Gene Simmons Selling Vegas Mansion for $13.5 mil ... For Massive Profit

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PRETTIEST PAD IN VEGAS
TMZ.com

Gene Simmons is selling his Las Vegas home overlooking the strip for $13.5 mil -- turning a massive profit if he sells -- but he doesn't want just any knucklehead to live in it.

The "Kiss" Frontman joined us on "TMZ Live" and we asked why he decided to sell his beautiful estate and why the price has been reduced -- originally listed as $14.95 mil.

The 11,000-sq-ft home has 6 bedrooms and has many unique features -- including a courtyard, private oasis and 11-seat theater. The singer says he bought a half-acre lot next door and planted 137 trees, so it's really like no other property seen in Vegas nowadays.

Simmons stressed that Vegas is the perfect place to live with no income, state or local tax. So, why in the world is he selling it?! He says his family doesn't want to deal with the Vegas heat or any strippers -- for that matter.

His family might share an unpopular opinion, because in recent years out-of-state buyers have flocked to Vegas, and as far as the prices of homes? Soaring!!

In fact, Simmons says he could really sell the home for nearly double its price, but insists that he doesn't just want any random knucklehead living there. Instead, he wants to meet the next tenant and for them to enjoy living there.

I guess whatever happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, except Gene Simmons and his family ... but they are making room for its new residents.

KY Sheriff Arrested Allegedly Struck Teenage Girl While Coaching Hoops Game

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THE ALLEGED INCIDENT
Perry County Central Athletics

Sheriff Brent Lynch -- the top law enforcement official in Owsley County, KY -- was arrested for assault on Thursday after allegedly striking a teenage girl while coaching a girls basketball game.

The incident -- which was captured on camera -- went down in Perry County, KY last Friday. Lynch, a coach for Owsley County, dashed onto the court after players on both teams started fighting.

Lynch is accused of hitting a girl in the face ... and has been charged with 4th-degree assault. The charge carries up to 1 year in jail and a fine, if convicted.

He is currently behind bars in Three Forks Regional Jail ... after he was arrested by his own officers this morning.

The Sherriff -- who assumed office in January 2019 -- is listed as 6', 190 lbs. on his booking sheet. He was booked at 9:59 AM. Prior to serving in his current role, Lynch was a Kentucky State Police officer.

FYI, Owsley is a small county with a population of around 4,000 people in eastern Kentucky.

Sherriff Lynch has been suspended from his job as basketball coach. As for his day job as law enforcement, it's unclear if he'll remain on the job, or be suspended or fired as he deals with his criminal case.

Travis Scott He's Making Excuses, Taking No Responsibility??? Attorney for Victim's Family Pissed About Interview

Travis Scott is doing his level best to push all responsibility for Astroworld casualties onto anyone other than himself -- that's how an attorney for one of the victims views the rapper's first interview about the tragedy.

Tony Buzbee is representing the family of Axel Acosta ... a 21-year-old who died from injuries suffered at the concert. He says he watched the 50-minute sit down with Charlamagne tha God and was offended by what he sees as Travis attempting to paint himself as a victim.

"Axel Acosta and the many others killed or injured are the victims. Travis Scott, his entourage, handlers, promoters, managers, hangers on and everyone else who enable him are the problem. Everything that Travis Scott has done or said since ten people died and hundreds of others were injured at his concert has been lawyer driven and calculated to shift blame from him to someone else."

Buzbee -- who's already filed a $750 million suit against Travis and others -- also isn't buying the artist's claim he had no idea of the mayhem fans were going through in the crowd ... even if he wasn't told in his ears. Buzbee says, "He now says he had an earpiece in, and was not told what was going on in the crowd. That raises the question: Did he have an earpiece in his eye? Why did he purposely ignore the death and mayhem occurring literally feet from him?”

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RADIO SILENCE
YouTube/CThaGod

Travis has acknowledged seeing at least one emergency vehicle in the audience ... and video shows him pointing it out and seeming very puzzled as to why it was there.

