MMA

Fedor Emelianenko, Wanderlei Silva, Chael Sonnen, Rashad Evans, Forrest Griffin, Dan Henderson, Chuck Liddell, Glover Teixeira ... all MMA legends Quinton Jackson fought (some wins, some losses) -- but none of these beasts qualify as the greatest fighter Rampage has faced -- that honor belongs to Jon Jones.

TMZ Sports caught up with the 44-year-old (don't say retired -- more on that later) fighter last month at LAX ... where we asked the former MMA champ what advice he's given to Jones as he (fingers crossed 🤞) gets closer to his first fight in the heavyweight division.

"Honestly, no cap," Rampage flatly told us, adding, "Jon Jones is the best person I ever fought. I don't think I can give him advice. He's a better fighter than me, you know what I'm saying. I keep it 100."

It's high praise coming from one of the most well-known (and badass) MMA fighters to ever grace a cage.

FYI, Jon and Rampage fought in September 2011. Bones won by rear naked choke in the 4th round.

Of course, all of Jon's incredible exploits have come in the light heavyweight division (205 lbs.) ... but now he's facing men who weigh up to 265 lbs. More weight, more power. Will that be an issue for Jones? We asked Rampage.

"I don't know about Jon Jones' chin. It's been rumors that he don't got a strong chin. The heavyweights, man, you know they hit harder but I feel like Jones is a smart fighter. It was really hard for me to hit him, he wouldn't let me hit him. Granted, Jones is a dirty fighter. When you get close to him, he gon' poke you in the eye and kick ya knee backward."

Quinton continued ... "Heavyweights, they a different monster. They hit hard. They catch you slippin' -- look at Francis Ngannou. That guy hits you, it lights out. Game over."

We also asked Rampage -- who hasn't fought since December 2019 -- if he was done fighting for good.

"Nah, man. I ain't done. I'm not happy with my performance last fight. I can't leave the MMA fans like that."

Jackson's referring to his Bellator 237 scrap with the legend, Fedor. Emelianenko defeated QJ halfway through the first round by technical knockout (TKO).

But, if there's one more fight, Rampage says it might not be MMA ... there's a good chance it's a boxing match against former champ Shannon Briggs.

"I'm in talks with fighting Shannon. That fight has been almost a year in the making, but I wanna do some boxing before I retire," Quinton says.

Mike Perry has an offer for Jake Paul (absent almost any s**t talk) ... if you want to prove you're a "real boxer," let's fight!!

30-year-old Perry -- fresh off a Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) win against Bellator star Michael "Venom" Page -- isn't exactly looking for R&R ... he wants to step foot in a ring with the 25-year-old "Problem Child."

"Jake Paul, I know you hear me, I know you see me," Perry told Babcock when he joined the "TMZ Sports" TV show (air weeknights on FS1) on Wednesday.

"If you want to be solidified as a real athlete, as a real fighter, and not someone who just fights tomato cans and basketball players -- you want to be a real boxer, then 'Platinum' Perry is the opponent for you, buddy."

And, Mike says he isn't looking to spark a war of words ... because he's content with life right now.

"We can add the animosity, but I'm in a good place in life and I'm not tripping on you bro, you can run from me if you want. That's cool. I'm not gonna chase you, but I'm right here when you're ready."

At the end of the day, Perry tells us he's okay if the fight with Jake -- who has publicly said he wants to fight in October -- doesn't happen.

"I'm not gonna chase it too hard, man. I know he heard me. Everybody knows he heard me. If he wants to ignore it, that's on him."

Tyson Fury says his cousin was killed after being stabbed in the neck in the UK over the weekend ... and now, he's pleading with government officials to crack down on knife crime in wake of the tragedy.

According to authorities, Fury's relative, 31-year-old Rico Burton, was killed following an incident at a popular bar at around 3 AM on Sunday in Manchester. A 17-year-old was also injured in the altercation, cops said, and remains hospitalized.

Fury took to his Instagram page after learning of Burton's death to mourn the loss -- and called for greater punishment for knife crimes to hopefully deter similar incidents from happening going forward.

