TMZ Sports - Page 50

O.J. Simpson is getting political -- railing against his old pal Donald Trump's MAGA catchphrase ... while begging people to vote.

The whole thing begs the question ... Is O.J. trying to take out Trump? Sure seems that way.

The 73-year-old ex-con says his new rant was inspired by a golf outing with a buddy who was sporting a "Make America Great Again" hat ... which really rubbed him the wrong way.

"I was teasing him a little bit," Juice admits ... "He said 'Man, why does everyone get on my case when I wear this hat?'"

O.J. explained it this way... "I think 'Making America Great' is great. It's the 'Again' that bothers me."

Simpson is clearly offended by the slogan -- and tries to explain why America has BEEN great under several U.S. presidents -- he names both Republicans and Democrats, including Bush and Obama.

"Through all those presidents, America was great. We were the #1 nation there is."

"All of these politicians today, they're standing on the shoulders of the giants who ran this country before them."

Simpson ended his golf-course rant by encouraging people to vote.

So, does this mean Simpson is supporting Joe Biden?

Unclear ... but Simpson did say something interesting when asked in 2018 if he would have voted for Trump in the 2016 election.

"Somebody asked me if I'd have voted for him ... Probably not, but I only know two of my friends I'd vote to be president."

"Some of my best, best besties I would not vote to be president."

Dez Bryant has officially touched down in Baltimore ... next stop, a new contract with the Ravens?!

The former NFL superstar was at BWI Airport in Maryland Tuesday making his way to the Ravens' practice facility for a much-anticipated tryout ... and the dude seems PUMPED!!

The ex-Dallas Cowboys WR said straight-up "it'd be fun" to join the Ravens ... before adding he wants to play with Lamar Jackson BADLY!!!

"He the man," Dez said of the Baltimore QB. "He the man. Hell yeah. I've been rooting for Lamar since his Louisville days. Anybody that knows me knows that!"

Of course, there are a few hurdles Dez has to jump through before the Jackson-to-Bryant connection can be a reality.

Per NFL rules, Bryant must pass COVID testing prior to taking the field ... and even then, he's got to prove to Ravens coaches he still belongs in the league.

Remember, the 31-year-old hasn't played a down in the league since the 2017 season ... and has suffered through a blown-out Achilles in the meantime.

But, Dez has been working like a mad man to get back ... and, judging by his swagger at the airport Tuesday, dude's clearly confident heading into the tryout.

Good luck!!

Luka Doncic thinks it's RIDICULOUS the refs ejected his teammate Kristaps Porzingis for that NOTHING-BURGER of an altercation during Monday's playoff game.

... and LeBron James agrees!!

The Dallas Mavericks big man got the heave-ho for confronting Marcus Morris during an incident in the 3rd quarter.

KP was stepping up to defend Luka's honor -- after Marcus had gotten physical with him earlier. Nothing crazy. No punches. Just some minor shoving.

Still, Porzingis was tossed as a result -- and it pretty much spelled doom for the Mavs; chances at winning that critical Game 1 playoff game.

In fact, without KP, one of Dallas' best and most important players, the Mavs lost 118 to 110.

After the game, Luka not only defended Porzingis, he called out the refs in the process.

"I knew KP had my back. He did it for me, he did it for his teammate. He had my back."

"I don’t think it was fair to get him out of the game -- especially in the playoffs.”

"But you know, they decided -- so we had to play without him, which was tough."

Doncic wasn't the only one who was pissed about the bad officiating -- LeBron James and Dirk Nowitzki spoke out too.

"Man that was BOGUS AS HELL MAN!!!! Cmon man." James said on Twitter.

Nowitzki added, "The ejection is super soft."

Doncic carried the team once KP was ejected, scoring a game-high 42 points -- a record for the most points by any player in their first playoff appearance in NBA history.

Bet he would rather have the "W" instead though ...