Buzbee believes Travis' interview was just an attempt to dodge responsibility and accountability -- and, in doing so, he says Travis "further exacerbates the pain of those that lost loved ones. Axel Acosta’s family doesn’t want to hear Travis Scott’s excuses; excuses do not assuage their grief and pain."

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NAVIGATING THROUGH THE CROWD
TMZ.com

He says he and Axel's family "intend to force Travis Scott to accept responsibility for his conduct, in court, in front of a jury."

Josh Duggar Found Guilty In Child Porn Trial

UPDATE

12:29 PM PT -- We've just obtained Duggar's new mug shot.

UPDATE

11:31 AM PT -- Fox24 obtained footage of Duggar being booked at the Washington County Sheriff's Office. He'll be in custody until his sentencing.

UPDATE

Josh Duggar was just found guilty on both counts by a jury in his child pornography trial ... TMZ has confirmed.

The "19 Kids and Counting" star was charged with one count each of receiving and possessing child pornography. Prosecutors claimed some of those images included minors below the age of 12.

Duggar's legal team of Justin Gelfand, Ian Murphy and Travis Story tell us, "We appreciate the jury’s lengthy deliberations, we respect the jury’s verdict, and we intend to appeal.”

Duggar was taken into federal custody, a sentencing date has not yet been set.

On November 19, the feds raided his office at the car dealership where Duggar worked in Arkansas ... DHS agents seized his computer plus his iPhone and a MacBook from inside an RV.

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ARRIVING TO COURT
BACKGRID

The two-week-long trial included testimony from digital forensic analysts along with other witnesses. One family friend claimed the former reality star confessed to molesting children in a tearful testimony on the witness stand.

Josh mainly sat with his head down during the trial, and now he will await his sentence.

He faces up to 20 years in prison on each count.

Originally Published -- 8:19 AM PT

Adele Fans Pissed with Vegas Resale Prices $2k-$35K a Pop!!!

It's no surprise Adele's Vegas show is a hot ticket, but it's hard to imagine anyone could have predicted just how expensive resale prices would be to see the singer live.

The rollout for "Weekends with Adele" started this week -- a series of Friday/Saturday shows at Caesars Palace from January to April -- and fans were crazy to get their hands on tickets.

Unsurprisingly, presales sold out within minutes, and tickets were quick to popup on resale services like StubHub and Ticketmaster. However, fans who didn't capitalize on the initial sale were pissed to see resale prices ... which ranged from $2k to $35k!!!

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One fan wrote, "Adele out her rabbit a** mind with these concert ticket prices." Another chimed in, " ... guess we're the ones paying her husband alimony."

Of course, re-sellers can decide to sell their seats at whatever price they want -- it's up to fans whether or not to spend the money -- and they'll likely take a drop ... but the opening price is crazy, nonetheless.

Adele recently performed for some of her celebrity friends in L.A. -- including Oprah, Drake and Lizzo -- and helped pull off a surprise marriage proposal.

There is, however, a possible solution to the insane prices ... just last week a group of Congressional Democrats introduced the "Stopping Grinch Bots Act" in an attempt to stop ticket scalpers from using bots to buy up highly desired items, including tickets.

Travis Scott Breaks Astroworld Silence with Charlamagne ... Denies Knowing of Fan Injuries

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RADIO SILENCE
YouTube/CThaGod

Travis Scott is breaking his silence for the first time since Astroworld, insisting he didn't know the severity of what was happening in the crowd, and alleging the person in his ear never expressed an urgency to immediately stop the show.

Travis sat down with Charlamagne tha God for nearly an hour to talk all things about the tragic Houston festival. Travis says he feels a sense of responsibility to figure out what went wrong, but did everything he could with the knowledge he had during the show.

Travis claims his "in-ear" told him to end the show "after the guest" AKA Drake, and that he was never told just how bad things were in the crowd.

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I UNDERSTAND
YouTube/CThaGod

At times, Travis was clearly emotional -- especially when talking about the families who lost loved ones -- and even says he's met with some of them privately.

Travis says, "They lost their loved ones, I just always wanna be there for them, I’m gonna fix this problem and make sure this doesn’t happen in the future and be the number one voice for this. We gotta figure it out.”

