TMZ Sports - Page 50

U.S. Olympic legend Kayla Harrison -- who won gold in judo in '12 and '16 -- is finally making her MMA debut this week ... and says she's ready to wreck shop.

Kayla is a beast -- and she tells TMZ Sports it was hard to even lock down an opponent because people are scared to fight her.

The good news ... Brittney Elkin has stepped up and will fight Kayla at the PFL event in Chicago on Thursday, and Kayla tells us she can't wait to scrap.

"I have 500 judo matches under my belt," Kayla said ... "I have some experience -- just not with a locked cage behind me."

So, how will she handle taking a live punch to the face for the first time?

"I'm kind of a bull. It's gonna take a lot more than 1 punch to take me down."

Boris Becker -- the broke ass former tennis star -- claims to have a diplomatic passport from the Central African Republic that gives him immunity in his bankruptcy case in the UK.

There's just one problem -- IT'S FAKE ... at least, according to the C.A.R.

Becker has been flaunting the document ... insisting it's essentially a magic document that protects him from having to pay back the "historic debt" he racked up in Britain.

As we previously reported, a UK court declared Becker bankrupt in 2017 -- and his reps begged the court for mercy claiming he's simply not a "sophisticated individual."

Which brings us to the fake passport ...

Officials say it's not just the serial numbers that gave it away -- it DOESN'T CARRY THE SIGNATURE OR STAMP OF THE FOREIGN MINISTER!!!!!

In fact, the serial numbers match up with a batch of passports that were stolen in 2014.

Bottom line -- Becker's an idiot, he's got a bogus passport and he's still gonna have to pay for that whole bankruptcy thing.

The place where boxing's GOAT Muhammad Ali lived -- and actually boxed -- is up for sale ... and it could be all yours for a cool $2.9 mil.

Ali's widow -- Lonnie -- is selling the Berrien Springs, Michigan farm that Ali bought in 1975, about 10 years before his Parkinson's diagnosis ... and it comes with a legit boxing ring in the gym.

The place is massive -- 81 acres -- and it features two houses, a bunch of garages, a steam room, a massage room and a full-length basketball court ... plus a deck overlooking the pond.

The coolest part? Its actual listing price is $2,895,037 ... 'cause Lonnie wanted to make sure Ali's 37 KOs in his career were included somewhere in the price tag.

Marvin Bagley III should DEFINITELY be the #1 overall pick in the NBA Draft on Thursday ... so says his father, Marvin Bagley II.

"He should [go #1]," Bagley told TMZ Sports out in NYC ... "He's the best player in the draft!"

Marvin's dad says the whole family is excited for the 19-year-old superstar -- saying they're all trying to take it one day at a time.

We also asked if he was concerned about fake friends trying to leech off Marvin after he gets rich -- and Mr. Bagley told us there's a plan for that.

"He's just gotta keep the circle tight!"

Nick Young's thrilled marijuana is becoming legal across the country ... but he's already onto the next issue -- COKE!!!

"I want people to pass cocaine," the NBA star told TMZ Sports outside 1 OAK on Tuesday night ... "Everybody needs to do cocaine!"

For the record, cocaine isn't illegal everywhere -- did you know blow is sorta legal in Colombia where people can possess 1 gram or less? There's similar laws in the Czech Republic and Uruguay.

And, there's been a real argument that legalizing all drugs could actually benefit the society.

Aside from the booger sugar convo, we also spoke with Swaggy about LeBron James, the Warriors and how he's blinging out his brand new NBA Championship ring!

Also ... kids, don't do drugs.

11:30 AM PT -- Swaggy P just issued a statement saying CHILLAX -- he was just kidding around.

Charlize Theron surprised a boxing champ on his birthday -- threw punches at him and then kissed his face ... and we've got footage of the whole thing!

The man on the receiving end is Chris van Heerden -- a former IBO Welterweight champ who's a BIG fan of the actress (they're both from South Africa).