The golf blood clearly runs thick in the Woods family ... Tiger's 11-year-old son just mowed down the field in a tournament this month -- winning a kids event EASILY!!

Charlie Woods posted a super low score of 3-under 33 in the 9-hole event on Aug. 9 at Hammock Creek Golf Club in Florida, winning the whole thing by 5 strokes ... and it's got everyone wondering -- is he the next Tiger?!

Charlie carded 3 birdies and no bogeys in the round ... and it wasn't like the course was a cakewalk -- the scorecard shows 6 of the 9 holes were 300 yards or longer!!

Of course, Dad was with Charlie every step of the way ... Tiger was even spotted carrying his kid's clubs during the outing!

The 44-year-old golf G.O.A.T. has praised his son's swing in the past ... saying straight-up he wishes he could put some of it into his own!!

"He’s starting to understand how to play. He’s asking me the right questions," Tiger told GOLFTV this summer. "I’ve kept it competitive with his par, so it’s been just an absolute blast to go out there and just, you know, be with him."

The bubble life is over -- so it's back to the couple life for Kendall Jenner and Devin Booker.

The two have been inseparable since Devin's Phoenix Suns were bounced from the NBA Bubble last week ... picking up their romance right where it left off.

Check out 23-year-old Devin and 24-year-old Kendall running errands in Malibu Monday -- scooping up a brand new dog bowl for DB's pooch, Haven.

They're wearing masks! The dog's on a leash! They're doing everything right!

Remember, Devin left the Orlando bubble on Friday -- immediately hit Nobu for a fancy reunion dinner with Kendall on Saturday night. Can you blame him?!

Before the NBA season re-started, Devin and Kendall were getting pretty close ... even taking road trips together. Remember the quick Sedona getaway?

Devin played insanely well during the Suns' undefeated bubble run -- some say he should have been named MVP of the restart.

But, post-season life doesn't seem to bad either ...

Imagine hitting a towering 400-foot grand slam in an MLB game ... and APOLOGIZING FOR IT?!?!

Fernando Tatis Jr. did exactly that Monday night ... with the bizarre scene making baseball purists go CRAZY over the 21-year-old!!

Here's the deal ... the San Diego Padres were up 10-3 on the Texas Rangers in the 8th inning when Tatis Jr. was ahead 3-0 in a count.

Padres manager Jayce Tingler says he instructed Tatis Jr. to take the next pitch and to NOT run up the score ... but the shortstop says he missed the sign from coach, and blasted the baseball to the moon!!

The homer was SICK -- it traveled over 400 feet and was Tatis Jr.'s 2nd of the night ... giving him 7 RBIs in total -- but EVERYONE was seemingly pissed at the Padre for it.

Check out the footage from the field ... Rangers manager Chris Woodward was furious -- and when Tatis Jr. got back to his own bench, you can tell his teammates weren't pleased either.

Afterward, Tatis Jr. says he was sorry for smacking the home run ... saying next time he'll likely take the pitch instead of crushing it and piling on runs.

"Those experiences, you got to learn from it," Tatis Jr. said. "Probably next time, I take a pitch now that I learned from it.”

Added Tatis Jr.'s manager, "He’s young, a free spirit and focused and all these things, and that’s the last thing we’ll ever take away. But that’s a learning opportunity, that’s it and he’ll grow from it."

In fact, the Rangers were so pissed over Tatis Jr.'s swing ... they nearly hit San Diego's next batter, Manny Machado, with a fastball in retaliation.

Of course, other baseballers rushed to Tatis Jr.'s defense ... saying the unwritten MLB rule needs to be abolished -- and the dude should keep swinging no matter what.

"Hey [Fernando] listen up," Reds star pitcher Trevor Bauer said of the controversy. "1) Keep swinging 3-0 if you want to, no matter what the game situation is 2) Keep hitting homers, no matter what the situation is"

Khabib Nurmagomedov says he wants to fight Georges St-Pierre in April ... and claims the UFC is trying to make it happen.

