Fights

Amanda Nunes and Nina Ansaroff -- the most powerful couple in MMA -- tell TMZ Sports they're LOVING being new parents ... and they're already down to expand their family again!

As you may know, Nina -- the #5 ranked UFC strawweight -- gave birth back to the couple's daughter back in September.

Amanda -- widely considered the greatest female MMA fighter of all time -- says motherhood has been "amazing" so far ... "It's an experience that makes me very happy."

In fact, Amanda says it's been easier to parent their daughter than the 3 dogs they own!

"My 3 dogs worse than having a baby," Amanda said ... "She's a very good baby. She's really a good baby so that helps a lot."

But, the burning question ... when both of your parents are MMA stars, is the kid destined for a career in the octagon?

Nina admits she REALLY hopes their kids find another sport!

"I want her to play soccer or study or whatever she wants and really hoping she doesn't want to fight."

"Of course, will be easier for her because she has us as guidance but I don't wanna see her get punched in the face! Look at this little face! I think we're good with anything other than that."

Nina is slated to return to the octagon in April to fight Mackenzie Dern -- and she's STOKED to get back to work!

When Claressa Shields hits the ring on Friday night -- she'll be rocking custom fight trunks paying tribute to Kobe Bryant and Gianna.

25-year-old Shields is taking on IBF super welterweight champion Marie-Eve Dicaire -- in a fight to unify the super welterweight division.

Claressa has established herself as the top fighter in women's boxing -- she's 10-0 as a pro ... with TWO gold medals in the Olympics.

She was clearly inspired by the greatness of Kobe and his daughter Gianna -- which is why she decided to put their names on her trunks.

Shields tells TMZ Sports she's laser-focused on her fight with Dicaire -- explaining, "I wanna knock her out but I also wanna have a great performance."

"She's gonna come out there and try to perform but I just know that I can get her out between rounds 5 and 7. It just depends which round that I'm really feeling it."

As we previously reported, Shields is also training to make the jump from boxing to MMA ... with her first MMA fight scheduled to take place in the summer.

Still no word on who Claressa's first MMA opponent will be -- but she doesn't care! Bring on ANYONE!

"My only job is just to prepare. I don't really care who they put me in there with I'm just gonna do my best."

Don't get it twisted ... Shields says she'll continue to box -- maybe the first true two-sport star in all of combat sports?

"I fight my first MMA fight in the middle of June and I'll be having a boxing match in maybe December and maybe another MMA fight in August, September. I'm not even sure but I know for sure June I'll be back, I'll be in the cage for sure."

Former NHL star Sean Avery busted a man's car mirror during a heated altercation in L.A. Thursday morning ... but he tells TMZ Sports he's the real victim in the situation.

Here's the deal ... law enforcement tells us cops were called out to the 8300 block of the Yucca Trail near West Hollywood around 10 AM to respond to a call of vandalism.

What happened preceding the call, though seems to boil down to two sides.

On one end, there's Niku. On the other, there's Avery ... and both guys claim the other dude was the aggressor in the incident.

Niku says a couple weeks ago, back in mid-February, he got into a confrontation with Avery in the neighborhood after unintentionally blocking the former hockey player down a two-way, one-lane road.

Niku says when he backed up to let Avery by ... the 40-year-old ex-NY Ranger became aggressive, rolled down his window and yelled "slow down you fat f***" over and over.

Niku says he hadn't had any contact with Avery since ... until Thursday morning, when he drove by the NHL player, who was on a jog.

Niku claims Avery recognized him from their February incident, and became incensed, and chased after him.

In video of the incident, you can see what happened next ... Avery caught up to Niku and opened his door -- before Niku quickly pulled it shut.

Niku then rolled down his window and called Avery a "psychopath."

Avery then stood in front of Niku's car ... until Niku drove slowly towards him while honking his horn.

Avery eventually got out of the way, but elbowed the dude's driver's side mirror as he stepped aside.

Avery, though, claims the whole thing was started because Niku hit him while he was jogging.

Avery says he chased Niku down to try to get him to stop ... saying Niku, "Tried to run me over." Avery added, "My leg's a little hurt."

Cops wouldn't reveal any more details from their investigation into the incident Thursday ... only telling us that a report was taken. They added no arrests were made.

"Nothing happened behind the scenes. They’re both great guys who have had incredible careers here."

That's Dana White telling TMZ Sports his decision to release Alistair Overeem and Junior dos Santos from the UFC wasn't personal, just business ... and everyone's still on good terms.

Junior dos Santos signed with the UFC in 2008. Overeem has been with UFC since 2011.

Both guys were cut from the UFC roster this week -- so when we spoke with Dana on Thursday ... we asked why.

