Interview

You can't lose with Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler, Justin Gaethje, or Nate Diaz ... BUT, given a choice of the three opponents, UFC legend Chuck Liddell knows the fight he'd like to see.

Nate Diaz vs. The Notorious III!

TMZ Sports caught up with Liddell at LAX this week ... and asked him about Conor's next fight.

"All those would be an interesting fight but I think Nate Diaz, run it back to do it one more time. That'd be fun to watch."

Of course, McGregor's supposed to fight Chandler, who is coaching opposite him on "The Ultimate Fighter." Though, after Gaethje's win over Dustin Poirier a few weeks ago, Conor went at Justin on social media.

Then there's Nate ... who just lost a boxing match to Jake Paul. The guys have obviously fought twice in the past, with each man winning one. They've always said they want to complete the trilogy, which would arguably be the biggest in the promotion's history.

"It will be fun. I think it will be real competitive, I think it's a good one to come back to."

Out of the three options, Chuck makes it clear he wants Conor and Nate. As for how it'll go, The Iceman thinks it'll be a close fight.

Speaking of Diaz and Paul, we also asked Liddell if he bought what Jake was selling ... when he said he could beat Nate with 8-9 months of MMA training.

Chuck isn't so sure.

"That tells me [Jake] just doesn't understand the difference. He has no clue what the difference between MMA and boxing."

Liddell explained some of the challenges when going from boxing to mixed martial arts.

"It's funny [Paul] usually fights two weight classes below him, he likes to pick guys that are a lot smaller than him but Nate's a good jiu-jitsu guy, he's a good grappler and he knows how to fight MMA," Chuck told us.

"There's a different stance, everything changes. You add kicks, you gotta change your stance, you can't stand in boxing stance. I hit you so, it hurts so bad in the first round, you got one round to knock me out."

Take a hard look at Aljamain Sterling when he fights Sean O'Malley at UFC 292 'cause it could be the last time Aljo competes in the bantamweight division ... the UFC champ tells us he wants to move up and dethrone featherweight champ Alex Volkanovski.

Whether or not it is his last scrap at 135 lbs., 34-year-old Sterling seemed to indicate he may not be around the Octagon much longer.

"I think [it could be my last at 135]. I think I go out there, dominate O'Malley the way I think I'm gonna dominate him, send that naked mole rat back to wherever he's from, the hole he crawled out of," Sterling told Babcock on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weekdays on FS1).

The bantamweight king continued ... "We set our sights on Volkanovski. Go up to 145, cause some terror there. Win the belt, become champ-champ, and then from there, possibly defend the belt one or two times and maybe that's all she wrote for the MMA career."

Of course, in order to be double champ, Aljamain must defeat Suga on August 19 in Boston ... a fight that's been talked about for years.

"It's cool to be going to Dana White's backyard and bringing in a good show. We're the headliners. We get to end the night, try to end the night on a good night, on a high night, and it's an opportunity for me to really make more history, get another bag, and rob the bank."

"I'm looking forward to robbing the bank vs. Sean O'Malley and showing Mr. High Fructose Corn Syrup why there's levels to this game."

If Sterling does ultimately retire from MMA in the near future, we asked him what he do as his second act.

"Maybe I start boxing after," Aljo said, laughing.

The mom suing Southwest Airlines for accusing her of child trafficking says it's really a case of racial profiling ... and adds, there's a better way to protect kids if the airline would train its employees better.

Mary MacCarthy joined us Wednesday on "TMZ Live," telling us why she feels her daughter's race was the only reason Southwest reported her, back in 2021, to Denver PD.

For those unaware, Mary and her child, Moira -- who was 10 at the time -- were flying to Colorado because Mary's brother had died, but cops greeted them as soon as they landed.

Southwest employees suspected Mary was trafficking Moira.

Mary insists the airline's only red flag was skin color -- she is white, while her daughter is biracial -- and she told us the misunderstanding could've been cleared up, if a crew member had spoken to them instead of calling police.

She also claims she never got a proper apology from the airline and is still waiting for it to admit fault for racially profiling them.

