Boxing

"Women weaken legs" ... unless you're Chad Johnson, who says he literally had sex THREE TO FIVE TIMES the night of his boxing match at Hard Rock Stadium, and then stepped in the ring with a professional fighter!

Seriously. And he looked pretty damn good during the fight.

The 44-year-old 6x Pro Bowler sat down for Brandon Marshall's "I Am Athlete" show ... and admitted to the guys he did it multiple times right before his June 2021 bout against pro fighter, Brian Maxwell.

"We did three times, maybe four to five times in three-minute intervals," Chad said, as Brandon sat and listened in disbelief.

Chad says he had pent-up nervousness after arriving at the venue ... and that's when he turned to everybody's favorite relation technique.

Knockin' boots.

Of course, many athletes -- especially boxers -- abstain from sex for days, weeks, or even months leading up to their fights ... as many people believe it severely hampers athletic performance. Sex right before a fight is unheard of.

"Matter of fact, I had to be at the stadium at Hard Rock," Chad said. "I think I fought at 8 o'clock. I needed to get that out of my system to relax me."

#85 went on ... "And it put me in a sense of, a state of calmness going into war. That's fighting. I'm out of my element stepping in a ring with someone that fights for a living."

And from the sound of it ... Chad thinks it helped him in the ring.

"Getting that up out of me was the best thing to do for me," Johnson said, prompting an amused Brandon (who's been boxing for years) to make sure he heard Chad right, asking ...  "You had sex the day of the fight?"

Marshall joked Chad tasted canvass in the fourth round (Maxwell dropped him with a vicious right hook) due to exhaustion from the pre-fight activities.

"That's why your ass got tired in four rounds."

The full interview Monday on IAA's YouTube channel ... where Brandon, Chad, and the rest of the guys chop it up about life as a professional athlete -- from women, money, and entourages to eating habits and working out.

Jermall Charlo is off the hook in his robbery case ... the case was just dismissed based on insufficient evidence, TMZ Sports has learned.

Court records show the 3 robbery charges Charlo was hit with following an alleged altercation at a San Antonio bar last year were dismissed on Monday. The records list the reasoning as "insufficient evidence."

It's a big deal for Charlo ... who was accused of being a complete jerk to a waitress the day before his brother, Jermell Charlo, fought Brian Castaño in San Antonio last July.

Police, in an incident report, said Jermall was with a big group when the waitress came over with the bill. Cops say Jermall handed over his credit card and ID, but said the card was declined despite multiple attempts to run it.

Officers said in the docs Jermall eventually became upset over it all and took two bill collection binders from the waitress, nabbing everything from the inside of them.

Jermall was eventually arrested ... though his attorney, Kent A Schaffer, tells us he believes video and witnesses from the bar ultimately proved Jermall never did anything wrong.

"Police eventually turned over the surveillance tapes that showed everything that our witnesses said was true," Schaffer tells us. "Jermall never robbed anyone at this nightclub and never used force or threat of force against anyone. We have been saying this the whole time he did nothing wrong."

"We presented the evidence to the ADA who came to the same conclusion -- the surveillance video was a huge part of getting the case dismissed. And the 6 witnesses were also a key factor."

Schaffer continued, "Jermall is ecstatic and training for his next fight -- this is something that has been hanging over his head since August -- he can now get back to fighting instead of worrying about going to trial for something he didn't do."

Claressa Shields seems to be burying the hatchet with Jake Paul ... telling TMZ Sports the Problem Child is doing great things for his fighter Amanda Serrano, and women's boxing as a whole.

"I wish [Jake] the best," Shields says, continuing ... "What he's doing for Amanda is great. I think that him getting involved in helping the fight with Katie Taylor is great for Amanda and Katie and it's great for women's boxing."

"I appreciate him for that and I just wish him the best in whatever he does and just keeps his damn hands up, that's it."

The self-described G.W.O.A.T. has gone back and forth with Paul over the last year ... and Claressa says she was most offended by Jake's decision to make fun of her after she lost her 2nd professional MMA fight (in PFL).

"The only beef I have with Jake Paul is don't ever disrespect me. He tried to kick me when I was down and also going to a new sport."