Charlamagne asked Travis if he felt a sense of responsibility for what happened, and while Travis admits he was the face of the festival, he says he feels his responsibility is now to figure out what went wrong and how to prevent it in the future. In other words, he never takes responsibility, nor does he lay the blame on anyone else.

While he was pressured several times to say who was responsible, TS never gives a straight answer -- mostly preaching a message of future prevention.

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A LOT TO FIGURE OUT
YouTube/CThaGod

He does, however, say as an artist, he and his team focus on the creativity of the show ... not so much the safety and logistics -- something that's handled by promoters.

One safety possibility Travis suggests -- though how exactly it would work is still in the air -- is to equip fan festival wristbands with health and location trackers to pinpoint issues in the crowd.

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PLEAS FROM THE CROWD
TikTok/@cpvris_

Travis says he never heard pleas from the crowd, asking him to stop ... and says he's done the best he can during shows in the past -- and even at Astroworld -- to stop the show when he could see someone needed help.

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POLICE PRESENCE
Adekunle Adetomiwa/@Kun.Lens

TMZ broke the story ... there was an apparent breakdown in communication from the time Houston Fire Dept declared the concert a "mass casualty event" and the time the show ended. We obtained video showing cops watching and recording the show nearly 30 minutes after the declaration was allegedly made.

Scott was heavily criticized for photos showing him golfing with Mark Wahlberg and Michael Jordan over Thanksgiving. Charlamagne asks Travis why he chose to go, and while he didn't really expand, Travis said Mark and Jordan were good people for him to be around, and it was just a thing for the holiday.

Finally, near the end of the interview, Charlamagne asks Travis if he'll ever be able to get over or forgive himself for what happened, to which Travis replies, "It’s tough, my intentions weren’t to hurt or harm their families, I wanted them to have a good experience, when my fans came to see me it's a connection.”

AEW's Anthony Bowens Fan Yells Homophobic Slur ... At Openly Gay Wrestler

A fan shouted a homophobic slur at gay AEW star Anthony Bowens during a match this week ... and it's disgusting.

Bowens -- who publicly came out as bisexual in 2017, but now identifies as gay -- was locked up with Jungle Boy in a 4-on-4 tag team match when the incident took place.

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HORRENDOUS HECKLER
AEW

In the video, you can hear the fan yell the hateful words, saying "f*****g f**" ... as JB and Bowens collided in the middle of the ring.

It's unclear exactly who hurled the slur ... but it was heard over the raucous crowd.

Bowens addressed the ugly incident on social media after the event, writing ... "This is why I posted that photo the other day. Stuff like this unfortunately still exists. Not phased, I'll just keep fighting against stuff like this till the day I die.🌈"

Of course, Bowens is referring to a photo he posted on Instagram recently, where he's proudly kissing his BF in front of protestors.

Bowens wrote ... "Standup against hate," tagging both his partner Michael Pavano -- a YouTube star -- as well as GLAAD and the Human Rights Campaign in the post.

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In 2019, Anthony spoke to Sports Illustrated about the importance of his role in the sport ... representing the LGBTQ+ community.

As for the match ... Bowens and his tag team partners, including Max Caster, were unable to get the victory, but it's clear that wasn't the biggest disappointment of the night for the star wrestler.

Saudi Arabia Camel Pageant Crackdown ... 40 Busted for Botox, Plastic Surgery!!!

Talk about busting humps ... 40 camels -- that apparently think they're straight outta Bev Hills -- are now booted from a Saudi Arabian beauty pageant for getting Botox, facelifts and more!!!

Yep, Saudi authorities are cracking down on dozens of camels they've deemed too cute to be real for an annual competition over there. The judges are now using "specialized and advanced" technology to see which contestants went under the knife to gain an edge over the others.

Far as we've heard, none of the humped hopefuls are guilty of getting BBLs, but some are guilty of just about everything else -- getting all sorts of fillers, nips and tucks to facial features and ears ... and even hormone treatments.

The monthlong festival kicked off earlier this month with breeders parading their most beautiful camels. So, why would they cheat? Well, the winner gets $66 mil in cash!!!

