Fights

There was another vicious attack against an Asian person in New York City ... this time in Central Park.

It happened last Saturday, at around 1 in the afternoon. A 38-year-old Asian man was approached by someone who punched him in the face and fled, according to the NYPD.

The injuries were serious enough that the man went to nearby Mount Sinai Hospital.

The victim had been enjoying the day with his wife and son when the attack occurred.

The victim told cops the attacker first came up to his family and started whispering something in his wife's ear that was sexual in nature. As his family tried to move away from the guy, he got in the victim's face. The victim said, "Hey, let's practice social distance, you don't have a mask on ..." The attacker then said, "You got a mask. That's an advantage."  Then came the hate, as the attacker added, "You guys always have the advantage." And, that's when the attacker punched the victim.

This kind of hatred is out of control against Asians all across the country. As we reported, a woman was viciously attacked around the same time in NYC by a man who is now under arrest for a hate crime.

MMA fighter Johnny Case -- who once fought on a Conor McGregor undercard -- was arrested in Las Vegas on Thursday for domestic battery, TMZ Sports has learned.

The 31-year-old fighter is still in custody in Clark County, Nevada according to online records.

Details surrounding his arrest have not been released -- but we're told the alleged victim is a female MMA fighter.

Case -- who goes by the nickname "Johnny Hollywood" -- is currently signed with the PFL (Professional Fighters League) and has a fight scheduled for the end of the month.

Case is 27-7-1 as a pro fighter and has had stints with some of the top MMA organizations in the world ... including the UFC, where he fought from 2014 to 2017.

In fact, Case fought Frankie Perez on the undercard of the Conor McGregor vs. Dennis Siver card back in 2015 ... and he won.

We reached out to Case's camp for comment but so far nothing.

"I said, 'Wait a second, where the f*** is his finger?' They were all like, 'I don't know.'"

That's how one witness described seeing an MMA fighter LOSE A FINGER mid-match Thursday night ... and, yeah, the injury was just as horrific as it sounds.

During Khetag Pliev's bout with Devin Goodale at Cage Fury Fighting Championship in Philadelphia, officials had to stop the fight when they noticed Pliev was missing a freakin' finger.

The images were INSANE ... video of 37-year-old Pliev in his corner showed the ring finger on his left hand had been completely severed at some point during his match.

The problem? For several minutes, nobody could find the missing digit!

Event promoter Rob Haydak told ESPN there was a mad scramble to try to help locate it ... with the PA announcer even having to ask fans in the 2300 Arena stands if they'd seen it!

"It was a surreal moment," Haydak said.

Eventually, Pliev's finger was found tucked away in his glove -- where it had been the entire time -- but, here's the crazy part ... Pliev did NOT immediately go to the hospital to have it reattached!!!

Haydak says Pliev actually begged to continue the match ... and even though officials wouldn't let him, he still stayed in the ring for the post-fight announcement, where Goodale was rewarded with a TKO decision.

"It was crazy," Haydak said. "He didn't even flinch. He was getting ready to do the [official] decision and I was like, 'Uh, guys, get him out of the cage and go put his finger back on.'"

Pliev -- who did ultimately go to the emergency room to have his finger attached -- says he believes he suffered the injury after Goodale had grabbed at his glove early in the fight.

"In the second round, he caught my glove with one hand and held it," Pliev said. "I felt my finger snapped. He kept pulling my glove and my finger snapped. We kept fighting."

"When the second round was finished, I see my [bone] was out in the open. I wanted to keep fighting, because I felt like I had this guy. But, the doctor saw that and stopped the fight. "

Pliev -- a wrestler who competed for Canada in the 2012 Olympics -- came into the fight with a 5-1 record. He said he plans on appealing Thursday night's fight result.

Quavo is speaking out for the first time since TMZ posted video of an elevator altercation between him and Saweetie -- and he wants to make one thing clear -- he's never physically abused his former gf.

Quavo tells us, "We had an unfortunate situation almost a year ago that we both learned and moved on from. I haven’t physically abused Saweetie and have real gratitude for what we did share overall."

The unfortunate situation Quavo's referring to is a video TMZ obtained inside an apartment complex elevator. The scene starts with Saweetie appearing to take a swing at Quavo during a struggle for control of a video game console.

At one point, Quavo grabs Saweetie by the arm, swinging her into the elevator, and the two fall to the floor. Saweetie stays on the ground -- apparently injured -- after Quavo gets up. Once the door opens, Quavo gets out and makes sure the door stays open while Saweetie limps out.

Quavo's statement comes just hours after Saweetie told us, "This unfortunate incident happened a year ago, while we have reconciled since then and moved past this particular disagreement, there were simply too many other hurdles to overcome in our relationship and we have both since moved on."

"I think everybody thought was an April Fools' joke, but it was deadly serious."

That's CM Punk telling TMZ Sports what it was like to be ringside when MMA fighter Khetag Pliev had his FINGER RIPPED OFF in the middle of a match ... and it's one of the craziest stories ever!