"I lost a split decision. I didn't get submitted, I didn't get knocked out, I didn't get beat up. It was a split and I'm also brand new in MMA and when he made that comment, calling me a loser and stuff, that's what really made me want to fight him."

If you missed it, JP went off on Shields -- who has only 2 MMA fights under her belt -- after the October 2021 fight.

But, Shields has obviously moved on ... and has even found it in her heart to praise Jake for his work promoting women's boxing.

FYI, Jake's promotion, Most Valuable Promotions (MVP), signed 33-year-old Serrano.

With Paul's guidance, Amanda has locked down a super fight with fellow boxing star Katie Taylor in April ... at Madison Square Garden.

Speaking of big fights ... Claressa is gunning to set up her very own with undefeated British star Savannah Marshall.

First, the 26-year-old fighter has to beat 21-0-1 fighter Ema Kozin in the United Kingdom on February 5 (on FITE) ... and she delivered a message to the woman standing between her and Savannah.

UFC flyweight Deiveson Figueiredo will NEVER lose the championship belt for the rest of his career ... and it's all thanks to his brand new tattoo!!

The 34-year-old Brazilian star showed off the new ink job on Wednesday ... just days after taking the belt back from Brandon Moreno via unanimous decision at UFC 270.

Deus da Guerra got the tat on his right forearm ... featuring the belt with "Deiveson Figueiredo World Champion Flyweight" etched in the middle with the UFC logo.

It's a confident move by Figueiredo -- after his win on Saturday, he told fans he was willing to run it back with Moreno to settle the score once and for all -- and he's open to fighting in Mexico.

In fact, we spoke with Moreno about the possibility of fighting in front of his home crowd ... and he seemed 100% in on the idea -- but made it clear he'll fight the guy anywhere.

Some fighters credit boxing, wrestling, perhaps Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu ... but Vanessa Demopoulos, she credits the pole.

Yes ... 33-year-old Demopoulos tells TMZ Sports she credits much of her success in the Octagon against Silvana Gomez Juarez at UFC 270 to the strength she's developed dancing on the pole.

"I just walked away from being an exotic entertainer. I'm like so good at pole dancing," Vanessa says.

"I feel like pole dancing and fighting goes hand and hand. I'm 3 stories up in the air, hanging on by a limb, mainly in my underwear. If I sweat too much, I'm falling to my death. It's like fighting, same thing. Except you're not going to die. The ref is gonna stop it before it happens."

Vanessa caused quite a stir last week. She hit a split after the weigh-in ... and she did it inside the Octagon after she won. VD also jumped in Joe Rogan's arms during her (memorable) post-fight interview.

And, then she went into the cage and took care of business ... winning via armbar submission in the 1st round.

Demopoulos clearly feels at home pole dancing, so we asked ... despite the UFC success (and the $50K bonus she won), are you swearing off the pole?

"I was at the club last night and I definitely found a pole to hop onto. It's something I love doing. I'm never not going to dance. But you won't see me in the club doing it for dollars."

So, less dancing for dollars and more punching people in the face ... and Demopoulos is hyped for her future as a fighter.

"I really am a full-time fighter now, and it feels so good. I've worked my whole life for these types of moments. It's like you work your whole life for that one moment that's gonna change the rest of it, and that was that moment, and it was absolutely incredible."

Kevin Ferguson Jr. -- MMA fighter and son of the legendary street fighter turned pro Kimbo Slice -- is stepping into the ring ... but he isn't takin' on a fellow pro fighter, he's boxing former Bachelorette contestant "Iggy" Rodriguez.

Yes, for real!

29-year-old Ferguson -- aka "Baby Slice" -- is transitioning from the Bellator cage to the squared circle ... where he'll duke it out with Rodriguez at a Celebrity Boxing event in March.

Of course, 5'11", 155 lb. Kevin Jr. -- 3-3 as a pro -- has fighting in his pedigree, and it shows. His dad, Kimbo, is the most famous street fighter of all-time. The 6'2", 235-pound fighter transitioned from backyard brawling to professional fighting ... where he had a record of 5-2-1.

As for his opponent? Iggy's claim to fame didn't come from punching guys. Rather, Rodriguez was fighting for love when he made his debut on the 13th season of "The Bachelorette."

In fact, the 35-year-old Californian native and consulting firm CEO became a true household name ... when he was depicted as a "snitch" for badmouthing other competitors on Rachel Lindsay's season.

