UFC

10:46 AM PT -- Turns out Aaron didn't shade Donald Trump at UFC 302 Saturday night. Instead, it seems he got a little face time with the former prez -- posting a pic to IG where he's shaking his hand. So, seemingly no beef between them.

Aaron Rodgers seemed to diss Donald Trump in a very public way.

Aaron and Trump were both front and center Saturday night at UFC 302 in Newark, New Jersey.

At one point Trump, who got a thunderous ovation, walked right past Aaron, who never got out of his seat and never acknowledged the ex-Prez.

Donald Trump was in the building at UFC 302 Saturday night -- just 2 days later and 10 miles away from the NYC courtroom where he was convicted this week -- and the former president received a rousing standing ovation from the packed crowd!

Trump walked into the Prudential Center shortly after the main card kicked off, flanked by UFC honcho and close friend, Dana White, and a gang of Secret Service agents.

45 was shown on the big screen inside the Newark, NJ arena, and many of the near-17k MMA fans lost it!

Khabib Nurmagomedov wasn't in Islam Makhachev's corner for his last fight, but he will be Octagonside for Saturday's title scrap vs. Dustin Poirier ... and he's doing it for free!

TMZ Sports talked to Khabib and Islam's longtime manager, Ali Abdelaziz, this week ... and while all MMA fans are well aware of Nurmagomedov's exploits inside the cage, we asked about his talents as a coach -- and how it's impacted Makhachev's preparation heading into UFC 302.

"[Islam] had one of the greatest coaches you can ever have in your corner, Khabib. He's been coaching in the whole camp," Ali said, adding, "He had some of the best training partners you can ask for mimicking Dustin. We're fighting a dangerous opponent. You know, Dustin Poirier is a dangerous opponent, but I feel right now Islam is a hard guy to beat, you know?"

"And, he's going there for the kill. Everybody talks about Dustin Poirier, he's killed or to be killed. Tomorrow, Islam is going to be turned into a killing machine."

Typically, coaches receive a percentage of a fighter's pay ... but not Khabib, not this time.

"Khabib came to camp. He's not making money. He's not getting a percentage. He's spending his own money for his own flight just to help his brother."

Of course, Khabib, 29-0 (BTW, one of those wins came against Poirier), retired after beating Justin Gaethje in 2020 ... shortly after the tragic death of his father, Abdulmanap.

Since, Nurmagomedov has dedicated himself to coaching ... although he has stepped aside at times (he wasn't in Islam's corner for the Volkanovski fight at UFC 294).

Check out the clip. There's much more with Ali on Islam, Khabib, and some of his other star fighters.

Donald Trump's still got fans in the fighting community after he was found guilty in his hush money case ... with star athletes like Ryan Garcia, Michael Chandler and Tito Ortiz making it clear they got their guy's back.

The 25-1 boxer wrote a message on his Instagram and X account shortly after the jury found Trump guilty of all 34 counts in a NYC courtroom on Thursday ... saying, "You are about to witness the next president being elected while in jail."

"Trump will still win. He’s the only president I heard mention Jesus."

UFC star Sean Strickland just went off on Tom Brady ... calling the NFL legend a "p***y" in a crass rant filled with all kinds of homophobic and misogynistic language.

The former middleweight champion didn't hold back when he was asked for his thoughts on Brady's "The Greatest Roast of All Time: Tom Brady" at UFC 302 media day earlier Wednesday ... ripping the ex-Patriots quarterback for nearly a minute.

The fighter's beef with TB12 appeared to be over the way the former signal-caller expressed regret over some of the jokes about Gisele Bündchen and their family.

Terry Crews plans to pull up to Anderson Silva's boxing match in June ... but, he's not going to fight the MMA legend as he recently implied on social media -- he's simply going to support his buddy!

In case you missed it, the shirtless actor went on Instagram last week and delivered a message for the UFC legend, saying he's been training and is ready to see him June 15.

Fans figured Crews was throwing out a potential fight, but the 55-year-old told TMZ Sports that's simply not the case.

Dustin Poirier has accomplished just about everything during his legendary career as an MMA fighter. Just about. But, there's one thing left to do -- win the UFC championship!