Punk was calling the fight with his broadcast partner, John Morgan, at the Cage Fury Fighting Championship event in Philadelphia when the incident went down -- and says the most important thing was trying to stay focused.

"I wanted to make sure that I know that what I was seeing was correct," Punk says.

The scene inside the arena was wild -- especially since nobody could find Pliev's detached finger in the moments after the injury.

People were scouring the area with flashlights before ultimately discovering the severed digit in Pliev's fight glove.

Despite the chaos, Punk stayed relatively calm and continued to call the action like a true pro for the rest of the night.

"A lot of people are giving us props like, 'Congratulations, you didn't throw up!' ... but I was kind of right at home in the thick of it, calling it on the fly, as it happened. There's nothing better than live television."

Saweetie has broken her silence two days after TMZ posted video showing her and her then-boyfriend, Quavo, in an altercation inside an elevator.

Saweetie tells us, "This unfortunate incident happened a year ago, while we have reconciled since then and moved past this particular disagreement, there were simply too many other hurdles to overcome in our relationship and we have both since moved on."

As for the other hurdles ... when the two split last month, Saweetie accused Quavo, very publicly, of cheating. Quavo replied to the allegations with a tweet that read, "I had love for you and disappointed you did all that. You are not the woman I thought you were. I wish you nothing but the best."

TMZ broke the story ... the surveillance video, from inside an apartment complex elevator shows the former couple in a struggle over a box containing a video game console. Saweetie appears to take a swipe at Quavo first before he grabs her by the arm, knocking her against the back elevator wall and both hitting the floor.

Manny Pacquiao is sick and tired of the violent attacks on the Asian community -- and he's calling out the coward perpetrators behind these awful crimes.

"Stop attacking Asians who can't defend themselves! FIGHT ME INSTEAD."

The 42-year-old boxing superstar continued, "We have one color in our Blood! Stop discriminating. LOVE AND PEACE TO EVERYONE!! #StopAsianHate."

Seems Pacquiao has finally seen enough after a 65-year-old Filipino-American woman was pummeled in broad daylight by a large man, in an horrific incident captured on video.

Besides being one of the top boxers in the world, Manny is also a Senator in the Philippines, where he was born and raised ... and clearly he felt compelled to issue a public statement after the wave of anti-Asian incidents making headlines around the world.

There has been a surge of hate crimes directed at Asian people in the U.S. over the past few months -- including a horrific incident in Atlanta where a gunman stormed multiple Asian-run spas and murdered 8 people.

Back in February, the Philippine Embassy in the U.S. issued a statement that advised Filipinos to use "utmost caution" due to the rise of anti-Asian attacks in America.

Roman Reigns opted out of WrestleMania last year over COVID concerns, but with Mania only days away -- and fans set to partially fill the venue -- the WWE Superstar tells TMZ Sports he's NOT worried about his safety.

WrestleMania 37 -- goin' down April 10 and 11 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa -- is always a huge deal ... but it's even bigger this year cause WWE's allowing 25k fans back in the building each night for the first time in over a year.

We straight-up asked Roman if he believes WWE is doing enough to keep him, his fellow wrestlers and the fans safe.

His answer ... yes, Vince McMahon and his team are bending over backward to ensure the event goes off without a hitch.

"I think our safety precautions are second to none," Roman says.

"We'll have the pods to create the social distancing, masks will be required. We'll be giving out masks for those who are forgetful. We'll have, I believe, cashless concessions, so we're gonna create an opportunity where everybody's gonna be as safe as they could be."

Remember, Roman -- who battled and beat leukemia -- bowed out of WM 36 last April ... at the time telling us he didn't want to risk exposing his newborn baby to coronavirus.

But, things have changed, and Reigns says WWE's doing everything they can to keep everyone healthy, while also allowing passionate wrestling fans a chance to let loose.

The negotiating is underway ... but Jon Jones says $10 MILLION is simply not enough cash to get him in the Octagon with Francis Ngannou.

Ngannou became the UFC heavyweight champ after demolishing Stipe Miocic in a violent 2nd round victory at UFC 260 on Saturday.

Immediately after the fight, all eyes were on Jones -- widely considered the greatest UFC fighter of all time -- who tweeted, "Show me the money."

The good news ... Jones says he's been in touch with the UFC's top business guy, Hunter Campbell, and they're already discussing money.

The bad news ... Jones says the two sides are very far apart.

"I had a brief phone meeting with UFC‘s lawyer Hunter a few days ago. As of right now, I expressed to him that anywhere around eight to $10 million would be way too low for a fight of this magnitude. That’s all that has been discussed so far."

Unclear how much Jones is looking to pocket for the Ngannou fight -- but it would undoubtedly be one of the most anticipated fights in UFC history.

Michael Chandler vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov?!?!

It's not completely out of the question, according to Chandler who tells TMZ Sports he wouldn't be surprised if Khabib eventually changed his mind about the whole retirement thing.

Chandler is currently set to fight Charles Oliveira at UFC 262 on May 15 for the vacant UFC lightweight belt ... but he's EXTREMELY confident he'll smash his way to the title -- which begs the question, who's next!?

Conor McGregor? Tony Ferguson? Justin Gaethje?