Rodriguez was ultimately eliminated from the show ... after failing to make the top 12.

But, back to the fight. Ferguson and Rodriguez won't be the only attraction that night.

Lamar Odom's ex-fiancée, Sabrina Parr, will fight Jenn Harley, Ronnie Ortiz's former GF -- in a battle of the exes.

Tyson Fury says Anthony Joshua is scared of him ... labeling the 6'6", 240 lb. superstar boxer from the UK a "coward" who's too shook to fight him.

Oh, and the Gypsy King is also coming for a bunch of other top-level heavyweights ... including Oleksandr Usyk and Dillian Whyte.

The 33-year-old heavyweight champ hit up social media to respond to fans asking him when and who he's fighting next ... and well, Tyson talked his s***!

"I'm being asked this question over and over again. I do not know the answer to it. I'm ready to fight this weekend. I've been training three weeks, how long does a man need to train?" Fury pondered.

"Joshua's a coward, Usyk's a p***y and Dillan Whyte doesn't wanna fight. So, if you can prove me wrong, get to f***king fighting you pair of cowards. You're all cowards! You're all bum duffers! Have a fight or do one you pack of wet lettuces."

Fury, who's coming off an incredible performance against heavyweight star Deontay Wilder, continued going in on the boxers.

"I'm just gonna keep videoing until one of these cowards decide to fight. You're all cowards! S*** house bums! I don't care who I fight -- AJ, Usyk, Dillan Whyte or any of them. Fight me! I'm the best man that's ever lived. These are all coward bum duffers. I'll annihilate the liars and destroyers, submitters, tap you bitches out. Come and fight!"

32-year-old Joshua lost to 35-year-old Usyk by decision in September 2021 (it was a masterful performance) ... and they're currently negotiating a rematch. Fury has been ordered to defend his WBC title against 33-year-old Whyte ... but there are reportedly talks about working out a deal to box Usyk.

Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul?! In a boxing ring?! Well, despite a report the men were deep in negotiations to fight, Iron Mike says it flat out ain't true.

The 55-year-old former undisputed heavyweight champion of the world took to his Twitter page to shoot down the news.

"This is new to me. I just saw Jake in St. Barths and he never mentioned it," Tyson wrote on the social media platform.

Mike was responding to a story published by The Sun on Monday ... where the outlet said Mike and Jake were in "advanced talks" for a $49 million boxing match.

Tyson and Paul do know each other. In fact, Jake became a boxing star on the undercard of an Iron Mike fight ... when the heavyweight stepped in and fought Roy Jones Jr. in November 2020.

That's the night the Problem Child flatlined former NBA star Nate Robinson.

Since, Paul's gone on to KO MMA champ Ben Askren in the first round of their fight ... before beating former UFC champ, Tyron Woodley twice (once by brutal knockout).

Not to mention, Jake just turned 25-years-old TODAY ... meaning Mike is more than 30 years his elder. Also, Paul fights professionally ... and any bout with Tyson would in all likelihood be an exhibition.

Jake Paul stripped all the way down to his birthday suit for his 25th cake day on Monday ... going buck naked for a sexy photo with his model girlfriend.

The Problem Child just posted the spicy pic to his social media page ... showcasin' his naked bod while a bikini-clad Julia Rose did just enough to cover up his junk.

Jake rocked a hat and some expensive jewelry -- and not a thing more -- while Rose had her hands draped all over him.

Jake captioned the photo with some of his goals for his next calendar year -- one of which included "go to outer space with Jeff, Richard, or Elon."

The b-day love for the YouTuber-turned-boxing superstar, meanwhile, has poured in all day ... with Rose writing on her social media page, "happy birthday dubba dubba…I can’t wait to feed you popcorn and kiss your nose until you turn 80."

Jake's older bro, Logan Paul, added, "happy bday @jakepaul love you bro."

By the looks of his social media activity, seems Jake is spending the special occasion in Utah -- and riding around in helicopters while there.

Of course, dude has every reason to celebrate this past trip around the sun ... he became a huge fight star -- and also reportedly made $45 million.

The robe worn by Muhammad Ali in the leadup to his famous 1965 fight with Sonny Liston is up for auction ... and TMZ Sports has learned it's such a rare piece of boxing history, it could sell for over $500,000.