"This is becoming ridiculous," the boxing superstar said. "Idiots carry knives. This needs to stop 🛑 Asap, uk 🇬🇧 government needs to bring higher sentencing for knife crime, its a pandemic & you dont know how bad it is until its 1 of your own!"

He added, "Life is very precious & it can be taken away very quick enjoy every moment🙏RIP RICO BURTON 🙏 may the lord god grant you a good place in heven. see you soon"

Police say they have arrested two men who they believe were involved in the stabbing. They added that they are increasing police patrols in the area with the hopes of preventing future crimes.

"This was a senseless attack," Greater Manchester Police spokesperson Ben Ewart said, "and both victims should've returned home this morning after enjoying a night out with friends."

Khabib Nurmagomedov
Henry Cejudo
Kamaru Usman

... three bonafide legends who happened to be managed by Ali Abdelaziz. But, forced to pick the best fighter he's managed, Ali says it's the "Nigerian Nightmare."

TMZ Sports talked to Abdelaziz days before his star client, 35-year-old Usman, takes on Leon Edwards in the main event at UFC 278 in Salt Lake City ... and that's when we asked who was #1.

"It's very hard, man. You're talking about Henry Cejudo, two-division champion, defended two-weight divisions, right? Khabib, undefeated, never lost, barely lost a round," Ali told us, continuing, "But when you talk about Kamaru, for me Kamaru at welterweight, one of the hardest divisions in the UFC, he's beating these guys and he's sticking around. He's 35, sticking around."

Abdelaziz says you could argue both Cejudo and Nurmagomedov left the sport while they were in their primes ... while Usman continues to stack wins over the best fighters in the world.

"You can say Khabib a little bit retired early, you can say Henry retired a little bit early, right? Right now, it's tough man. I love all of them. Everybody knows how close I am to Khabib and how I love them. I love Kamaru too but right now, the way Kamaru is doing it, I don't think anybody's doing it the way Kamaru is doing it and he's willing to go up to light heavyweight and do a two-division champion and skip a weight division."

"You have to give it to Kamaru right now. Wherever he is at with his career, it's Kamaru."

Of course, Khabib, Henry, and Kamaru all have absolutely incredible resumes.

- Nurmagomedov: Undefeated. 29-0. Former Lightweight champion. Wins over Justin Gaethje, Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor. Retired in 2021.

- Cejudo: 16-2. Former Flyweight and Bantamweight champion. One of only a handful of double champs in UFC history. Wins over Dominick Cruz, TJ Dillashaw and Demetrious Johnson. Retired in 2020. Currently semi-unretired.

- Usman: 20-1. Current UFC Welterweight champion. Wins over Tyron Woodley, Colby Covington (twice), Jorge Masvidal (twice), Gilbert Burns and Rafael dos Anjos. Hasn't lost since his second ever professional fight in 2013.

Can't go wrong with any of the three fighters.

BTW, Abdelaziz has repped a bunch of other incredibly talented fighters ... including Gaethje, Burns, Kayla Harrison, Cody Garbrandt, Rashad Evans, Frankie Edgar and more.

Usman's been kicking ass for a decade, but his star has really taken off recently. Proof? Kamaru recently locked down a role in the upcoming Black Panther sequel ... a film all but guaranteed to become one of the most popular movies of all time.

How'd Usman lock down the gig ... Ali walked us through the process.

Kamaru takes on Leon Edwards this weekend at UFC 278 ... where he'll look to tie Anderson Silva's record for most consecutive wins (16).

Kamaru Usman has an opponent in mind for his next fight after Leon Edwards -- but it's not anyone in the welterweight, or even middleweight division -- the number one pound-for-pound fighter in the world says he's eyeing a move to light heavyweight!

"A lot of people think I'm joking when I say [I wanna move up]. I wanted to skip -- skip middleweight and I want the light heavyweight belt because I wanna be a two-division champion," Usman told Babcock on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weekdays on FS1).

