UFC

Daniel Cormier says he's excited to get a crack at Stipe Miocic -- "the greatest heavyweight champion of all time" -- and says the huge payday ain't bad either!

D.C. joined the guys on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs tonight on FS1) and explained why the fight against Stipe at UFC 226 in July is an opportunity he just couldn't pass up.

Cormier says Dana White first approached him as he was leaving the octagon after beating Volkan Oezdemir at UFC 220 this past weekend ... and used his powers of persuasion (aka his checkbook) to get the deal done!

D.C. -- the reigning light heavyweight champ -- says he conferred with his good friend, Cain Velasquez, before accepting the fight because he didn't want Cain to feel like he was cutting him in line for a shot at the heavyweight belt.

And if Cormier beats Stipe ... D.C. says it would put him in the conversation about the best fighters of all time.

Mark Wahlberg might not be on 'roids, but there are a TON of Hollywood movie stars who are ... some of the biggest names in town, this according to Tyron Woodley.

The UFC champ -- who's also appeared in a bunch of big movies -- opened up about Hollywood's steroid habit on "The Hollywood Beatdown" after Wahlberg was called out by a PED kingpin ... revealing that he's met "lots of big-name, A-list actors that are openly on steroids."

But Tyron says he does NOT think Marky Mark is one of Tinseltown's PED pumpers ... and even if he is, explains why he shouldn't be shamed like all the juiceheads in pro sports.

Woodley also slams UFC star Nate Diaz, "nasty ass" Larry Nassar and the MULTIPLE Eagles fans who thought it was cool to punch a horse (it's not).

It's pretty obvious Dana White is "working on" Stipe Miocic vs. Daniel Cormier ... even though he won't come out and say it.

The UFC honcho did everything short of confirm negotiations on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weeknights on FS1) ... telling the guys he LOVES the idea of a champ vs. champ superfight for the heavyweight title.

"We’re working on something fun right now ... could be Cormier," Dana said with a smile when we asked him about Stipe's future.

Of course, Brock Lesnar and Jon Jones are potential wild cards ... but both are still suspended for doping.

So, with no other crazy options on the table ... all signs point to Cormier (the light heavyweight champ) being offered the next shot.

Greg Hardy will take a pro MMA fight in February and take the field for Jim Jones' arena league football team in March.

And that's why Jim says Greg could be the modern-day Bo Jackson -- a "beast" in TWO pro sports.

As we previously reported, Greg is pursuing a career as a pro MMA fighter -- he beat the hell out of his first 2 opponents.

But he also wants to play pro football again -- and with Jim owning the Richmond Roughriders in the American Arena League, the rap star saw a great opportunity to get the ex-NFL star back in the field.

"That man is a BEAST," Jones said on the "TMZ Sports" TV show ... "He's not one of the regular players. He's one of the best in his craft."

Dana White isn't wasting time ... telling TMZ Sports he's calling up Nate Diaz TONIGHT to make him an offer to return to the octagon.

White joined the guys on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs tonight on FS1) -- and we asked about Nate's Instagram post where he called himself "The Real Champ" and vowed to return to fighting in "May or June."

"I'll tell ya what," White said ... "I’ll call him today and make him an offer."

"I will make Nate Diaz an offer to fight today."

White says he's not sure who he'd match Diaz up against -- "I gotta look at the rankings and see where everybody is."

What about a 3rd fight with Conor McGregor? Dana isn't ruling it out ... but says that fight ain't the priority for Conor.

"I think people would rather see Conor come back and either fight Tony [Ferguson] or Khabib [Nurmagomedov] -- whoever wins -- and the Nate Diaz fight isn’t going anywhere. We can do that thing any time."

What about Nate vs. Tyron Woodley? Dana says he has other plans for the welterweight champ.

Tyron Woodley says Nate Diaz calling himself "The Real Champ" is an absolute joke ... and if he's really serious about coming back, they can throw hands RIGHT NOW.

Tyron just had shoulder surgery 5 weeks ago, but he ain't kidding ... explaining why he can whoop Nate's ass at way less than 100% on "The Hollywood Beatdown" (full episode drops this Friday).

FYI, Diaz claimed he's making a return to the UFC in a social media post, saying -- "I'll see you around May, June. Sincerely, The Real Champ."

Tyron says he truly believes Nate's gonna come back ... but does he think Diaz will accept a fight with him after ducking out back in November?

He answers that question on the Beatdown, too.

File this under: we weren't sure either.

Floyd Mayweather keeps racking up the accolades, this time getting his very own day in a major American city ... that doesn't seem to have anything to do with Floyd.

It went down back on January 17 when Floyd was honored in Oklahoma City, where the brass in town officially declared the date Floyd Mayweather Day.

There were festivities aplenty ... including a dinner, followed by a meet-and-greet hosted by industry mover and shaker Karen Civil.

This was no joke people, Floyd received official documents from the state -- making the whole thing as official as a referee with a whistle.

All of this is great, but what we can't figure out is WHY OKLAHOMA CITY!!??? We couldn't find any connection between Money and OKC ... and it's got us pretty bewildered.

This has gotta hurt Kevin Durant a little ... just a little.

UFC heavyweight champ Stipe Miocic SMASHED Francis Ngannou at UFC 220 -- but you wouldn't know it by looking at his mug the day after the fight.

