MMA

Conor McGregor has been hitting the boxing gym with an Irish boxing sensation -- who tells TMZ Sports the UFC star is 100% confident the fight with Floyd Mayweather will actually take place.

We spoke with 25-year-old Michael Conlan -- who won an Olympic bronze medal for Ireland in 2012. Conlan says he became friends with McGregor a while back and the two have been tight ever since.

In fact, Conlan says McGregor has agreed to carry the Irish flag when Conlan walks to the ring during his upcoming pro fighting debut on St. Patrick's Day at Madison Square Garden.

In the meantime, both Conlan and Conor have been training together at an L.A. boxing gym -- as recently captured by TheMacLife.com.

We asked Conlan how McGregor's boxing training is going -- one thing's clear ... he's definitely impressed.

Greg Hardy's training MMA at an elite gym in Florida ... but how does he look, and is he any good?

Now we know ... 'cause TMZ Sports has exclusive video of a Friday afternoon training sesh at American Top Team ... AND an interview with his training partner, Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva.

We asked "Bigfoot" Silva -- once one of the best UFC heavyweights -- about the prospects of his sparring partner making it at MMA's highest level ... the UFC.

Silva says don't be surprised if Hardy's fighting inside the Octagon within a year or two.

As for Hardy's kickboxing coach, Steve Bruno, the guy holding the mitt and pad while Greg works on combos -- jabs, crosses, knees, kicks -- he broke down the former Pro-Bowler's upcoming training schedule.

Dana White has an update on the status of the Conor McGregor/Floyd Mayweather megafight ... "WE ARE NOWHERE."

TMZ Sports saw Dana out in L.A. Friday afternoon ... and asked if there has been any progress made in the negotiation.

FYI -- Dana, Floyd, and Conor are all in Los Angeles.

The answer, no.

In addition to telling us who Conor definitely will not fight next ... the UFC honcho also breaks down with who and when Conor will next step into the Octagon.

UFC badass Valentina Shevchenko says Amanda Nunes is straight-up SCARED to fight her -- and she's already thinking up excuses to avoid meeting her in the Octagon.

Shevchenko -- who just beat up Julianna Pena last month -- says her sights are set on a superfight with the reigning UFC women's bantamweight champ ... if Nunes doesn't chicken out.

"[Nunes] is looking for any kind of reason to avoid the fight because she knows I'm dangerous," Shevchenko tells TMZ Sports.

In fact, Valentina says she already knows the excuses Amanda will try and use.

For the record, Shevchenko and Nunes have fought once before -- Nunes won that fight, but it was close.

UFC stud Derrick Lewis got the CELEBRITY treatment at his little brother's school ... when a faculty announced his presence and the starstruck students swarmed him like a rockstar.

Lewis -- who just beat Travis Browne this past weekend -- was having lunch with his little bro when a school faculty member grabbed the mic and told the kids a real-life UFC fighter was in the building.

Floyd Mayweather wants everyone to know he's here in L.A. -- which is interesting ... since Conor McGregor is, too.

The boxing legend hit up Catch in West Hollywood Wednesday night -- the hottest restaurant in town where Floyd KNOWS the paparazzi would go crazy for him. He was right ... it was madness.

What's interesting is Conor is also in town -- we saw him in Bev Hills the other day and he's been posting photos all over town ever since.

Last time they were in the same city (Vegas), Conor declared it his own and mocked Floyd for refusing to sit down with him.

Will things change in L.A.? Stay tuned ...

Greg Hardy is taking his MMA training up a notch -- working on his fighting style with Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva ... and we've finally got video of the ex-NFL star in action.

Hardy has been working out with American Top Team in Florida -- hoping to take a pro MMA fight sometime in the future.

We're told he's been taking his training VERY seriously ... and our sources say he's winning over people at the gym. The fighters and the coaches really like him.

Still no word on what his pro fighting timetable is ... but hopefully we'll see him in action before the end of the year.

Ronda Rousey's back ... to acting!

The UFC legend scored herself a guest role on the hit NBC show "Blindspot" -- where she'll play a tough prison inmate who's serving time for transporting weapons across state lines.

