UFC

It's the matchup we've all been waiting for ... Conor McGregor and Dana White face-to-face for the first time since CM was yanked off the UFC 200 card -- and TMZ Sports has the footage.

It all went down at the ultra-swanky Montage hotel in Bev Hills -- where Conor rolled up in a $500k Rolls-Royce Phantom drophead coupe and was personally greeted by White, who arrived first.

Our sources tell us the two men hugged when they first met -- but we're told it was a very aggressive embrace ... the kind you could hear from down the hall.

White and McGregor were all smiles as they headed up the stairs to a private dinner flanked by 3 very large gentlemen. The meeting took roughly two hours.

We're guessing they weren't just there to eat ... with McGregor training for a Floyd Mayweather super bout that could be worth hundreds of millions of dollars, business was certainly on the table.

So, how'd it go??

McGregor was all smiles on the way out -- waving cheerfully to TMZ cameras as he left the building.

Another huge star is calling for Ronda Rousey to fight 'Cyborg' Justino -- this time, it's UFC superstar Paige VanZant who says it's a fight she would LOVE to see.

Cyborg has been calling out Ronda for months -- and even came on the "TMZ Sports" TV show this week and challenged Rousey to "stop hiding behind your pillow" and fight!

VanZant was careful not to take sides -- especially after Ronda confronted her over "crossing her" -- but made it clear the two need to throw down already.

Here's UFC heavyweight champ Stipe Miocic belting a home run out of Progressive Field in Cleveland earlier today ... well, because he's a freak athlete.

Miocic was taking batting practice with the Cleveland Indians when he connected -- and blast the ball over the left field wall.

FYI, Miocic played college baseball at Cleveland State University ... but that was like 10 years ago.

#StillGotIt

The Cleveland Cavs just extended a VIP invitation to the new UFC heavyweight champ Stipe Miocic -- an Ohio native who shouted out the NBA team after winning the belt at UFC 198 this past weekend.

TMZ Sports spoke with the Cavs who told us ... they saw the video of Stipe encouraging the Cavs to follow his lead and win the championship -- and they LOVED IT!

In fact, we're told the team reached out and invited him as their guest for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals Tuesday night at the Quicken Loans Arena.

Miocic accepted -- obviously -- and we're told the team plans to honor him tonight for making Cleveland proud.

Congrats, champ!

Cris "Cyborg" Justino has a message for Ronda Rousey -- STOP HIDING BEHIND YOUR PILLOW AND FIGHT ME!

Fresh off her dominating performance at UFC 198, Cyborg joined the guys on the "TMZ Sports" TV show and called out the UFC legend ... even using a prop to make her point!

You gotta watch the entire interview tonight on FS1 (9 PM PT, 12 AM ET) -- we also asked Cyborg if she thinks she could take Conor McGregor in the octagon ... wait'll you hear what she says!

There's one person who thinks Ronda Rousey won't hate Paige VanZant's guts forever ... Paige VanZant ... who says she's more than confident she and Rousey will be gal pals again.

You know the story ... Ronda went nuclear on Paige at a VIP event earlier this year -- cussing her out in public ... all because PVZ congratulated Holly Holm after she punched Ronda's face in.

You'd think Paige would still be pissed, right??

Wrong.

Check out the clip -- Paige thinks they'll be all Thelma & Louise again before you know it (they were friendly before the incident).

Cris "Cyborg" Justino says it's destiny for her to fight Ronda Rousey -- and says when the two finally meet, she's gonna knock Ronda the hell out.

Ex-UFC fighter Diego Brandao has admitted to pulling a gun during an altercation with bouncers at an Albuquerque strip club ... but the former "Ultimate Fighter" champ insists it was only in self-defense.

TMZ Sports obtained video of Brandao being grilled by cops following his arrest on April 15th -- during an incident in which cops say the fighter pistol-whipped a bouncer at Knockouts bar after he was denied entry. The bouncers told cops Brandao was too drunk to get in.

