MMA

Can size and strength overcome decades of hardcore MMA training if a UFC fighter and an NFL lineman threw down in a real life street fight?!

It's a debate we've been having in the office for months ... so we brought in 2 guys who would know a little something about it to hash it out on the "TMZ Sports" TV show. 

Bryant McKinnie is a 6'8", 375 pound former NFL lineman with crazy athletic ability -- and played pro for 11 seasons. 

Tyron Woodley is 5'9" and fights at 170 pounds -- and is considered one of the greatest UFC welterweight champs of all time. 

So, who wins if they fight in the street???

"Somebody's gotta get the business," Woodley said ... "I can't be on the receiving end!"

You gotta listen to the two superstars go back and forth and state their cases about why they would emerge victorious ... it's actually really interesting. 

But, the bottom line here ... DON'T FIGHT WITH EITHER ONE OF THESE GUYS IF YOU VALUE YOUR LIFE!!!

UFC legend Diego Sanchez says he WILL attend a UFC Hall of Fame ceremony just 24 hours before his UFC 239 fight ... telling TMZ Sports he thinks it'll help him build momentum!!!

Sanchez and Clay Guida are being honored for their famous "Ultimate Fighter 9 Finale" fight back in 2009 ... a 3-round war that's being enshrined in the UFC's Hall of Fame fight wing. 

10 years after getting the victory in that fight, Sanchez is still a VERY active UFC fighter -- who's set to take on Michael Chiesa at UFC 239 on July 6. 

Some fighters refuse to do anything the night before a fight -- opting to keep things low-key (meditating, relaxing, etc) as part of their pre-fight routine. 

But not Sanchez!!!

"I think it's a great build up of momentum going into the fight," Sanchez says ... "I'm gonna go up there, put my jacket on, take my little walk!"

"I look at it as positive energy ... it's great. Something that I see as normal."

Sanchez says he doesn't think the honor makes him feel old -- "I feel like I'm a legend continuing to be a legend!"

Sanchez is 29-11 in his pro MMA career -- and he's currently on a 2-fight win streak after beating up Mickey Gall back in March. 

Jon Jones has NEVER been beaten (no, the DQ doesn't count) ... but Chris Weidman says he's gonna be the guy to hand Bones his first real "L" in the UFC Octagon!!!

Weidman -- the former middleweight (185lb.) champ who recently jumped to light heavyweight (205lbs.) -- has been Twitter beefin' with Jon ... and both guys seem down to a scrap. 

TMZ Sports talked to Chris at LAX earlier this week ... and the UFC star had a short, but ominous message for Jones.

"See you soon, Jon."

After winning his first 13 pro fights, Weidman's been in a slump ... losing 4 of his last 5 fights -- taking L's from killers like Yoel Romero and Luke Rockhold.

Still, Weidman is the guy who took out Anderson Silva (TWICE) -- and the 35-year-old former champ feels he's got what it takes to stick it to Jones too.  

"I definitely think I have the tools to beat him."

But, Chris knows he won't just be handed the title fight ... "I gotta fight some other guys first, but at some point, [Jon's] the goal."

Chris also tells us who else is on his UFC hit list (hint: he badly wants to avenge a loss) ... and answers an age ol' and fiercely debated question.

Forget Tom Cruise ... Steve-O says HE should be the one to fight Justin Bieber -- telling TMZ Sports that Justin is "picking a fight with the wrong guy!"

We broke the story ... Dana White is hoping to put together a UFC match between the Biebs and Cruise after Justin called out the actor on Twitter.

But, Steve-O says he's personally offended that he wasn't the guy in the initial challenge ... telling us out at LAX, "I'm sick of being overlooked for my potential as a cage fighter!"

Steve-O says he was so upset about the Bieber snub ... he actually flew to Las Vegas to have a personal convo with Dana White himself about it all!!

"I had a little chat with Dana White," Steve-O says ... "And he agreed that if Tom Cruise doesn't step up, and someone needs to fill the cage with Justin Bieber, then I'm the guy."

"We shook on it, me and Dana White."

Steve-O then issued a call-out of his own to Bieber ... telling the Biebs, "I think you've been picking a fight with the wrong guy. Tom Cruise might be 56, but, hey, I'm 45!"

As for who would win in the Octagon ... all Steve-O would tell us is that Justin has NO chance of ending the fight early -- saying, "I can take a serious beating."

