Fights

You can't see him, but you WILL see John Cena back in the squared circle once again ... with the WWE Superstar confirming he's DEFINITELY making a wrestling comeback!!!

44-year-old Cena hasn't been in the ring since WrestleMania 36 last year ... when he lost to "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt.

But, the WWE legend hasn't hung up his spandex just yet -- Cena revealed he's 100% coming back to Vince McMahon's organization in the future.

"Those rumors are true," Cena said on "The Tonight Show" with Jimmy Fallon.

So, when's he making his highly anticipated return?? THE TIME IS NOW!!!!

Just kidding.

"I'll definitely be back to the WWE, I just don't know when," Cena told Fallon.

When pressed about his cryptic Instagram post of the WWE logo back in May, Cena said he was just feeling "pretty nostalgic" and wasn't trying to announce a big comeback.

"Some people took it as I was returning immediately, which that's not the case. I haven't had my last match and I can't wait to have my next match."

Cena's name has been thrown around as a possible guest for SummerSlam in August ... and Triple H recently told TMZ Sports he felt like the huge event could act as a "pretty big carrot" to get him to take a break from Hollywood.

But, as Cena points out, his movie contracts ain't exactly letting him go get beat up on the weekends while filming massive blockbuster flicks.

It's not just the Dodgers team getting beat down in San Diego ... a Dodgers fan got smacked around too!

Check out this video of a Dodgers fan in enemy territory during the team's road trip to San Diego.

Unclear why the guy in the Clayton Kershaw jersey was so mad -- but he approached a group of Padres fans at Petco Park on Tuesday night looking for a fight and yeah, he got what he wanted.

The problem for the Dodgers fan ... he ain't exactly Francis Ngannou.

He threw some punches but nothing really connected and within seconds, he was being wrestled into the bleachers while the Padres fans proceeded to beat his ass.

Eventually, some other Padres fans and a dude in a Yankees jersey pulled the Dodgers fan away ... while a bunch of fans shouted, "Beat L.A."

Law enforcement tells us no arrests were made.

But, to make matters worse for the Dodgers fan, L.A. lost the game 3 to 2.

Jake Paul says he's deadly serious about becoming a champion boxer -- and believes he's destined for a showdown with Canelo Alvarez.

Now, don't expect that to happen in the next few months ... Jake knows he's got serious work to do before he's ready to try and step in the ring with the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world.

But, Paul says he's taking the sport seriously, training hard -- and believes he's on a trajectory to be "the most disruptive boxer in the history of the sport."

Of course, before he fights Canelo ... Paul needs to get through former UFC champ Tyron Woodley when they throw down on August 28.

Jake tells TMZ Sports ... he would like to add another MMA legend to the fight card that night -- Anderson Silva.

Paul says he was incredibly impressed with the 46-year-old's performance against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. ... and would love to see him face off against Roy Jones Jr.

We're told Paul's camp has reached out to both fighters in the hopes of getting them to agree to fight on his undercard. We'll see what happens there.

And, get this ... we're told if those guys agree to a fight, Paul would considering fighting the winner at a future event.

Jake has taken the combat sports world by storm -- he's 3-0 as a pro with knockout victories over MMA star Ben Askren and ex-NBA star Nate Robinson.

Jake says the plan is to continue to take on "more serious opponents" and earn respect as a legitimate boxer. A victory over a respected fighter like Woodley would be huge for him.

As for Canelo, he just broke his last opponent's face -- and possibly ended the guy's career.

So, yeah ... he's not one to be taken lightly.

Suns and Clippers fans got into a VIOLENT altercation during the first game of the two teams' playoff series Sunday ... and the insane fight was all caught on video.

The wild action appeared to go down in the bowels of Phoenix Suns Arena in Arizona ... when two Clippers fans got into a screaming match with a bunch of Suns supporters.

You can see in footage filmed by a bystander ... the two L.A. fans -- rockin' Kawhi Leonard jerseys -- yelled for several seconds before they let their hands fly.

One of the Clippers fans threw a big punch at a Suns fan -- before he was eventually taken down to the ground.

And then, all hell broke loose.

More than half a dozen people were involved in the fracas ... with haymakers being thrown and landed left and right.

It's unclear if there were any injuries or any arrests made ... we've reached out to police, but so far, no word back yet.

Of course, this is the second big fight the Suns have seen this month ... you'll recall, it was less than 2 weeks ago when the "Suns In 4" guy wrecked a Denver Nuggets supporter during the team's previous playoff series.

As for Sunday's Game 1 ... like their supporters in fights, the Suns won easily -- beating the Clips, 120-114.

