TMZ Sports - Page 5

The XFL will have Super Bowl winners, national champs and Hall of Famers leading the charge when it kicks off in 2023 ... with names like Hines Ward, Wade Phillips and Bob Stoops signing on to be head coaches in the league.

The league announced its 8 coaches who will be on the sidelines next year ... with Rod Woodson, Jim Haslett, Terrell Buckley, Reggie Barlow and Anthony Becht rounding out the list.

Of course, Stoops -- a national championship-winning coach with the Oklahoma Sooners in 2000 -- was part of the XFL's original relaunch in 2020 with the Dallas Renegades ... and now he's back again for the league's do-over.

Phillips has been a coach for more than 50 years ... and won Super Bowl 50 with the Denver Broncos as a defensive coordinator.

Ward -- a Pittsburgh Steelers legend and 2-time Super Bowl champ -- started his coaching career in 2019 as an assistant for the New York Jets.

Woodson was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2009 ... and has experience coaching for several NFL teams over the years.

Chris Rock's younger brother wants to do more than slap Will Smith ... he wants to lace up the gloves and climb into the ring for a boxing match!!!

CR's brother, Kenny, just signed a deal with Celebrity Boxing founder Damon Feldman for a fight this summer down in Florida ... but he doesn't have an opponent yet, and he's calling out Will.

Kenny says the size difference wouldn't be an issue for him ... even though Will's taller and once played Muhammad Ali on the big screen ... he's confident he could score a victory over the Oscar-winner.

Remember ... Kenny slammed Will for slapping his brother at the Academy Awards, and now it sounds like he wants to take things to the next level and get physical.

The clock's ticking on Kenny to find an opponent, be it Will or some other celeb ... he's scheduled to fight June 11 at the Charles F. Dodge City Center in Pembroke Pines, FL.

Absolutely wild moment during the Clippers vs. Timberwolves game on Tuesday night -- a fan made her way down to the court and glued herself to the floor ... and everyone, including the players, was stunned by the sight.

The incident went down in the second quarter of the NBA game at the Target Center in Minnesota ... when a woman attempted to stick herself to the hardwood using some Elmer's.

The woman sprayed the adhesive just underneath one of the baskets as the teams were down on the other end of the court, and then she pressed her hand firmly into it.

When security arrived to get her off the floor -- she refused to get up, insisting her wrist was glued down.

Eventually, though, the woman complied with guards and was escorted off the floor.

In a statement released by animal rights group Direct Action Everywhere, officials from the org. said the woman made the scene in an effort to protest Wolves owner Glen Taylor.

The officials accused Taylor and his employees of wrongly killing chickens on his factory egg farm in Iowa. They added that the protester's sweater during Tuesday's game read, "GLEN TAYLOR ROASTS ANIMALS ALIVE."

Wolves guard Patrick Beverley said after the game he did attempt to help the woman out during the protest ... and was praying that she was OK.

No word if the woman was arrested for the stunt ... but the Wolves said in a statement that they were "in touch with Target Center Security to address the incident."

Ohio State legend Cardale Jones gave an emotional speech at a Dwayne Haskins memorial Tuesday night ... praising the former Buckeye and lamenting his tragic death.

Jones said the sweet words to a crowd that had gathered outside of Ohio Stadium ... remembering the 24-year-old as someone who was selfless and always willing to give the shirt off his back.

"I feel like we're all here to grieve together and to pay our respects and somewhat celebrate Dwayne's life," Jones said, just four days after Haskins sadly passed away in a vehicle accident in Florida.

"It just sucks that his life was cut so short but I guess he was just too good for all of us that the Lord had to call him home early."

Jones -- who played at OSU from 2013 to 2015 -- was friends with Haskins ... and during his speech, he said Dwayne always "kept faith and lived out his dreams" when he was alive.

"He's up there looking down on us and telling us to wipe our tears," Jones said. "He will be missed."

Buckeyes running back Master Teague III was also in attendance at the vigil ... where he led a prayer to Haskins' family.

Other current and former Buckeyes that had gathered at the memorial site included Kyle McCord, Kamryn Babb, Xavier Johnson and Sevyn Banks. OSU athletic director, Gene Smith, was also present.

As we previously reported, Haskins was tragically killed on Saturday after being hit by a dump truck on a highway in Fort Lauderdale.