He ain't lyin'!!!

All good things must come to an end ... and Michael Chiesa's signature mullet is no exception ... and the UFC fighter is telling TMZ Sports he chopped off his hair at his girlfriend's request!!!

Chiesa has been rockin' the "business in the front, party in the back" look for years ... but the welterweight cleaned up his look and got rid of the mullet recently ... and now we know why.

"It's just time for me to grow up. I've had a mullet the better half of my whole life. I've always just been this hairy, wild man," Chiesa says.

"I have a girlfriend now, and as she's gotten more comfortable in the relationship, she wants a civilized looking boyfriend ... it's good for me, man."

Maverick -- who is fighting Diego Sanchez at UFC 239 next weekend -- says although he doesn't care what people think about him, it's about time he looked the part of being a professional.

UFC fighter Desmond Green was arrested for DUI manslaughter Tuesday after he allegedly caused a 5-car crash that killed 2 women back in August ... and officials claim he had alcohol and drugs in his system and cocaine in his vehicle.

29-year-old Green is facing multiple charges after he allegedly lost control of his 2011 Dodge Durango on I-75 and swerved into a semi truck on August 18.

So, why did it take so long to arrest Green? Officials say they conducted a massive investigation that took months to complete. And now, they feel they have enough information to successfully prosecute Green.

Here's what cops say happened ...

The initial collision started a chain reaction ... with Green's car striking several vehicles, killing a 67-year-old woman and a 76-year-old woman. Cops say 2 others were also seriously injured.

Cops say Green sustained minor injuries from the incident.

According to the police report, witnesses told cops Green threw a container over the highway barrier after the crash ... which cops say was a metal grinder with weed inside.

The report also says Green -- who wasn't wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash -- had a bag of cocaine in the front seat of his car.

Cops claim Green showed signs of being drunk -- he had slurred speech and smelled like booze -- and toxicology tests showed he had alcohol and drugs in his system.

Green is now facing a slew of criminal charges -- including multiple felony manslaughter counts -- and faces serious prison time if convicted.

6/26 10:02 AM PT -- TMZ Sports has obtained dispatch audio from the incident in which you can hear a law enforcement official tell officers, "BJ Penn is back there trying to fight everybody. No weapon."

When cops arrived to the scene, the officers told dispatch Penn had "ran off" and was no longer at the club.

8:31 AM PT -- Law enforcement sources tell us ... cops DID, in fact, respond to the club after receiving a call about an "argument at an adult night club."

However, we're told Penn was NOT arrested -- and a warrant for his arrest has not been issued.

In fact, we're told the victim has not come forward to police and cops are not currently investigating.

It's possible the victim could still go to cops ... but seems unlikely at this point.

In other words, they scrapped and it's over.

UFC Hall of Famer B.J. Penn got into a fight with a bouncer at a strip club in Honolulu late Monday night ... with the altercation spilling onto the street ... and TMZ Sports has the video.

We spoke with the owner of Club Femme Nu who told us Penn was escorted out of the bar around midnight because he was acting "very drunk."

While the 40-year-old MMA legend was being escorted out, things turned physical -- and Penn began to fight the door guy.

Multiple witnesses watched as Penn -- a former UFC lightweight and welterweight champion -- smothered the door guy to the ground and took control over the other man. At one point, you can see Penn shoving his forearm into the other man's throat.

Several men can be heard asking B.J. to stop fighting and let the guy up -- but he never does.

One of the bystanders finally decides he's seen enough and begins punching Penn in the head in an attempt to end the fight ... but the other men call him off, so B.J. and the bouncer can finish their fight 1-on-1.

Eventually, someone calls the cops and we're told several squad cars arrived at the scene -- but B.J. had already left the premises by the time the officers got there.

Attempts to reach Penn for comment were unsuccessful.

"Justin Bieber seems like a wimp" -- UFC star Ben Askren.

Yep, the biggest stars in the UFC are well aware of the possible Tom Cruise vs. Justin Bieber superfight ... and top-ranked welterweight Ben Askren is already picking a winner.

"I'm gonna say Tom Cruise," Askren says ... "Like, Tom Cruise at least seems like he's probably been through some sh*t."

As we previously reported, Bieber's rep, Scooter Braun, recently told Dana White he'd be down to fight FOR REAL if Tom signs on ... and Dana says it would be the biggest Pay-Per-View fight of all time.