AEW star Max Caster ain't a one-hit wonder ... 'cause the pro wrestler just dropped another insane TMZ Sports-inspired rap verse -- and it's pretty damn good!!

In case you missed the biggest stories of the week, Platinum Max has got you covered -- from the "Suns In 4" guy to Chris Paul getting COVID-19 to the sticky situation going on in the MLB.

Caster -- half of AEW's "The Acclaimed" tag team -- goes on for a minute straight ... even throwing in a line about the Carmelo Anthony and La La divorce.

Anderson Silva is taking his talents to the boxing ring ... and the ex-UFC champ says after his fight with Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. this weekend -- he's totally open to fighting the Paul bros!!

TMZ Sports talked to the 46-year-old MMA G.O.A.T. just days before he fights former middleweight champion, 35-year-old Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in the squared circle.

FYI, Chavez Jr. -- the son of legendary Mexican fighter, Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. -- has a professional boxing record of 52-5-1 with 1 no contest. He's shared the ring with Canelo Alvarez and Danny Jacobs.

But, if you thought this was a 1-and-done event, you're wrong ... 'cause Spider says he's down to take on all comers -- INCLUDING the Paul bros.

"In the future, everything's possible. The Paul brothers, I respect both. There are good boys," Silva says.

Of course, there are fight game purists who hate the idea of a legit legend like Anderson fighting a YouTuber ... but Silva says things have changed.

"Everything's changing in the world. People like to see the big shows, entertaining shows."

It's finally happening -- Oscar De La Hoya is making his highly anticipated return to the boxing ring in September ... and he's going up against MMA star Vitor Belfort in an exhibition match!!

Of course, 48-year-old ODLH announced his return back in March ... saying he was ready to take a fight on July 3.

The date was pushed back a few months as Oscar searched for an opponent ... and now he's finally got one -- the 44-year-old former UFC champion!!

We all know what Oscar can do in the ring -- he won belts in six divisions and was one of the biggest superstars in the sport before retiring in 2008.

Belfort on the other hand, has one boxing match under his belt -- a quick TKO over Josemario Neves in 2006.

The Triller event is set to go down on September 11 with Las Vegas as the target location. The venue and undercard are set to be announced at a later date, according to reports.

Oscar's been teasing a comeback for years -- he even said he wanted to fight UFC honcho Dana White at one point -- training nonstop to get back in fighting shape.

The famous "Suns In 4" guy is FINALLY opening up about his violent brawl with Nuggets fans ... claiming the whole thing went down because the Denver dudes poured beer on him.

Nick McKellar joined Barstool Sports' "The Dave Portnoy Show" this week and broke the whole fight down from start to finish ... explaining he was NEVER the aggressor in the situation.

McKellar claims he showed up to Ball Arena for Game 3 last Friday and made friends with nearly everybody around him right away.

But, he says when he started lightheartedly joking with two Nuggets fans toward the end of the game ... that's when things turned contentious.

"These guys are walking past me and obviously they didn't think it was funny," McKellar said. "Meanwhile the whole crowd that I made friends with, initially they were laughing, having a good time."

"I wasn't being annoying. So, these guys were like, 'You know what, I'm taking offense to this.'"

McKellar says the two Nuggets fans then got in his face, talked smack, flaunted money at him ... and then tugged on his jersey and poured beer on him.

That's when McKellar says the action picked up on video ... and the rest is history.

"Instincts of self-defense kick in," McKellar says.

McKellar told Portnoy he was escorted out of the arena by cops after throwing the haymakers, but says he was NOT arrested because witnesses told the officers he did nothing more than protect himself in the skirmish.

As for if Devin Booker ever got a hold of him, McKellar said he has been in contact with the Suns superstar -- and told Portnoy there could be a future collab between the two in the future.

The Black woman who claims she was dragged down a flight of steps due to racial profiling was in the mix of a brawl right before the brutal act -- but she's sticking to her version of events.

Somebody captured what happened to Keisha Young at D.C.'s Nellie's Sports Bar last weekend -- but this video includes the moments before a security guard started yanking her by her hair.

It's clear there was a massive fight going down at the top of the stairs, and Keisha was right there getting her licks in ... throwing punches, until she appears to get tossed over the huddle of bodies down toward the security guard.

We can't quite tell if it's the guard himself who initially moves her, or if it's someone else -- but at any rate, once she's at his feet ... she starts to unload on him too, and he reacts.

That's where the hair-dragging seems to begin from the original video that has since gone viral. Remember, Keisha's attorneys told us they were outraged ... because they felt she'd been singled out due to the color of her skin, suggesting racism was at play in her treatment -- and they're still maintaining that.

