UFC

UFC honcho Dana White tells TMZ Sports he's definitely interested in having a conversation with CM Punk about fighting in the octagon ... now that Punk's no longer with the WWE.

White was at an event in NYC to celebrate the new UFC-Reebok partnership when he told us he likes Punk and knows he's a fan of MMA -- and would be open to having a conversation with the 36-year-old about joining the organization.

"I don't know if he can fight or anything like that ," White said ... "but sure, I wouldn't mind talking to CM Punk."

As for rumors about Brock Lesnar wanting to get back into MMA at the end of his contract with the WWE -- White says, "If and when his deal if up with them and he wants to fight, I'm, sure he'll call me."

UFC champ Anthony Pettis is a 3rd degree black belt in taekwondo. Vladimir Putin is a 9th.

So, who would win in a street fight? Don't bet on red.

Pettis -- who's fighting Gilbert Melendez at UFC 181 this weekend -- was out in NYC this week when he told us the 6 degrees of martial arts separation wouldn't matter if push ever came to shove.

For the record, here's how the tale of the tape would read ...

Anthony Pettis:
UFC Lightweight Champion
27-years-old
3rd degree Taekwondo black belt
Height: 5'10"
Weight: 155

Vladimir Putin:
Russian President
62-years-old
9th degree Taekwondo black belt
Height: 5'7"
Weight: Classified

The clip is awesome -- Pettis also tells us he spends time training at the same center as NFL superstar J.J. Watt ... and raves about how the guy CRUSHES weights in the gym.

Anderson Silva knows his limits in the ring ... and those limits are about 6'5, 260 lbs ... telling TMZ Sports that Dwyane "The Rock" Johnson would beat the crap out of the UFC legend if they fought.

Silva was out in L.A. when we asked the man who Dana White called "the greatest mixed martial artist of all time" if his octagon expertise would be enough to take down the freak of nature that is The Rock.

Watch the video -- Anderson wants no part of Mr. Johnson, not hesitating in the least when we drop the question on him.

FYI -- Anderson also (kinda) picks a winner between Mayweather and Pacquiao (like it's ever gonna happen) and tells us who's hotter out of Beyonce and Rihanna.

Former UFC fighter Matthew Riddle -- who was fired for smoking weed last year -- is getting guidance on his new career path from a seasoned vet ... and we got the headlocked proof.

Riddle recently started training to become a pro wrestler at the Monster Factory in New Jersey ... where former WWE wrestler The Blue Meanie is keeping a close eye on his work.

Meanie tells us Riddle has been doing great in his first few days of training ... and Matthew is really enthusiastic about learning the craft.

We already came up with a nickname for him: The Riddler.

Sorry, it was too easy.

File Under: "You Know You're In Trouble When" ... you punch a guy in the face as hard as you can -- AND HE DOESN'T GO DOWN ... because the guy you punched is a UFC fighter.

That's exactly what happened in Vegas -- when 27-year-old UFC star Cody "The Renegade" Gibson (12-5) got into a standoff with some dude with a death wish at a bar in Downtown Las Vegas.

It all went down last week ... after Cody's last-second defeat at UFC 178 to Manny Gamburyan. Despite the loss, Cody still felt like going out ... and that's when he got into it with another bar patron.

Sources at the bar tell us ... the two guys got into an arguing match that escalated quickly -- but when it almost came time to fight ... Cody tried to WARN the guy he's a professional brawler.

In the video, you can actually hear Cody tell the other man "Google me, bitch!"

But the other guy didn't listen ... and instead of googling, he SOCKED CODY IN THE FACE.

Cody was stunned ... but didn't go down ... and responded by tackling the guy to the ground.

Security quickly rushed in ... but no one was arrested or seriously injured ... which is good for the dude in the blue shirt, considering Cody is constantly training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, boxing and Muay Thai fighting.

Bottom line -- props to Cody for not killing the guy.

It wasn't just the men of the UFC who went toe-to-toe in Vegas this weekend ... the women were also squaring off ... in the Vegas nightclubs.

UFC fighter Joe Riggs might be part mutant -- 'cause check out how well his gunshot wounds healed up in just THREE SHORT MONTHS!!

As we previously reported, Riggs was cleaning his pistol back in July when it accidentally fired -- sending a bullet ripping through his hand and thigh. It was bloody ... and could've been career-ending.

But as you can see in the pics, everything seemed to heal nicely -- and Joe just announced that he's booked his very first UFC fight since the incident.

The fight is set for Dec. 13th -- and Riggs is all set to take on Ben Saunders ... who, to our knowledge, has zero gunshot wounds.

We included the original bloody gunshot pictures below ... but be warned, they're pretty gnarly.

The UFC has fired Thiago Silva ... again ... after footage of the fighter holding a GUN and accusing his wife of hiding a man in the house surfaced online.

The footage was shot by Silva's estranged wife Thaysa in early 2014 ... when Thiago pulled out a pistol and began threatening her because he believed she had another man in their home.

At one point in the video, Thaysa says she's recording so officials would have proof in case he killed her that day.

Of course, Silva was recently let off the hook in Florida -- where he was accused of pulling a gun on Thaysa at a martial arts studio and threatening to kill her in February -- because prosecutors said they didn't have enough evidence to get a conviction.

UFC honcho Dana White had initially banned Silva from fighting in the octogon ever again ... but reinstated him when charges were dropped.

Now, with this new footage coming to light ... White has fired Silva again. We're guessing Thiago has finally run out of of second chances.

Thaysa told a Brazilian media outlet that she has moved on from Thiago -- and is now living in Abu Dhabi with "a real man by my side."

Transgender MMA fighter Fallon Fox is firing back at UFC champ Ronda Rousey -- telling her to cut out the excuses about "bone structure" ... and FIGHT HER ALREADY!!!

