MMA

UFC legend Anderson Silva says he's already made up his mind about his fighting future -- telling TMZ Sports, "I'm not stopping, I'm not retiring."

The 44-year-old was in pretty good spirits Thursday returning to the United States following his UFC 237 loss to Jared Cannonier this past weekend ... but says his knee is still jacked up.

Silva badly injured his right knee in the fight -- and couldn't make it out of the first round.

After the fight, Silva went to social media and posted a statement that made it seem as if he was pondering retirement.

But now, Anderson says his mind is made up -- he wants to get healthy and get back in the Octagon.

In fact, Silva says he's already spoken with Dana White about a possible rematch with Cannonier ... but White told him to take some time to heal before talking about another fight.

So, how is Anderson's knee?

"It's not good but it's not too bad. The good thing is I start physical therapy," Silva told us.

Forget Conor McGregor ... UFC fighter Kevin Lee wants to throw down with Kamaru Usman next -- telling TMZ Sports he thinks that scrap would be WAY more challenging than one with The Notorious.

"He might not bring the attention and the money," Lee says ... "But, as a competitor, he'll bring a lot more."

Of course, Lee has been trying to set up a fight with Conor and Khabib Nurmagomedov for the last year ... telling us in the past he'd beat both their asses.

But now, he's saying those fights don't intrigue him as much as a possible scrap with Kamaru does ... saying, "Seeing what he did to Tyron Woodley, that's kind of adding a little bit to me."

Either way, Lee knows fights with any of those three won't go down if he can't get past Rafael dos Anjos in their ESPN+ fight this Saturday night ... which is why he tells us he's laser-focused on that scrap right now.

Ex-UFC star Anthony "Rumble" Johnson is fighting back in his domestic violence case -- pleading not guilty to allegations he roughed up his girlfriend during a dispute earlier this month.

TMZ Sports broke the story ... the 35-year-old fighter was arrested in Palm Beach County, Florida on May 6 after his girlfriend told cops Johnson got physical with her during an argument.

According to the police report, Johnson told cops at the time he DID pick up the woman to carry her to another room because he was sick of arguing ... but insists he never intended to hurt her.

Johnson was charged with misdemeanor domestic battery -- and his attorney just submitted a not guilty plea on the fighter's behalf.

If he's convicted, Johnson faces up to 1 year in jail.

Johnson already has a domestic violence conviction on his record from 2009 -- when he pled no contest in an incident involving an ex-girlfriend.

He's due back in court for the current case next month.

Conor McGregor is off the hook in his Miami phone smashing case -- prosecutors have dropped the charges against the UFC star after the victim stopped cooperating with authorities.

"The victim of the crime does not wish to return to the United States and prosecute this case," prosecutor Khalil Madani said during a hearing on Monday.

As we previously reported, McGregor was captured on video getting into an altercation outside the Fontainebleau hotel in Miami on March with Ahmed Abdirzak -- who was visiting from the United Kingdom.

In the footage, you can see McGregor snatch the guy's phone, stomp on it ... and leave the hotel with it.

He was arrested hours later and ultimately charged with felony robbery and misdemeanor criminal mischief.

But now, prosecutors say Abdirzak has left the country and doesn't want to come back to aid in Conor's prosecution ... which everyone saw coming from a mile away.

Here's why ... Abdirzak had filed a civil lawsuit against Conor -- which McGregor ultimately settled out of court.

Translation -- Abdirzak probably got a huge payday and wasn't exactly motivated to help put Conor behind bars.

This now clears the way for Conor to negotiate his next UFC fight without having to worry about being unavailable because of incarceration.

Michael B. Jordan doesn't want Conor McGregor's people to call his people about a role in 'Creed 3' ... because it seems like MBJ ain't at all interested in sharing the screen with the Irish mega-star.

We got Mike out in NYC -- wearing a Game Of Thrones style shoulder sheath with an umbrella in it (pulled it off too) -- and asked him if he'd be into the idea of Conor popping up in the next flick.