The 35-year-old, 170 lb. champ continued ... "One, not only am I the best in the world, but I wanna prove that I am the pound-for-pound best, so I'm gonna skip that pound-for-pound, I'm gonna take that light heavyweight belt and I'm gonna defend the belt."

There's a reason Kamaru plans to jump two divisions, and not just move up one and fight at 185 lbs. ... the middleweight champ is Israel Adesanya.

Kamaru and Izzy are tight ... and have said they'd never fight each other.

Meanwhile, Kamaru and Jiri Prochazka -- the light heavyweight champ -- not so tight.

29-year-old Prochazka, who beat Glover Teixeira for the title in June, stands 6'4" tall. He hasn't lost since 2015. Not to be outdone ... Usman hasn't been defeated since 2013.

But Usman isn't looking to abandon the division he's ruled for 3.5 years ... the Nigerian Nightmare says he's planning to defend both belts once he beats Jiri.

"I'll defend both belts so people can really understand what it means to be pound-for-pound," Kamaru says ... "Not just this fictitious stuff that they make up. When I actually go up and do it and I walk away from the sport, I'll let you decide what you wanna call me or my legacy."

We also talked to Kamaru about landing a role in the new Black Panther movie ... a project that's incredibly important to the star fighter.

"For one, I'm extremely excited because it's my first one. I knew I was gonna be in movies some point, one day, but to be in that movie, I'm extremely excited because that's a movie that transcends just being a movie star. It's a movie that stands for something, it's a movie that represents something so powerful."

And, it won't be the last film in which Usman appears ... despite the fact people have accused him of being "Hollywood."

"It's crazy 'cause people are 'oh he Hollywood now.' Of course! Ya damn right I'm Hollywood now. I wanted to be Hollywood. What's wrong? You don't want me to be Hollywood?!"

"You want me eat Little Caesars and Ramen noodles in my little shack all day every day for the rest of my life? No, I'm gonna be Hollywood, but one thing they're failing to realize is that it took work to get to this point to be Hollywood."

Usman takes on Leon Edwards for the second time (Kamaru won by unanimous decision in 2015) at UFC 278 Saturday night on ESPN+.

"I don't give a f*** and don't be surprised they like me more out there."

😂😂😂😂😂

That's Marlon "Chito" Vera (candidly) talking about fighting former UFC champ/future Hall of Famer Dominick Cruz in his hometown of San Diego ... the main event at Saturday's UFC Fight Night.

FYI, Vera is 29 years old and ranked 5th in the bantamweight division. Cruz is 37, and the #8 ranked bantamweight.

"I bring what people want to see, I bring what they like and it's the fire," Chito told us, adding ... "Maybe, in the beginning, they might be a little going for him but crowds love me, dude."

Chito has won three fights in a row, including beating Frankie Edgar (November 2021) and Rob Font (April 2022), and believes the Cruz fight is a chance to put the world on notice.

"It's a great opportunity to shine. It's a great opportunity to show the world what's up. It's a great opportunity to just let the UFC know I'm the next guy coming out for that belt and I can say all the crazy s*** I want but at the end of the day, I gotta get there and win and I'm prepared for that."

There's much more in the video with Vera!

We also talked to Dom -- who believes he's on the path to once again being champ -- and he couldn't be more pumped to continue that journey in front of his hometown fans.

"Well, it's incredible. San Diego, you know, we've been known a lot for saying we can't get that world championship -- baseball, football, all these sports. You've had a two-time world champion that was born here that has been representing that state for a long time."

"I'm here! I'm the champion of San Diego!"

The legendary "Judo" Gene LeBell -- possibly the most badass man to ever walk the earth -- has died at the age of 89, and some of the biggest sports stars in the world are showing love in light of his passing.

LeBell passed away Tuesday ... leaving behind an incomparable legacy in mixed martial arts and wrestling.

Nicknamed the "Godfather of Grappling," LeBell's journey to stardom began when he won the heavyweight and overall Amateur Athletic Union National Judo Championships in 1954 and 1955.

LeBell is widely credited with introducing catch wrestling and grappling techniques to pro wrestling and MMA.