"People get cut every week … I think those two are pretty self-explanatory. It's nothing negative, it's just part of the sport.

40-year-old Alistair is coming off a loss to Alexander Volkov -- he was 6 and 4 in his last 10 fights.

37-year-old JDS is on a 4-fight losing streak -- most recently suffering a TKO loss to Ciryl Gane in Dec. 2020.

"If you look up what they’ve done recently ... you look at their age ... you look at everything that's going on, it's pretty self-explanatory," White said.

White praised both guys as being super tough and consummate pros.

"Alistair Overeem never said no to a fight, never turned down a fight … would fight anybody."

"And, JDS is one of the nicest human beings in the sport, I have nothing but amazing things to say about both guys."

Bottom line -- "Age, it gets us all man."

There's more ...

Dana is FIRED UP for UFC 259 on Saturday -- especially the main event, middleweight champ Israel Adesanya vs. light heavyweight champ Jan Blachowicz.

Only Jan's belt is on the line on Saturday -- so, if Israel wins, he'll be the UFC's next Champ Champ!

"Jan Blachowicz might not be very well known but I feel like this is his coming-out party," White says.

"If he can beat the undefeated midweight champion Israel Adesanya, everybody will know him and be talking about him on Sunday."

Another big fight is UFC superstar Amanda Nunes vs. Megan Anderson.

"The thing that makes this fight real fun is both of these women have knockout power. We'll see lots of fun female fights that are very technical, fast pace, etc -- these two women can knock other women unconscious and the fact that they have that kinda power, makes this fight very badass."

52-year-old Roy Jones Jr. says he's ready for ANOTHER boxing match after that war with Mike Tyson -- and he's eyeing a UFC legend.

Roy has his sights set on 45-year-old superstar Anderson Silva -- widely considered one of the greatest MMA athletes of all time.

So, why Silva ... and not a rematch with Iron Mike?

"I think [Mike Tyson is] gonna do a fight with Evander Holyfield," Jones said ... "what I'm thinking is I'll probably fight somebody else."

"Truthfully speaking ... my dream next fight will probably be Anderson Silva."

Roy says he's been trying to lock up a fight with Silva for years -- but the timing finally seems right.

"Anderson's available now, I'm available now. So, we've been wanting to box for the longest time. Why not me and Anderson go out there and put it on for the people?!"

Silva was an excellent striker in his heyday -- and as RJJ points out, Anderson had a stint as a pro boxer before he switched to MMA.

In other words, "He knows how to pro box."

Anderson racked up a 34 and 11 record in MMA -- with wins over guys like Dan Henderson, Forrest Griffin, Vitor Belfort, Rich Franklin and more.

Jones says there's no doubt he would DESTROY Silva if the two fought during Roy's prime years -- "but now that I'm older and I'm older than him ... it's something good to look at now because I think his chances are better now than they ever were before."

Jake Paul is firing back at Canelo Alvarez for kicking 2 of the YouTube star's fans out of the ring during his post-fight interview on Saturday ... calling the champion an "old hater" who's ducking the real competition.

Of course, Canelo and Jake have had a beef brewing for months ... with the 30-year-old boxer saying the Paul brothers are disrespecting the sport of boxing.

The feud reached new levels when fans -- donning Jake and Ben Askren's faces on their shirts -- invaded the ring after Alvarez's dominant win over Avni Yildirim ... with Canelo telling them to "get the f*** out."

Jake is now speaking out about the incident ... and while he's not saying whether he knew about the prank beforehand, he's mad at how Alvarez handled the situation.

"Canelo, what's your problem, bro?! Why you hate me so much?!," Jake said on Tuesday.

"Canelo's mad. He has this thing against me. Said I'm bad for the sport. I'm disrespecting it, which doesn't make sense at all."

"I'm actually just bringing more eyeballs, more awareness to the sport of boxing. But since Canelo, you wanted to start this beef, let's do it!"

Jake goes on to say Canelo isn't the true pound-for-pound fighter in the world ... claiming he's hiding from real competition.

"Why not fight Caleb Plant? David Benavidez? BooBoo Andrade? You're ducking them. You're ducking them, Canelo! You're an old hater, that's what you are."

But, Canelo ain't the only boxing superstar going after Paul -- heavyweight champ Tyson Fury also had some words for Jake, seemingly trying to get him to fight his little brother, Tommy Fury.

Paul has some words for the Gypsy King as well ... saying he likes the guy and wants no beef -- but Tommy is a different story.

"If Tyson Fury took a s**t, it would be his little brother."

