TMZ Sports - Page 50

12:30 PM PT -- Sources connected to the investigation tell TMZ Sports ... when cops responded to the club for a possible shooting, they ordered everyone to get down and not move so they could properly search and investigate.

We're told Bennett did not stay put -- instead, he ran -- and a cop outside the club stopped him and ordered him down to the ground at gunpoint.

Our sources say Bennett was detained until cops could determine he was not involved in any possible criminal activity ... and he was released.

TMZ Sports has obtained video of NFL superstar Michael Bennett being handcuffed by police while lying face down on the concrete in Las Vegas ... and you can hear him screaming that he's innocent.

The video was shot outside Drai's Nightclub on August 26 -- you can see one officer take position on a balcony while another cop handcuffs Bennett on the street level.

During the incident Bennett screams out, "I wasn't doing nothing man! I was here with my friends! They told us to get out, everybody ran!"

Bennett claims the officer had pulled a gun on him and threatened to "blow my f*cking head off" -- but you don't see that in our footage. At the time the video begins, Bennett is already being cuffed.

You can see the officer on the balcony is clutching something in his hand that resembles a handgun -- but it's unclear.

Bennett has said in a statement that he -- and several hundred other people -- were running from the club after hearing what they thought were gunshots. He claims cops stopped him for "being a black man in the wrong place at the wrong time."

We've reached out to the Las Vegas Metro PD for comment -- we're told they're investigating the incident.

Craig Carton's partner in an alleged ticket fraud scheme was so concerned about the million in debt they allegedly owed ... he considered fleeing the country and assuming a new identity.

At least, that's what investigators say they learned during a criminal probe into the famous radio host -- who allegedly bilked investors out of millions of dollars to repay casino debts.

As we previously reported, Carton -- one-half of the famous "Boomer and Carton Show" -- was arrested by FBI agents early Wednesday morning.

Officials say he and another man concocted and executed a ponzi-style scheme to take millions of dollars from investors under the guise of a ticket scalping business. Only, the money was allegedly used to pay off hundreds of thousands of dollars in mysterious personal debts ... which appear to be related to gambling.

The docs, filed in federal court in NY, don't specifically say Carton blew the money gambling ... but alleges he made several HUGE wire transfers to casino companies using money that was supposed to be used for the ticket business.

At one point, Carton's alleged co-conspirator fired off an email to Carton with the following proposal to escape their debts -- "Run to Costa Rica, change name, and start life all over again."

The other man noted, "May not be an option."

Officials say Carton didn't seem too fazed -- assuring the other man he had another $1 million coming in from investors and "will need to be discussed how to handle."

Here's Cristiano Ronaldo stylin' and profilin' in front of his new supercar ... a Ferrari F12tdf that costs over $500k -- and that's without the crazy specs CR7 no doubt added on.

We're guessing Cristiano got the F12 to celebrate ballin' out for Portugal in the World Cup qualifiers ... dude did pass Pele on the all-time international goals list!

Ronaldo's already got tens of millions of dollars in his garage -- from Lambos to Astons to Porsches ... his biggest splurge before this one was a Bugatti Chiron worth around $3 MIL.

The only athlete we can think of with a comparable car collection is Floyd Mayweather -- who's spent more than $12 MIL on fancy whips ... and that doesn't count his TWO private jets.

Not that they're competing or anything ...

The man dressed up like Colin Kaepernick during a segment with FS1 star Jason Whitlock is not white ... despite what the Internet thinks.

He's actually Kid from Kid 'n Play -- aka Christopher Reid, star of 'House Party' 1, 2 and 3 (remember, he was replaced by Immature in 'House Party 4').

Whitlock has been receiving all sorts of hate online from people who think he dressed up a white dude to mock the NFL QB. That's simply not the case.

Others -- including ESPN's Josina Anderson -- are pissed at Whitlock for "mocking a movement." Don Cheadle gave his stamp of approval to her criticism.

The actual segment involving Kid (as Kaep) has not aired (at the time this post was written) -- but Whitlock has hinted there's more to the story.

"I remember the good-old days when people sought real information before feigning outrage in a publication or publicly."

Stay tuned ...

Seattle Seahawks superstar Michael Bennett says a police officer threatened to "blow my f*cking head off" during a heated incident in Vegas on the weekend of the Mayweather vs. McGregor fight.