35-year-old Poirier joined Babcock on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weekdays on FS1) -- about a week before his UFC 302 main event title fight against champion and current pound-for-pound king, Islam Makhachev. We asked Dustin how important it was for him to be crowned champ.

"It's greatly important," Dustin said.

If you can't spot The Rock in the first image from his latest movie set ... you ain't alone -- 'cause Dwayne Johnson looks unrecognizable in his new role as ex-UFC fighter Mark Kerr!

The WWE superstar transformed into the MMA legend for A24's upcoming project, "The Smashing Machine," and check out the first look from the film he posted ... the Brahma Bull's no longer distinguishable.

Dwayne covered up his signature tats ... added a wig -- and even appeared to put on some heavy face makeup to really look the part.

Former UFC fighter Geane Herrera -- who also competed in Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) -- tragically passed away following a fatal motorcycle crash in Florida on Saturday.

He was only 33 and a few days shy of his 34th birthday.

The Florida Dept. of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles told us the incident happened around 10:45 PM at Gandy Bridge in Tampa, FL ... when Herrera crashed into the back of another vehicle at a "very high rate of speed."

Ramiz Brahimaj has never lost by knockout or submission in his UFC career ... but Themba Gorimbo tells TMZ Sports that's all about to change when they face each other at UFC Vegas 92 on Saturday!!

"If you look at his records, he has not been finished yet, whether it's by submission or knockout," the welterweight said ahead of his big fight.

"The key word is 'yet' ... and I need to remove that and make it a reality and go out there and do what I do best."

12:00 PM PT -- Tony is providing some more information on his health scare ... saying he suffered a heart attack.

McGregor added he had a stent put in this afternoon ... and is already back to feeling well enough to enjoy some sweet and sour chicken.

"See ya later suckers," Tony said on Instagram.

Elwood Dalton is back -- Jake Gyllenhaal is slated to star in a sequel to the super-successful "Road House" reboot ... with Prime Video announcing the project on Tuesday.

The confirmation comes less than two months after the reimagining of the 1989 cult classic hit the streaming service ... but really, it should come as no surprise.

As we previously reported, the movie did NUMBERS when it came out in March ... becoming the most-watched debut in the platform's history.

The FedEx driver who carelessly tossed over a dozen packages into his truck has been fired by the delivery giant ... after Dana White captured the incident on camera before posting it on social media, where it went viral!

In case you missed it, White was being chauffeured in the Big Apple on Tuesday when he saw the delivery man throwing box after box ... as if he was Steph Curry shooting jump shots.

"FedEx. We'll get your shit there, but we'll f*** it up," White said. "My boy don't give a f***." While Dana and many others online found the video comical, FedEx didn't.

Combat sports great Art "One Glove" Jimmerson -- who competed on the very first UFC card as a boxer -- has died, his family announced. He was 60 years old.

Jimmerson -- who famously wore just one boxing mitt in the UFC 1 match in 1993 -- came into the contest against Royce Gracie on a 15-fight win streak ... and fell to the MMA legend after tapping out in two minutes.

It's reported he wore one glove so he could punch with one hand and have the other free to grapple ... but was unable to land a strike on Gracie before being taken to the canvas.

It's starting to heat up as we hurtle toward summer, and we've got more hot takes to boot. Check out the best from the Wednesday that was!!!

On "TMZ Live," Charles and Courtney talk about Kim Kardashian controversially saying "Free Everybody" in response to pro-Palestine protesters.

Our "TMZ on TV" crew reveals Tom Selleck's not actually in danger of losing his ranch despite his claim to the contrary.

And, "TMZ Sports" shakes their heads along with Dana White who caught a FedEx employee carelessly chucking packages into his truck.

Check your local listings for when TMZ is on in your area or catch up on past episodes!

If MMA promotions didn't exist, and A.J. McKee could choose any fighter in the world to scrap with, who would it be?! TMZ Sports asked the former Bellator world champion.

"My dream in mixed martial arts has always been [Max] Halloway. He's just such a technician and a stud. That's the best of the best," 29-year-old McKee told Babcock during a sitdown interview at the TMZ office this week.

Of course, barring a big shakeup, it's unlikely it'll happen. Max -- who just beat Justin Gaethje -- is signed to the UFC, while A.J.'s under contract with PFL/Bellator.