Ben agrees ... "That would make a whole bunch of money!"

Meantime, Askren has his fight to worry about ... he's throwing down with Jorge Masvidal at UFC 239 on July 6.

But, if 56-year-old Tom Cruise does agree to fight 25-year-old Bieber, Askren says he'd be down to train the 'Mission Impossible' star ... and he's already got a game plan for him.

"All I'd teach him is [the double leg takedown] and then beat his ass ... little typewriter action on his face!"

Wanna throw a killer elbow strike like UFC legend Jon Jones?!

Well, good news, the reigning UFC light heavyweight champ came to our office and gave a live demonstration ... right on a TMZ staffer!

Of course, Jones is gearing up to fight Thiago Santos at UFC 239 on July 6 -- and he stopped by the office to talk with the guys from "TMZ Sports" about how he's planning to end Thiago's 4 fight win streak.

Jones hit on a ton of topics during the conversation -- here's a cheat sheet.

On Daniel Cormier ...

Jones doesn't think Cormier will ever agree to fight him for a 3rd time.

"I’ve been hearing things about him fighting [Stipe Miocic] then ending his career fighting me down at light heavyweight, and I don’t believe him," Jones says.

"I don’t think he’s ever going to fight me again."

"I think it’s a lot of pressure for him to get down to the light heavyweight division, and then to get down there, to climb such a mountain and not get to the actual top? It has to be so crushing to come up short against me for a 3rd time, I don’t think he’d put himself through that."

UFC champ Daniel Cormier is keeping it all the way real when talking about Brock Lesnar -- telling TMZ Sports he's genuinely "disappointed" the guy pulled out of fight negotiations.

"I wanted to fight Brock," DC tells us ... "but you can only really worry about things that you can control. I can't control that he doesn't want to fight anymore. He's done."

Cormier says he appreciates the UFC and Lesnar for trying to make a deal -- but at the end of the day, Daniel thinks the WWE offered Lesnar too much money to stay out of the Octagon.

"I just think the WWE gave him such a great deal, they really always take care of this guy."

"Ultimately, you get paid that much money to go and wrestle as opposed to fighting me? There's no predetermined outcome there. I'm gonna try to kick your ass. So, I think he made the smart decision."

Cormier says he was friends with Lesnar before the fight talks began in July 2018 -- and says now that Brock's not a potential opponent anymore, they can go back to texting and talking on the phone.

"Maybe I can start going to watch him wrestle and do all that other stuff again."

He's 41-years-old ... but MMA legend Lyoto "The Dragon" Machida says he ain't ready to stop fighting any time soon!!!

In fact, Machida says he's got another 3 to 4 years left ... at least!!!

Of course, Lyoto just beat up Chael Sonnen at Bellator 222 -- extending his win streak to 4.

Now, Machida is gunning for a fight with Bellator champ Ryan Bader -- who holds TWO belts -- the heavyweight and light heavyweight titles.

"I'll be ready for him," Machida told us in Beverly Hills ... "I feel so good and so athletic."

After the Sonnen fight, Chael announced his retirement from Mixed Martial Arts -- and Machida tells us it was an honor to share the cage with such a "legend" in the sport.

Machida is a legend himself -- dude's got a 26-8 pro record with wins over some of the best fighters of all time ... including B.J. Penn, Tito Ortiz, Rashad Evans, Randy Couture, Dan Henderson and Shogun Rua.

Fake Ivan Drago tried to pick a fight with Justin Bieber in front of Craig's last night -- showing up to the restaurant in FULL BOXING GEAR ... and we got the whole thing on video!!!

The wannabe Russian was SERIOUS about trying to fight Justin -- he's the same guy who showed up to Logan Paul's home a few weeks ago to challenge the YouTube star to a fight.

Remember, Logan actually AGREED and the two threw down right in Paul's back yard.

The fake-Drago is an aspiring social media star ... but it's clear he'll do ANYTHING for clout.

So with Justin trying to get an MMA fight with Tom Cruise. the imposter-Ivan planned to call out Bieber first at Craig's where he waited for JB at the front door, pounding his chest and talking trash.

Bieber blew him off ... so, he stuck around for a few hours waiting for a second crack at the pop star -- but that didn't pan out either.

Bieber clearly knows his worth (and his weight class) ... he could make MILLIONS if the Tom Cruise fight comes to fruition -- so why give out hands for free on the street?!