Jake Paul says Oscar De La Hoya is right ... he can -- and already does -- beat up world champions in the boxing ring.

TMZ Sports talked to the 25-year-old, undefeated boxer (5-0, 4 KOs) after the Golden Boy told us earlier this week that the Problem Child was the "real deal" and could "beat a lot of good champions, and even great champions."

Jake's reaction??

"To hear that from [De La Hoya] means a lot, but he's right and I've been saying it all along. I sound so cocky, 'he's right!', but it's true man. I beat world champions in the gym and sparring," Paul says.

"Two years as a professional and I'm already doing that, it's clearly a natural talent that I have, a natural power that I have and I work my ass off. People don't really see that."

Jake says his hard work isn't seen by most fans, but he's killing himself in the gym, every single day.

"They think I just go in there but I'm day in, day out twice a day, three times a day in the gym working on getting better in the sport. It is awesome to hear that and I'm gonna prove that I can beat world champions on the big stage."

Jake has clearly been stepping up the level of competition. He started with a fellow YouTuber, AnEsonGib, before fighting former NBA star Nate Robinson.

Then it was time to move on to the fighters.

In his third fight, Jake boxed former MMA champ Ben Askren. He then fought future UFC Hall of Famer Tyron Woodley ... beating him twice.

Paul has made it clear he wants to go to the very top ... previously telling us he wants to box Canelo Alvarez, the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world.

And Jake says it's clear people in the boxing world have begun to give him more and more respect.

"I think this last fight proved that people have to take me seriously and that everyone should be on high alert and I'm just getting started with what's to come."

Gilbert Burns wants a rematch with Khamzat Chimaev!

TMZ Sports talked to 35-year-old Burns -- the first time the UFC star has broken his silence since leaving the Octagon after losing a 3-round decision at UFC 273 -- and chopped it up about everything from a rematch, what it was fighting Khamzat, to how Chimaev would fare against champ Kamaru Usman (Burns is the only person to face both).

Oh, and Gilbert is also interested in scrapping with Nate Diaz ... if that rematch with Borz isn't immediate.

Full Interview ⬇️⬇️⬇️

But, first ... we asked Gilbert if he won the fight (technically, all three judges scored the fight for Khamzat, but the fight was razer close), and that's when he called for the rematch.

"I believe it was super close. I don't want to take nothing away from Khamzat, he was a warrior in there, too. I just believe we are not done. We have to do this again."

Burns later continued ... "Even if I think it's fair, wasn't fair, I don't want to take no credit from those 15 minutes. It was genuine, it was a lot of heart, it was a lot of intensity, intimacy, I don't want to take nothing away from that."

"I think the judges do whatever they have to do, but I'm just thinking we aren't done. Me and Khamzat have to see each other again. Somebody gotta go down next time, I don't care how many rounds we need in there."

We also asked GB what was it like to face MMA's boogeyman ... a guy many believed was indestructible.

As you may know ... Khamzat only absorbed one "significant" shot in his first four UFC fights. But, that was before he stepped in the cage with Gilbert ... who put 119 significant shots on Chimaev (KC landed 108 significant strikes).

So, what was it like to be in there with Khamzat??

"Definitely a lot of pop in his hands. That guy hits very hard. But like I said before, I have a ton of respect for this guy, but I don't see no Super Man. I don't see no murderer, no monster. I see a guy just like me with a lot of will, a lot of heart, trying to get a finish."

The UFC rankings came out on Tuesday, and Chimaev jumped from 11 to 3 (Gilbert went from 2 to 4). Prior to the fight, UFC prez Dana White told us he was eyeing a Khamzat vs. Colby Covington fight (#1 contender).

If Chimaev was able to beat Covington, it's all but guaranteed he'd get a fight with Usman.

So, as the only UFC fighter to face both Khamzat and Kamaru, we asked Burns who'd win.

"That would be a tough fight. I still think Kamaru hits harder. Kamaru put me out, you know? [Khamzat] hit me with everything and he didn't put me out."

"The difference as of right now, for sure, after these wars, that guy's gonna get better, I believe. The IQ of Kamaru Usman, if I gotta answer that question right now, will be the difference. Kamaru is a very intelligent and tested fighter. He's been in the wars, he's been against best guys around and I think Kamaru's MMA wrestling is better than Khamzat's. That's my takeaway."