Shakur Stevenson vs. Devin Haney will likely NEVER happen, despite being one of the most coveted fights in boxing, according to SS himself ... 'cause DH knows it's a fight he won't win.

26-year-old Stevenson, 20-0 (10 KOs), joined Babcock on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weekdays on FS1) ... when the convo turned to 24-year-old Haney's future plans after the undefeated fighter recently announced he's moving up a weight class.

"It ain't really a hope, it's 'I dare him,' like I dare him to come back to 135 [lbs.] and try me. Like I pray that that's what he plans on doing and I can show the world I'm the truth," Shakur said.

"Right now, we're looking at [Vasyl] Lomachenko, but after everything unfolds and he fights Regis [Prograis] and I fight Lomachenko and they can build and make that a big fight, I dare him to come down to 135. I dare him!"

Of course, the fighters, who evolved from phenoms to bonafide stars, have been on a collision course for years ... and even exchanged words in the ring back in May after Devin scored a controversial decision win against Lomachenko.

For the time being, Haney is on his way up to the 140 lb. weight class ... despite the Stevenson fight being there for the taking. We asked Shakur why Devin wouldn't want the opportunity to prove he's a superior fighter.

"I don't know. I'm here but I think as far as for him to come back down and fight me is dangerous," Shakur told us.

"It's a dangerous thing to do. I think that's maybe the reason, I'm a big risk. I'm hard to deal with for anybody and I think he knows that. He's been around me for years so it's hard to deny the fact that I'm a big risk."

We followed up ... asking Shakur if he believes Devin doubts he would win the fight.

"Yes! Yes! I think he believes in himself, but I think when it comes down to me, he knows deep down inside, he knows that I'm the truth."

Then, in his heart of hearts, does Stevenson believe the fans will get the fight they want? Shakur isn't very optimistic.

"If I'm being honest, I'd say 20% [chance the fight happens]."

Shakur continued ... "The logic that they're putting out there is [Devin's] gonna go up for this one fight and then come right back down and fight me for the belts but, like, I just don't see him being that bold. I don't think he got that in him, so I'd say 20% chance."

Jake Paul's fight against Nate Diaz was on the same level as one of the most popular fights in combat sports history -- so says former boxing champ Shawn Porter, who tells TMZ Sports Saturday's event felt "just as big as" Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor!

Porter -- who was on the mic in Dallas for the big matchup -- said the vibes were off the charts throughout the Jake vs. Nate fight ... calling the experience Super Bowl-esque.

"This was just as big as Mayweather and McGregor," Porter emphatically told us on Monday.

FYI -- Floyd vs. Conor is widely reported as the second-highest-selling fight in Pay-Per-View history (behind Floyd vs. Manny Pacquiao) ... so to compare the energy at Jake vs. Nate to that is quite a compliment.

Of course, "Showtime" is no stranger to the biggest events in the sport -- whether he competed in or attended them, he's witnessed some electric crowds over the years.

But Porter said the spectator support of Diaz was second to none ... adding, "I've never heard anything like that before."

"MMA fans, man. They show up, they show out, they have a lot of fun and they are extremely loud. I was loving it."

As for the fight, Shawn gave Jake a C grade on the night, despite getting the victory ... explaining the Problem Child still has to work on finishing off his opponents after landing big punches.

The "Barbie" movie is getting mad props from an animal rights organization for dressing Ryan Gosling's Ken doll in a faux fur coat instead of the real thing.

Remember, Ryan's got a few scenes where his character is wearing a white fur coat -- which would normally get a huge thumbs down from PETA -- but now it's PETA-approved because as it turns out, the wardrobe piece is faux mink.

PETA Senior Vice President Lisa Lange tells TMZ … "From his fabulous faux mink coat to his rad vegan leather boots, Ken serves looks that mirror actor Ryan Gosling's own kindness to animals and refusal to wear fur."

Ken's coat is already being sold online as a Halloween costume, and Lisa tells us ... "PETA encourages everyone to be Kenough this Halloween by following in Gosling's footsteps and keeping animals' skins out of the mojo dojo casa house."