Keisha's attorney, Brandon Burrell, tells TMZ ... the reason Keisha is seen tussling here is because she was defending her cousin, Dayon Kidd, whom we're told is the guy in the white T -- and who we're told Nellie's security team was pummeling after some words were exchanged.

Long story short -- her team says the facts haven't changed ... claiming she was approached by security when they mistook her for someone else and asked her to leave.

We're told Keisha's fam didn't like the way they got at her, and in attempting to defend her ... ended up brawling. Keisha's team says this new video picks up after that. Burrell also says the truth would be seen easily ... if only Nellie's would release the full surveillance video.

Brandon Moreno is the 1st Mexico-born UFC champ ... and the newly crowned flyweight king just received a heartfelt message from Mexico's arguably greatest athlete ever -- and it's impossible for this to not make you feel good.

TMZ Sports recently talked to 58-year-old Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. (he's fighting this weekend) ... and we asked the former boxing superstar if he had a message for Moreno following his historic victory.

We played the message for the 27-year-old, Assassin Baby ... and it was awesome.

Chavez's message ... "A lot of blessings, and remember that the difficult part is not to get where he is at, but to endure. That’s the tough part. Blessings and God bless."

Moreno's reaction ... "Man, that is crazy. That definitely crazy, you know? He’s an example for me. Actually, it’s not just for me, I think for every single Mexican, for the fans of boxing, for the fans of combat sports around the world."

Brandon continued ... "Julio Cesar Chavez is a legend. A living legend in Mexico and that makes the message for me so special, and I’m very grateful to hear that."

We also talked to Brandon about who he wants next ... and whether a trilogy fight with Deiveson Figueiredo -- who BM submitted in the 3rd round at UFC 263 -- could be in the works.

"[Deiveson's] always a possibility, you know? He’s the former champ, he looks impressive in his last performance, but I don’t know, man," Moreno says.

"I don’t know what to think, but to be honest I think the fight was very dominant by myself."

Noooooo!!!!!

Boxing superstar Teofimo Lopez -- one of the best fighters in the world -- has tested positive for COVID, forcing promoters to postpone this weekend's championship fight.

The undefeated 23-year-old -- the unified lightweight world champ -- was supposed to take on George Kambosos in Miami on June 19.

But, Lopez tested positive for coronavirus on Tuesday morning -- and to make things worse, he's symptomatic.

As a result, the fight -- along with the entire card -- is being pushed to August 14 to allow Lopez to recover.

The event -- part of the Triller Fight Club series -- was set to feature some sick musical performances during the event ... headlined by Meek Mill.

Myke Towers and Reggaeton star Lunay were also booked to perform as part of the Triller Live Concert Series.

As for the entertainment portion of the evening, no word on that -- we're working on details.

Teofimo Lopez is 16-0 -- and coming off an incredible victory over Vasiliy Lomachenko, who (at the time) was considered by many to be the best pound-for-pound fighter on the planet.

28-year-old George Kambosos Jr. is also undefeated (19-0) -- and believes a victory over Lopez would rocket him into boxing superstardom.

He's not wrong!

"It's not as bad as it looked."

That's UFC fighter Jamahal Hill telling TMZ Sports the nasty injury he suffered during UFC 263 on Saturday is gonna be FINE ... and he's already thinking about his next fight!!!

YO, THAT'S CRAZY CONSIDERING IT LOOKED LIKE HILL'S ARM WAS SNAPPED IN TWO!!

The backstory ... Hill was fighting Paul Craig when the 30-year-old got caught in an armbar and Paul pulled Jamahal's left arm in a way it's not supposed to bend!

The good news ... Hill confirms the arm was NOT broken -- "just dislocated pretty badly."

"They were able to pop it back in and the doctor said it’s rock solid. It’s doing all the movement that it needs to, it’s just going to be sore for a while."

So, what's next?

"I’ll follow up with my doctor when I land back at home and we’re going to go from there. Hopefully I can be back in real soon."

As for the pain, Hill says there was a "little discomfort" -- but that's it!

He was more upset about getting caught in the armbar in the first place and losing the fight.

But, Hill's a tough guy and vows to return to the Octagon ASAP -- and he even wants to run it back with Craig!!

"I gotta handle whatever I gotta handle through the loss or whatever, that I just went through. But, definitely I hope he keeps winning, so that way next time we meet is for some serious marbles. But yeah, that’s definitely one I want to run back."

There's more ... Hill also talks about his future and addresses the criticism of the referee who was working the fight.

But, Hill also delivered this message to his fans ...