Bennett says he was heading back to his hotel room after the fight when he heard gunshots ring out.

"Like many people in the area, I ran away from the sound, looking for safety," Bennett says in a statement.

Bennett says Las Vegas police "singled me out and pointed their guns at me for doing nothing more than simply being a black man in the wrong place at the wrong time."

One of the cops, Bennett claims, "ordered me to get on the ground" and told him that if he moved he would "blow my f*cking head off."

Bennett says another officer put his knee in his back, making it hard for him to breathe. He was then cuffed so tightly that his fingers went numb.

The 31-year-old says he thought he was going to die and his life flashed before his eyes.

Bennett says cops eventually realized he was not involved in the shooting and let him go -- but the NFL star says he's furious about the situation and has lawyered up to explore his legal options.

We've reached out to the Las Vegas Metro PD for comment -- so far, no word back.

FYI, Bennett has sat for the national anthem during Seahawks pre-season games -- and he says this incident has only strengthened his resolve.

It was Terrell Owens, Tim Tebow ... and now, Ezekiel Elliott is the "ratings baby" the media is glomming on to ... so says Michael Irvin.

You know what he's talking about -- when a story becomes such a big deal, news outlets will streeeeetch in a shameless way for an angle involving the media topic everyone cares about.

This time, Irvin says, the media knows Zeke's scandal is a magnet for viewers ... and he's seen some networks reach new lows trying to exploit the running back's issues for a ratings pop.

Craig Carton -- co-host of the popular 'Boomer and Carton' sports talk show on WFAN -- was arrested by FBI agents at his home in Manhattan on suspicion of running a concert ticket scheme.

We're told the alleged scheme looks like this ... Carton and a partner claimed to have been operating a ticket business that promised blocks of tickets to big concerts. Problem is, it was all a lie (allegedly) -- they never had the tickets.

Carton is suspected of defrauding investors out of more than $2 million.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney's office for the Southern District of NY tells TMZ Sports Carton is facing securities and wire fraud charges and he's due in court later Wednesday.

Serena Williams allegedly hates her stepmother so much, she ordered the woman to vacate the family home immediately ... or else she'll change the locks.

At least that's the story Serena's stepmom told a judge in new docs filed in Florida ... in which she begs the court to stop Richard Williams from throwing her out on the street.

As we previously reported, 75-year-old Richard filed for divorce from 38-year-old Lakeisha Juanita Williams back in June after 7 years of marriage. They have a son together.

Lakeisha claims Richard has ordered her out of the Florida home where they lived -- a home she claims is owned by his daughter, Serena Williams.

In the court docs, Lakeisha says Serena's legal team fired off demand letters "requesting she and the child vacate the home and threatened to change the locks."

So far, Lakeisha refuses to budge.

Lakeisha has also filed an emergency motion begging the court to force the sale of another property they owned together because she needs the money.

She's also concerned Richard has "health issues" and could die -- and if that happens, his fortune could be tied up for years while the courts decide who gets what. She needs the cash, stat.

GGG's got stamina ... gotta give him that.

The boxing superstar broke out his favorite pen and ripped out HUNDREDS of signatures on Everlast boxing gloves during a marathon autograph session this week ... and it's all for his richest fans.

We spoke with Life In Motion CEO, Thorsten Meier, who says the gloves are a perk for fans who pony up for the special ringside "platinum package" seats for the September 16 fight with Canelo Alvarez.

It's $7,600 for 1 ticket or $14,000 for 2 -- and each order comes with a glove signed by GGG and Canelo, PLUS a hotel room at the Mandalay Bay, PLUS limo transportation from the airport.

As for GGG, don't worry ... his hands were still solid after all the John Hancock'ing.

Ezekiel Elliott has officially taken an L with his domestic violence appeal ... as the NFL upheld the RB's 6-game suspension Tuesday following an arbitration hearing at the league's NYC headquarters.

NFL-appointed arbitrator, Harold Henderson, handed down the verdict ... after hearing Elliott's case from a team led by Jeffrey Kessler -- the lawyer who's repped the NFLPA on several landmark appeals including DeflateGate.

Zeke also gave his side of the story while under oath ... according to NFL insider Ian Rapoport.

The league suspended Elliott earlier this month after finding "substantial evidence" he engaged in physical violence against his then-girlfriend, Tiffany Thompson -- a claim the Cowboys superstar has adamantly denied.