The U.S. Women's National Team is at a fork in the road after their incredibly disappointing World Cup, according to former soccer star-turned-analyst Taylor Twellman, who tells TMZ Sports the team has to make changes, or they'll be passed up by the world.

The ex-USMNT forward -- who played professionally from 2000 to 2010 -- didn't pull his punches when analyzing the USWNT's shocking loss to Sweden in Melbourne, Australia ... and their overall performance in the world's biggest soccer tournament.

"In this World Cup, technical, tactical -- they were completely outdone!" the 43-year-old said. "It was obvious."

Twellman continued, not mincing his words ... "They didn't score a goal in 238 minutes. You are the number one nation in the world, that's inexplicable. So now this is a watershed moment."

Of course, the team, tourney-betting favorites, were looking to make history by becoming the first country to win 3 World Cups in a row. Unfortunately for American fans, that didn't happen.

After beating Vietnam 3-0 (they were around 7 goal faves), the U.S. tied both Portugal and the Netherlands, barely squeaking into the knockout round of 16, before losing to Sweden on penalty kicks. The loss dashed any hopes of a third straight W.C. ... and sent the women on a flight headed back home.

Now, for how to fix things ... Twellman has an idea of what needs to be done.

"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result. I think top to bottom, the United States Federation on the women's side has to look at development, they have to look at the collegiate part of it, they have to look at the development within the professional leagues," Taylor said, continuing, "Are the professional leagues developing the players the right way? Is technique a huge part of it, or is it just about being bigger, faster, and stronger than the other countries? It's not gonna work anymore."

Twellman added ... "This women's World Cup has exposed the failure of the United States women to develop, and this generation I think did not carry on the mentality that winning comes first, everything else is secondary, and I think some of that criticism has been correct on that."

Of course, the mentality is precisely what U.S. soccer legend Carli Lloyd pointed out last week when she called out her former team for celebrating in the wake of another subpar performance.

"I really think it's telling that she brought it up because what we saw during the World Cup kind of backs Carli Lloyd's opinion," Twellman said.

We also talked to Taylor, who is Apple's top soccer analyst, about Lionel Messi's amazing start with Inter Miami ... and just how far the team can go with the soccer immortal playing at this level.

"I get it, Lionel Messi and [Sergio] Busquets just showed up but this is the worst team in Major League Soccer regular season," Twellman said.

Sorry, Jets fans ... Randy Moss says despite New York's huge offseason, Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs are still the team to beat in the AFC.

But, the NFL legend tells TMZ Sports he's stoked for the year NY is about to have regardless ... saying he can feel a completely different energy emanating from the Big Apple after the arrival of Aaron Rodgers.

"I felt the buzz when the Jets were down," said Moss, who works in New York for his role as an ESPN analyst, "and now I'm feeling the buzz when they're ready to look forward to some big things from this organization."

Moss says he's totally impressed with the way Rodgers has integrated himself into his new team and community ... noting he's seen a far different body language from the QB from what he's witnessed in the past.

Now, he thinks it'll all spell out "an MVP-type-caliber season" for the 39-year-old signal-caller

"I just think the sky's the limit for the New York Jets," he said.

The 46-year-old Hall of Famer, though, would apparently still put his money on Mahomes to take the AFC title this year ... telling us the favorite in the conference "is still Kansas City."

UFC fighter Song Yadong just revealed he was robbed at gunpoint by four men earlier this week ... and his friend, who was with him at the time, was pistol-whipped during the alleged gas station robbery.

"For the first time in my life, I was held at gunpoint," the 25-year-old bantamweight fighter said on Thursday.

"Last night, my friend and I drove back to Sacramento from San Francisco. On the way back, we were robbed by four black men at gunpoint."

Yadong (20-7) admits he was a bit tipsy when the incident happened.

"When we got there, those four Black people who robbed us were already there,"  Yadong said. "They're not following us, they're waiting for the victim."

Yadong -- who last fought in April -- says after they grabbed water at the gas station store, they were approached and held at gunpoint while the perpetrators demanded their valuables. Song says his friend was pistol-whipped.