"Eh, I don't know about that man."

Now we should say ... Adonis Creed (Michael's character) fights at heavyweight, and Conor is like 155 pounds, so without a hell of a weight cut, we're now sure how the two would fight.

Still though, interesting that MBJ didn't even sound excited at all to share the screen in any way with Conor ... is the shine coming off the Irishman's star?

BTW ... we also asked about Deontay Wilder's chances of popping up in the movie ... something that two other stars of the flick have already said they're down for ... and Michael seemed more receptive.

Khabib Nurmagomedov is not abandoning hope for a super fight against UFC legend Georges St-Pierre ... his manager tells TMZ Sports he's actively working on getting the two in the Octagon.

Ali Abdelaziz not only reps Khabib -- but he's also close with GSP and helped get Georges back into fighting after a 4-year layoff to take on Michael Bisping in 2017.

Georges won that fight -- but hung up his gloves in early 2019 saying, "You should retire on top."

Now, Ali says the fighters have expressed to him that a Khabib vs. GSP matchup would be a "dream fight" on both ends ... but the trick is getting everyone to agree on money and a weight class.

"It's about weight," Ali says ... "The problem is about weight. What weight class do we fight at?"

If the two sides can strike a deal, the fight wouldn't happen any time in the immediate future -- Ali says Khabib has two fights to get through before he could get to GSP ... including a title fight with Dustin Poirier later this year.

Of course, Conor McGregor is also still in the picture -- he's demanding a rematch after Khabib dominated him at UFC 229 back in October.

Ali says Khabib feels Conor needs to prove he's worthy of a rematch -- considering he's lost 2 of his last 4 fights in the UFC.

Jack Swagger is fighting a factory worker who weighed 330 pounds 3 months ago ... and that regular dude, well ... he says he's gonna knock Swagger's ass out cold.

The former college wrestling and WWE Superstar -- government name Jake Hager -- has his 2nd pro MMA fight Saturday at Bellator 221. Swagger DOMINATED his first opponent ... submitting him in the 1st round.

Enter 6'2", 265 lb. T.J. Jones -- who holds down a 9 to 5 job at a meat factory in Kansas (yes, seriously) -- and basically has no experience as a fighter (he's 1-1).

Almost everyone believes Bellator's feeding Swagger a tomato to inflate his record -- someone who can't beat him.

Except Jones ain't with that program.

"I honestly don't think that he understands how fast I actually am," Jones tells us ... "The one thing that I've always been pretty blessed with is a super sweet left hook and a quick jab, and as soon as I land those, I think he'll go into panic mode."

Most fighter's don't reveal their fight game plan ... but T.J. had no problem laying out the blueprint.

"I'm gonna put my glove on his chin and he's gonna go down. That's the plan. We're gonna find out what his wrestling knows about my power."

Anderson Silva ain't mincing words when it comes to his message for Dana White ... telling TMZ Sports he wants a fight with Conor McGregor ASAP!!!!

"Come on, boss," Silva says ... "Give this show for the fans. Give this show for the fans of UFC."

Remember, Silva has pleaded with the UFC honcho ever since Conor said in October 2018 he'd be "interested" in scrapping with Anderson.

But, Silva tells us he's still dead serious about making the fight happen ... and he even explained to Dana why the UFC should set it up!!!

"It's good money for you, Dana. And, a good challenge for me and Conor."

Silva says the fight should take place at a 180 pounds ... which means Conor would have to go up from his normal 155-pound division -- but Anderson says it'll be worth it in the end.

"That's the good fight for me and Conor ... It's a super, super, super fight."

MMA star Kayla Harrison tells TMZ Sports she's 100% confident she could take Khabib Nurmagomedov in a judo match ... if he's man enough to step up!!!

Don't get it twisted, Kayla's not calling for a fist fight -- but if Khabib is down for a pure judo match, Kayla says she KNOWS she can win.

FYI, Harrison was a 2-time Olympic gold medalist (2012 and 2016 games) before making the switch to MMA. She's considered the most decorated American judo athlete of all time.