Peter Berg -- the mega-producer who owns the gym -- wanted to surprise Chris on his birthday so he got Charlize to swing by for a sparring session ... and Chris LOVED IT, Peter Kahn, van Heerden's manager tells us.

Charlize not only got in the ring and threw hands -- she jumped on the fighter, wrapped her legs around the guy ... and capped it off with a big, fat kiss on his face.

Oh, and Mark Wahlberg also stopped by. Best birthday ever?!

By the way, Theron's not a regular at the gym ... but she wasn't bad on the mitts for an amateur.

Nate Diaz is a daddy!!!

The 33-year-old UFC superstar and his longtime girlfriend, Misty Brown, welcomed a healthy baby girl at a California hospital on June 6 ... according to public birth records obtained by TMZ Sports.

Nate and Misty -- both from Stockton, CA -- have been together for years. They've been posting photos of each other online ... dating back to 2012.

We're told the baby is happy and healthy, and the families are stoked.

We reached out to Nate's camp for comment -- but a call to the fighter's rep was not returned.

Houston Rockets fans are still so bitter at being knocked out of the playoffs by the Warriors, they've gone to Yelp to take out their frustrations on Ayesha Curry's new Houston restaurant.

Steph Curry's wife is opening International Smoke in Houston in July -- and a bunch of haters have already bombarded the page with anti-Warriors trash talk, as first pointed out by NBA reporter Tomer Azarly.

Some of the highlights ...

-- "Steph is overrated. Klay sucks"

-- "This is absolutely the worst place to go - her husband cheated his way to a championship and now she has the guts to open up a place here??"

-- "Waited 35 mins for water and it tasted like Seth curry tears ! Will never be back ! Can't support this place .. Harden MVP"

-- "Any real rockets fans will NEVER step foot into this place. Disgusting."

-- "Can't believe I logged on here and took time out of my day just to give this 1 star. Go rockets."

As you can imagine, the comments have already been flagged by Yelp -- which is now reviewing the page to take out the fake critics.

Ex-WWE superstar Vader has died ... after a two-year battle with congestive heart failure. He was 63.

Vader's son broke the news on social media, saying, "Around a month ago my father was diagnosed with a severe case of Pneumonia. He fought extremely hard and clinically was making progress. Unfortunately, on Monday night his heart had enough and it was his time."

Vader had undergone open-heart surgery back in March and seemed to be doing well -- but his health took a turn for the worse and he wasn't able to recover.

We spoke with Vader just a few months ago -- right after his surgery -- and he told us he was feeling better and looking forward to getting out of the hospital. He was super nice to us.

Before his wrestling career, Vader -- real name Leon White -- was a football star at the University of Colorado where he was a 2-time All-American offensive lineman.

He was drafted by the Rams in the 3rd round of the 1978 NFL Draft and played in Super Bowl XIV against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

As a pro wrestler, Vader was a huge star globally -- he was a 3-time WCW heavyweight champ. In WWE, he famously battled guys like The Undertaker and Kane.

He also made TV appearances on shows like "Baywatch" and "Boy Meets World."

RIP

Cristiano Ronaldo hasn't officially said he's engaged to baby mama Georgina Rodriguez ... but her diamond ring was doing A LOT of talking at the Portugal game Wednesday in Russia!

There's been a lot of talk CR7 proposed to her back in April -- just months after she gave birth to their daughter, Alana Martina, back in November.

Well, Wednesday at the World Cup ... Georgina flaunted the ring for everyone to see.

Wasn't hard to spot ... the diamond is the size of her knuckle.

Meanwhile, Ronaldo killed it on the pitch ... scoring the only goal to help Portugal defeat Morocco, 1-0.

Talk about a low-key wedding ...

Cleveland Cavs player Larry Nance Jr. got married at an Ohio courthouse Tuesday and the dress code was as casual as it gets -- Yeezy shoes and Lululemon pants!

There's a story here ... the 25-year-old NBA player and his fiancee, Hailey Pince, were celebrating their 4-year anniversary and decided ... why not get married?

