Boxing

Tyron Woodley, Nate Robinson and the Houston Rockets mascot all now have something in common -- each has been knocked out by Jake Paul!!

The Problem Child added "Clutch" to his KO victim list in a hilarious scene at the Rockets vs. Timberwolves game in Houston on Sunday -- moments after the furry mascot challenged Paul to a "fight" near his seat.

In video of the "altercation" posted to his social media page Monday, you can see the Houston mascot came over to Jake with some comically large gloves on and challenged him to a boxing match.

At one point, the mascot appeared to tag Jake in the arm -- which got the YouTuber out of his chair.

Jake then quickly put Clutch into his place, hitting the bear to the floor with a big right hand.

Paul talked a little smack and went back to his seat -- and fans found the interaction hilarious.

Of course, the punch was all scripted and the mascot is OK ... but Jake still had fun with it all on his Instagram page -- writing in the video's caption, "Will Smith'd em."

If you thought dropping $5.2 million on a piece of cardboard was a lot, Logan Paul says he paid even more to keep his beloved, rare Pokémon card safe -- shelling out $80k for its iced-out pendant case!!

Paul -- who bought the PSA 10 Pikachu Illustrator for $5,275,000 and then wore it around his neck at WrestleMania -- is opening up about his Guinness World Record-breaking purchase on Monday ... saying it was a transaction more than a year in the making.

The Maverick says he completely understands spending that kinda coin on a piece of cardboard is "absurd" ... but offers his reasoning behind pulling the trigger.

"The Pikachu Illustrator is the rarest Pokémon card in the world," Paul says. "Only 39 of them exist, and this is the ONLY PSA 10 (perfect condition). Until this weekend, there were no pictures or videos of this card ANYWHERE."

Logan says he was able to track down the owner of the card last year, spent months negotiating ... and then finally made his way to Dubai to make the purchase.

Logan later turned the card into an $80k wearable piece ... which he debuted alongside the Miz at Mania on Saturday.

The case is completely decked out in diamonds and gold ... including a shiny Pokeball bail.

Logan Paul looked like a total natural in the squared-circle at WrestleMania 38 just now ... dominating his tag team match with The Miz -- and coming away with the win.

Logan and Miz were in control throughout the match against Rey Mysterio and his son, Dominik at AT&T Stadium in Arlington ... and the whole thing was filled with action.

The Maverick's performance was a display of his true athletic ability -- he executed some of the most challenging wrestling moves in the book ... including jumping off the top rope.

Worth noting -- at one point, Mysterio tried to pay homage to his friend, Eddie Guerrero, by hitting Miz with Eddie's signature "Three Amigos" move ... but wasn't able to complete the third suplex.

Logan, however, flipped the script -- not only did he hit Mysterio with a "Three Amigos" of his own, he then hit Rey with a "Frog Splash" ... which was also one of Guerrero's moves.

Logan -- who came out wearing a $5.2 million super-rare Pokémon card around his neck -- and Miz rocked matching yellow and black 'fits for the match ... and they looked damn good.

But, in true Heel form, Miz hit Logan with his finisher move -- the Skull-Crushing finale -- after being declared winners ... much to the delight of the crowd, who booed Paul throughout the match.

Sergey Kovalev is the latest pro fighter who wants a piece of Jake Paul ... the ex-boxing champ tells TMZ Sports he's down to fight the YouTuber after his next scheduled match.

"Fight with Jake Paul? I'm ready," the 39-year-old former light heavyweight champion said. "And I will knock him out."

Paul has insisted he wants somebody with a name brand for his next bout -- and while Sergey might not have the biggest social media following, he certainly has the resume Paul is looking for.

"Krusher" is 34-4-1 in his 39 career fights -- and has a win over boxing legend Bernard Hopkins on his resume. He's also fought Canelo Alvarez and Andre Ward in his impressive career.

Kovalev says he's all for trying to add Paul to that list of opponents -- saying he'll be happy to try to make the fight after he returns from his long layoff against Tervel Pulev in May.

"Let me make my comeback fight," Kovalev said, "and then we can do any fight."

He added, "Any day."