Camels are judged by their head shape, dress, posture and size of their lips, cheeks, knees -- and yes, their lovely lady humps. And, cosmetic altercations are strictly prohibited.

As you know ... camels are a staple in Saudi Arabia, and breeding them is a multibillion-dollar industry.

Good luck to all (clean) camels left in the competition!!!

Simone Biles Named 'Athlete Of The Year' ... By TIME Magazine

The "Athlete Of The Year" isn't Super Bowl champ Tom Brady or gold medal-winning gymnast Suni Lee ... it's Simone Biles, according to Time Magazine, who ironically receives the accolade for NOT performing.

It's a controversial pick (check Twitter) by Time ... who selected the 24-year-old, 4x Olympic gold medalist as the recipient of the prestigious honor.

Of course, Biles pulled out of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics after struggling with mental health issues, including the "Twisties" -- where a gymnast becomes disoriented in the air (dangerous when you're tumbling in the air) -- causing her to pull out of the Games.

At the time, Biles tearfully explained her decision to withdraw, explaining she was seeing a therapist to help battle her "demons," saying "I have to focus on my mental health and not jeopardize my health and well-being."

Biles was widely celebrated by fellow athletes and fans across the country for putting a spotlight on mental health.

However, there were also detractors who say Biles flat-out quit on her team and country ... insisting there's nothing to celebrate.

Count teammate Suni Lee -- who recently was named "Athlete Of The Year" by Sports Illustrated (along with swimmer Caeleb Dressel) -- firmly on the side of those who say Biles positively changed sports forever.

“What Simone did changed the way we view our well-being, 100%. It showed us that we are more than the sport, that we are human beings who also can have days that are hard. It really humanized us.”

And, Biles is adamant she wouldn't change a thing about how she handled Tokyo.

“I was torn because things weren’t going the way I wanted," Simone told Time, saying, "But looking back, I wouldn’t change it for anything.”

Simone Biles "Athlete Of The Year" ...

Slim 400 Dead at 33 Shot and Killed in L.A.

UPDATE

11:44 AM PT -- Cops say they were called to the area on a report of gunshots, when they arrived, they located Slim 400 suffering from a gunshot wound in the driveway of a home. He was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.

UPDATE

9:08 AM PT -- Law enforcement sources tell us that while there is a raging gang war going on between the bloods and the crips -- Slim's murder does not appear to be a targeted hit -- more a case of "wrong place wrong time."

Slim 400 -- an up-and-coming rapper in the California hip-hop scene -- has been shot and killed in L.A. ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Slim was gunned down Wednesday night in Inglewood. It's currently unclear what led to the shooting and how many suspects were involved.

Born to military parents in Germany, Slim moved back to Los Angeles as a young child and was raised in Compton. The rapper was later discovered and signed by the now nonexistent Pu$haz Ink music label -- the same one made popular by YG and DJ Mustard.

Slim narrowly escaped death back in the summer of 2019 when he was shot 9 times in L.A. Slim claimed he was ambushed in the attack while visiting family in Compton.

Slim 400 was just 33.

RIP

Originally Published -- 4:26 AM PT

Soccer's Samantha Kerr Bodies Fan After Running On Field ... During Game

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LEAVE IT TO ME
Twitter/@Bcoxy2012

Chelsea soccer player Samantha Kerr ain't fond of fans on the field --- 'cause she straight-up leveled an intruder who interrupted a match this week ... and the video is wild.

It all went down Wednesday night during the 87th minute of the Champions League match between Chelsea vs. Juventus ... when a man in a black jacket and grey sweats walked onto the pitch and tried to get selfies with the players.

His attempt had consequences, 'cause when he walked towards the Chelsea forward, she hit him with a ferocious body check that sent him flying to the turf.

The crowd was very impressed with the 28-year-old's maneuver, yelling "ooooohhh" while the fan was laid out on the ground.

He eventually got up and ran away ... when security finally came through and took him away.

The crazy part?? Kerr was actually penalized for the defensive stop on the intruder ... receiving a yellow card from the refs.