So, could she beat up some of the top guys in MMA???

No. Kayla knows she has a disadvantage when it comes to fighting men in mixed martial arts fight -- but she believes she's got the skill, speed and strength to beat men on the judo mat.

"Am I gonna beat Khabib? I mean I think I would beat him in a judo match. For sure. 100%. I would beat Khabib."

Of course, Khabib is known to have one of the most ferocious ground games in the UFC -- but without the ability to punch, Kayla thinks she has the advantage.

You can see Kayla put her skills on display when she takes on Larissa Pacheco in the main event at PFL1 on Thursday.

... and if Khabib's looking for some groundwork, he might wanna hit her up after the fight.

We also spoke with Kayla's manager, Ali Abdelaziz -- who also manages Khabib -- and he says he's down to set something up ... as long as the money's right!!!

Ex-UFC star Anthony "Rumble" Johnson was arrested for domestic violence Monday night after admitting he got physical during an argument with his girlfriend, TMZ Sports has learned.

According to the police report, obtained by TMZ Sports, a woman called police to report an altercation with her boyfriend, Anthony Johnson.

The woman claimed she had started to pack AJ's belongings to throw him out of the house when he forcefully picked her up -- "put her in a football hold" -- and carried her into another room.

The woman claims "she was scared due to his size and martial arts experience."

FYI, 35-year-old Johnson is a former UFC star who was 22-6 as a pro -- with wins over stars like Glover Teixeira, Ryan Bader and Alexander Gustafsson.

Cops say the woman did not have any visible injuries.

When cops spoke with Johnson that night, he admitted he had grabbed the woman and carried her during the argument -- but says his intention was never to hurt her. Johnson claimed he simply didn't want to argue anymore.

Cops determined Johnson's actions warranted a domestic violence arrest -- so they took him into custody and hauled him to a nearby station where he was booked on a misdemeanor domestic violence charge.

Johnson retired from the UFC back in 2017 -- after losing to Daniel Cormier. His profession on the police report is listed as "body building."

UFC champ Rose Namajunas says she wouldn't rule out a superfight against Valentina Shevchenko ... but first, she's gotta get through Jessica Andrade.

Rose is the reigning UFC strawweight champ (115 lbs) after posting two amazing wins over UFC legend Joanna Jędrzejczyk.

She's gearing up for a title defense against Andrade this weekend at UFC 237 -- and despite being the champ, Rose is the betting underdog going into the fight.

"It's definitely a familiar feeling. This is not something new. I'm always the underdog. Not always, I shouldn't say that, but generally speaking," Namajunas told us.

"And, it makes sense. Andrade, when you look at her highlights, when you look at her physique, and you look what she does to girls, it's pretty intimidating."

Andrade's a beast ... but if she wins, would Rose -- who's cleaned out her division -- go up a weight class and fight the 125 lb. champ, Shevchenko?

"I've trained a lot with Valentina. Definitely, the training sessions, the way she trains, she's an animal. Of course, I'd love to test myself against her."

The issue? They're friends ... but Thug Rose ain't above punching her buddies.

"She's also my friend too, so that would kinda be strange. But, it's whatever, like I've fought friends before multiple times."

Conor McGregor spent his Monday training his ass off in his MMA gym in Ireland -- and sources connected to the UFC star tell us he's "ready to fight right now."

Conor had a sparring session with Hans Molenkamp -- who created the MMA equipment company, Triumph, and runs the Monster Energy combat program. He's also a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu who trains with some of the best fighters in the world.

Hans and Conor have been tight for years -- so, when Hans touched down in Ireland, Conor invited him to Straight Blast Gym for a workout.

Our sources at the gym tell us ... Conor looked sharp in sparring sessions -- even cracking Hans in the face with that legendary left (you can see it in the video).

We're told Conor is training like he's getting ready for a fight -- and he's been talking about how badly he wants the rematch with Khabib.

One source extremely close to McGregor put it this way -- "He's ready to fight now. He's in training. Everything needs to line up correctly ... opponent, place and of course, money."

