TMZ Sports - Page 50

Is Shaquille O'Neal video chat buddies with Jeff Lowe from 'Tiger King?'

That's what Lowe wants us to believe ... and now PETA is calling on the NBA legend to cut ties with the Oklahoma zoo owner ASAP claiming he's just as bad as Joe Exotic.

If you recall from the Netflix doc, Lowe owns the Greater Wynnewood Animal Park in Oklahoma ... and just a few weeks ago, the zoo posted a screengrab which appears to show a FaceTime call between Shaq and Lowe.

"One of the nicest guys in the World," the G.W. Animal Park posted on Facebook on March 21 ... "Shaq facetime’d a few minutes ago to see how we were doing and if we need anything. We love you too buddy."

Shocking, considering Shaq just went on his podcast a few days ago and tried to distance himself from the park and former owner, Joe Exotic.

In fact, Shaq said he "stopped going" to the zoo when he found out what was really happening behind the scenes.

Now, PETA is begging the NBA legend to disavow Jeff Lowe the same way he disavowed Joe Exotic ... firing off a letter to Shaq explaining their position.

"It appears that the equally problematic wild animal exhibitor Jeff Lowe is now claiming to have your support, PETA said to Shaq.

"Lowe is no different from Joe Exotic when it comes to harming animals."

PETA points out Lowe "has a long history of violations of the federal Animal Welfare Act" -- and there's still an active warrant for Lowe in Nevada stemming from Lowe's failed tiger-petting business (which was also mentioned in the Netflix doc).

"It's clear that you love tigers, and we hope you will dissociate yourself from people who profit from abusing, breeding, and exploiting them," PETA said to Shaq in the letter, obtained by TMZ Sports.

"Will you please make it clear right away that you don't desire to have an ongoing relationship with Lowe? As long as he continues to use your name to support his abusive business, you will be tied to animal suffering."

"Instead, please help these tigers. Help us shut down these hellholes, move the animals to reputable sanctuaries, and keep them out of the hands of abusers."

We've reached out to Shaq for comment. So far, no word back.

Skateboarding legend Jeff Grosso -- one of the biggest skate stars of the '80s -- has died. He was only 51.

Thrasher Magazine's Michael Burnett confirmed the news ... saying on Tuesday, "Today we have the terrible task of saying a heartbreaking goodbye to beloved verticalist, commentator and friend of the mag, Jeff Grosso."

The details surrounding Grosso's death are unclear. We're working on it. He is survived by his 8-year-old son Oliver, who Burnett mentions in his tribute to Jeff.

"Jeff went from number-one amateur to '80s superstar to cautionary tale and back again. His latest role as lovable curmudgeon, host of his own history-packed web series and keeper of skateboarding’s righteousness, unafraid to offend or annoy in his quest to educate, was by far his greatest – second only to being Oliver’s dad."

The "cautionary tale" is a reference to Jeff's struggles with substance abuse. He talked openly about issues with pain pills and heroin. In fact, Jeff OD'd 3 times before 2017.

"He will be sorely, sorely missed. Our hearts go out to his family and many friends. RIP," Burnett said.

Jeff shot to skate stardom in the '80s and went on to host "Vans' Love Letters to Skateboarding."

Jeff was also BELOVED by skate legends like Tony Hawk -- who paid tribute to Grosso.

"Jeff was a true skateboarder at his core, and a great wealth of entertainment, insight and valuable philosophy to a younger generation. I was lucky enough to skate with him over the last four decades and occasionally featured on his Vans’ Love Letters series.”

Hawk continued ... "One of the last times we spoke, we talked about how ridiculous it is that we still get to do this for a living and that anyone even cares what we do or think in terms of skateboarding at our age."

"I believe Jeff is a big reason that anyone truly cares, and skateboarding was lucky to have him as an ambassador and gatekeeper to its history. He was also a great father, which is obvious in his last social media post. Thank you Jeff, words cannot describe how much we will miss you."

George Foreman counseled Deontay Wilder after his crushing loss to Tyson Fury ... telling TMZ Sports he's the only man who understands what the Bronze Bomber's feeling -- 'cause Muhammad Ali humbled him the same way during "The Rumble in the Jungle."