Chelsea manager Emma Hayes spoke about Kerr's actions ... saying, "it should serve as a reminder to us all in our stadiums and with our stewards we've got to put out player protection first."

"He could have waited until the end for a photograph if he really wanted one."

J. Prince Ye & Drake Are Gonna Save Lives By Sharing Stage for Benefit

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PERFORMANCE OF PEACE
TMZ.com

Drake and Ye wouldn't be getting ready for tonight's huge Larry Hoover benefit concert at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum if music mogul J. Prince hadn't stepped in to broker their peace treaty ... and he's telling TMZ how he pulled it off.

The Rap-A-Lot Records honcho says there was nothing easy about getting the 2 hip-hop giants to lay down their swords after years of sniping that got incredibly personal. When J. Prince joined us on "TMZ Live," he said his choice of words mattered more than ever.

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"LAY OUR PRIDE TO THE SIDE"

You'll recall ... Prince was side by side with Ye when he recorded a video last month, extending an olive branch to Drake by asking him to join him for a concert that would raise awareness for Larry Hoover's case, in particular, and for criminal justice reform in general.

After that, he got both men face-to-face at Drizzy's Toronto mansion, and Prince says he had to use a "special lingo to reach these guys' hearts."

He says he stressed to Drake ... he had a chance to set an example for all of hip-hop about how to settle beefs peacefully. As he put it to us, "this is a situation that could save lives."

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ALL THANKS TO DAD
TMZ.com

J. Prince was quick to give Hoover himself credit for suggesting the concert ... and Larry Hoover Jr. echoed that when we saw him Wednesday in Los Angeles. He says his father -- who's been locked up since 1995 for a murder, drug conspiracy and extortion -- didn't want to see Drake and Ye possibly lose their lives to violence.

We also tried to get a preview of what kinda spectacle to expect at the Coliseum tonight, but watch ... Larry's playing it pretty coy.

Nicki Minaj Fires Back at Hubby's Accuser ... You're a Liar!!!

Nicki Minaj is calling the woman accusing her and her husband of harassment a bold-faced liar -- claiming there are holes in her story that NM and co. believe totally discredit her.

The rapper's attorney filed legal docs, obtained by TMZ, responding to Jennifer Hough's lawsuit from August -- where she claimed Nicki, Kenneth Petty and a gaggle of lawyers were on her case ... trying to get her to recant her attempted rape claim against Ken ... which she made in the '90s and for which KP was convicted.

Long story short ... Nicki's legal team is calling BS on Hough's allegations, going so far as to ask the court to sanction her for what they say are blatant falsehoods, which they think she hurled in an attempt to score a payday from Nicki.

The crux of their argument lies in a couple different inconsistencies they say lie within Hough's account of things -- namely, her claiming she had to change her phone number due to the alleged harassment she was receiving from Nicki, plus the claim Nicki's team had reached out to her brother with a $500k offer if she recanted in a written statement.

On the phone issue ..,. Nicki's attorney says Hough actually texted Nicki after claiming she needed to change her number and move back in June 2020 to block Nicki and her people from contacting her. Nicki says the text read "US Marshalls are asking questions!!!" The lawyer draws a conclusion from this -- Hough wasn't actually trying to hide her number from Nicki at all (contrary to what she alleges). Nicki's team thinks it makes it clear she wasn't scared and is just looking for a payday.

There's also the issue of an interview Hough gave earlier this year, which the attorney says differs from what she alleged in court docs. In the interview, NM's lawyer says Hough noted her brother told her somebody had reached out with a $500k offer if she talked to a lawyer repping Petty. NM's lawyer said the allegation in the lawsuit that Nicki was behind the offer is merely speculation that gave her a reason to try to sue Nicki.

Bottom line ... Nicki's lawyer says this woman was looking to score a quick buck from Minaj, and is now twisting the tale to do so.

Henry Winkler on 'Happy Days' Fonz Collection Goes for a Bundle Motor Bike, OG Outfit Too

There are probably a handful of "Happy Days" fans who are walking away from one Henry Winkler-themed auction thinking one thing ... aaaayyyyeeeeee, jackpot!!!!