A rep for the show tells TMZ Sports the episode is scheduled to air in early May.

We're told her episode has NOT been shot yet but will be done in the near future. So, no, this didn't clash with her training for the Amanda Nunes fight.

Ronda has not made an official decision on whether she'll fight again -- but most people think she's likely done after losing her last 2 fights.

Tyron Woodley says he's the greatest UFC welterweight EVER ... better than Georges St-Pierre ... and he won't stop kicking ass until he's proved it to the entire world.

Woodley -- the current UFC champ at 170 -- sat down with TMZ Sports to talk about his upcoming rematch with Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson at UFC 209 in March.

Tyron told us he's looking forward to polishing Thompson off and proving their last fight (which ended in a draw) was a fluke ... but beyond that, he's got some bigger things to prove.

"I'm the best welterweight to ever fight in the Octagon, all I gotta do is keep winning to prove it. I'm more well rounded than Georges St-Pierre, I punch harder."

She's back!!

Cris 'Cyborg' Justino has officially been cleared of a possible anti-doping violation from a failed drug test in December, USADA announced in a statement Friday.

The 31-year-old UFC fighter was granted a retroactive therapeutic use exemption after determining Cyborg had a legitimate medical excuse to use Spironolactone -- a drug used to treat a common endocrine disorder.

USADA interviewed Cyborg and her physician about being prescribed the drug and decided to grant the TUE and lift her suspension immediately.

Conor McGregor would kick Floyd Mayweather's ass in the boxing ring ... that's according to UFC champ Joanna Jedrzejczyk, who says she's so sure of McGregor, SHE'D BET MONEY ON IT.

Joanna is a UFC stud herself ... 14-0 and the reigning strawweight women's champion ... we got her in L.A. and wanted to know if she thought McGregor had a chance against Floyd.

She DEFINITELY does ... saying if it was about putting cold hard cash where her mouth is, she wouldn't hesitate to do it.

"Of course I would put money on Conor, but it’s going to be a very difficult fight, it's a different fight than MMA fight. The fight is going to be in the ring and not in the Octagon, so it's completely different."

The whole world is wondering when/if Conor McGregor and Floyd Mayweather will step in a boxing ring, but Jay Glazer is about to tell us how long Floyd would last with Conor in a UFC Octagon.

We got Jay out at Catch in L.A. and instead of talking about a fight that MIGHT never happen, we talked to him about another fight that will NEVER happen ... Floyd vs. Conor in MMA.

IT'S ALL OVER!!

Brock Lesnar has informed the UFC he's officially retiring from MMA.

The 39-year-old superstar informed the UFC about his decision, a rep for the organization tells MMAFighting.com.

Lesnar was a beast in his prime and beat up on some of the greatest fighters in UFC history -- including a win over Randy Couture to win the UFC Heavyweight title back in 2008.

Lesnar had been suspended for 1 year by USADA after failing two UFC 200 drug tests and would have been eligible to fight again in July. Instead, he's hangin' 'em up.

If Lesnar does decide to fight again, he would still have to serve the remainder of his suspension before he would be cleared to get back in the Octagon.

Back in August, Lesnar told TMZ Sports he was considering another fight ... but clearly, things have changed.

After suffering her 3rd loss in a row, Holly Holm needs to take a break from UFC and try to get on "Dancing with the Stars" ... so says UFC champ Tyron Woodley.

35-year-old Holm hasn't won a single fight since KO'ing Ronda Rousey back in 2015 -- and after her latest loss at UFC 208 over the weekend, some people are saying her fighting career is over.

Woodley isn't ready to stick a fork in Holm -- but says she needs to focus on building her brand OUTSIDE of the Octagon while she's still famous ... and thinks 'Dancing' could be the perfect fit.

The only flaw in Woodley's logic ... is it too little, too late?

Conor McGregor is staying in fighting shape -- brushing up on his boxing skills just in case that superfight with Floyd Mayweather actually happens.

He looked okay. Throwing some decent shots. Flashing good power.

WWE superstar Paige could go from sports entertainment to REAL DEAL FIGHTING ... telling TMZ Sports she's seriously considering a move to MMA.