Burns knows he likely won't get an immediate rematch with Chimaev ... so he has an alternative opponent in mind.

"I want a big fight. I know Nate Diaz need an opponent. I think that will be a crazy fight. I can put in the contract 'no takedown attempts.' Just stand up," Gilbert says.

Travis Kelce's girlfriend, Kayla Nicole, just went off on Cam Newton over the comments he made about women this week ... blasting the guy for his "foolish" and "tired" remarks.

Just two days after Cam said he believed a real woman should "cater to a man's needs" and know how to cook and "when to be quiet" ... Kayla shaded the hell out of the former NFL star.

She ripped him for appearing to define a woman's worth by her abilities in the kitchen and her willingness to "allow a man to lead" -- eviscerating him in a video on her Instagram page.

"This man said that you need to be able to cook and know when to be quiet," Kayla said. "Because that's what his momma did. Like, boy! Go date your momma then!"

The Chiefs star's GF explained her beef with Cam further in a series of tweets on her Twitter account ... calling Cam a straight-up "bozo" for his comments.

"Pretty sure the average woman is capable of making edible food," Kayla said. "How do you think she’s survived thus far?"

"It's really not a matter of can she cook -- it's more like does she want to cook for your hungry hippo ass."

Kayla -- who's been dating Kelce since 2017 -- then poked fun at Cam for currently being without an NFL team ... saying, "He has nothing but time to 'be quiet' and get that ass in the kitchen."

Logan Paul is finally revealing how he broke his hand last year ... admitting it happened while drunkenly attempting to get the high score on an arcade boxing game.

TMZ Sports posted pics of Logan with a busted hand back in September ... but for the longest time, no one knew the 5 Ws and 1 H about the injury.

As it turns out, the Maverick was out on the town in Germany ... and when he came across an arcade punching bag at a bar, he grew determined to stroke his own "I'm a real boxer" ego and get the top score.

Logan says the bartender warned him beforehand about a column positioned right next to the game that has resulted in several broken hands in the past ... but he had his eyes set on his goal.

"I said, 'Guy, I'm a boxer,'" Logan said on his "Impaulsive" podcast. "I go, 'I'm not going to hit the f***ing wall.'"

Sure enough, on Logan's third and final attempt ... he gave himself a running start, wound up and his hand made solid contact with the Column of Doom ... shattering his paw in the process.

But, before he went to the hospital, Logan decided to record some epic #content ... showing off his bones and joking about trying the game one last time.

Eventually, Logan went to get checked out, where he learned he broke his third metacarpal -- which is located at the base of the middle finger.

The scary part -- Paul says he was told it's a career-ending injury for boxers.

"It was very hard to hear, it was very depressing -- especially when you're drunk, hearing things like this," Paul said.

But, Logan says he's recovered now and is already back to training ... and as he told us last month, he is planning to take a fight in 2022.

Joey B Baby and the "B" stands for baseball??

NFL superstar Joe Burrow isn't just great at throwing the pigskin -- the Bengals QB took the mound to throw the first pitch at the Reds' Opening Day game ... and it was a strike right down the middle!!

The AFC champ was a VIP guest at Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati on Tuesday ... meeting and hanging out with Joey Votto and others before the Reds' matchup against the Cleveland Guardians.

But, it was #9 who displayed his skills first ... as he took the mound to throw the ceremonial toss, with Bengals head coach Zac Taylor lined up behind the plate as his catcher.

Joey looked calm as ever as he prepared for the throw ... and naturally, it was a perfect strike.

The crowd, of course, cheered for their QB ... after all, the dude's got the whole city in the palm of his hand after taking the Bengals to the Super Bowl in just his second season in the league.

Cain Velasquez has finally broken his silence on his attempted murder case -- releasing a statement from jail on Tuesday, thanking his supporters and urging "the true victims of this case" to come forward.

Velasquez just posted the message on his social media page -- just hours before he's set to go before a judge for a hearing in the case -- saying he's grateful for all of the fighters and fans who have pleaded for his release from jail following his February arrest.

"To everyone that has expressed your support, my family and I will never be able to thank you enough," Velasquez said. "From the bottom of our hearts and the depths of our souls, we are forever grateful for your love."