Somebody got you good on April Fools? There's no way it was worse than what Johnny Knoxville's prank did to WWE superstar Sami Zayn, who tells TMZ Sports the jokester's stunt last month caused his phone to ring nonstop!!!

The wrestler says that after Knoxville put his phone number on a plane for all of Los Angeles to read on March 11 -- he got nearly 300,000 text messages and more than 250,000 calls!!!

"I'm not making these numbers up," Zayn said. "That's insane. That's insane!"

Zayn tells us the phone number prank "ruined my life" -- and now, despite having big beef with Knoxville for a while, he's ready for the shenanigans to end.

Zayn -- who initially started a feud with Johnny when the comedian made an appearance in the WWE several months ago -- said he's going to beat Knoxville to a pulp when the two throw hands in an "anything goes" match at WrestleMania 38 at AT&T Stadium today.

"If you've enjoyed Jackass over the years," Zayn said, "and you've enjoyed watching Johnny Knoxville getting hurt, boy have I got something for you."

For Knoxville's part, he's insisted he's going to beat up Zayn so badly -- the wrestler is going to have to retire after the match.

Jake and Logan Paul might have a lot of haters, but that's not the case with WWE Universal champion Roman Reigns ... who says he respects the YouTubers/boxers and what they've been able to accomplish.

Reigns joined Harvey and Charles on "TMZ Live" ahead of WrestleMania 38 ... and the heavyweight couldn't say enough good things about the Paul bros.

"These guys from everything that I've ever seen or heard, they put in the work," Reigns said. "They live a full-time boxing schedule. They train. They eat. They do everything that a professional boxer would do to prepare for a fight."

Of course, the reason we're talkin' about the Pauls is that Logan is set to take the ring at WM38 on Saturday in a tag team match with The Miz.

Roman says its essential performers in the sports entertainment world be multi-layered -- something he firmly believes the former-YouTube superstars-turned boxers are.

"I think as performers, you got to be multi-layered," Roman said. "In performing arts, you have to have multiple lanes of a skill set."

The former member of "The Shield" said he thinks it's crazy anyone would try to dismiss their legitimacy as fighters -- especially since their work ethic and audience make them mega draws.

"I think it would be crazy to say they're not boxers," the 2015 WWE Royal Rumble winner said. "You got to have people tuned into what you're doing."

"And, they've done that, but they've also put in the work. Kudos to them."

Finally, we asked Roman if a match between him and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson at next year's WrestleMania (set to take place at SoFi Stadium) was in the works, and the champ's response was interesting.

"I don't care who you are and what you been doing on the movie set and what kind of fight scenes you been putting together on the big screen."

"When it comes to a WWE ring, when it comes to the Universal championship, and the WWE championship for that matter -- I think I'm the safe bet to put your money on."

On the eve of the biggest event in sports entertainment -- WrestleMania 38 -- Browns tight end David Njoku is in Texas to support his younger brother, Evidence, at his WWE tryouts.

TMZ Sports is told David made the trip to Frisco, TX ... for his little brother who was showcasing some of his athletic pedigree in front of WWE officials. We're told he took part in a 3-day talent tryout WWE is hosting in conjunction with Mania.

We're also told Evidence Njoku was one of 50 college athletes who took part in the event ... and David attended the workouts for moral support.

Njoku, who's played five seasons in the NFL, also got a chance to step inside the square circle -- and, the best part, he got to chat it up with WWE exec Triple H.

In the video, HHH is telling David some of the ins and outs of being a professional wrestler ... and how it's up to the talent to protect one another inside the ring.

The pass-catching tight end was joined by newly signed WWE superstar, Gable Steveson, an NCAA & Olympic champion, Bellator MMA star Valerie Loureda, and upcoming prospect, AJ Ferrari.

Of course, Gable is one of the most promising young wrestlers in the company ... with many in the biz predicting the Olympic gold medalist will go on to superstardom one day.

As for David Njoku ... even though it was his bro trying out, ya have to wonder if the NFL star has any interest in professional wrestling after he hangs up the pads.

Crushing news for X-Pac ... the former WWE superstar says he tore his bicep last month in his highly anticipated return to the ring, and will require surgery to fix the injury before getting back in the squared circle.