As for doppelganger-Drago ... he'll continue to seek out other famous people to fight.

We hear Mike Tyson's in town!!!

A pro MMA fighter nearly had his leg cut off his body in a gruesome car accident last year ... and now he's suing the California Department of Transportation, claiming it's responsible for his tragic injuries.

It's all in court docs obtained by TMZ Sports ... Chris Bonilla -- a former Muay Thai champ who also fought with the Glory kickboxing promotion -- says he crashed into an unmarked barrier on the side of a freeway last year.

Bonilla -- 31 years old at the time -- claims he was driving on the 10 Freeway in West Covina at around 6 AM when he needed to pull off to the side of the road for an unspecified reason.

But, Bonilla says when he did that ... he accidentally crashed into a K-rail that was NOT properly marked.

Bonilla says the results of the accident were devastating -- his car was split down the side ... severing his leg and breaking his clavicle in the process.

Chris says doctors were able to reattach his leg, but he's facing life-long issues and could have to have the leg eventually amputated.

Bonilla is now suing the California Department of Transportation for unspecified damages ... claiming it did not properly provide the necessary protections to prevent these of types of accidents from happening.

Ronda Rousey put female UFC fighters on the map ... and that's exactly what Mikaela Mayer says she's gonna do for female boxing.

Mikaela is a 28-year-old undefeated boxer (10-0) -- who's signed with legendary promoter Bob Arum -- and she's fighting Lizbeth Crespo Saturday in Vegas.

MM says that female boxing ain't anywhere near where it should be when it comes to fan interest ... but that's about to change -- and she's pointing at the UFC as proof it can happen.

There was once a time when Dana White said women would never fight in the UFC ... then Ronda came along, and a bunch of armbars later, female fights are every bit as popular as the guys.

See Amanda Nunes, Cyborg, Valentina Shevchenko ... the list goes on and on.

So, we asked Mikaela if she could be the Rowdy Ronda of female boxing?

"Yeah, how she broke down those walls and made women's MMA, a market for women's MMA, yeah, I absolutely see myself doing that for women's boxing."

The sport seems ready to explode with killers like Mikaela, Katie Taylor and Claressa Shields putting a serious ass-whooping on people in big time fights.

"I feel like we all have a duty to show the world and prove to the world that we can be competitive," Mikaela says ... "That we can put on good shows, that we can sell."

Daniel Cormier says his upcoming title defense against Stipe Miocic could be his last hurrah in the UFC Octagon ... telling TMZ Sports, "I don't anticipate fighting much past this."

Remember, DC had always said he would retire on his 40th birthday -- but that came and went in March ... with Cormier breaking his vow to take on a second fight with Stipe.

Now that the rematch is set for August 17 in Anaheim, we asked Cormier if he's still thinking about retirement.

"I always said that I was gonna fight [until I was 40]. I couldn't make that one so, if I hold true to what I was saying, then this would be the final one."

Of course, Cormier can always change his mind -- especially if the fight checks are big enough -- but one thing's for sure ... he ain't gonna be doing this for much longer.

Meantime, Cormier says he's already started training for Stipe -- because he knows Miocic is looking for some violent revenge after getting knocked out in the first round at UFC 226 back in 2018.

"I truly believe he's gonna be a better version of himself," Cormier says ... "I think it'll be a much more difficult fight."

A boxing champ wants to beat the hell out of Conor McGregor both in the ring AND the Octagon ... with Regis Prograis saying, "I'ma hurt your ass!"

... and it's all 'cause of Mark Wahlberg.

Here's the deal ... Conor called out Mark on social media Sunday saying he wanted to "slap the ears off" the actor and take his UFC shares.

Well, 30-year-old Prograis -- the 24-0 WBA light-welterweight champ who's currently managed by Wahlberg -- heard the challenge ... and now, he's issuing a threat right back at the UFC superstar.

"Don't call out no actors, dawg," Regis says ... "Call out a real world champion. I'ma hurt your ass!"

Regis says he wants a two-fight deal with Conor -- one in the ring and one in the Octagon -- and he's promising he'll win both.

"I'll fight you in the ring first, and I'm definitely going to whoop your ass. Then, I'm going to fight you in the Octagon, and whoop your ass in there!"

The tale of the tape is interesting ... Regis fights at 5'8" and around 140 pounds, while Conor comes in at 5'9", 150ish pounds.

So, will it go down??? Stay tuned ...