The 39-year-old did not go into detail about his side of the story in the case, but he did say it's "complex and slowly unraveling as we speak."

As we reported, officials say Velasquez shot at Harry Goularte multiple times on Feb. 28 in Santa Clara County, Calif. ... after the man was accused of molesting one of Velasquez's close relatives.

Velasquez has been hit with 10 criminal charges, including one count of felony attempted murder.

In his note, Velasquez urged the "true victims of this case" -- presumably others he believes Goularte has molested -- to speak out.

"May God give you the strength to come forward," the UFC legend said. "Though it is most difficult to relive the pain that has happened to you, in speaking the truth, justice will be served and your own true healing will start."

"I will never stop helping or loving my community and all of you. Thank you for loving me."

Velasquez's hearing is slated to begin at 1:30 PM PT. There is a chance he could finally be released from jail following the court session.

A youth baseball umpire was attacked on the field during a game over the weekend and was forced to go to the hospital ... after he says a coach disagreed with some of his calls.

Sam Phelps was behind home plate for a boys baseball game on Saturday in The Colony, Texas ... when he claims a few of his out/safe, balls/strikes decisions pissed off a coach on the field.

Phelps explained the situation to FOX4, saying it all came to a boiling point in the third inning ... seconds after he called a kid safe at home.

Phelps says the coach walked out of the dugout, mocked him and then shoved him to the ground after Phelps ejected him.

Video from the diamond shows the coach put his hands near the umpire's face, pushed him hard -- and caused the man to hit the dirt with force.

Phelps says he went to a nearby medical facility in an ambulance and was checked for head injuries, before he was ultimately released later in the evening.

Phelps said he's now looking to press charges against the coach -- explaining he believes punishment is necessary in order to protect everyone involved at games going forward.

"I don't want to destroy anyone's life," Phelps said. "But, I would like this to be a learning opportunity to get this out there."

We reached out to The Colony Police Dept. ... and a spokesperson told us officers did respond to the scene and did take a report. The spokesperson added an investigation is underway.

As for the coach's future at the baseball park, the org. that hosted the game Saturday told FOX4 it's banned the man and his team from all future events.

Nets forward Kevin Durant is condemning the tragic subway shooting in Brooklyn on Tuesday ... calling it "devastating" and saying he "hates senseless violence."

Durant addressed the media after the Nets walkthrough ahead of their play-in game tonight against the Cavaliers at the Barclays Center.

"It's devastating," Durant said, adding ... "I don't know the details. To hear the sirens out front of the practice facility and see so much commotion going on outside, you hope and pray for the best for everybody involved."

Durant said he received a text saying there might be heavy traffic on his way to the arena but the reason for it was never specified. Durant told reporters he initially heard about the tragedy from his teammates, but admits he didn't know the severity of the situation.

"I hate violence," Durant said, "I hate senseless violence."

"Hopefully we can figure out the details and get everybody to safety and get everybody the help that they need, but it's a tough situation right now."

Durant, of course, is referencing the mass shooting that occurred at a Brooklyn subway station this morning in NYC where at least 10 people were shot and several others were left injured during the chaos, according to the Associated Press.

The incident happened at the 36th Street station in the borough's Sunset Park neighborhood, which is not too far from where the Nets practice at the HSS Training Center.

Head coach Steve Nash also responded to the shooting, calling it "a very tragic morning," saying the Nets org. is "devastated for the community and those directly involved."

As of now, the Nets are still expected to host the Cavs tonight as both teams fight for playoff seeding.

Here's a video that'll surely wake up the "baseball's boring" crowd ...

An amateur league player lit his bat on fire during a game and then smoked a line drive single with the piece of lumber ... and footage of the play is awesome!!!

The wild scene all went down in a recent Savannah Bananas vs. Savannah Party Animals game in Georgia -- when Zak Whalin came to the plate with his bat ablaze.

In broadcast video from the game, you can see Whalin's bat was completely engulfed in flames as he was taking pitches.

At one point during the AB, though, Whalin was able to crack a single with the smoking bat -- barely beating out the throw from centerfield to reach first base safely. Yeah ... awesome, right?!

If you're unfamiliar -- plays like these happen quite often in Bananas games ... some have called the team the Harlem Globetrotters of baseball, despite being members of the Coastal Plain League, a respected collegiate summer baseball league.