Conor was called out this weekend by UFC legend Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone -- McGregor has yet to respond.

Sylvester Stallone says Conor McGregor "absolutely" deserves an ownership stake in the UFC -- and he's willing to work with the Irishman to make it happen.

Now, how serious is Stallone? Hard to tell ... but we do know Sly really does care about the guy and thinks he's a special fighter.

We also know Conor is dead serious about his demands for shares in the UFC -- despite Dana White repeatedly saying it ain't gonna happen.

Back in 2016, Mark Wahlberg made a very REAL offer to Conor -- saying he'd sell him some of his ownership ... but Conor needed to "cut the check."

Just this week, Conan O'Brien joked that Conor would need to fight him for his piece of the UFC.

But, Conor ain't kidding around -- making his demands clear back in March.

"Give me my rightful shares in the UFC company," Conor said ... "That’s all I ask."

9:40 AM PT -- CoCo's in trouble ... 'cause Conor's taken notice, saying he's totally down for a fight ... and even threw Mark Wahlberg into the mix as well!!!

"Challenge accepted Conan!" Conor tweeted. "I'll whoop you and Walhberg (sic) in the same night."

"Double shares for the Double Champ!"

If Conor McGregor REALLY wants a piece of the UFC, he's gonna have to get through Conan O'Brien first!!

CoCo was leaving UCLA on Wednesday after participating in a college signing day event with Michelle Obama when we brought up the fact he happens to be a minority owner of the UFC.

And, with Conor making so much noise about wanting an ownership stake in the company, we asked Conan if he would follow Mark Wahlberg's lead and offer to sell Conor a piece of his share.

"I will fight him for his [share]," Conan joked ... "If he can take me in the Octagon!"

O'Brien continued to tease ... saying he'd have to look at the paperwork before making any serious deal with Conor.

Look, he's obviously joking the whole way through -- but Conor wasn't kidding when he demanded ownership.

In fact, Conor still isn't signed on to take another fight in the Octagon after retiring via social media earlier this year.

Brock Lesnar was submitted to official PED testing just WEEKS before he told Dana White he was retiring from MMA for good, TMZ Sports has learned.

We spoke with a rep for the United States Anti-Doping Agency which performs all of the testings on UFC fighters and confirmed Lesnar has not only been in the testing pool, but submitted 9 samples over the past year.

In fact, Lesnar submitted two tests in 2019 -- once in the 1st quarter (January through March) and at least once in April.

USADA confirms Lesnar was tested once between April 1 and April 18. We're checking to see if he was tested after April 18.

USADA would not disclose the results of Lesnar's recent tests.

Lesnar has had problems with USADA in the past -- he tested positive for the banned substance clomiphene after his UFC 200 victory over Mark Hunt. That victory was later overturned and Lesnar was suspended for a year because of the positive test.

Of course, the UFC had been gunning to book Lesnar for a title fight with heavyweight champ Daniel Cormier.

Lesnar famously stormed the Octagon back in July 2018 and shoved Cormier in what appeared to be an obvious publicity stunt to drive interest in the fight.

Both Dana White and Cormier have talked openly about wanting to make the fight happen.

But this week, White told ESPN the Lesnar fight is off because Brock informed him he is retiring from MMA.

Legendary announcer Bruce Buffer was front and center when the UFC made 12 Make-A-Wish dreams come true ... and he says it's a moment he'll remember for the rest of his life!!

Dana White and his org teamed up with the Make-A-Wish Foundation to grant 12 Las Vegas kids their biggest dreams on Monday -- from trips to Disneyland and Disney World to Europe and more!!

TMZ Sports spoke with "The Veteran Voice of the Octagon" -- who used his famous chops for the big reveal to the kids ... and he says it was one of the most emotional experiences of his life.

Buffer revealed it was a local record for Make-A-Wish giveaways ... and admits it was tough not to get emotional during the touching event.

"It was a beautiful event. It was great to see those kids," Buffer says.