"Regarding Georges St-Pierre, that fight really inspires me," Khabib said during a media event in Russia.

"It was my father’s dream fight. But time passes, Georges St-Pierre will be 40 next year. I think he has to decide whether we’ll fight or not."

As we previously reported, Khabib's father, Abdulmanap, died from COVID-19 complications back in July.

But, Khabib says he wants to make his dad's dream come true -- saying "I want that fight."

"If I beat [Justin Gaethje] in October, then fight St-Pierre in April before Ramadan, that would be ideal."

The issue -- 39-year-old GSP has repeatedly said he's retired. Though he admitted back in July he would consider another fight if Dana White had the right offer.

Dana must've been listening ... because Khabib says White is down to make it happen.

"Dana told me after this fight they’ll talk to St-Pierre. If he agrees, we’ll fight. Both I and the UFC want that to happen."

GSP was called out by reigning UFC welterweight champ Kamaru Usman recently -- but told TMZ Sports, "I think for me it's better if I stay retired ... It's not worth it for me."

George told us he feels extremely grateful to leave the fight game with all of his faculties and wouldn't want to compromise that.

Kate Upton, Olivia Culpo ... and now Reagan Howard?!

Alex Bregman's fiancee is hoping to follow in the footsteps of legendary Sports Illustrated Swimsuit models ... announcing Monday she's officially gunning to be in the 2021 SI Swim mag!

Howard just entered the publication's annual search for undiscovered models ... saying she's been "dreaming" of being in the mag ever since she saw Bar Refaeli on a cover years ago.

"I started modeling when I was about 17 years old and faced a ton of rejection for the size of my body," said Howard, who got engaged to the Houston Astros' star 3rd baseman back in January.

"I would love to be on SI because I believe in the brand and I believe in what it represents," Howard added. "And, you guys empower women from all over the place to be as they are and to be multi-dimensional. Which I absolutely love."

Howard went on to say that she's personally inspired by Camille Kostek ... who gained SI Swim fame after being discovered in the mag's 2018 open casting call.

"Here’s to breaking molds and being you," Howard said, "no matter how many different things that may be."

Of course, another famous WAG -- Matt Kalil's wife, Haley Kalil -- also got her SI Swim breakthrough in the brand's 2019 open audition as well.

Could Howard be next? Winners won't be announced for months ... but the resume sure looks bulletproof to us!

UFC superstar Jon Jones just announced he's officially vacating his light heavyweight title -- and suggested he's done fighting. Forever.

"Just got off the phone with UFC," Jones said ... "Today I confirm that I’m vacating the light heavyweight championship. It’s officially up for grabs."

"It’s been an amazing journey, sincere thank you to all my competition, Ufc and most importantly you fans."

Jones says the UFC made it clear there was "no negotiating" moving forward -- so he's just going to hang it up instead.

"If that ever changes, I’d love to come back and compete again as a heavyweight. Until then, I’ll be enjoying Ufc has a fan and doing my best to take care of my family and community."

We recently spoke with UFC honcho Dana White about the contract issues with Jon Jones -- and he told us there was a chance JJ meant it when he suggested retiring in the past.

Still, Dana told us he hoped Jon would fight in the Octagon again because he's one of the all-time greats and the sport is better with him in it.

33-year-old Jones is without a doubt one of the greatest UFC fighters ever -- with victories over guys like Daniel Cormier, Alexander Gustafsson, Anthony Smith, Rampage Jackso and many many more.

He had flirted with a move to heavyweight for months ... because that's where the bigger fights are for him at this point in his career.

Jones had recently commented about fighting Francis Ngannou and most recently turned his attention to Stipe Miocic. Unfortunately, it seems he's closing the door so we won't ever get to see those fights.

Jon is 26-1 as a pro MMA fighter -- but most consider him undefeated because the 1 loss was due to an illegal strike in a fight he was dominating against Matt Hamill back in 2009.