"I just want everybody know I’m good, I’m alright. I’ll be back."

No big layoff for Claressa Shields -- the boxing champ turned MMA sensation says the plan is to get back in the cage in 2 to 3 months!!

The 26-year-old is coming off a stunning victory in her MMA debut on Thursday -- pummeling Brittney Elkin so brutally at PFL 4, the ref stopped the fight.

Shields is still FIRED UP about the win and tells TMZ Sports ... a TON of her famous friends have been blowing up her phone to send love -- from Halle Berry to Ray Lewis, Dwight Howard and more!

But, Claressa isn't spending too much time celebrating -- she'll be back in the gym to start training for her next MMA fight in just a few weeks!!

"I have another MMA fight I believe in August or September … and [after that] we're saving the end of the year for boxing."

Why so much activity?

"I'm young and I'm hungry," Shields says ... noting she's busted her ass in boxing but never got the paychecks she believes she deserves.

Shields strongly believes the path to becoming rich is through MMA -- and says, "I believe that I'll be a millionaire sooner than we think."

The end goal isn't just money ... Shields says the goal is to become champion in both sports -- and she's convinced it'll happen in due time.

Look, Shields knows her performance could have been better -- especially when it comes to her ground game, but she's dedicated to working on her weaknesses in the gym and wants to become a well-rounded fighter.

"We got a long way to go, but I'm happy to start [my career with a win] and take care of business."

"I hope this reaches Logan Paul. You looked good [Sunday] night! You looked really in control and you look like you could do some things in this sport."

That's Shawn Porter -- former 2x welterweight world champion -- cosigning Logan's career as a pugilist ... telling the YouTube star to KEEP BOXING!!

TMZ Sports talked to 33-year-old Porter about Paul following his 8-round exhibition fight vs. Floyd Mayweather last weekend ... and the boxing star had a message for Maverick.

"You have a built-in audience! You can make this money fighting this completion, build yourself up and then when the time is right, you say, 'Yo I'm ready for a world championship title' and I think by then, everybody that has rocked with him to this point will continue to rock with him."

Porter continued ... "He'll pull fans from the boxing arena and boom, you can't be mad at dude after that! You can't be mad at the money-making after that!"

Speaking of money, Logan previously told us he expected to make at least $20 million for the Mayweather fight.

That pissed off some star fighters (see Francis Ngannou) ... so we asked Shawn if he was upset inferior fighters were making BANK.

"You can't be mad at the hustle! I cannot knock the hustle! I'm happy for them dudes, I'm happy for them to get the money the way they've been getting it."

Lamar Odom says he's not here to "play" boxing -- he's gunning to knock out Aaron Carter and embarrass the dude in front of his girlfriend.

The 41-year-old ex-NBA star is taking on the 33-year-old pop star in a 3-round exhibition Friday night at the Showboat Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City.

Both guys have been working their asses off in the gym -- but Lamar tells TMZ Sports he could "really give a f**k" about Aaron's training program.

"I'm prepared," Lamar says ... "I don't know who he's sparring against but I know my gym is full of guys that can fight and I've been sparring with and I have a really good trainer."

"[Aaron has been] talkin' s**t but I'm gonna put him to sleep early."

Lamar says he won't predict which round he'll KO Carter -- but says, "I asked his girlfriend yesterday which round do you want to wake him up in."

THE DISRESPECT!!!

Claressa Shields -- the greatest boxer in the world -- is now undefeated in TWO sports after winning her pro MMA debut on Thursday with an incredible 3rd round stoppage!!

The 26-year-old took on Brittney Elkin at PFL 4 in New Jersey. FYI, Elkin is a brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jjitsu!

As the fight started, it was clear Elkin's plan was to take Shields to the ground and try to force the boxer to tap out.

Elkin's plan worked during the first 2 rounds -- smothering Shields and attempting to submit her with arm-bar attempts and other holds.

But, Shields stayed calm and repeatedly escaped danger.

Then, in Round 3 ... Shields went off!!!

Not only did she stuff Elkin's take-down attempt -- but she gained top position and unloaded on Elkin with a barrage of violent punches to the head.

It got so bad, the ref stopped the fight -- SHIELDS WINS!!

Claressa was STOKED after the victory -- and later explained her mentality going into that 3rd round.

"I may have lost these two rounds, but I'm not losing this fight," Shields said.

"She had me on the ground, but she couldn't hurt me ... Her punches didn't hurt me. She tried to get me in me an armbar and that didn't hurt me!"

Now, Shields has proven a true force to be reckoned with the cage. She obviously needs to work on her ground game, but an impressive start nonetheless!!