UFC rising star Khamzat Chimaev is NOT moving on from MMA, despite a cryptic IG post suggesting otherwise, this according to Dana White.

26-year-old Khamzat -- one of the hottest rising stars in the sport (9-0 record) -- has been battling COVID since January 2021 ... and he's still suffering from symptoms.

In fact, Khamzat's manager said the fighter was even hospitalized due to some pretty serious symptoms at one point.

Fast-forward to Monday night ... when Khamzat went to Instagram and posted an apparent farewell note to his fans.

"I think I’m done," Khamzat said ... "Yes, I know that I didn’t take the belt, but this is not the most important victory in this life. It may upset you, but my heart and body tell me everything.

He also posted a photo of a blood-spattered bathroom sink with the caption, "The main thing is I do not know what this disease is but it is not easily outlived."

But, Dana White says he spoke with Khamzat -- who's currently in Las Vegas -- and he's not buying the retirement talk.

"When he got here, the doctors took care of him, and they put him on prednisone, which is a nasty f**king steroid,” White told MMA Junkie.

"So he’s on prednisone, and he’s supposed to be taking this thing and chilling, relaxing, and letting himself recover. He went in and f**king trained today, felt like s**t, and got super emotional and posted that."

“He’s not supposed to be training, but you know, this guy’s a savage. He wants to fight like every f**king weekend, and now he can’t even train, so he just got emotional and posted that, but he ain’t quitting.”

UFC star Paulo Costa is blaming the a-a-a-a-a-alcohol for his loss to Israel a-a-a-a-a-Adesanya at UFC 253 ... saying his decision to crush a bottle of wine the night before cost him the fight.

"I was kind of drunk [when] I fought," Costa said in Portuguese (subtitled in English) on his YouTube channel ... "Maybe, on hangover."

29-year-old Costa was on a 13-fight win streak before his main event throwdown with Israel ... and was coming off an impressive victory over MMA legend Yoel Romero.

But, Izzy smashed Costa in just 2 rounds in an unexpectedly one-sided beatdown on September 27 ... leaving many fans asking the question, what the hell happened!?

Now, Costa is finally opening up about the loss -- claiming he simply boozed too hard the night before the fight.

"I had wine, too much wine, a bottle [of wine] to try to blackout," Costa said on his YouTube channel.

And, why would he want to get blackout drunk before the biggest fight of his life?

"I couldn’t sleep because of the [leg] cramps."

In other words, Costa claims he was using the wine for pain management so he could try to get some sleep that night.

"I had a glass and didn’t work. Two glasses, it didn’t work. Half bottle, didn’t work. I had it all."

Costa continued, "Keep in mind that the fight happens at 9 a.m., we have to wake up at 5 to get ready, stretch, wrap the hands. The UFC told us to wake up at 5 in the morning to go to the arena to fight. I hadn’t slept until 2:30."

We all know what happened next ... Israel pummeled Paulo so badly, the ref stopped the fight in the 2nd round.

Costa is set to return to the Octagon in April to fight Robert Whittaker.

Max Holloway says a rematch with Conor McGregor was a real possibility just 1 month ago ... but after The Notorious took an L from Dustin Poirier, he's shifted his focus away from the Irish star.

"[Holloway vs. McGregor] was on a very short list for UFC if everything went well in [Conor's] last fight and it didn't," the 29-year-old Hawaiian told TMZ Sports in L.A.

"And I don't wanna kick a dog when it's down. At the end of the day, we'll see what happens."

McGregor defeated Holloway in a 3 round unanimous decision when they first clashed back in 2013 -- but Max has developed into one of the best fighters in the UFC and currently seems to be at the height of his powers.

He's coming off a DOMINANT victory over respect UFC feather Calvin Kattar in January where Max set a record for most significant strikes landed in a fight with 445!!!

McGregor, on the other hand, seems to be a shell of when he used to be. He's coming off a 2 round knockout at the hands of Dustin Poirier.

Max and Conor seem to be on 2 different trajectories -- and Holloway seems to be more focused on fighting for a title than settling an old score.

So, who's next for Max? Most likely the winner of the Brian Ortega vs. Alex Volkanovski fight at UFC 260.

Volkanovski is the reigning featherweight champ -- and has already chalked up 2 victories over Holloway in the past few years.

Guessing Holloway wants a 3rd crack at Alex -- considering he already beat down Brian Ortega in 2018.

Lennox Lewis says he'd seriously consider getting back in the ring with Mike Tyson for a long-awaited rematch ... but only if there was a serious demand.

"If the public wanted it then we would probably talk," the former heavyweight champ tells TMZ Sports.