Grammy-nominated singer Jessie Reyez just took a knee atop the CN Tower for the singing of "O Canada" before an NBA playoff game Monday ... and the video of the performance is powerful.

The Toronto Raptors posted the footage just before their tilt with the Brooklyn Nets ... showing Reyez on one knee singing the Canadian national anthem while locked into a harness at the top of the famous building.

Reyez' rendition of lasted for nearly 2 minutes ... and the shots of her on the ledge of the 1,800-foot-tall building were breathtaking.

You can also see in the video, she's wearing a mask around her neck that reads, "Breonna Taylor."

Of course, the 29-year-old's kneeling -- which went on for the duration of the song -- is clearly a showing of support for Colin Kaepernick in the fight to shine a spotlight on police brutality and social injustice.

In the NBA bubble, meanwhile, players and coaches continued with their demonstrations during the anthems ... with Raptors and Nets locking arms and kneeling on the court while Reyes' song played.

As we previously reported, the NBA has made countless efforts this summer to raise awareness for racial equality ... including suspending the rule that forced players to stand for pregame anthems.

Broadcasting 101 -- ya may not wanna call your ex-wife a "dingbat" on live TV ... 'cause everyone knows that's pretty bad, right??

But, former Chicago Cubs star Mark Grace must've missed that lesson ... and now he's apologizing for his bizarre rant during Saturday's game.

The 56-year-old joined Len Kasper and Jim Deshaies in the booth (virtually) for the Cubs vs. Brewers game on Marquee Sports Network over the weekend ... when he was asked to give a fun story about his playing days.

That's when Grace couldn't help himself but call his ex a "dingbat" several times while sharing an incident where she accidentally parked in a spot reserved for then-Brewers owner Bud Selig ... forcing Grace to rush out in full uniform to stop the car from being towed.

"My ex-wife, I’m going to go Archie Bunker on you guys a little bit," Grace said on air, "I called her the dingbat."

For those who don't get the reference ... Bunker is a character from "All In The Family" and "Archie Bunker's Place" ... and the guy was known for calling his wife -- you guessed it -- a "dingbat."

BTW -- While Kasper and Seshaies awkwardly played off the comments, neither spoke up and said Grace's jabs were a bit off.

To make matters worse, it wasn't even a good story -- she parked in Bud Selig's spot decades ago ... who cares?

Grace later apologized for the bad TV moment ... saying, "During today’s game I referred to my ex-wife in a way that I absolutely should not have."

"I want everyone to know how very sorry I am about that. My remarks were offensive and inappropriate, and I deeply apologize.”

Daniel Cormier just penned a goodbye to the UFC ... thanking all his fans and coworkers in a heartfelt note -- and it's pretty freakin' emotional.

The 41-year-old had said in the buildup to UFC 252 that it would be his final match ... and in a statement Monday -- 2 days after he dropped his second straight bout to Stipe Miocic -- he appeared to officially hang up his gloves.

"Thank you all for the love and support," DC wrote. "Not what I wanted or expected but it is what it is. Congrats to @stipemiocic on a fantastic fight, was an honor and pleasure to share the octagon with you for 50 minutes. Boy did we give 'em a show everytime.

"To my team: I love you all to death, you've made so many sacrifices. I hope I made you guys proud. Salina and the kids: thank you for being my motivation. To all the fans: I love you so much. You guys push me to try and be great."

Cormier continued, "To @danawhite and the @ufc: I have loved every minute. Thank you for giving me the opportunity. Been a helluva ride, huh?"

If Cormier is, in fact, done ... it's been an unreal career -- the guy went 22-3 in his UFC career and was the first fighter to ever successfully defend championships in 2 separate weight classes.

Huge blow for the Dallas Cowboys ... star defensive tackle Gerald McCoy just suffered a gnarly quad injury in practice -- and the team now says he's DONE for the 2021 season.

Reporters on scene in Dallas say the defensive lineman -- who just signed a 3-year, $18 MILLION contract with the team this offseason -- went down awkwardly during Monday's workout.