49-year-old Pac, government name, Sean Michael Waltman, posted the gruesome pic of his injury on Twitter and an update on his health status, and it was pretty tough to digest.

"I tried to keep this on the down-low," X-Pac wrote, "but I tore my bicep in the tag match a month ago."

"I'm going to have surgery soon & then have a few more matches."

Pac joined the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weeknights on FS1) last month ... and told Mike & Mojo he was returning to the ring after a 3-year layoff to resume his wrestling career.

Sean announced that he would be fighting under the independent wrestling promotion Game Changer Wrestling, and his first match would be a tag team match.

The 2x WWE Hall of Famer joined forces with "The Bad Boy" Joey Janela to fight Brian Myers and Mojo's old WWE tag team partner, Matt Cardona in his first match back.

Aside from announcing his return to in-ring competition, Pac also revealed that he'd been wrestling with a torn ACL for about 14 years, but said he felt better thanks to surgery.

Now, the former D-Generation X member will again need to go under the knife.

The only fighting star boxer Vasyl Lomachenko will do now for the foreseeable future is for his home country against Russia ... so says his manager, who tells TMZ Sports Loma will remain in Ukraine until the war ends.

Lomachenko has been in the war-torn country since February -- shortly after Russia's initial invasion -- choosing to forego a championship fight with George Kambosos Jr. to stick around and help his fellow countrymen in the war.

And, Egis Klimas, who manages Lomachenko's boxing career, told us out in L.A. on Wednesday the plan is for that to continue until all of the fighting in Ukraine stops.

Klimas, though, did ensure Lomachenko is staying safe while the war rages on.

"He's doing good," Klimas said. "He's in the safe place in Ukraine. He's in the corner. The place where he's at, it's not a war zone. He's not in a war zone."

Lomachenko last fought in the ring in December, beating Richard Commey via a unanimous decision. He was expected to fight Kambosos Jr. in June ... before the war caused Loma to pull out of the bout.

Kamboso Jr. has said he will remake the fight with Lomachenko after he leaves Ukraine -- and wished him the best while he fights for his home country.

Klimas, meanwhile, says Oleksandr Usyk, one of the other star boxers he manages who joined the forces in Ukraine back in February, has left the country and is in the process of preparing for his rematch against Anthony Joshua.

It pays to be a fan of Floyd Mayweather -- literally -- 'cause the 50-0 boxing legend is hooking up a verrry lucky fan with $100,000!!

TMZ Sports has learned Mayweather hosted a giveaway for fans ... and randomly picked a fan to hook up with the money.

James McNair, President of The Money Team, tells us ... "When you are associated with Floyd and his businesses anything can happen on any given day that will change your life."

And, changing his life is exactly what the fan says Floyd did for him.

In fact, Mayweather reached out to the fan -- who had to like, RT, and join Mayweverse Discord (JM says they picked up over 75K members in a week), among other rules -- directly through Instagram direct message ... and broke him with the incredible news.

As for the actual NFTs, Floyd is dropping 5,000 through the Mayweverse (his non-fungible token company) that he designed with McNair ... and we're told it's a space TBE intends to stay in for the foreseeable future.

Jake Paul wants in on the Will Smith vs. Chris Rock feud -- the YouTuber-turned-fighter is offering both actors $15 MILLION to take their beef to the boxing ring!!

Shortly after the slap heard around the world went down at the Oscars, "Impractical Jokers" star Sal Vulcano joked about how much the Most Valuable Promotions founder would cough up to get both legends in the ring for an epic event for the ages.

The 25-year-old fighter -- who previously offered Pete Davidson and Kanye West $30 milli each to face off in the ring -- delivered on his new proposition late Sunday night ... claiming he already has $30 million set aside for a Smith vs. Rock bout.

"I got $15m for Will Smith and $15m for Chris Rock ready to go," Paul tweeted ... adding he already has a date in mind.

"Let’s do it in August on my undercard."

FYI -- The biggest Pay-per-view ever is 4.6 million buys for Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao in 2015.

