Boxing

There is a HUGE celebrity charity boxing match in the works -- with some big names being thrown around ... and we've learned Floyd Mayweather is now involved.

Our sources tell us ... the combatants are big stars -- we've seen the list but we're being told there's still a matter of locking everyone up.

One of the people involved is Floyd -- but we're told he will NOT fight ... instead, our sources say he'll be one of the judges, tasked with scoring the fight.

As for the fighters themselves, we can't give it away yet -- but 2 of the names are big boxing stars and others are from the NBA, Hollywood, comedy and MMA.

We're told event organizers are targeting the end of June at a venue in Las Vegas ... and they're working with health and wellness website Celebrity Sweat to put the whole thing together.

One source tells us the event is tentatively being called "Fight for a Cause" and will raise funds for the U.S. Military charities and COVID-19 relief.

UFC superstar Jon Jones is FURIOUS over the killing of George Floyd -- saying the police officer used a move called a "blood choke" ... and it's worse than torture.

"Anyone who has practiced the very basics of jujitsu recognizes a [blood choke] when they see this," Jones said.

"That was as clear as day murder, torture."

FYI, a blood choke is a stranglehold in which key arteries and jugular veins are constricted, cutting off blood flow to the brain ... as opposed to an air choke, which restricts breathing.

Jones -- who's been a top mixed martial artist for decades -- didn't stop there.

"That whole if you can talk you can breathe crap is bullsh*t. What that man went through was worse than drowning."

"I wouldn't wish the way George Floyd was murdered on my worst enemy. That officer applied just enough pressure to keep him alive for almost six minutes in that chokehold."

"In all my years of fighting I can honestly say I’ve never experienced anything close to that level of torture."

"There needs to be a nationwide policy change. When a man is in handcuffs and is screaming that he cannot breathe. Get the f*ck off his chest and/or neck. If you can't hold a man who is in handcuffs down by his feet you’re a p*ssy and probably shouldn’t be wearing that badge."

George Floyd was killed on May 25 when 4 police officers resounded to a "forgery in progress" call in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

During the incident, one of the officers put his knee on Floyd's neck for 8 MINUTES, despite his pleas that he couldn't breathe.

Mike Tyson says he's seriously considering a rematch with Evander Holyfield -- but only because it would raise MILLIONS for people in need.

"That would be awesome for charity," Tyson said on "TMZ Live" ... "Can you imagine me and him going in the ring together?"

Of course, 53-year-old Tyson has been training like a maniac recently and looks absolutely terrifying -- something he credits to the stem cell treatments he's been receiving.

"I'm in good shape, I feel really good!"

Now, with 57-year-old Holyfield also training for a comeback -- we asked if there's truth to the rumors they're planning on running it back for a 3rd time.

"Anything is possible," Tyson said ... noting that he's "having fun, looking good, showing off my new bod and stuff."

Tyson says he's committed to living a life of charity and gratitude -- but he knows a fight with The Real Deal could make a serious difference in a lot of people's lives.

"Hey, listen, there are a lot of people out there that need help and something like that could help a lot of people, that's in need for help."

Tyson also revealed he's focusing on meditation -- and feels he's on the path to enlightenment.

In fact, Tyson will be participating in a massive World Meditation Day event Thursday at 11 AM PT ... along with Deepak Chopra and Tony Robinson.

Tyson says the goal of the event -- which will be streamed live on Facebook -- is to get 1 BILLION people from all over the world to unite for synchronized meditation and prayer.

Joe Giudice is in the market for a fight, and he's willing to take on ANYONE.

That's right, the former 'Real Housewives of New Jersey' star has signed a deal with Celebrity Boxing promoter Damon Feldman who tells TMZ ... Joe's slated to fight on October 24th in the Bahamas. The opponent has not yet been determined. Any takers?

The match will consist of three 1 minute, 30-second rounds. Back to Joe's opponent ... Damon tells us he's open to anyone. Be careful what you wish for, Joe.