Speaking of MMA ... long before Royce Gracie and Ken Shamrock fought at UFC 1 (1993), Gene fought in the first televised bout in America in 1963.

Gene, with his judo and grappling, beat top-ranked light-heavyweight boxer Milo Savage.

LeBell also trained some of Hollywood's biggest names like Chuck Norris and Bruce Lee.

Gene and Bruce first met during filming of the TV show "The Green Hornet" ... and became friends, often training together.

He also served as the referee for Muhammad Ali's crossover bout with Antonio Inoki in 1976.

Gene, also an actor and stuntman, appeared in hundreds of movies (there's a totally unverified story about LeBell and Steven Seagal going at it on set -- look it up).

Expertise aside, LeBell was revered for his relationships with fighters and wrestlers over his storied career, most notably former UFC women's bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey.

Gene trained Rousey (a former Judo star) ... and he also worked with WWE legend "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, the inspiration for the "Rowdy Ronda" character.

On Wednesday, Ronda posted a photo of her and Gene together ... captioning the pic, "Legend."

Triple H, a 14-time WWE champ, took to Twitter to express his gratitude and appreciation for Gene's contributions to the industry over the years.

"Gene LeBell remained a towering figure in the history and expansion of mixed martial arts and sports entertainment," HHH wrote. "A teacher to many of the sport’s greats, his influence is felt throughout @WWE to this day."

"Our thoughts are with his family and loved ones at this time."

"Platinum" Mike Perry says his upcoming fight with Michael "Venom" Page isn't just the biggest Bare Knuckle bout ever ... it's one of the biggest fights of all time, period.

We talked to the 30-year-old fighter just two weeks before his BKFC 27 fight in London against MVP on August 20 ... a fight featuring two MMA stars turned bare-knuckle boxers.

"This is one of the biggest fights in my opinion," Platinum told TMZ Sports, seemingly leaving out the BKFC descriptor when we asked about the magnitude of this fight.

"Period?" ... we followed up.

"Yeah, I mean for the fans that love fighting, I go in there and do what it do. I get angry and I try to take a guy out. MVP is flashy. He tries to take a guy out and, you know, I'm trying to touch that line too. Flashy, angry, try to keep my cool, but I'm always so aggressive because I have that in my back pocket, that ferocity. I gotta be able to take it and give it."

What's undeniable ... this is a fun fight. Biggest or not.

Perry, who is tough as nails and down for a brawl, has been locked in a cage with some of the baddest dudes in the world like Paul Felder and Alex "Cowboy" Oliveira, and not just come out in one piece, but victorious.

As for Venom Page ... he's got a different style than Perry -- he's flashy -- and has lost only twice throughout his entire career -- spanning back to 2012.

We also talked to Perry about going to hostile territory for the fight ... something he's actually reveling in.

"Man, [the hostile crowd] fires me up! Gets my blood boiling and I'm pumped to go out there and put on the show," Mike says, adding, "I hope they're throwing violent slurs at me and like, you know, just trying to really get me in the zone for the fight."

As for how the fight will look, Perry says he doesn't know if it'll last a minute, a round, or more ... but he knows one thing, he's getting a knockout.

Add AJ McKee to the list of people who want to beat up former kickboxing champ and internet star Andrew Tate, with the Bellator star telling TMZ Sports, "I wanna put my fist in his mouth!"

35-year-old Tate -- one of the most polarizing people on the internet -- has become a staple on YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok ... with his often very controversial takes.

Enter McKee, the 18-1 MMA star says he's tired of Tate popping up on his stream, 'cause the guy rubs him the wrong way.

"There's nothing really up with us. I'm just tired of hearing and seeing and -- like bro, every time I get on Instagram, I see him in my feed. It's annoying! He's always talking. He tries to project himself as this macho, just this OG guy."

And, AJ isn't sweating the significant size difference.

"I'm a 155-pounder now, you're a kickboxer, cool. We can step in the boxing ring and box. I'd love that. I mean, I can't find a boxing match at the moment so I mean, if I gotta jump three weight classes up there, I'm fine with that," McKee says.