Lewis famously KO'd Tyson in the 8th round when they clashed in June 2002 -- despite Tyson making some wild threats in the build-up to the fight (remember, Tyson said he wanted to "eat" Lennox's children!?).

But, after Tyson's incredible performance against Roy Jones Jr. in November 2020, there's definitely an appetite to see "Iron" Mike get back in the ring.

Question is ... who will be Mike's next opponent?! 55-year-old Lennox?

Lennox hasn't fought professionally since a 2003 victory over Vitali Klitschko -- but he admitted he'd consider squaring up with Tyson ... but only if the situation was perfect.

"I don't know. I don't really have nothing pushing me in the ring right now. People would love to see that fight but I don't know."

Our photog asked if a poll on TMZ Sports would help sway the boxer ... who admitted he's curious how that would go.

So, VOTE if you want to see the rematch!

UFC rising star Ciryl Gane says there's only 1 way he'd fight his former training partner and friend Francis Ngannou ... if the UFC title was on the line!!

30-year-old Gane is a beast ... he's 6'5", 247 lbs., and has never lost a professional fight (he's 7-0).

The #7 ranked heavyweight fighter -- who beat Junior dos Santos in December -- is taking on #4 ranked, 32-year-old Jairzinho Rozenstruik at the main event of UFC Fight Night 186 Saturday night.

If Ciryl wins, he'll be in the mix for a title shot ... and the champ could very well be Ngannou.

The issue? Gane and Ngannou -- who's fighting Stipe Miocic for the title at UFC 260 next month -- used to train together at MMA Factory in Paris under coach Fernand Lopez.

So, we asked Gane if he'd ever fight Francis.

"I think it’s a little bit shame if we do it before the belt because we’re both from [French Cameroon]. For me, we were born in the same gym, with the same coach and this is something."

Ciryl added ... "But, if the UFC wants to do that, that better be for the belt."

We asked CG if it'd be hard to hurt someone he likes and respects.

"For me, It’s a sport," Gane said, continuing ... "I don’t need to get mad in my career to do something in the cage. Outside the cage I’m a good kid, I’m always like that, and when I’m in the cage I do my job. That's it, it’s a sport for me. So yeah, I think for me it would be possible."

Now, there's a 255 lb. man who hits like a truck and is hellbent on wrecking any plans for a future Gane-Ngannou fight.

We talked to Rozenstruik -- who himself wants to fight Ngannou and avenge a 2020 loss -- and he says it's time to derail the Ciryl Gane hype train and get himself closer to a title shot.

The man who punched Oklahoma Sooners wide receiver Spencer Jones in the face repeatedly in a violent bar brawl earlier this month claims he was simply acting in self-defense, insisting his actions were "legally justified."

Walker Brown says -- just before a camera filmed him whaling on Jones in a bathroom at Logie's on the Corner in Norman, OK -- he was the one who was initially attacked at the bar on Feb. 13.

Brown, through his attorney, Steve Stice, says Jones and his friends were the aggressors in the situation ... and had roughed him up prior to the violent affair on the bathroom floor.

"There is more to the story than what is depicted in the video," Stice said this week. "What is not shown is the original assault and battery suffered by Mr. Brown at the hands of Mr. Jones and his friend shortly before the captured footage."

"As can be seen, my client's nose and clothing were bloodied prior to the beginning of the video. Mr. Brown was legally justified in defending himself in this matter."

In fact, Stice says Brown was actually seriously injured in the melee ... claiming Brown suffered a torn biceps tendon that will require surgery as well as bruises and lacerations.

The Norman Police Department tells TMZ Sports it's currently investigating the fight ... after Jones called in to report an assault 3 days after the brawl.

Jones, meanwhile, is currently recovering after having surgery to repair eye damage he suffered in the scrap.

Jones' attorney, Woodrow "Woody" Glass, said earlier this week Jones was NOT the aggressor in the situation, insisting the football player was just trying to play peacekeeper.

Boxing star Ryan Garcia is pointing the finger straight at Manny Pacquiao -- saying it's Manny who pulled the plug on their fight after offering it to Garcia earlier this year.

"Manny came to offer me the fight," Garcia explained on his way into Boa Steakhouse in L.A. on Wednesday.

"Obviously, I would love to fight Manny Pacquaio, but that's on him. That's on him."

Garcia had announced the fight back in January -- posting on IG as if it was a done deal.

"A dream turned reality," Garcia said at the time ... "It’s an honor to share the Ring with @mannypacquiao. I will always respect what you did in and out the ring. Here’s to the best Man Winning."

But, something went wrong ... and Garcia says the only person to blame is Manny.

Still, 22-year-old Garcia is ready willing and able to fight ... if 42-year-old Manny ever decides to put pen to paper.