In any event ... Joe's looking like he's ready to knock someone out. Dude looks JACKED. Check him out in this video ... with the picturesque Italy countryside as the backdrop.

As for what Joe would be paid ... we're told it'll all depend on how many people purchase the Pay-per-view. But, one thing's for sure ... training for an upcoming fight will be a nice distraction. As we reported ... Joe's in the middle of his own legal fight over his deportation case.

Keep your head up, Joe. And, your hands too.

"I will beat Floyd. I promise my life on it."

That's Conor McGregor telling Mike Tyson he WILL defeat Floyd Mayweather in a boxing match ... if it's the last thing he ever does!

So, why the renewed interest in a rematch with Floyd?

Tyson was sitting down with Francis Ngannou and the UFC star's manager for an episode if his "Hotboxin' with Mike Tyson" podcast when Mike began raving about McGregor's foray into boxing back in 2017.

"He’s never really had a boxing match in his life, right? He went 10 rounds with the greatest boxer in the land, in 100 years of boxing."

Tyson continued, "He went 10 rounds, scored punches on the greatest fighter in the last 20, 100 years."

"Imagine a guy who’s never had a boxing match and he’s fighting me? He goes 10 rounds and we’re fighting?"

"We go 10 rounds, that’s a bad motherfu**er," Tyson said.

Well, Conor McGregor saw the clip ... and issued a strongly worded statement of his own.

"Thank you Mike, and just know that for the inevitable rematch, with the knowledge I now hold of Floyd’s style, plus under the tutelage of my old school boxing coach, I will crack the puzzle, and I will beat Floyd. I promise my life on it."

McGregor added, "It is great to see you back Iron Mike."

As we previously reported, Conor has been TRYING to lock up a rematch with Floyd for a while ... but Floyd hasn't signed a contract yet.

Boxing superstar Ryan Garcia tells TMZ Sports he's gunning for a 2-fight deal with Henry Cejudo -- one boxing, one MMA -- and he's ready to scrap on the 4th of July.

Garcia and Cejudo have been talking A LOT of trash to each other ever since the UFC superstar's surprise retirement after his victory over Dominick Cruz on Saturday night.

Cejudo called the undefeated 21-year-old boxer an "Oscar De La Hoya wannabe" ... and threatened, "I’d make you bend the knee in your own sport."

When we spoke with Garcia, King Ryan told us he's sick of talking -- he wants to fight already.

"Chicken Little, he got very disrespectful in my honest opinion," Garcia said.

"I came at him in a respectful way but he came at me in a disrespectful way so, in that regards, that needs to be handled."

"I haven't found an opponent for July 4th but I feel like we can make that happen if he really wants that work."

And, get this, Garcia says he has a secret weapon to help him lock up a deal with Cejudo -- TOM BRADY!!

"I'll hit up Tom," Ryan says ... "Me and him are cool. He's a partial owner of the UFC. I feel like he's a fan of both sports and I think he's a fan of both of us. I know he follows me and I know that that's gonna cause interest in him so I feel like I can hit him up and be like 'Lets make this happens' so I might do that today."

As for how the 2-fight deal would work, Ryan explained it to us this way ...

"First, we gotta have it in the boxing ring cause he called me out ... Once I knock him out, as a man I'll respect him enough and be like 'Aight, I'll hop into your thing now.'"

"There's no way he'll KO me in the Octagon. The only thing he'll ever do to me is submit me ... and I'm cool with that."

HOLYFIELD-TYSON III IS REALLY GONNA HAPPEN ISN'T IT?!?!?!

Here's further proof Evander's gearing up to fight Iron Mike for the 3rd time ... posting video that sure feels like a clap back at Tyson to us!!!

Just hours after Mike released more training footage of him terrorizing mitts and claiming he's "back" ... Evander posted similar clips, capping them off with an "I'm back" of his own.

That definitely means a rematch is on the way, right?!?!?!