In fact, the team has been known to do TikTok dances mid-play before!!

Can't imagine the Boston Red Sox or New York Yankees doing anything like this on the diamond anytime soon ... but if they did, who'd be all that mad about it?!

Alex Volkanovski wants into the UFC's champ-champ club after his latest dominating performance ... telling TMZ Sports he wants to go up a weight class and fight the winner of Justin Gaethje vs. Charles Oliveira.

We talked to 33-year-old Volkanovski -- who was nearly flawless against the "Korean Zombie" Saturday night at UFC 273 -- and asked him, in a perfect world, what and/or who he wanted next, and without hesitation, Volk dropped this news.

"Lightweight title. Lightweight title. The timing works well cause I want to be active this year. [Gaethje and Oliveira are] fighting in a month. Winner of that title fight fights in August or something like that. That's perfect. That sounds like a great idea to me."

FYI, Alex -- who previously played rugby, weighing up to 214 lbs. -- hasn't lost a fight since May 2013 ... and it was at WELTERWEIGHT. In fact, the 5'6" star has even fought at middleweight (185 lbs.)

Point being, 155 lbs. doesn't seem crazy for the man who's held the featherweight crown since December 2019.

Volkanovski's reign at featherweight (145 lbs.) has been nothing short of dominant. Alex beat Max Holloway twice (who many believe is the featherweight G.O.A.T.), Brian Ortega, Chad Mendes, and Jose Aldo, to name just a few.

As for #1 contender, Justin Gaethje, and lightweight champ, Charles Oliveira ... they're fighting at UFC 274 on May 7.

Gaethje is coming off a win against Michael Chandler at UFC 268. Oliveira successfully defended his title against Dustin Poirier at UFC 269.

Champ-champ status is clearly something that's important to Alex ... who's been the 145 lb. champ since

"It's a goal that I'm looking for, that double champ status," Volkanovski says.

"Again, I haven't really been pushing for it. I know I've mentioned it, but I've always mentioned it as in the near future. It's only now that I'm mentioning it as in 'I think it's deserving.'"

Will Dana White give Alex a fight at 155?? And, can he join the exclusive club made up of only Conor McGregor, Daniel Cormier, Amanda Nunes, and Henry Cejudo??

Tom Brady is still the G.O.A.T. on the football field and in his household -- 'cause he says he just whooped his oldest son in a game of 1-on-1 basketball.

TB12 shared some rare footage of him hoopin' on his Instagram page on Tuesday ... showing a little bit of his recent contest with 14-year-old Jack.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers superstar looked smooth as butter in the clip, hitting a jumper over the kid -- much to the young Brady's dismay.

Brady also showed some pics of him blowing by Jack in the lane all while appearing to be on his way to hitting a scoop layup.

No word on what the final score of the game was -- but Tom wrote on his social media page, "Dad still wins for now."

Tom did show some love to Jack, though -- saying the kid is improving on the court, writing, "I don't love my chances next year."

The NFL star might not be blowin' smoke -- Jack appears to be growing like a weed ... check out the huge spurt he's appeared to hit since 2021.

Tom has said in the past that Jack loves sports -- and could follow in his athletic footsteps one day.

A man in Florida claims he saw Dwayne Haskins walking in the middle of a highway right before the NFL player's death ... and says he was so concerned at the sight, he called 911 in an attempt to get help.

Chris Stanley told NBC 6 South Florida this week that after he dropped his daughter off at the airport in Fort Lauderdale, he was traveling on I-595 when cars -- including a "tractor-trailer" type vehicle -- started to veer into his lane from the right.

Stanley says he then noticed a man he believes to be Haskins start walking into the road with his arms partially raised ... and immediately became worried that a car would crash into him.

The outlet says the witness called 911 for assistance at 6:31 AM ... shortly before the crash was reported to authorities.

Stanley says he did not spot a vehicle on the side of the highway ... nor did he see anything else that could explain what the person he thinks was Haskins was doing.

"That's why it's just very disturbing," he says. "I just didn't understand the situation."

As we previously reported, Haskins died after being struck by a dump truck Saturday morning around 6:37 AM near Fort Lauderdale. He was just 24 years old.

The sports world has mourned the loss in the days following the tragedy ... with names like Joe Burrow, T.J. Watt, Mike Tomlin and more sharing their grief.