Maybe ... but Khabib is only 32 years old and still VERY involved in MMA, coaching stars like Luke Rockhold and recently serving as a cornerman for his brother Abubakar Nurmagomedov at UFC 260.

Chandler tells TMZ Sports ... he thinks Khabib will be paying very close attention to the lightweight division to see if he gets the urge to step back in the Octagon.

"He's gonna be very intertwined with the UFC for decades to come and especially the lightweight division. He's still very young so we'll see what happens in the future."

Chandler says he considers Khabib to be the greatest of all time -- and would respect whatever decision he makes regarding his fighting future.

But, for now, Chandler says his focus is on Oliveira -- the #3 ranked lightweight.

"Charles Oliveira poses a lot of threats on the ground but I've never even come close to really getting submitted," Chandler says.

"I have a kind of a 6th sense when it comes to the ground game to not be submitted."

So, how does Chandler see the fight going? He wants to overwhelm his opponent with brute violence.

"Hit him. Hit him as hard as I can numerous times on the feet. Keep the fight standing, put him in panic mode, knock him out in the 1st round."

Quavo and Saweetie's issues appear to run much deeper than alleged infidelity because they had a fight in an elevator -- before they split -- and the altercation was all captured on video.

TMZ obtained surveillance footage of the struggle, which went down at an apartment complex in North Hollywood. It shows both of them standing outside an open elevator, and when the video starts Saweetie is swinging on Quavo.

Quavo dodges the hit, dropping an orange Call of Duty case in the process ... which Saweetie tries to pick up. Quavo grabs it, and as they struggle for the case, he grabs her arm and swings her into the back elevator wall, then they both go down.

As Saweetie lay on the ground -- possibly injured -- Quavo stands there without helping her up. Eventually, the elevator opens with a guy standing outside ... but he doesn't get on and the door shuts again.

Finally, the door opens on another floor and Quavo starts to get off with the case, using it to keep the door open ... and Saweetie picks herself up and limps off.

We spoke with sources on both sides ... and they both say this incident went down in 2020 at an apartment building where Saweetie was renting.

Remember, Saweetie publicly broke it off with him -- alluding to him cheating ... which he denied. There were also rumors he repo'd a car he'd gifted her, but he claimed that wasn't the case.

Anderson Silva is back ... to boxing!!!

The 45-year-old MMA legend has signed a contract to fight 35-year-old Julio César Chávez Jr. on June 19, TMZ Sports has confirmed.

Silva was released from UFC contract back in Nov. 2020 following a loss to Uriah Hall -- but he was adamant he wanted to continue his combat sports career elsewhere ... and now, he's making it happen in a boxing ring.

"When I look back at my journey, I see that nothing has been in vain," Silva says ... "I am extremely happy for the opportunity to test my boxing skills with Julio César Chávez Jr."

"I train continuously, always striving for resilience and to overcome obstacles. Fighting is my everlasting breath."

We're told the event -- titled "Tribute to the Kings" -- will take place at Jalisco Stadium in  Guadalajara, Mexico and will be available live on Pay-Per-View.

The event will also include a special exhibition match featuring Julio's legendary father, Julio César Chávez Sr. -- widely considered one of the greatest boxers of all time.

The 58-year-old Hall of Famer will take on Hector Camacho Jr. -- son of his former opponent Hector "Macho" Camacho, who passed away in 2012.

42-year-old Hector Jr. is also a pro boxer with a record of 58-6-1.

Julio Jr. issued a statement about the fight with Silva -- saying, "I have rededicated myself to the sport that I love and I will be ready to face anyone in the Light Heavyweight division starting with Silva"

"I will be prepared to be victorious on June 19."

The fight was put together by Keith Schoen of Schoen Entertainment along with Armando Bareno of Global Sports Streaming -- with Jorge Toscano and Saul Rios serving as the official fight promoters.

"This promises to be an epic battle between two superior fighters with a global fan base," Schoen tells us ... "Everyone associated with this Pay-Per-View promotion and fighting fans around the globe are super enthusiastic to see these two great fighters meet in the ring."

Chavez Jr. is 52-5-1 as a pro and coming off a 4th round TKO victory over Jeyson Minda in Nov. 2020.

Silva -- repped by ICM Partners and managed by Talize Sayegh -- is a former UFC Middleweight champ with wins over guys like Dan Henderson, Forrest Griffin, Vitor Belfort, Rich Franklin and more.

The Spider has also dabbled in boxing -- he's 1-1 as a pro -- and was known during his heyday for being one of the best strikers in MMA.

Cops in New York City are on the hunt for a suspect who beat the hell out of an Asian man on a subway car ... and the brutal incident is all on video.

As you can see, footage appears to show 2 men, one Black and one Asian, trading punches on the subway ... and the Asian man is eventually overpowered as punches rain down on his head.

In the video, the suspect then puts the Asian man in a chokehold, and appears to choke him out until he is unconscious and drops to the floor. The suspect then walks off the subway car.

The NYPD Hate Crime Task Force is asking the public for any information on the incident, which is under investigation.