AJ clearly takes umbrage with Tate's views on men and women, telling us "[Tate's] rude as s**t. It's like you're a misogynist towards women. It's like bro, how do you feel about your mother, ya idiot! She's the reason why you're on the planet. You talk that way about your mother?"

Now, 6'1", 200-ish lb. Tate isn't any ordinary internet star ... he was a legit, professional fighter. A kickboxing champion. He also beat Luke Barnatt in an MMA fight in 2010. Luke went on to fight in the UFC.

AJ says he's not doing this for notoriety -- he just wants to show off his talents -- and he's down to do it in an MMA cage or boxing ring.

"I ain't chasing clout. I'm looking for opportunities to showcase my skills in any and every area like boxing. I mean, I ain't trying to kickbox with him, he's a big boy, but we can definitely throw some hands. We can definitely do some MMA if he wants to kick."

As for McKee's skills ... he's simply one of the best fighters in the world. He was the 145 lb. Bellator champ ... and only lost his belt after a controversial decision loss vs. fellow star Patricio "Pitbull" Freire. It's the only time AJ's ever been defeated.

Tate's already been rumored to be a future boxing opponent for Jake Paul ... but if that doesn't happen, AJ's ready to go.

McKee left us with this message to Tate.

Colby Covington doesn't only win in the Octagon -- he wins at the card table, too -- recently competing in two high-level poker tourney's in Florida, winning over $70k!!

It all went down at the 2022 Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open this week in Hollywood, FL. 34-year-old Colby entered a tournament -- the largest in the state's history with over 7,700 entrants -- and astonishingly, playing against many professional players, made the final table, finishing 7th!

For his troubles, CC won $48,298.

After the incredible performance, Covington said he "wanted to come back and prove that wasn’t just a fluke," saying he wanted to show he "could play with the best players in the world.”

That's exactly what the #1 ranked UFC welterweight did ... 'cause days later, Colby entered another tourney, Event 22, at the casino. There were 84 entrants. The game was pot limit Omaha 8.

And he won (!!) ... taking home $25,875 for first place. Altogether, with the prize money from both tournaments, Colby took how $74,143.

But, it clearly wasn't about the money for Colby, who described winning as a “surreal feeling.”

“It’s been a long journey to finally get a trophy here at Seminole Hard Rock. This is my home casino, and I love playing here,” Covington added.

Covington said his strategy in the tournament was to stay away from Phil Hui, a 3-time WSOP bracelet winner who has reportedly earned over $3.6 million during poker tournaments alone.

"He’s a great player, one of the greatest players in the game today," Covington said.

"I know he’s a specialist in high-low, so I wanted to navigate around him and wait to pick really good spots where I felt comfortable with getting the high and the low.”

Newly crowned interim UFC Flyweight champion Brandon Moreno tells TMZ Sports his highly anticipated 4th fight with champ Deiveson Figueiredo -- where they'll unify the belts -- is the biggest fight in the history of the 125 lb. division.

And, it's not even really up for debate.

We talked to the 28-year-old fighter on Wednesday, and asked him about the significance of the fight.

"Man, tell me another example [of a bigger fight], please. The 4 fights between Figueiredo and I is the biggest one, easily. Tell me the second place," Brandon told us.

It's hard to think of a more anticipated fight. Demetrious Johnson vs. Henry Cejudo fought twice ... and Cejudo's win over Mighty Mouse in 2018 was improbable and thrilling. But, as legendary as both fighters are, Brandon and Deiveson's rivalry is just different.

In fact, just a few years ago, the division was in jeopardy of being scrapped altogether. Now, it features arguably the best current rivalry in MMA.

Speaking of those fights, Brandon and Deiveson already fought three times ... each man has one win. The first and third fights were incredibly close.

UFC 256, Dec. 2020, Draw
UFC 263, Jun 2021, Moreno won, submission via rear naked choke
UFC 270, Jan 2022, Figueiredo won, unanimous decision

Fast forward to last Saturday in Dallas, TX. After Moreno defeated Kai Kara-France with a perfectly placed liver kick to capture the interim title, Brandon and Deiveson came face-to-face in the Octagon.