Of course, the two former champs have already publicly stated they're looking for charity fights in the upcoming months ... with Holyfield even telling TMZ Sports the other day he's down to make another rematch with Tyson happen.

If it does eventually get scheduled ... we're not sure we've ever been more fired up to see two 50-somethings square off -- 'cause did you see Mike's clips Monday?!

But, Evander DID win their first two matchups ... and he ain't looking bad against the mitts himself!!

Soooo ... just tell us when and where the fight's happening now, please!!!

MORE MIKE TYSON TRAINING VIDEO -- AND GOOD LORD, HE'S GONNA MURDER SOMEBODY!!

The 53-year-old legend just dropped some brand new training footage after that 5-second teaser last week ... and it's scary good.

After throwing multiple ferocious combos -- and putting his trainer through hell -- Iron Mike looks at the camera and declares, "I'm back."

It's the same two words Evander Holyfield says in his comeback video, which he just dropped last week.

As we previously reported, both Mike and Holyfield are interested in getting back in the ring to raise money for charities through exhibition fights.

We spoke with Holyfield about a possible 3rd clash with Tyson -- the man who bit off his ear in 1997 -- and he told us he's down.

Now, the question is ... when can we get this 3rd fight going -- and how much money his at stake?!

We know Tyson has been getting multimillion-dollar offers from multiple organizations and promoters ... but ya gotta think the biggest payday could come by way of a Tyson vs. Holyfield III.

For the record, Holyfield won BOTH of their previous fights -- but the way Tyson looks now ... yeesh!!!

HOLYFIELD-TYSON III COULD ACTUALLY HAPPEN!!!

Evander tells TMZ Sports he's down to run it back again with Iron Mike -- but says a third match with Tyson ain't his first choice for his return to the sanctioned boxing ring.

"My manager, they’ve been talking and all that," 57-year-old Holyfield tells us, "but the fact is that with me personally, I think for me to ask, the only person that I would actually really ask is Riddick Bowe."

Holyfield says he's more open to a third fight with 52-year-old Bowe instead of Mike because frankly, "me and him are buddies!"

But, don't get it twisted ... Evander says he's still cool with Mike after the two got past their infamous beef over the 1997 ear-biting incident -- with Holyfield still seeming genuinely interested in an exhibition rematch with the guy.

Of course, as we previously reported, both Holyfield AND 53-year-old Tyson announced this month they're looking into fighting soon in an effort to raise cash for charity.

Tyson says he's hoping to gather money for drug addicts and homeless people ... while Evander is trying to raise funds for #Unite4OurFight, a campaign aimed at helping underprivileged students during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Neither side has given any indication of a timeline for a return ... but with nobody overtly against another Tyson-Holyfield tilt -- it seems it could really go down.

How talented is Jamie Foxx? Talented enough to smoothly slip in and out of his Jay-Z, Dave Chappelle and Mike Tyson impressions ... without skipping a beat.

The actor/singer/comedian/all-around-renaissance-man broke down the most famous, and hilarious, voices he's known for doing -- and it's masterful to watch. He was talking to WNBA star Candace Parker on IG Live about his method approach to getting in character, and explained he uses music to help achieve the perfect tone for each celeb.

Then came a rapid-fire series of impressions, which did not disappoint. Check it out ... he shows off Jigga, Kermit the Frog and Sammy Davis Jr. -- and they're all basically the same voice, with slightly different twists. We'll let Jamie explain.

After that, JF presents us with 2 takes of Chappelle -- young and current -- and he couldn't be more spot-on if he tried. Seriously, easy to see why this was always part of his stand up act.

Finally, Jamie does his best Tyson ... which we're sure came in handy while he was portraying the iconic boxer for a new movie that's due to come out soon. He makes a stark distinction between people's caricature impersonation of Tyson and the real McCoy.

YouTube superstar-turned-fighter Jake Paul says he'll beat the living daylight out of MMA fighter Dillon Danis in a boxing match ... and tells TMZ Sports he has a UFC superstar on board to help him get it done.