Fox -- who was born a man -- is clearly upset with Rousey for saying it's "unfair" for Fallon to fight against naturally born women because she has a biological advantage.

FYI -- Fox beat her last female opponent so badly, the challenger suffered a broken orbital bone, needed 7 staples in her head and may have had a concussion.

But Fox says Rousey's argument is BS ... saying, "I really wish Ronda would stop with the ridiculous bone structure arguments. That was so last year."

She added, "[Rousey] should tell her boss to put me in that octagon over there at UFC."

In her statement, which she posted on Facebook, Fox continues ... "I'm quite sure that there are quite a few female MMA fighters who have guts to fight another skilled woman without peeing their panties and saying 'No, I wouldn't fight her!'"

"I think they may be a little more mentally tough and say, 'I'll fight a trans woman, just like I'll fight a lesbian woman or a black woman Etc.'"

Fox says certain fighters use the "bone density" argument to "possibly save face" if they lose to her in the ring.

Ronda Rousey tells TMZ Sports ... she believes transgender MMA fighter Fallon Fox has an "unfair advantage" over naturally born women -- but she'd still kick her ass anyway.

Rousey was at LAX when we asked about Fallon -- a post-op transgender who was born a man and now fights with the women.

FYI -- Fox has won her last two fights ... and beat her last opponent so badly, she reportedly suffered a concussion, a broken orbital bone and required 7 staples in her head (video below).

Rousey -- the reigning female UFC champ -- says she's done a lot of research on the situation ... and ultimately feels Fox needs to be fighting with the men -- especially with the damage she's inflicting.

UFC badass Lyoto Machida is about to get to the bottom of a mystery -- a bottom mystery -- 'cause the pro face breaker just told TMZ Sports why women in his native Brazil have such nice ... assets.

Machida was out in Beverly Hills with his smokin' hot wife when our camera guy asked the question that women all over the world want to know -- how do Brazilian chicks get their mystical booty powers???

Check the video -- Machida gives our camera guy two reasons Brazilian chicks are so bootylicious.

UFC superstar Nick Diaz was arrested for DUI in California last week -- and cops say to make matters worse, he attempted to "destroy evidence" by trying to make himself puke.

We've learned ... Diaz was pulled over around 2AM on Sept. 6th in Lodi, CA for a routine traffic violation -- and during the stop, cops say they noticed Diaz appeared to be wasted.

Diaz was taken to a nearby jail -- where cops say he went to the bathroom and attempted to make himself vomit in what seems like an effort to get the booze out of his system.

For the record, cops say Diaz was unable to pull his own trigger -- and never actually barfed.

He was eventually hit with 4 charges -- misdemeanor DUI, driving on a suspended license, obstructing a police investigation and destroying evidence.

Diaz -- who's supposed to fight Anderson Silva in January -- was eventually released on his own recognizance.

The UFC issued a statement saying they are aware of the situation and are gathering the facts.

Thiago Silva just scored the biggest victory of his life -- prosecutors DROPPED all of the charges against the ex-UFC star stemming from an alleged domestic violence incident earlier this year that ended with a S.W.A.T. team standoff.

As we previously reported, Silva was arrested in South Florida February 6th after rolling up to an MMA studio and allegedly pointing a gun at his wife.

He was initially charged with attempted murder -- but that charge was quickly thrown out. Instead, Silva was hit with two counts of aggravated assault with a firearm.

But TMZ Sports has learned ... prosecutors decided to nuke those charges as well -- which means Silva is essentially off the hook.

The Broward County Attorney's Office tells us ..."All charges against Thiago Silva were dropped. The victim was uncooperative, and investigators determined that she has likely moved out of the country."

Silva's attorney, Scott Saul, says the fighter has always proclaimed his innocence and is looking forward to moving on with his life.

"Thiago was described as some sort of rabid bird, [the allegations] made him look like a crazy person. But he was not," Saul says.

After Thiago's arrest, UFC honcho Dana White swore he would NEVER allow Silva to fight in the UFC again. It's unclear if he'll change his position now that Thiago is in the clear.

If you can't execute a rear naked chokehold, you're looking at a group of chicks you have no chance of scoring with ... ever.

TMZ Sports spoke with the cast of UFC's "The Ultimate Fighter 20" (which starts next week on Fox Sports 1) ... bona fide bad ass chicks ... who tell us they only date dudes who are as deadly as they are.

The lovely (and lethal) ladies were out in NY when we asked them if guys are (rightfully) intimidated by them ... being they could prolly beat up most of the Earth's human population.

Peep the clip -- the ladies make it clear the type of men they date would never be intimidated by ANYONE.

UFC fighter Luke Rockhold worked on his grip Tuesday in Thailand ... and by that, we mean he grabbed a tiger by the balls -- and now the UFC fighter is apologizing.

The 29-year old middleweight posted a pic of the impromptu animal physical online ... only to issue an apology a short time later.

Rockhold tweeted, "For those of u who think it was disrespectful I'm sorry. Was so minor just joking around. I was way too scared and would never do anything harmful to any animal."

Believe it or not ... there are several tiger parks all over Thailand ... and taking pics with the giant cats is a super popular thing to do.

Ex-MMA star War Machine took a stab at a porn career after he was kicked out of the UFC -- but was quickly blacklisted after beating up several porn people ... so says XXX star Brooke Haven.

Haven tells TMZ Sports ... she invited Mr. Machine to her birthday party back in 2009 after they performed a sex scene together.

But when he got to the party, Haven says someone hit on the fighter's date -- and things got violent ... quick.

According to Haven, Machine didn't just ruin the party -- he ruined his shot at a porn career ... because after the "massacre," no one wanted to work with the guy again.