Stipe posted a thank-you video to his fans ... and the shiner he was rockin' after the scrap had grown into the size of a damn golf ball. His left ear looks like it got mangled, too.

Francis, meanwhile, barely had a scratch on him ... even though he got worked from bell to bell.

Doubt Stipe cares, though -- dude's the UFC heavyweight G.O.A.T. now.

Roy Jones Jr. says a super-fight between him and Anderson Silva is ON ... as soon as they get Dana White's blessing.

RJJ tells TMZ Sports he's already met with Anderson, and has a group of investors prepared to hammer out the details ... and the only thing holding up the scrap is Dana giving Silva the green light to fight outside the UFC.

"Anderson wants it, I want it, so the only obstacle is Dana giving him the OK," Roy said.

Roy says that since Conor McGregor was allowed to have a one-off boxing match with Floyd Mayweather, Silva -- one of the sport's all-time greats -- should get to also.

FYI, we asked Silva if he'd take a non-UFC fight earlier this week ... and he didn't say no.

Anderson Silva says he is absolutely NOT a drug cheat -- and is confident his name will be cleared by USADA (the UFC's drug-testing agency) ... possibly as soon as next month!

"No, nothing, never in my life ... I never used steroids in my life," Anderson told TMZ Sports out in Bev Hills earlier this week.

The MMA legend failed the 2nd drug test of his career back in November ... but Silva says his lawyers and doctors are working OT to prove he didn't knowingly juice.

Anderson told us they're taking a different approach with his appeal than back in 2015, when he got slapped with a 1-year suspension -- and he's pumped to step back inside the Octagon ASAP!

Fingers crossed ...

Chael Sonnen strolled in to the TMZ newsroom ...

With a poem to make everyone look like buffoons.

No, not us, his Bellator competition ...

Who he says he'll knock out, what a shocking admission!

That's right, Chael says he'll put Rampage to sleep ...

Putting Jackson's lights out, leaving him in a heap.

Sonnen's not scared of the others either, you see ...

The heavyweights in his tourney are kinda crappy, says he.

Russia's Fedor couldn't win if Putin came through with a tank ...

And Roy Nelson's too fat, you can take that to the bank.

So when Chael sweeps the field and out-fights 'em all ...

Tyron Woodley says things got thiiiis close to REAL violence with Conor McGregor when the Irish superstar called him a "bitch" behind the scenes ... but Tyron set him straight real quick.

The UFC welterweight champ told the whole story on "The Hollywood Beatdown" -- explaining how things went from 0 to 100 real quick at UFC 205 in Nov. 2016 ... with Conor ultimately backing down.

There's a lot more ... Tyron calls B.S. on President Trump's physical exam numbers -- saying there's no way in hell POTUS is really 6'4", 239 lbs ... but he's got a plan to help him cut the fat.

Tyron's also weighing in on Logan Paul ... telling us if the YouTube star really deserves a 2nd chance after his suicide forest videos stunt.

UFC interim lightweight champ Tony Ferguson says he's not worried about Conor McGregor's championship status ... promising he'll destroy "McNuggets" after beating Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Tony and Khabib faced off at the UFC 222 & 223 news conference in Boston -- where Khabib promised to break Tony's arm when they face off in the Octagon on April 7.

Dana White was asked several times if he will be stripping Conor of the lightweight title he won by defeating Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205 ... but White isn't saying.

Great news for rich UFC fans -- the iconic "superfight" belt from UFC 5 is about to hit the auction block ... and you can add it to your mantel if you're willing to drop a small fortune!

Backstory -- UFC legends Royce Gracie and Ken Shamrock threw down to crown the company's first ever superfight champ back in '95 ... but their 36-MINUTE bout was declared a draw, so neither of 'em took home the gold.

Now, Goldin Auctions -- consigning the strap for a collector who got it from UFC co-founder Art Davie -- is bringing it to a bid ... and expects it to go for $25k-$100k (if not more).

G.A.'s founder Ken Goldin tells TMZ Sports -- "It's the most significant UFC item ever to be auctioned" ... so expect a lot of action before bidding ends on Feb. 17.

WWE Raw women's champ Alexa Bliss ain't sweatin' Ronda Rousey -- in fact, she's got a message for the UFC legend ... "I'm not worried."

TMZ Sports broke the story ... Ronda recently had dinner with Triple H and it seems like a deal to bring her to the WWE is imminent.

So, when we saw Bliss at LAX, we had to ask if she was scared Ronda would be coming for her belt.

"Please, I'm a fighting champion," Bliss said ... "I'm not worried about anybody taking my belt."

As for the rumors Rousey could make her debut in the first ever women's Royal Rumble match -- Alexa addresses those, too.

UFC star Cody Garbrandt says him and Jean-Claude Van Damme are totally cool ... but if they ever fought for real, he would straight-up DECAPITATE the Muscles from Brussels.

"I'd rip his f**king head off ... is that really a question??" Cody told TMZ Sports at the premiere of JCVD's "Kickboxer: Retaliation" event at TAO in Hollywood.

You might remember ... a few months back, JCVD accidentally kicked Cody in the mouth during a light sparring sesh -- a move that had Garbrandt seeing red.

But Garbrandt says Jean-Claude felt so bad he actually started crying ... and now they're bros again.

For Van Damme's sake -- we're glad.