Boxing

When in Vegas ...

Another rich celebrity is getting into the gambling spirit -- with boxing superstar Andre Berto dropping $100k to bet on his boy Floyd Mayweather ... TMZ Sports has learned.

We're told Berto placed the bet last night at the MGM Grand.

The odds are so strongly in Floyd's favor, that even if Berto wins ... he only stands to make about $45,000.

Still, not a bad night.

As we previously reported, there are a bunch of huge, rich stars dropping big cash on the fight ... including 50 Cent, who says he's betting $1.6 on Floyd.

Laila Ali has a message for Floyd Mayweather -- just because you THINK you're the "greatest," doesn't make it true!

Ali was leaving LAX yesterday when she told us she's not mad at Floyd for BELIEVING he's the best boxer of all time -- in fact, she respects his mentality -- but at the end of the day, he's just wrong.

There's more ... we also asked Laila if there's ANY chance she'll ever get into the ring for a mega-fight with UFC superstar Ronda Rousey.

50 Cent is jumping on the money train this weekend, where he plans to score huge bank off the backs of Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao.

Club sources tell TMZ ... the rapper is getting half-a-million bucks Friday night for throwing down rhymes at Drai's.

Fact is, 50 may be hedging his bets. You may recall ... he's put $1.6 mil on the line, betting Floyd Mayweather will put Manny Pacquiao in his place.

And we're told he also made a deal with Effen Vodka to make around $500k for a show 2 weeks later at Pool After Dark in Atlantic City.

When it rains it pours.

Shots fired from NFL legend Tim Brown -- who just blasted Floyd Mayweather as one of the most BORING fighters ever ... and said he refuses to pay to watch him fight Pacquiao!!!

Brown just appeared on "105.3 THE FAN Dallas/Ft. Worth" -- and sounded off on the head of The Money Team ... saying, "He's BORING man! He never gets hit. Knock somebody out, will ya?!"

The former wide receiver went on to explain that Floyd is more of a "piddy pat" fighter who never goes in for the kill -- "If I'm gonna pay for a boxing match, I wanna see blood."

Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao is the main event but even the under, under ... UNDER card has some big names -- in the little boxing world, anyway.

"Mini Pretty Boy Money" and "Mini Pacman" went at it in the MGM Grand lobby on Monday ... not far from the full-size ring the resort is using to promote Saturday's huge bout.

You gotta see the stare down between the fighters -- absolutely menacing ... said no one.

But get this ... the ultra flyweights will really fight on Saturday night at Beacher's Madhouse and tickets ain't cheap. For $1500 you get to see Floyd and Manny on closed circuit, and then after that ... Mini Money and Mini Pac will go at it live.

Anyone who thought that Diddy and Mark Wahlberg's Mayweather vs. Pacquiao mega-bet was just for show is WRONG ... 'cause Mark tells TMZ Sports the $250,000 is already in escrow.

In case you forgot ... the two superstars made a massive bet on the outcome of the fight, with Diddy backing Mayweather and Wahlberg siding with Pacquiao.

Mark was out in Beverly Hills Tuesday when we asked the movie star if he was at all worried about Diddy pulling an Aaron Rodgers ... and backing out of the agreement if Pacman turns out to be victorious.

Check out the clip -- Mark says he's not worried about a Rodgering ... 'cause he CAN'T, due to the fact that the money is already being held by a neutral party.

FYI -- Mark also says the winnings will go to the winning fighter's favorite charity.

Which means that the strippers at Sam's Hofbrau are rooting extra hard for Floyd.

Showtime's not about to let millions of people watch for free when Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao step in the ring -- the network just filed a lawsuit against a couple of alleged internet pirate sites.

Showtime filed the federal suit, claiming boxinghd.net and sportship.org are advertising free streaming of Saturday night's mega bout ... which will cost you $89 to $100 on legal PPV.

In the docs, Showtime points out boxinghd.net's homepage touts, "If you can't afford to buy tickets then simply watch Mayweather vs Pacquiao here. We will provide nothing but the freshest and the most reliable high quality live links."

With just 4 days to go before the fight ... Showtime is asking the court to block both sites from streaming the fight and wants all internet service providers to shut down the illegal stream.

There's a ton of cash on the line -- total PPV sales are expected to top $300 million for the fight of the century.

Evander Holyfield finally has a date to the Mayweather vs. Pacquiao fight ... a mystery fan who just dropped $40,100 for one of the most V.I.P. boxing experiences EVER.

The "Real Deal" was part of an INSANE package featured in an eBay auction -- where the lucky winner gets:

-- One ticket to the fight ... sitting with Evander
-- 1st class airfare to and from Las Vegas
-- "Deluxe" room accommodations at the MGM Grand
-- A fancy steak dinner with Evander before the fight
-- One year of products from Quest Nutrition

There's more ... the proceeds from the auction benefit the CharityVision organization -- which helps visually challenged people in developing nations.

The package received 81 total bids -- and people who bid more than $25k had to pre-qualify with an independent agency.

There's finally a place Lil Za can say he's better than Justin Bieber ... the boxing ring ... 'cause Andre Berto tells TMZ Sports Za would DOMINATE the Biebs if the two laced 'em up.