Of course, Paul previously stated he was going to avenge brother Logan's controversial loss against KSI in a match at Madison Square Garden as soon as the coronavirus pandemic was over ... which KSI's team quickly denied, citing his focus being on his music career.

We spoke with Jake about his boxing future now that KSI is out of the question ... and he says Danis is the one opponent he wants BADLY.

"I hate to bring his name up because he's such a lowlife club rat who calls himself a jiu-Jitsu black belt," Paul tells us. "But, everyone in the jiu-jitsu community hates him, everybody in the fight community hates him. I hate him."

Despite all the hatred, Danis is widely considered one of the best ground fighters in the game ... but many people believe that his striking is the weakest part of his game.

"Dillon, if you're watching this, I'm going to kick the s**t out of you ... I'd make your life even f**king worse ... I'm coming for your head."

So ... how is Jake gonna get it done?? He says he's got the current UFC BMF belt holder on his side -- Jorge Masvidal!!

"Masvidal's gonna be in my corner," Jake says ... explaining they met up in Miami during JP's last fight against AnEsonGib ... and they both bonded over their hatred for Danis.

Jake says he's the Paul bro for Danis to fight -- not Logan -- because he's the better fighter ... and he will mess him up.

As for KSI, Jake tees off on his excuse for not taking a fight ... saying his music is wack and isn't a valid excuse to duck a meeting in the ring.

Oscar De La Hoya said he can knock out Conor McGregor in 2 rounds ... and Conor McGregor says PROVE IT -- calling out the legend for a real-deal boxing match.

SO, WHAT ARE WE WAITING FOR?!? LET'S DO THIS!!!!

Here's how it all got started ... 47-year-old ODLH was asked about his chances against the 31-year-old UFC superstar earlier this week ... saying it would be a cakewalk.

"2 rounds," the Golden Boy told "The State of Combat" podcast. "Because one thing about me ... I went for the kill always."

"And look, Conor McGregor is – I love him in the Octagon. I respect him. I watch him all the time."

"But, the boxing ring is a whole different story. It’s a whole different story."

Conor -- who's always wanted a second shot at a boxing match following his loss to Floyd Mayweather in 2017 -- heard what ODLH had to say ... and he wants the legend to put his money where his mouth is ... IN THE RING!!!

"I accept your challenge, Oscar de la Hoya," Conor tweeted.

Now, Oscar (39-6) hasn't had a pro fight since losing to Manny Pacquiao in 2008 by a referee technical decision ... but the Golden Boy's confident he can shake off any ring rust against the 0-1 Conor.

Remember, ODLH made a similar threat to Conor back in 2017 ... saying he was in shape and ready to throw down with the Notorious.

There's only one way to find out -- PLEASE MAKE THIS HAPPEN.

If Mike Tyson is serious about a comeback ... $1 MILLION has already been put on the table for an exhibition match in Australia -- with a promoter wanting Iron Mike to fight a former rugby star!

Australian boxing matchmaker Brian Amatruda says he's already reached out to Tyson's camp with the offer ... and sees pro-rugby-players-turned-boxers Barry Hall, Paul Gallen and Sonny Bill Williams as potential opponents.

"He might be 53 years old but he's still a huge name," Amatruda told The Daily Mail this week, "and any of those blokes Hall, Gallen or Sonny Bill would jump at the chance to get into the ring with him."

Amatruda says the event would be MASSIVE -- and while he admits the charity fight couldn't take place until the coronavirus pandemic clears up, he says THOUSANDS would flock to see it go down.

"I'd hold it at Melbourne Arena where we'd get over 10,000 or even Princes Park where they got 30,000 for Jeff Fenech versus Azumah Nelson," Amatruda said.

"It would be enormous," he added. "Not just a fight, it would be an event."

Of course, it remains to be seen if Tyson is even serious about a return to the ring.