Instead, Garcia is focusing on lining up another opponent -- his priority is Gervonta Davis ... but he's also open to fighting Vasyl Lomachenko.

"I think I made it very clear I want Gervonta Davis. That's the man I want and I'll knock him out in 2 rounds."

Garcia and Tank have been trading insults on social media for YEARS now -- while both obliterating opponents in the ring. Seems like the obvious fight to make.

Oklahoma wide receiver Spencer Jones, who played in every game for the Sooners this past season, nearly lost his eye in a violent altercation in a bar bathroom earlier this month.

The wild scrap was all caught on video ... and the footage is insane, showing Jones and another man getting in a fistfight on Valentine's weekend at Logies on the Corner in Norman, OK.

It's unclear what started the fight ... the video picks up with Jones and another person arguing with two men.

In the clip, you can hear Jones tell one of the men repeatedly, "Get the f*** out of here!" before he takes several punches to the face.

Jones is then thrown on the ground, punched some more, and ultimately put into a chokehold.

A separate fistfight, meanwhile, also broke out while Jones and the other man were wrestling on the ground.

The commotion was eventually broken up ... but Jones suffered serious damage in the melee -- with his attorney, Woodrow "Woody" Glass, telling OUDaily.com the Sooners' redshirt senior almost lost his eye.

Glass said Jones had to undergo a lengthy surgery to fix his issues ... adding doctors told Jones and his family afterward the football player was "extraordinarily lucky" to still have his eye.

As for what started the fight, Glass said Jones was simply trying to play peacemaker and ended up being the victim of an assault.

We've reached out to cops in Norman to see if a police investigation is underway, but so far, no word back yet.

Diamonds, Bugattis, sushi ... and scantily clad butts.

That's what surrounded Floyd Mayweather at his 44th birthday bash on Thursday night -- a wild "futuristic" event in Florida.

The boxing superstar rolled up to "The Venue" in Fort Lauderdale for a massive bash dubbed, "Floyd's Futuristic 44th Birthday Extravaganza."

He arrived in one of his $2 million Bugatti supercars -- dripping in millions of dollars worth of diamond chains.

On the way in, he was asked for an update on his recently postponed exhibition boxing match with Logan Paul -- is it still going to happen?

"I know it's going to happen," Floyd said ... "We just want make sure everything is right and everything is where it should be."

Inside, the party was wild -- tons of food, live music, booze, and hot ladies on rollerskates to entertain the crowd.

The venue is called "The Venue" -- it's a massive 32,000 square foot event space "outfitted with the most advanced technology in sound and lighting, special effects including laser capability and 3D Projection Mapping," according to its website.

In other words, it's super high tech.

Celeb guests included Rick Ross, Larsa Pippen, Jacquees (who performed) and President Joe Biden's brother, Frank Biden.

Floyd's cake was pretty cool too, complete with money and a private jet ... he shared the party with friend Jas 'Limitless' Mathur who plunked down $700k for the bash. We're told there was $200k worth of champagne, ice sculptures and dancers to complete the vibe.

We're told there was a COVID protocol in place -- people were screened at the door, temperature checks and an emphasis on social distancing.

That said, Floyd did not appear to be wearing a mask at any point of the evening.

Mayweather doesn't actually turn 44 until Feb. 24th -- but he clearly wanted to get the party started early.

Gilbert Burns' title hopes were crushed by Kamaru Usman only days ago ... but the UFC star's already plotting his return to the Octagon -- and he wants Colby Covington!!

TMZ Sports talked to Burns following his 3rd round TKO loss to Usman at UFC 258 last weekend ... and the 34-year-old fighter made it clear he ain't looking for R&R after having his 6-fight UFC win streak snapped.

"[Covington's] the one that I want with all my heart. That's the fight that I asked right after he beat Demian Maia. That's the one that I want."

Still, Burns -- who says he suffered NO serious injuries in his fight -- knows he isn't the only one lookin' for an Usman rematch (Chaos wants one too) ... so GB's down to fight any of the top guys in the welterweight division.

"Sometimes we don't get what we want, but I'm open to any one of the top 6, top 7 guys," Burns tells us.

Gilbert says he doesn't care about Colby's trash-talking and antics outside the cage ... he just wants to get his hands on the #1 ranked contender.

"Just sign the contract. Let's fight. You can call me whatever you want. Let's fight sooner than later. I'm in my prime, you're in your prime, we both want the rematch. Let's see who wins first."

Burns says the ultimate goal is still a UFC goal ... and he wholeheartedly believes he will fight Usman again -- in the not too distant future -- and that he will win this time around.