During the interrogation, the 28-year-old Brazilian fighter begins by adamantly denying he ever had a weapon -- but the cops pressed him hard and warned there would be consequences if he was lying.

"Listen, you just said you don't wanna f*** your life," one of the cops told Brandao ... "If anybody comes up with video showing that you had a gun, you're life is gonna be f***ed."

Brandao immediately changed his story and admitted to having the gun -- but says he only pulled it out because one the bouncers had a gun. Plus, Brandao says he was being choked out and wanted to put a stop to it.

When cops asked Brandao what happened to his gun, the UFC fighter said he broke it into several pieces and scattered them away from the bar.

During the interrogation, cops suggest there may be video of the entire incident -- and it could hold the key to Brandao's case.

Gabriel Iglesias says he predicted Nate Diaz's upset over Conor McGregor -- saying he's got the one quality Conor just couldn't prepare for ... SUPER HOODNESS!

We're about to reach a whole new level of Steve-O craziness ... 'cause he's freakin' calling out ISIS ... and he's doing it in the name of UFC fighter Tim Kennedy.

Kennedy's situation is no laughing matter ... the FBI was investigating "credible threats" against the fighter -- an uber Patriot -- earlier this year ... believing those threats were possibly coming from ISIS operatives.

Steve-O and Kennedy are buds ... so much so that Steve-O let Tim CHOKE HIM OUT at a recent comedy show ... and when we ran into the "Jackass" star at LAX he let it be known ... he's got Tim's back.

For the record ... Tim Kennedy is an ex-Green Beret ... Steve-O is not.

Check out the clip.

Conor McGregor just hit the red carpet at the VIP Style Awards in Ireland -- the first event he's been at since Dana White yanked him out of UFC 200.

But Conor and his girlfriend, Dee Devlin, didn't look angry or upset -- it was the exact opposite ... smiling, happy and taking selfies and signing autographs for anyone lucky enough to get close.

Paige VanZant has confirmed Miesha Tate's story -- that she WAS cussed out by Ronda Rousey last month ... and says the whole thing was "shocking and totally unnecessary."

In a statement to TMZ Sports, VanZant says, "It appears that I offended Ronda by congratulating Holly after her victory. The incident was very shocking and totally unnecessary."

Tate described the incident in great detail on Joe Rogan's podcast ... saying Rousey tracked Paige down and unleashed the fury all over her during the April 27 incident ... claiming Paige has "crossed her" by giving props to Holm.

Ronda Rousey went ballistic on fellow UFC superstar Paige VanZant at a VIP party -- dropping all sorts of F-bombs -- all because Paige congratulated Holly Holm ... this according to Miesha Tate.

When it comes to policy, Miesha Tate says Donald Trump has one thing 100% right ... his blinding hatred for Ronda Rousey!

UFC star Nick Diaz says training with Jean-Claude Van Damme this weekend was a dream come true -- especially since JCVD helped grow his love for fighting back when he was a kid.

Both Nick and his bro Nate Diaz hooked up with the action legend for a clinic in leg strikes -- so, we hit up Nick to find out what exactly went down when the 3 got into the gym.

Check out the clip ... Nick was clearly stoked to train with the guy and says things went so well, he plans to do it again soon.

But the funniest part ... watch how quickly Nick shut down the question when we tried to ask about his brother and Conor McGregor. Dude wasn't havin' it.

There's nothing fake about the hostility between Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier -- so says UFC honcho Dana White ... who says the hatred these guys have for each other was definitely NOT concocted for publicity.

Dana -- skyping in from his PRIVATE JET -- joined the guys on the "TMZ Sports" TV show on FS1 ... and was asked straight up if the feud between the fighters was cooked up by the UFC to help sell tickets.

But Dana shut that down fast -- explaining, "They obviously respect each other as fighters but as human beings they completely dislike each other."

You gotta watch the entire interview Wednesday on FS1 -- we also asked if he felt Cormier crossed the line when he called Jones a "drug addict."

Oh, and he also told us about the sick in-flight meal on his private jet.

#ItsGoodToBeTheBoss