Elliott's team was reportedly prepared for this outcome ... as Henderson denied a request to have Thompson testify at the appeal proceeding. Henderson also barred the introduction of notes and materials gathered in the NFL's interviews with Thompson.

Zeke's legal team says, "We are extremely disappointed with Mr. Henderson's inability to navigate through league politics, and follow the evidence and, most importantly, his conscience." Next step is federal court, where Cowboys star will ask a judge to reduce his suspension.

DON'T EVER GIVE DRUNK DRIVERS A PASS ... that's the message M.A.D.D. has for Rod Stewart after the singer defended Wayne Rooney after his DUI arrest.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving unloaded on Stewart over comments he made to TMZ Sports ... in which Rod asked the public to forgive the soccer superstar because "we all make mistakes."

"MADD is appalled the music icon Rod Stewart referred to drunk driving as a mistake," the org. said in a statement.

"While we are relieved that Rooney’s alleged drunk driving killed or injured no one, excuses should never be made for anyone who makes the choice to endanger lives in this manner."

"Drunk driving is a 100% preventable choice, 100% of the time. To say anything to the contrary diminishes the seriousness of the crime and is a smack in the face to drunk driving victims everywhere."

For the record, Rooney was arrested on suspicion of drunk driving early Friday morning but hasn't been convicted.

No ruling yet ... but it's close.

The NFL Player's Association has said the arbitrator overseeing Ezekiel Elliott's appeal of his 6-game suspension was trying to issue his decision by end of business day on Tuesday -- but so far, nothing yet.

The operative word in that sentence is "trying" -- we're told the arbitrator has a lot of material to comb through and wants to be thorough ... he doesn't want to rush out a decision.

Meanwhile, Ezekiel appeared in a courtroom in Sherman, Texas where he filed documents in federal court asking for a restraining order against the NFL, barring the league from enforcing punishment stemming from the domestic violence investigation.

Hurricane Harvey is thankfully calming down ... but J.J. Watt's relief fund for Houston is still goin' strong -- pushing past the $20 MILLION mark on Tuesday.

J.J.'s crowdfunding campaign started off with a $200K goal a little over a week ago ... and quickly ran up into the multi-millions with big-name celebs like Miley Cyrus ($500K), Drake ($200K) and Chris Paul ($75K) leading the way.

In case you're wondering how things are going ... Watt shared an update on social media after breaking $20 mil -- saying, "It has truly been an incredible spectacle to watch."

Kirk Cousins says there's a good reason he turned down a multi-year deal with the Redskins ... God told him to, saying it was in the Lord's plan for him be on a 1-year contract.

Cousins reportedly turned down a multi-year deal that would've paid him $53 million guaranteed ($72 overall) with the Redskins this past off-season -- instead electing to ink a 1-year deal and see where it goes.

People wondered ... Why bro, WHY?

Kirk was at the Liberty University Convocation last week and went into what made him walk away from the big cash, and it's all about the man upstairs.

Ryen Russillo says he deserved the weeklong suspension he got from ESPN following his drunk arrest in Wyoming -- admitting he embarrassed himself and the network.

The ESPN host returned to his TV/Radio show on ESPNews on Tuesday and started by essentially owning up to boozing too hard that night and passing out in the wrong hotel room.

As we previously reported, the owner of the room where Russillo passed out called cops. When they arrived, cops say Russillo reeked of booze. He was arrested for criminal entry.

"The thing about screwing up is it can be hard when it's just you. But that's actually what's made this easy, is that it's only my fault. I have no one else to blame," Russillo says.

Tilman Fertitta tells TMZ Sports he's absolutely STOKED about buying the Houston Rockets -- explaining it's been a lifelong dream ... and he wants to bring Beyonce into the fold.

We spoke with the "Billion Dollar Buyer" star moments after it was announced he bought the NBA team for $2.2 BILLION ... and he told us he'll work his ass off to make Houston proud.

As far as Beyonce -- who was in the running to buy the team -- Tilman praises her as a wonderful ambassador for Houston and hopes she'll join his team "in some capacity."

"It would be great to have her involved in any way."

FYI, Fertitta has made a fortune in the restaurant business -- he owns Catch, Mastro's, Bubba Gump and the Rainforest Cafe spots -- and says he can't wait to come to L.A. to beat the Lakers and the Clippers.