But, despite a lot of s**t talk in the past, the men kept it respectful ... and that's the way BM says it'll stay.

"I understand I had the opportunity to make more drama, but it's not my way. I understand the business I'm in, I'm trying to entertain the people, but I'm entertaining people with my fight. I'm done with the drama, with all the bad feelings."

Notorious is going Hollywood -- UFC superstar Conor McGregor will be making his acting debut in a remake of the '80s classic movie, "Road House" ... starring alongside huge names like Jake Gyllenhaal!!

The project is set to be a reimagining of the Patrick Swayze-led 1989 flick ... with Gyllenhaal playing a UFC fighter-turned-bar bouncer at a Florida Keys roadhouse.

TMZ Sports has confirmed ... the former featherweight and lightweight champ will have a part in the Prime Video project, which will be his first feature film.

Of course, 34-year-old McGregor has a ton of business ventures out of the Octagon ... but we're told the new career move does not mean he's done competing.

"Conor McGregor is very excited to expand his storied career to Hollywood and join with Jake Gyllenhaal in this reimagining of 'Road House', a beloved classic," Conor's rep, Karen J. Kessler, tells us.

"While fighting remains his top focus, this is the beginning of another successful venture in the McGregor empire."

"He is eager to get started filming."

Deadline reports the project -- directed by Doug Liman -- will also star Billy Magnussen, Daniela Melchior, Gbemisola Ikumelo, Lukas Gage, Hannah Love Lanier ... as well as other notable actors.

The outlet says McGregor got wind of the interest in having him involved ... and after checking out the original, he took a meeting with producer Joel Silver.

McGregor apparently loved what he heard about the vision for the flick ... and quickly signed on to show off his acting chops.

It's become quite a natural transition for UFC fighters to make it in Hollywood -- as we recently reported, Kamaru Usman will be in the new "Black Panther" movie this November ... and Ronda Rousey, Georges St-Pierre, and more have also made it to the silver screen.

If Jake Paul can't fight Hasim Rahman Jr. on August 6, there's someone else willing to step in the ring in his place -- Hasim Rahman Sr.!!

That's right ... the 49-year-old, 2x heavyweight champion tells TMZ Sports he's down to fill in for Jr. and box the Problem Child.

Oh, and for good measure, he says he'll fight Logan, too ... same night.

"How about this?" Hasim says, "If somebody would sanction this, I will fight Jake and Logan back to back. We can go eight rounds a piece. Neither one of them will make eight rounds but we can sanction for eight rounds and I promise you, if I don't knock Jake and Logan out, they win."

Of course, Jake and Jr. were set to box Saturday at MSG ... but the fight was scrapped after Paul accused Rahman of ignoring their contractually agreed-upon weight limit.

Now, let's be honest ... two fights in one night ain't happening, but you get Hasim's point. He isn't all that impressed with what he's seen in the ring from the Paul bros.

In 2001, Rahman Sr. shocked the sports world when he knocked out one of the greatest heavyweight boxers ever, champ Lennox Lewis ... becoming the unified heavyweight champion of the world.

Throughout his career, Hasim racked up a 50-9-2 record with 41 KO's. He retired in 2014.

We also asked Rahman about the possibility Jake and his son could still fight another time ... and Hasim had a suggestion for ensuring the terms of the contract are followed.

"If the public demands it, both sides can put up a million dollars in escrow. That way we can be sure that ain't nobody gonna not make weight. If somebody miss weight, whatever the contractual demands are, they will be met or somebody gonna lose their million dollars."

So will it be Hasim Rahman Sr.? Rahman Jr.? Tommy Fury? Someone else? Stay tuned.

Tyron Woodley was in Ireland last week -- but he wasn't hanging out with Conor McGregor at the Guinness factory -- the future UFC Hall of Famer asked for his girlfriend's hand in marriage, and she said YES!!

Woodley shared footage from the magical moment on his social media page Tuesday ... showing the former welterweight champion, down on one knee, in front of his GF, Kia, with the Dublin Castle -- which opened over 800 years ago in 1204 -- in the background.