"The man told him to hand over his money, his wallet, his necklace, and hit him with the handle of his gun," Yadong said.

Yadong says he's happy he and his friend are alive to tell the story and advised anyone being robbed to give the thieves whatever they want ... or "you're screwed."

The specific location of the incident is unknown, but we reached out to San Francisco.

Lizzo makes it clear her backup dancers will face repercussions if they don't do what she asks, even if that means getting freaky at a live sex show ... at least, that's what 2 of the women suing her are claiming.

The singer's former backup dancers, Arianna Davis, and Crystal Williams, joined us Wednesday on "TMZ Live" and told us about their experiences working under Lizzo.

Arianna and Crystal accused Lizzo of coercing backup dancers to participate in nude cabaret shows ... and they say there's an unspoken feeling among the group of having to bend to Lizzo's demands or be fired if they don't play ball.

As they allege in the lawsuit, sometimes that means eating bananas out of sex performers' vaginas in Amsterdam -- and they told us dancers who went along with Lizzo's idea of fun were rewarded with lavish private jet trips to tropical locations.

On the flip side, they claim dancers who didn't feel comfortable doing everything Lizzo wanted would be threatened with termination.

As for why they're no longer working with Lizzo -- Crystal says she was accused of drinking before performances, and Arianna claims Lizzo body-shamed her for gaining weight ... and she claims Lizzo used an admission of an eating disorder to justify firing her.

Lizzo has yet to comment publicly, or respond to the lawsuit in court ... but her accusers have a lot to say here.

Mike Holston, the internet sensation famously known as The Real Tarzann, says the Chinese zoo being accused of trotting out a human in a bear suit actually has the real deal in captivity.

We got Mike at LAX and asked him about allegations a zoo in eastern China is fooling folks with a man in a suit.

This viral video shot at the zoo is certainly fueling that speculation -- but Mike says the animal shows all the signs of being an authentic sun bear.

The rumors got so out of hand, the zoo was forced to defend itself, and Mike says it's not uncommon for bears to stand on their hind legs, which is one reason why the video had folks thinking something was afoot.

Instead, Mike says the bear is just showing the animal's natural agility ... and it's only standing up to beg for food from humans. See what happens when ya feed the bears!

It's interesting ... Mike says he's interacted with all sorts of wild animals across the globe, but he'd be more afraid to be trapped with an American than a sun bear.

He's got a host of reasons why humans, particularly Americans, are most dangerous in the animal kingdom. For example, he says wild animals never lie about their feelings. 🤔

Stephen Amell is explaining why he supports his union, SAG-AFTRA, but doesn't support leadership's decision to strike ... he believes that's not the only way to hammer out a good deal.

The "Arrow" star joined us Tuesday on "TMZ Live," and shared his thought process behind opposing the strikes in Hollywood, and admitted he's walking a fine line between supporting his union and wanting to work.

Stephen says SAG-AFTRA absolutely should fight for a better contract for its members ... but instead of marching in picket lines outside studios, he recommends getting back to the table to negotiate with the studios.

While Stephen's been one of the only actors to speak out against the strike, he tells us dozens of his colleagues are privately reaching out to him ... and he says his fellow actors agree with his strike outlook, even if the outside noise is against him.

Stephen's also caught the attention of SAG leadership ... and he said he's meeting with them later on Tuesday. He told us his goal for the meeting is to show union leaders he supports them while also offering up alternatives to striking.

Justin Gaethje got congratulations messages from all kinds of people following his big win over Dustin Poirier ... but maybe the most notable to call was Donald Trump, who actually sent an invitation to the UFC star to golf with him as part of his well-wishes chat.

Gaethje said the former POTUS gave him a ring shortly after his stunning KO victory on Saturday night ... telling TMZ Sports the call was "awesome."

"He f***ing loves fighting, man," Gaethje said of No. 45. "He loves it."

The 34-year-old tells us ... Trump said he was proud of the performance that Gaethje put on -- while also saying "how impressive of a show it was."