Ali donned the garment on his way to the ring in his rematch with Liston -- which many consider one of the most memorable fights ever.

Ali not only knocked out Liston in iconic fashion in the ring (you've no doubt seen the picture of the KO at this point) ... but the fight also marked the first time he had boxed under the name Muhammad Ali.

You'll recall, following his first match with Liston in 1964, Ali changed his name from Cassius Clay, calling it "a slave name." He never fought using the moniker again.

For the rematch with Liston a year later, just before he won in convincing fashion, Ali donned a white piece with "Muhammad Ali" emblazoned on the back in red letters.

Ciryl Gane says despite what you might've heard, he has absolutely zero beef with Francis Ngannou ... and fully intends on showing respect to "The Predator" when they fight for the UFC title next weekend.

31-year-old Gane, the undefeated (10-0) UFC Interim champ is headlining UFC 270 against 35-year-old Ngannou, the UFC heavyweight champ next Saturday in Anaheim.

The alleged bad blood? Gane and Ngannou briefly trained together at the MMA Factory in France several years back (Francis recently told us it was less than 10 times), and things haven't exactly always seemed copacetic since.

In fact, a video recently made its way around social media showing Francis walking by Ciryl ... like he didn't exist.

But, Gane says everything's cool between the men ... there's zero ill will.

"I have no feelings for him. He's just like another opponent and that's it."

It's an intriguing matchup. Ngannou throws bombs ... and arguably has more power than any other fighter on the UFC roster. Meanwhile, Gane is 6'5", 250 lbs., but moves like a guy who weighs 75 lbs. less.

Francis recently told us he believes he'll knockout Ciryl within 10 minutes (2 rounds).

Jake and Logan Paul were money-making machines in 2021 ... with the YouTube superstars-turned-boxers reportedly raking in a combined $63 MILLION over the past year.

Forbes just released its list of highest-paid influencers on the social media platform on Friday ... with the Problem Child coming in at #2 with an astonishing $45 million estimated in earnings.

The outlet reports about $40 million of that moolah came via the boxing ring -- with Jake beating up on Ben Askren in April and Tyron Woodley in August and December.

Whether Jake is considered a "real" boxer or not, the serious money he's pocketing is not up for debate -- his income in 2021 would have put him among the top-earning athletes last year ... making more than Canelo Alvarez, who reportedly brought in $34 million.

As for Logan -- who came in at #8 on Forbes' YouTube list -- he reportedly made $18 million in 2021 ... large in part to his fight with Floyd Mayweather, his "Impaulsive" podcast, and other business opportunities.

Wowzers.

Logan Paul just found out that his unopened set of first edition Pokémon cards -- which he shelled out $3.5 MILLION to get -- is a big, fat phony ... revealing the box was full of useless G.I. Joe cards.

Rumors had been swirling about LP's purchase for weeks ... with experts skeptical about the authenticity of the cards inside the box.

26-year-old Paul and his friend/famous card collector Bolillo Lajan San met with the Baseball Card Exchange in Chicago in hopes of proving once and for all that his purchase was a good investment ... but instead, he got some REALLY bad news.

While the outside packaging appeared to be legit, it was once the box was opened that Paul and the gang realized that they'd been scammed.

"Oh my God, bro," Paul yelled as the first box was opened. "G.I. JOE?? G.I. JOE?!?! It could have been anything else."

One of the authenticators said it best ... adding, "This is the biggest fraud in the entire history of Pokémon."

It's a beyond heartbreaking loss for Paul -- had the cards been real, he could have made a fortune on what was inside the box.

"I'm a super positive person, bro," Logan said. "And, I'll always be the one to look at the bright side, and I am trying, but this is very hard."

On the bright side, Paul still has a first edition "Shadowless" Charizard card -- which he claims is now worth more than a million -- as well as 5 other packs of first edition Pokémon cards.

"It's sad for the Pokémon community, like, how many fraudulent things are out there?" he added. "I'm grateful for the things that I have that are real now. Like, I'm picturing my Charizard in my head like, "Oh my god, holy s***, something real, something worth a lot of money that is real!"

A world champion boxer is the latest fighter to call out Jake Paul ... and the dude's so serious about making it happen, he got the YouTuber's name tattooed on himself!!