Bieber's dabbled around in the squared circle recently, training with his pal Floyd Mayweather in the pugilistic arts ... and posting the videos to social media for everyone to see his skills.

Za one upped the Biebs this past weekend ... actually stepping in the ring FOR REAL and winning his first amateur fight at a college fight night in L.A.

We spoke to Berto, who trained Lil Za for his fight -- and he says that he's seen Bieber's skills and right now Za would have a clear edge.

"Lil Za would edge him out in the ring. He's been training a lot more than Justin and that comes into play."

Fear not Beliebers ... Berto says that if JB showed the same dedication to the sport that Za has, things could definitely change 'cause in his expert opinion, Justin's got the goods.

"Justin is bigger and he is pretty quick, but Lil Za puts in the time and training."

Soooo ... after Mayweather/Pacquiao then?

Manny Pacquiao ran away from home at the age of 12 ... when he caught his father eating his pet dog ... this according to his trainer Freddie Roach.

Roach was talking to Yahoo! Sports about how the boxer's family struggled with poverty in the Philippines when he was a child -- and apparently, things were so tough ... Manny's father cooked the family dog for food.

When Manny realized what had happened, he ran away from home -- and began to live on the streets.

"He slept in a cardboard box. He fought his way through all this, turned pro at 14, and look at the man he is today," Roach said.

Wladimir Klitschko says he wasn't laughing when Shannon Briggs chased him with his speedboat last year ... warning that someone needs to stop Shannon's wild antics before someone gets hurt.

Briggs (a former heavyweight champ) has been following Klitschko around the world -- from restaurants to news conferences to training sessions -- trying to goad the champion into a pay-per-view fight.

Most of Shannon's stunts are harmless and mostly based around yelling at WK ... but Wladimir says Briggs crossed the line when he chased him on the water last year.

"We need to save Shannon Briggs from Shannon Briggs," Klitschko said.

"We can laugh about it, but chasing me with speedboats while I was paddleboarding ... it's not funny. It's just ridiculously bad."

So far, no word back from Briggs ... yet.

Another HUUUGE boxing role for Jamie Foxx -- 'cause he's just been tapped to sing the national anthem at the Mayweather vs. Pacquiao fight!

Our sources confirm ... Foxx -- who's starring as Mike Tyson in an upcoming biopic -- was recently approached about belting out the "Star-Spangled Banner" ... and jumped at the chance!

Foxx is a MAJOR boxing fan -- and famously starred as Muhammad Ali's right-hand man Drew Bundini Brown in "Ali."

This isn't the first time Foxx will be singing before a fight -- he belted out "America the Beautiful" before the Pacquiao vs. Mosley fight back in 2011 ... and CRUSHED IT!!!!

If you don't wanna pay $100 for the Mayweather vs. Pacquiao fight, ya might wanna head south of the border ... because the entire country of Mexico is getting the fight for FREE!!!

The World Boxing Council tells TMZ Sports ... two major Mexican TV networks have agreed to air the fight, Televisa and Azteca --so if you have a TV, you're good to go.

The WBC tells us, "Televisa and Azteca must be recognized for their great commitment, for bringing to Mexico this bout for free. This has never, ever happened in any country of the world."

FYI -- Mexico also happens to be a major sponsor of the fight ... and the official beer of the bout is Tecate. Bottom line, Mexico is HEAVILY invested in the matchup despite the fact neither fighter is Mexican.

Hayden Panettiere's face during her man's boxing match at Madison Square Garden this weekend can be summed up in two words ... FINISH HIM!!!

Heavyweight champ Wladimir Klitschko defended his title against Bryant Jennings on Saturday night, and while he might have done most of the work ... you gotta give Hayden major support props ... just for her gold-trimmed blazer alone.

If the world didn't know it before, HP's not only riding the Wlad train ... she's also its whistle.

All aboard.

Justin Bieber was part of ANOTHER boxing entourage last night ... to watch his BFF Lil Za get in the ring during a college fight night in Los Angeles ... and TMZ Sports has the footage.

Bieber -- who's usually in Floyd Mayweather's corner -- sat in the front row and held up a sign saying, "WE LOVE YOU ZA" ... as JB's posse member made his boxing debut.

Once the bell rang, Za actually held his own ... and looked PRETTY GOOD as he traded blows with his opponent at the gym at Valley College.

Ultimately, Za WON the fight by decision ... and even got some props from pro boxing superstar Andre Berto, who happened to be in the crowd.

Boxing stud Deontay Wilder -- the reigning WBC heavyweight champion -- says he's ready and willing to fight Shannon Briggs ... but says the guy needs to PROVE himself before he steps in the ring.

Wilder and Briggs -- a FORMER 2-time heavyweight champ -- went ballistic on each other during a boxing event in NYC on Friday. And now, Wilder says he's ready to back up his smack talk.

"If he wants to fight me, I'll fight. Enough talking," Wilder tells TMZ Sports ... "But he needs to get some fights under his belt first and get back into the top 15."

Briggs has been gunning for a fight with Wladimir Klitschko ... but now it seems he may have a new target.