We were talking to the 71-year-old boxing legend when he revealed he recently talked to Wilder following his devastating February 22 TKO loss at the hands of the Gypsy King.

"I had a nice conversation with Wilder, nice conversation with him."

Why, you ask?

Well, Foreman says he knows EXACTLY how Deontay feels ... 'cause like with Fury, Ali handed George his 1st L and took his belt in Zaire in 1974 -- the "Rumble in the Jungle" -- one of the most famous sporting events in the history of the world.

"We talked because I was in a position where I lost unexpectedly with the title in Africa. Only I know what he's going through," Foreman tells us.

The Hall of Famer continued, saying ... "He's gonna have to live with [the Fury loss] but I can show him how to live with that and come back better. We talked a lot on those lines."

FYI -- Foreman was 40-0 when he lost to Ali. DW was 42-0-1 when he lost to Fury. Both boxers were champs.

Shortly after the loss, Wilder exercised a rematch clause in his contract ... setting the fighters up for a trilogy fight later this year.

Despite clearly wanting revenge, many experts say taking the fight is a terrible career move for Deontay -- as they don't think he can beat the slick-moving 6'9", 273-lb. heavyweight.

Straight nonsense in Foreman's mind, 'cause he says Wilder can 100% beat Fury ... and it'll actually be pretty simple.

"Not only beat him, [Wilder] can do it easily," George says, adding ... "Give him another chance. He'll show you."

Foreman's living proof a comeback's possible (although he never got a shot at running it back with Ali) ... he became heavyweight champ again 20 years later.

With Big George's help, Deontay will attempt to do the same ... but he ain't trying to wait 2 decades.

UFC superstar Jon Jones has pled guilty to driving while intoxicated stemming from a March 26 arrest in New Mexico, officials tell TMZ Sports.

The reigning UFC light heavyweight champ has struck a deal with prosecutors in which he agreed to 1-year supervised probation. The sentence has not yet been approved by a judge but that's just a matter of time at this point.

As part of the deal, Jones will serve 96 hours in a community custody program -- which is a form of incarceration, but not in a traditional jail cell. We're told it's similar to house arrest. He will wear an ankle monitor, which allows authorities to make sure he doesn't leave his residence unless he has permission.

Officials say Jones will be ordered to "complete a minimum of 90 day out-patient treatment, maximum fines and fees, community service and all other requirements of reporting to probation."

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, officials are allowing Jones to participate in the outpatient program via video conferencing.

As for the community service, Jones must complete 48 total hours.

Jones must also install an ignition interlock device in any vehicle he operates -- which requires him to complete a breathalyzer (to test for alcohol) before the car will start.

"His attorney and Mr. Jones have been made aware that if he fails to do this, the State will seek to impose the balance of any jail time without regard for any exceptional circumstances," officials say.

Get this ... officials WILL allow Jones to use marijuana during his probation, as long as he has a valid medical card.

As we previously reported, Jones was arrested around 1 AM on March 26 after cops responded to reports of gunfire in the Albuquerque area.

When cops found Jones alone in his Jeep, he appeared intoxicated and admitted to drinking earlier in the evening.

As for the other charges, which include negligent use of a deadly weapon and open containers, those will be dropped in exchange for Jones' guilty plea on the DWI.

It's been exactly one year since Nipsey Hussle was shot dead in L.A. -- but his memory lives on ... and some of the biggest athletes in the world are paying tribute to the fallen rapper.

Hussle's music definitely struck a chord with athletes in all sports -- with stars like Russell Westbrook, Kyrie Irving, DeSean Jackson and more speaking out about how much Nipsey meant to them.

"Hussle Day!! R.I.P to the legend," Russell said ... "We miss you bro!! #themarathoncontinues."

Kyrie said, "I didn't know you personally Nip, but just know you inspired me beyond measure. Thank you."

New Orleans Saints WR Michael Thomas (who's from L.A.) added, "I lost my homie and his soul still attached to me. Rest In Peace Nip Hussle the Great. I’m still lapping up for you."

Broncos star Davontae Harris said, "Today is about NIPSEY HUSSLE save the pandemic talk for tomorrow."

Other stars like Dez Bryant, Matt Barnes, Vic Oladipo and Isaiah Thomas also honored Nipsey on social media.