"Kia, I love you," Woodley said while holding a beautiful (and very large) diamond ring, continuing, "I want to spend forever with you."

Kia became very emotional, replying, "Oh my god. Yes! Hell yes! Oh my God!"

The 40-year-old star also penned a sweet love note to his wife-to-be.

"I've met my match! Found my person❤️. Snatched this Gem off the market," Woodley said in the video caption.

"And put the 'Fight of the Night' on her finger💍!!!"

"I'm Crazy over you Kia. Thankful for you. Grateful God brought you to me," Woodley said.

"You are my best friend. You are my everything. Let's show em how it's done! #ForeverKT #TheRealestLove"

WARNING -- if ya haven't finished your morning Cheerios yet, you might want to do so before clicking here!!!

MMA fighter Blake Perry horrifyingly broke his nose during a match on Sunday -- after taking a brutal knee to the face.

The gruesome injury happened in the first round of Perry's tilt with Marcel McCain at Urijah Faber's A1 Combat event in Stockton, Calif.

As the two were dukin' it out in the opening moments of their fight -- McCain grabbed the back of Perry's head with his arms ... and then drove his knee right into Perry's grill. Video of the strike shows McCain's knee landed flush, and caved in Perry's nose.

Somehow, though, Perry kept fighting despite his face's disfigurement.

But, during the break following the first round ... it became clear Perry shouldn't continue, and doctors ultimately stopped the contest.

No word yet on how Perry is doing today -- but something tells us breathing ain't exactly easy work.

Khamzat Chimaev vs. Nate Diaz is going down in September, and many fans and experts alike have said the UFC is serving up the MMA legend on a platter for an ass-whooping of epic proportions ... something Dana White says is nonsense.

White joined Babcock on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weeknights on FS1) where the UFC President was asked about those criticizing the fairness of the fight.

"Well, the people that are saying that obviously didn't read when Nate said, 'I asked for this fight'. It's true and he also asked for Francis Ngannou. So, if I was putting him out to get slaughtered, Francis Ngannou would probably be the fight to give him."

Fighters like Daniel Cormier and Josh Thomson have expressed concern over the fairness of the matchup. D.C. said he thinks the fighters are at different points in their career, making this a "mismatch."

JT went a little harder, saying on his podcast with Big John ... "The UFC knows what they're doing, this happens all the time. When you're on your way out, they give you the toughest, hardest fight they know stylistically it does not match with you. Chimaev is the worst matchup he could potentially get."

Here's how the men -- fighting at UFC 279 on September 10 -- stack up against each other.

37-year-old Diaz is arguably the most beloved fighter in the entire UFC. Throughout his legendary career, Nate has beaten fighters like Conor McGregor, Anthony Pettis, and Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone.

However, Nate lost his last two fights ... Jorge Masvidal (November 2019) and Leon Edwards (June 2021).

As for 28-year-old Khamzat, he's undefeated ... 11-0 professionally, and 5-0 in the UFC. Chimaev has risen to stardom arguably faster than anyone else in the history of the promotion.

The knock on Khamzat was the level of competition ... but that subsided when he beat Gilbert Burns by unanimous decision in April 2022. It was the first time Borz was tested.

In December, we asked Diaz about the prospects of fighting Chimaev (they've gone back and forth for months), and he wasn't feeling it at the time.

"Try to offer me a fight with a rookie? I'm cool. Got 4 fights in the UFC. Don't talk my name," Diaz told us.

Clearly, Nate had a change of heart.

The fight vs. Khamzat is reportedly the last on Nate's contract, so we asked Dana if he planned to resign the superstar from Stockton.

"I don't know. We'll see what happens. We'll see how this whole thing plays out. I told him, me and hi0m met here, you know Nate's been with us for a long time and I like Nate. I said, 'Nate, do whatever you wanna do kid. Go do whatever you wanna do.'"

The bottom line ... Nate Diaz and Khamzat Chimaev are fighting in less than 45 days, and fans are pumped!