So, they hit the courthouse and made it happen!

"No makeup, hair in a quick ugly pony, Larry in some lulu lemon pants and yeezy’s," Hailey said in an IG post.

But this ain't about saving a buck or two ... Hailey says there's a big destination celebration coming down the pike.

"We needed to get the legal marriage done before our destination wedding and today just seemed like the best day to do it! Happy Four Years! Can't wait for our real wedding!"

Nashville Predators forward Austin Watson was arrested on suspicion of domestic assault at a gas station in Tennessee ... TMZ Sports has learned.

The Franklin Police Dept. tells us ... 26-year-old Watson -- a 1st-round pick in the 2010 NHL Draft -- was arrested on Saturday at 7:20 PM outside of a Shell gas station.

Officials say Watson was charged with domestic assault. He is free on a $4,500 bond and due in court next week.

Details surrounding the incident are unclear -- but the Predators have already issued a statement saying, "We are still gathering facts and it is not appropriate for us to comment further at this time, but this is a matter that we are taking very seriously and will cooperate fully with the investigation by law enforcement."

"The Nashville Predators have and will continue to stand side by side with AMEND in the fight to end violence against women."

Jay-Z says the NFL approached him to perform at the Super Bowl -- but he shot them down saying, "You need me, I don't need you."

It's all part of Jay and Beyonce's new song, "Apesh*t" (featuring Quavo and Offset), which dropped this past weekend. Scroll to 3:31.

One of the key lyrics is when Jay says, "I said no to the Super Bowl: you need me, I don't need you. Every night we in the endzone, tell the NFL we in stadiums too."

Seems to imply Jay rejected the NFL over the handling of the Colin Kaepernick kneeling situation -- a situation Jay has publicly criticized the league for in the past.

Another clue ... in the music video, Jay features at least 11 people taking a knee during that line.

There were reports back in Sept. 2017 that Jay gave a thumbs-down to the NFL -- but he hadn't commented before and the NFL essentially denied it saying no decisions had been made.

The heavyweight fight everyone wants to see -- Deontay Wilder vs. Anthony Joshua -- could happen in the next 6 months ... says the man in charge of broadcasting the event.

TMZ Sports spoke to Stephen Espinoza -- Showtime's president of sports and event programming -- who tell us the "ball is rolling" on making the fight happen in 2018.

"Things are moving. Discussions are happening," Espinoza tells us.

Wilder and Joshua have been calling each other out publicly for the last year -- with Wilder recently saying he'd even fly to England to fight Joshua on his home turf.

Both guys seem down to fight -- it's just a matter of locking up a deal.

Espinoza tell us the fight would be massive -- bigger than Canelo Alvarez vs. GGG -- and only rivaled by Mike Tyson vs. Lennox Lewis in 2002 and the superfights of the 1980s.

Head to the strip club for the girls ... and stay for the shrimp -- at least, that's what boxing star Errol Spence Jr. is saying.

The IBF welterweight champ -- one of the top pound-for-pound boxers in the world -- has become a bit of a partying connoisseur ... and he told us the most underrated place for food on the planet is -- your local gentlemen's club!!

"Strip club food is the best," Spence Jr. told us in NYC.

"Shrimp, chicken -- you can get a salad. Sometimes you get a steak. I mean, they got a whole kitchen back there!"

By the way, Errol's a perfect 24-0 in his boxing career with some big-time wins ... but he told us fighting at Jerry's World in his hometown would be the highlight of his resume.

The Denver Broncos WR who allegedly tried to hide weed from the cops -- by shoveling it into his mouth -- is catching a break ... because he's not going to jail for his afternoon snack.

As we previously reported, Carlos Henderson was arrested in January when cops say he tried to conceal the sticky-icky evidence by eating it -- unsuccessfully -- during a routine traffic stop.

Henderson -- who's going into his 2nd NFL season -- was charged with possession of marijuana and was facing up to 6 months in jail.

But, don't worry ... Henderson's not getting locked up.