon or Stipe ... as both men are signed to the UFC. Dana White, in the past, hasn't been open to cross-promotion fights, and the UFC honcho and Francis aren't exactly on the best terms right now.

So, we'll see.

On the other hand, Wilder would seemingly be a lot easier of a fight to make ... and it'd be a highly anticipated matchup pitting arguably the hardest-punching boxer vs. the hardest-punching MMA fighter!

38-year-old Wilder last fought in October 2022 ... knicking out Robert Helenius in the very first round of their bout in Brooklyn. 42 of Deontay's 43 wins have come by knockout.

We also spoke to Francis earlier in the week ... and we asked him about The Bronze Bomber.

Shawn "Showtime" Porter was impressed by Francis Ngannou's boxing debut against Tyson Fury last week ... telling TMZ Sports he could see the former UFC legend having a successful boxing career in the heavyweight division.

ICYMI, Ngannou lost by split decision to Fury (34-0-1, 24 KOs) on Oct. 28 in Saudi Arabia ... and even though it was his first boxing match ever, Francis put on a good performance, including a knockdown in the 3rd round.

"Unfortunately, even though Ngannou showed himself, again, to be very strong, showed himself to be prepared for this fight, he also showed he does not have enough boxing mechanics to win enough rounds to beat Tyson Fury," Porter said.

Shawn -- who won 31 fights in the welter/middleweight division -- believes Ngannou's execution could make him a decent heavyweight boxer in the future ... once he gets a couple of fights under his belt and some familiarity with the sport.

"His lack of experience showed because there were rounds where he essentially did zero to win those rounds," Porter said.

"If he's able to find a pace, he's gonna get some heavyweight fighters some trouble because he's big enough to fight there, he showed he's strong enough to fight there and the guy is athletic. He got skills!"

Even Ngannous's age (37) doesn't stop Porter from believing he can be tough in boxing ... saying fighters don't even get to their prime until their mid-30s and heavyweights age slower than other weight classes.

However, Porter -- who became a boxing analyst after retiring in 2021 -- does point out that Fury didn't fight hard either ... but he's not taking anything away from Ngannou's debut.

"He underperformed," Porter said about Fury. "He wasn't prepared for this fight."

Porter isn't the only one who believes Fury didn't come ready ... undefeated boxer Shakur Stevenson told us the same thing, saying Tyson was "off that night."

This never happened coding ... Mark Zuckerberg tore his ACL training MMA, and was forced to go under the knife, delaying a real deal fight Zuck had scheduled for early next year!

The Facebook founder shared several photos from his hospital bed Friday afternoon ... announcing he's suffered a serious injury to his left leg.

"Tore my ACL sparring and just got out of surgery to replace it. Grateful for the doctors and team taking care of me. I was training for a competitive MMA fight early next year, but now that's delayed a bit. Still looking forward to doing it after I recover. Thanks to everyone for the love and support," 39-year-old Zuck wrote on Instagram.

The bit about the upcoming fight is news, too. No one ever publicly announced Mark scheduled a mixed martial arts bout.

A bunch of MMA stars wished Zuck well after hearing about his injury, including former UFC champ-champ Henry Cejudo, who wrote ...  "Speedy recovery Mark! 🙏"

Through training, Zuckerberg has befriended many of the world's top fighters like Israel Adesanya and Alex Volkanovski.

FYI, the ACL, or the anterior cruciate ligament, is a band of tissue that connects your thigh and shinbones together and is a common injury among athletes.

Of course, Zuckerberg and Elon Musk spent months negotiating terms for an MMA fight, though it never came to fruition. The billionaires blamed each other for the breakdown.

Earlier this week Musk went on Joe Rogan's podcast and again reiterated that he would fight Zuckerberg "anytime, anywhere, any place."

ACL recovery typically takes around 9 months, give or take, to return to competition post-surgery.

Until then, Mark's likely not fighting anyone.

Francis Ngannou knows what he wants next ... telling TMZ Sports the clear choice is a rematch with Tyson Fury!

We talked to 37-year-old Ngannou on Tuesday ... just days after his incredibly impressive performance against 35-year-old Fury, and asked one of the most coveted athletes in all combat sports who and/or what he wants now that the world's at his fingertips.

"The rematch is what I want next the most," Ngannou told us.

"As for right now I feel like there is a lot of options for me, but I want to choose wisely, and I would go for the rematch first."

Before Tyson and Francis ever threw a punch at each other, Fury already had his next fight booked vs. Oleksandr Usyk. Ngannou thinks he and Fury should settle their business (the rematch) before the boxing champs scrap.

"My best scenario in boxing is to wait for Fury. If Usyk can step out and let me fight Fury, I'll fight Fury, then I'll let them do whatever they do. I'll go back, maybe do some MMA fight and come back with some people in boxing," Francis said.

"I'm planning to fight potentially twice next year, [starting] maybe February or March."

Of course, despite losing by a split decision on the judge's scorecards, many fans believe Francis beat Tyson ... so, we asked The Predator if he plans on appealing the decision.

"Who am I gonna appeal to? [The British Boxing Commission]? I have no chance. I think that's just another way of humiliation."

Francis Ngannou sabe lo que quiere y le dicie a TMZ Sports que la opción clara es una revancha con Tyson Fury.

Hablamos con Ngannou (37), el martes, pocos días después de su impresionante actuación  contra Fury (35) y le preguntó a uno de los atletas más codiciados de todos los deportes de combate que es lo que quiere ahora que el mundo está a su alcance.

"La revancha es lo que más quiero después", nos dijo Ngannou.

"En cuanto a ahora mismo, siento que hay muchas opciones para mí, pero quiero elegir sabiamente, y yo iría primero por la revancha".

Antes de que Tyson y Francis se dieran un puñetazo, Fury ya tenía reservada su próxima pelea contra Oleksandr Usyk. Ngannou cree que él y Fury deberían arreglar sus asuntos (la revancha) antes de que los campeones de boxeo se peleen.

"Mi mejor escenario en el boxeo es esperar a Fury. Si Usyk puede retirarse y dejarme pelear con Fury, pelearé con Fury, y luego les dejaré hacer lo que hagan. Volveré, tal vez haga alguna pelea de MMA y regresaré con algunas personas en el boxeo", dijo Francis.

"Estoy planeando pelear potencialmente dos veces el próximo año, [comenzando] tal vez en febrero o marzo".

Por supuesto, a pesar de perder por decisión dividida en las tarjetas de puntuación del juez, muchos fanáticos creen que Francis venció a Tyson, así que le preguntamos a "The Predator" si planea apelar la decisión.

"¿A quién voy a apelar? [¿A la Comisión Británica de Boxeo?] No tengo ninguna posibilidad. Creo que es otra forma de humillación".