The man calling out Jake is Mairis Briedis -- he's a 28-1 (20 KOs) Latvian pro who is a 3-time cruiserweight champ and the current #6 pound-for-pound boxer, according to BoxRec.

36-year-old Briedis showed how badly he wants the bout by revealing the ink job on his left thigh on Monday ... saying, "Hey Jake, I got something for you."

MB then showed off the big black and red tat of a bull's head featuring a message, "Jake's Bad Karma" ... a direct nod to Jake's "Karma" tattoo on his collarbone

"Now, it's your turn!" Briedis said.

This isn't the first time MB has challenged the 24-year-old boxer ... Briedis' promoter, Kalle Sauerland, made a fight offer last May with one condition -- Jake would have to retire from boxing if he lost.

Paul ignored the offer and went on to fight ex-UFC champ Tyron Woodley instead ... so, it seems MB felt the need to take it up a notch by getting the ink done.

"Time to collect your bad karma Jake Paul," Briedis said in the video, "Pick up the phone."

Paul has yet to respond -- he's been calling out more UFC fighters like Jorge Masvidal and Nate Diaz recently -- but the tat will certainly get his attention.

Bola Osundairo -- one of the brothers at the center of the Jussie Smollett scandal -- has a message for Jake Paul ... think you can fight?? Well, I'm coming for your ass!!

TMZ Sports talks to Abimbola -- aka Bola -- about his burgeoning boxing career ... when the conversation turned to The Problem Child.

"Kick rocks. More like the great white hype. And I want you Jake Paul, and I'm coming after you. And we're gonna wipe the hype."

Osundairo then had a message for Paul.

"Quit running. It's time for you to face a boxer. I'm not too advanced, you probably started before me. So we probably have the same amount of experience. What are you running from?"

He also took a shot at the opponents Jake's beaten.

"Stop going after old washed-up UFC fighters. They're not boxers. They don't want to box you. Leave them alone."

Of course, Bola and his brother became overnight celebs after admitting Smollett paid them to carry out the hoax attack in Chicago back in 2019.

That's about when Bola got into the sport of boxing ... and he's no joke in the ring.

Team USA Boxing ranks him the #1 86 kg (189 lbs.) fighter in their rankings. He also told us he recently fought 4 nights in a row, winning all the by unanimous decision.

But, the 24-year-old YouTuber turned undefeated boxer -- who just brutally KO'd Tyron Woodley -- isn't the only one on Bola's hit list. He's also got his eyes on a couple of other well-known fighters.

"We'll fight Tommy Fury. We'll fight Julio Cesar Chavez. Anderson Silva. See I'm naming real boxers, or people who actually do stuff in boxing. We'll fight any of them."

A mega-fight between the best heavyweight boxer alive, Tyson Fury, and the best heavyweight MMA fighter alive, Francis Ngannou, might actually go down ... 'cause both guys say they're all the way down to fight!

It all started last month when the UFC star told TMZ Sports he wants to step in the boxing ring with either Fury or Deontay Wilder.

"I would like to test myself to that level," Ngannou told us at the time, "It's not the same sport, although I'm the champion, I'm in the top in this division."

"At the end of the day, it's just about like trained hands, trained punches, having a good delivery system to produce bombs and I'm sure that if I deliver my own punch, it's pretty good, I can make some damage."

Well, Fury must've watched the interview ... 'cause he posted a fighting promo on his Twitter Thursday, featuring him and the 16-3 (12 KOs) MMA fighter.

"Who would like to see me fight this beast boxing rules UFC gloves?" Fury said.

Ngannou replied to the 31-0-1 heavyweight boxer ... saying the rules should be MMA style but would settle for boxing gloves as a favor to him -- but Fury wasn't having it.

"You want to come into my world calling me and Wilder out to a boxing match," Fury said.

"What I can guarantee you would be knocked out & also paid your highest purse to be so! So, have a think."

Ngannou didn't back down and vowed to go toe-to-toe anywhere and any style after his matchup with UFC interim HW champ Ciryl Gane at UFC 270.

"After I handle business on Jan. 22 I'll fight you," Ngannou said, "Under any special ruleset you want. In a ring, an Octagon or a phone booth."