The boxing legend posted a clip of him recently terrorizing mitts in a scary training sesh and did tell rapper T.I. he's interested in taking some exhibition fights to raise money for charities.

But, Tyson also famously told Joe Rogan just last year he stopped training because he didn't want to turn into a version of himself that he was trying to forget.

If Mike is down and chooses to pass on the Australia match ... Shawn Porter tells TMZ Sports he wouldn't mind seeing Tyson return for a rematch with Evander Holyfield!

If Mike Tyson is serious about a comeback -- and wants an exhibition fight -- HOW ABOUT A REMATCH WITH EVANDER HOLYFIELD!!

That's what boxing star Shawn Porter wants to see ... telling TMZ Sports, "To see him in the ring in an exhibition against Holyfield would be amazing."

53-year-old Iron Mike set the boxing world on fire this week after posting new training footage ... and even though the clip is short, he looks as explosive as ever.

"Just to see that small combination that he threw with the velocity he was throwing it at, and again the integrity that came along with it was very special for me," Porter explained.

"His technique looked phenomenal."

Of course, Tyson fought Holyfield twice -- losing by TKO in '96 and losing by DQ for biting off Evander's ear in '97.

But, Tyson says he's a changed man now -- and he's actually become friendly with Holyfield over the years, even joking about the ear.

So, with Evander now doing exhibition fights all over the world ... it's possible they could strike a deal for a 3rd fight -- and Porter says he'd absolutely be down to watch!

There's more ...

32-year-old Porter -- a 2-time welterweight champ -- also tells us how he's staying in shape during the COVID-19 pandemic and why he's still hoping to fight before the end of the year.

"As far as I know, boxing will hopefully be back before the end of the year and I think I want to be one of the first guys to get back in there and do it."

The Mountain from "Game of Thrones" just broke an almighty weightlifting record that once belonged to his archrival ... and now, he wants to break the dude's face in the ring.

Hafthor Bjornsson -- who played The Hound's brother on the hit HBO series -- set a new world record Saturday by deadlifting 501 kilograms (about 1,104 lbs) and staying standing upon releasing the massive weight, while he was getting gassed up by his squad nearby.

It's an incredible feat, and before this ... his muscle-man foe, Eddie Hall, held the record at 500 kg from just a few years ago when he deadlifted at the World Deadlift Championships.

It should be noted that Eddie went down in utter exhaustion after his lift, BUT ... he did hold the bar up longer than Thor did. In any case, The Mountain's got him beat with this latest show of strength, but the feud's not over ... 'cause the guy wants to settle this once and for all in the ring -- as in boxing. He said as much in a post-interview, where he challenged Eddie to a fight in the ring, during which he says he wants to dole out a KO.

Welp, Eddie has already responded to the call ... saying he will "1,000 percent sign those papers" while going on to explain it's not for money or glory, but to teach The Mountain a lesson after he apparently called Eddie a cheat at a competition they were both in once upon a time.

EH also makes a point to say he was never naive enough to think no one would ever beat his record -- but it sounds like this bitter rivalry will, in fact, end up with gloves on.

Welp, this is frightening ... 53-year-old Mike Tyson is back in boxing mode -- AND HE LOOKS LIKE A KILLER!!

A rep for Iron Mike confirms this footage was shot a few days ago as part of a promotional deal with Sony ... but damn, HE LOOKS TERRIFYING!

Just last year, Tyson told Joe Rogan he cut training out of his life completely because the adrenaline rush reminded him of the old, bad Mike Tyson ... the one he was trying to forget.

But recently, Tyson has been kicking around the idea of a comeback -- telling rapper T.I. he's interested in taking some exhibition fights to raise money for charities.

"I want to go to the gym and get in shape to be able to box 3 or 4 round exhibitions for some charities and stuff," Tyson said.

"Some charity exhibitions, make some money, help some homeless and drug-affected motherf**kers like me."

Well, he wasn't BSing ... Tyson really did strap on the gloves and he looks as explosive as ever.