Hussle was shot and killed on March 31, 2019, near his clothing shop in South Central, L.A. He was only 33.

Move over, Jameis Winston ... top NFL draft prospect Mekhi Becton is officially the king of car-pushing workouts -- the Louisville O-lineman just shoved a pickup with the brakes on!!!

The 6'7", 368-pound beast -- who's projected to be a top-15 pick next month -- took his quarantine workouts to the streets this week ... and it was impressive as hell.

Check out the video ... Becton moves the Ford Raptor -- which weighs roughly 5,500 POUNDS -- without much effort ... all while the car's brakes were activated!!

"Only a MONSTER can push a RAPTOR," Becton said of the impressive feat.

Of course, Mekhi's workout comes just a few days after Jameis Winston showed off his car-pushing skills ... but we're pretty sure Becton gets the nod here. Sorry, Jameis.

By the way, 20-year-old Mekhi is fighting with a few other left tackle prospects to be the No. 1 overall lineman off the board on April 23.

Begs the question ... could this vid be all NFL GMs need to put him over the top of Tristan Wirfs and Jedrick Wills Jr.??

Tichina Arnold is gonna blow your mind in the first movie produced by Netflix and the WWE ... 'cause she's gonna change your concept of what grandmothers look like.

Tichina was on Tuesday's "TMZ Live" to talk about "The Main Event," when the conversation quickly turned to that old saying ... Black don't crack!!! See, she's playing grandma -- or as she puts it, G-ma -- to an 11-year-old kid who gets his shot to become a WWE superstar.

You gotta see what happened when we brought up her role ... mistakenly thinking she's playing the kid's mom. Ooops!!! Big time.

Hey, honest mistake ... because nothing about Tichina looks grandmotherly, but we had some big laughs with her talking about it. She also confessed while Black may not crack it does do something else. Watch.

BTW, TA is hosting a live virtual premiere for 'Main Event' from her social media pages ... which you can check out next Friday, April 10.

We can testify, hanging with Tichina, even virtually, is a blast ... check out Tuesday's "TMZ Live" if ya don't believe us.

It's official -- Tom Brady will wear #12 with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after securing the digits from teammate, Chris Godwin!!!

And, here's the crazy part -- Godwin gave it up for FREE!!!

There have been CRAZY stories in the past about players exchanging money, jewelry and more to trade jersey numbers with their teammates.

Most famously, Clinton Portis offered Ifeanyi Ohalete $40k for his #26 ... and the transaction actually ended up in court.

But, there was no drama this time around ... with Godwin just handing the number to Brady -- no strings attached.

It would have been a branding disaster for Tom to take a different number -- he's had #12 for 20 years and built his TB12 brand around it.

Godwin -- who will now wear #14 -- previously said he'd part ways with his number #12 jersey out of respect to the GOAT ... but mentioned he had been wearing doce since high school.

It may end up being a great investment for Godwin ... 'cause maybe TB12 will be looking for that #14 down the field a LOT more this season.

Kamaru Usman wants to go all "Deliverance" on Jorge Masvidal at UFC 249 -- saying he wants the fans to hear Masivdal "squeal like the pig that he is."

Both Kamaru and Jorge have said they're down to step up and fight in the main event at UFC 249 in April -- after Khabib Nurmagomedov revealed that he's stuck in Russia and likely won't be able to fight Tony Ferguson.

Masvidal has promised to "cut off" Usman's head if they do scrap -- but Kamaru, the reigning UFC welterweight champ, says he ain't afraid.

In fact, Usman says he LOVES the fact there will likely be no fans allowed at UFC 249 (due to the COVID-19 pandemic) ... because he wants the fans to hear all of the sounds of combat.

"I want you guys to hear him squeal, squeal like a pig, like the little bitch that he is," Usman says.

"The weird sounds that he's gonna make once I'm elbowing and slicing up his face, once I'm dropping hammers on his face. I want you guys to hear that."

"Nobody in the stands no fans to cheer him on so he feels like he's somebody. nobody, just me and him."

"That's why I said I'll take that fight. I haven't been training but I'll take the fight because I wanted you guys to hear what I do to this guy inside."