Bonhams -- an auction house -- had all the Fonz goods anybody who's watched the show could ever want and put it up for sale this Wednesday, with the spoils going to the highest bidder. And boy, did people throw down.

Among the most prized items -- the 1949 Triumph Trophy 500 motorbike that Winkler (aka Fonzie) actually rode on the show, which went for a whopping $231,562. That's staggeringly more than what it was expected to fetch ... just $80k-$120k.

The sale also offered an opportunity to match the Fonz's style, down a T -- HW's actual costume from the show was also on the auction block ... going for $75,312. The outfit came with the signature brown leather jacket, 2 white t-shirts, jeans ... and a pair of black leather biker boots, which were worn throughout the first 5 years.

There was a lot more Fonzie stuff up for grabs too -- including a pair of mechanic overalls that Winkler wore on the show, an Army shirt he rocked as Fonz and cowboy boots he once donned. All those went for about $14k, $2k and $1k, respectively.

A portion of the proceeds from the sale will be donated to “This Is About Humanity,” a charity run by his daughter Zoe, which raises awareness and funds for families separated at the US-Mexico Border.

The entire collection is a sight to behold, and clearly drew the attention (and wallets) of 'Happy' adorers ... who seemed more than willing to pony up for some sweet memorabilia.

For the folks lucky enough to score, these days aarrrrrree ... pretty amazing.

Laugh Factory Hollywood Raises Over a Million Dollars ... For Pearl Harbor Museum

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CHUCKLING FOR A CAUSE
Laugh Factory

The attack on Pearl Harbor is one of the great tragedies in American History -- certainly no laughing matter, but West Coast comedians dished out their best jokes to raise a healthy buck for a museum honoring the historic event ... and by healthy, we mean 7 figures.

The Laugh Factory held a virtual telethon on Tuesday -- marking the 80th anniversary of Pearl Harbor -- out here in Hollywood ... where comics like Paul Rodriguez, Sherri Shepherd, Dane Cook, Alonzo Bodden, Donnell Rawlings and Aida Rodriguez, to name a few, came out for some standup in the name of fundraising for the Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum.

The museum is in Honolulu, where the siege actually occurred -- and the money raised is going straight to them, so they can keep it up and put up even more tributes to the heroes who fought and died.

Anyway, the whole thing ended up being a huge success ... with sources telling us that around $1.63 million total was raised since last weekend -- when this whole campaign kicked off. A majority of that money, we're told, was gifted by an anonymous donor ... supposedly a legend in the aviation world. On Tuesday itself, our sources say around $300k was donated.

BTW, this effort to honor vets and fallen soldiers had a special cameo -- the late Bob Hope's own daughter, Linda, was on hand to deliver a few remarks ... carrying on her father's legacy of spreading humor and joy among our armed service members.

Cool story all the way around, for sure.

Kevin Ferguson Jr. Inks Deal W/ Celebrity Boxing ... Kimbo Slice's Son

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TRAINING STARTS NOW

Baby Slice -- aka Kevin Ferguson Jr. -- is putting his MMA career on hold ... 'cause the fighter just signed a deal with Celebrity Boxing, the org.'s CEO tells TMZ Sports.

29-year-old Slice, 3-3 as a professional mixed martial arts fighter with Bellator, recently part with the promotion ... announcing he was transitioning to the boxing ring.

Well, that's now officially official, 'cause Damon Feldman tells us he's signed Ferguson Jr. and is in the process of finding an opponent for him.

Baby Slice will likely fight early next year.

Of course, Baby Slice's dad Kimbo Slice -- who passed away at the age of 42 in June 2016 -- was an absolute legendary streetfighter turned pro MMA star.

Slice rose to fame fighting in backyards across south Florida ... almost always brutally beating his opponent.

Although he wasn't traditionally trained until later in his life, Kimbo more than held his own in the cage ... even beating Ken Shamrock in 2015.

We're told Baby Slice's opponent could be a reality star ... but that he's open to any celeb who wants to step up.

Stay tuned.