Then, Gaethje said Trump told him he wanted to tee it up with him whenever he's in New York or Florida next.

Of course, the two have formed a good bond over the years ... you'll recall, Gaethe actually attended one of Trump's presidential rallies back in 2020 -- where Trump shouted out him and other UFC fighters in attendance during his speech. Seems their relationship has only grown stronger since.

As for what's next for Gaethje aside from a potential 18 holes with DT ... he told us there are plenty of options on the table -- including Charles Oliveira, Islam Makhachev ... and, yes, maybe even Conor McGregor.

Of the trio, Gaethje seemed to want Oliveira the most (assuming he's able to beat Makhachev in their title fight in October) -- telling us he'd love to avenge the loss he suffered at UFC 274 in 2022.

Sharon Stone says "Basic Instinct" turned her into a sex symbol overnight -- and people wanted a piece of her, it seems ... 'cause they were crawling all over her whip!

The actress dished to CNN's Chris Wallace about the impact of that film and how it affected her celebrity at the time. As she says, she went into that weekend as a relative nobody in Hollywood ... and emerged as a massive star come Tuesday, after everyone had seen it.

Of course, what she's referring to specifically is the infamous interrogation scene ... where she flashed her vagina on camera, and which undoubtedly went down in cinematic history.

As Wallace rightly notes, that changed her life forever ... but little did we know to what extent, until now. Watch -- Sharon describes going out to run an errand the week after 'BI' was released, and says people were literally leaping at her in the streets of Los Angeles.

Not just at her person though, as SS explains ... she claims folks were dogpiling her actual car at stoplights. It got so bad, apparently, that she didn't know if she should drive away!

Now, this is far from the first time Sharon's talked "Basic Instinct" -- which she's publicly said she had mixed feelings about. At the time, she says she felt duped into the vagina moment ... allegedly having been reassured by the crew/producers that they couldn't see anything.

Lots of actors who are on strike are getting work ... courtesy of Beverly Hills plastic surgeons!

Business is booming ... so says Dr. Ben Talei of the Beverly Hills Center for Plastic Surgery. He told Harvey and Charles on "TMZ Live" he's working 7 days a week, because actors are using the downtime to go under the knife and recover without being noticed or missing work.

Dr. Talei says it's the A and B-listers who are swarming his office ... mostly because they can afford it. He's been doing work on some of his favorite sports stars and actors, and there's an interesting story about a famous Scientologist who went under his knife.

And here's the most fascinating part ... he says some actors made contingency plans -- if it seemed the strike wouldn't last long, they'd get minor, filler work, but if it was prolonged, they get the full monty.

WWE Superstar Drew McIntyre is preparing for SummerSlam next month, but there's another match on his mind, too -- the Scottish Warrior tells TMZ Sports he's down to face off against none other than Logan Paul!!!

The former champ had nothing but kind things to say about the social media sensation this week ... praising the Maverick for being a complete natural in the wrestling world right from the start.

But, in the ring, the 38-year-old says he's got the upper hand over the newbie.

"Maybe down the line, we'll get a match with each other and he can try some of his high-flying moves," McIntyre said. "Unfortunately, for him, I'm very grounded, so I'm going to chop him to pieces!"

McIntyre likened Paul's immediate impact in WWE to when Puerto Rican music superstar Bad Bunny started wrestling. In fact, before Logan and Bad Bunny joined WWE ... McIntyre didn't even know who either of them were!

But McIntyre certainly knows who Paul is now ... and he praised his positive impact on the organization.

Logan has continued to "evolve and evolve," McIntyre added, saying ... "He brought a positive attitude from day one. He brought an incredible work ethic."

The British brute is not only focused on his career in the squared-circle ... 'cause he's set to act in "The Killer's Game" alongside Dave Bautista and Ice Cube. McIntyre tells us the movie is "a huge opportunity," and he never imagined a career in Hollywood.

But before Logan and McIntyre explore a fight ... first up is SummerSlam, where Paul will face Ricochet and McIntyre will vie for the Intercontinental Championship against Gunther!!!