According to multiple witnesses, McCoy was stepped on by a teammate in a routine drill -- and could NOT put weight on the leg as trainers helped the 6-time Pro Bowler to the locker room.

Cowboys exec Stephen Jones confirmed a short time later that McCoy ruptured his right quad tendon -- and will now be headed for season-ending surgery.

32-year-old McCoy was expected to be a key player in the middle of the Cowboys' defense this season ... head coach Mike McCarthy had just praised him earlier this month, saying, "we look for him to be a force inside."

New threads, same number for Patriots quarterback Cam Newton ... 'cause the ex-MVP made his practice debut on Monday ... and the man is still Numero Uno!!

Now the question is -- will he be #1 on the depth chart?!

As of right now, Newton is currently sharing first-string duties with young QB Jarrett Stidham, according to the team's official site ... but obviously, only one guy can be under center come September.

It's the first ~official~ time we've seen Cam decked head-to-toe in Pats gear ... but the former #1-overall draft pick has stayed busy this offseason by working out with his new teammates like Julian Edelman ... and even Logan Paul.

The image of Cam in red, white and blue is definitely still taking some time getting used to -- especially after 20 years of seeing Tom Brady taking the snaps in Foxborough.

Speaking of, a bunch of new faces are showing up to camp recently -- from LSU hero Joe Burrow joining the Cincinnati Bengals, Tua Tagovailoa taking his talents to the Miami Dolphins and longtime vet Philip Rivers trading his Chargers jersey for Indianapolis Colts blue.

Here's hoping the NFL can successfully find a way to SAFELY proceed with the season -- because football is awesome and we're already getting fired up about it.

The CFL is shutting it down, ay.

Canadian football League commissioner Randy Ambrosie just announced there will be NO games 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Instead, the CFL is "shifting its focus to 2021 and beyond."

“Our league governors decided today it is in the best long-term interests of the CFL to concentrate on the future,” the Commish said.

"We are absolutely committed to 2021, to the future of our league and the pursuit of our vision of a bigger, stronger, more global CFL."

Longo story short, the CFL says unlike the NFL, it relies HEAVILY on the revenue from live attendance -- AKA "fans in the stands."

And, with pandemic protocols limiting the amount of people allowed to gather at one location, the league realized it didn't make sense to push forward this season.

"Unlike US-based leagues that can count on television or streaming to provide the lion’s share of their revenue, the CFL depends heavily on its live gate," the league said in a statement.

CFL honchos had been working plans for a shortened season in a bubble style environment in Winnipeg -- but again, the money just wasn't there to justify the costs.

The league was hoping the Canadian govt. would help out with the costs to keep the sport going -- but it never panned out.

"Despite months of discussions, the government ultimately declined the CFL’s appeal for financial support," the league says.

Detroit Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire was thrown out of a game Sunday in an epic F-bomb laced rant ... and the whole glorious incident was caught on a field's hot mic!!!

Ron G was furious with 1st base umpire Tim Timmons during the Tigers' game against the Cleveland Indians ... after Timmons overturned a call in the 3rd inning that negated a Detroit run.

Gardenhire was fuming over the ruling ... and when the 62-year-old manager came out to complain to Timmons -- field mics picked up part of the ump's clapback.

"Hey!" Timmons could be heard screaming at Gardenhire. "I didn't f*ck it up!"

Then, Timmons' ejection of Ron was picked up on mics as well ... with the ump clearly screaming, "Get the f*ck out!!!"

Cleveland's broadcast team couldn't help but comment on the profane tossing ... with one of the guys saying, "Oh! Easy, Tim!"

The best part of the whole scene? Other camera angles showed the umps made Gardenhire pull up his mask during the heated argument!!!

Of course, with no fans in the stands ... F-bombs have been heard all over MLB diamonds this summer -- check out Joc Pederson droppin' one during the Dodgers game against the Angels on Sunday.