A Will vs. Chris fight would undoubtedly be successful, but don't hold your breath on it ever happening -- after all, both guys have all the money in the world and it would be quite the height/weight disadvantage for Rock ... but Jake's got the financial backing to make it happen.

If you thought Mike Tyson was a badass before, wait until you see how he handled himself when a guy pulled a gun within 15 feet of him -- let's just say you can call him Cool Hand Luke.

TMZ obtained this insane video of what we're told was a small comedy show Tuesday night on a rooftop bar in Hollywood, and MT was in attendance with a few friends.

At first you see Mike seated calmly at his front row table taking in the show -- but the whole thing was interrupted by a random guy who approached Mike and co. and attempted to chat him up, disrupting a comedian's set and everyone's good time.

While you can't hear exactly what was being said in the footage, eyewitnesses tell us the man was actually challenging Mike to a fight -- suggesting he wanted to elevate his "status."

Mike, of course, kept it chill and didn't engage with the man ... mostly just letting him talk. Eventually, though, another man intervenes and tells the dude to scram. We're told this was actually the host/MC of the night.

That pissed off the guy challenging Mike ... who threatened to shoot the host, and then pulled out a gun from his waistband and cocked it in front of everyone. Naturally, everyone gasped and started ducking under tables.

Luckily, he never fired, put the gun away and almost immediately regretted it. He once again approached Mike, and asked him not to call the cops. Once again, Mike just sat there in relative silence, heard the guy out and in the end, embraced him.

Mike actually hugged the man, at which point he finally left without further incident. We're told people started to trickle out after that with some trepidation -- not knowing if the dude was lurking somewhere down below in the streets. After a bit of time, Mike departed too.

Mike Tyson is down to fight Jake Paul ... in what'd be one of the most talked-about boxing matches of all time.

There's just one catch -- Iron Mike wants a BILLION dollars.

55-year-old Tyson made the comments on his "Hotboxin'" podcast this week ... when his convo with boxer Jermell Charlo and Boston Celtics legend Paul Pierce turned to a rumored fight against Jake.

Pierce said he heard Mike was going to fight Jake, but Tyson seemed to be unaware of the rumor.

"Nobody told me that," Tyson said. "Hey, I ain't got no f***ing money. So, where's the f***ing contract?"

"I've never heard this from nobody, I've just heard this from you guys."

Now, Tyson and Paul are buddies.

In fact, you could argue Jake owes at least some of his boxing success to Mike. The Problem Child's career exploded after he flatlined Nate Robinson on the Tyson-Roy Jones Jr. undercard in November 2020.

The men have become good friends ... and Mike even said they were recently together in St. Barts, where they partied.

When Pierce asked Mike if he'd ever fight again, specifically against Jake, Tyson quickly said "a billion bucks" ... setting his price tag to fight Jake.

Tyson previously denied reports he was in "advanced talks" to fight Jake in a $49 million boxing match ... though his latest comments seem to suggest the fight isn't totally off the table.

Star boxer Vasyl Lomachenko is turning down a title fight with George Kambosos Jr. ... all so he can stay in Ukraine and help his home country fend off a Russian invasion.

Promoter Lou DiBella announced the decision to ESPN's Mike Coppinger on Monday ... explaining the planned June 5 Lomachenko vs. Kambosos tilt is now off while Loma continues to take up arms in Ukraine.

Lomachenko, of course, has been front and center in the country since Vladimir Putin decided to invade the land back in February.

Just days after the war began, Lomachenko was seen holding a rifle and wearing army fatigues ... and he's been in the country fighting ever since.

Kambosos said Monday he respects Loma's decision to pull out of the planned boxing match -- saying in a tweet, "I totally understand and I pray for you and your country."

Kambosos added, "Please stay safe," and promised to remake the fight down the road.

Jake Paul says his $60 million offer to get Kanye West and Pete Davidson to take their beef to the boxing ring is NOT a publicity stunt ... telling TMZ Sports he wants the two to stop fighting for the sake of Ye and Kim's kids.

We spoke to the "Problem Child" about his decision to get in the middle of the biggest feud of the year ... and he says he's worried about how Ye and Kim's kids will handle watching the two grown men bicker online.

"I'm kinda sick of them going back and forth on social media and I think its affecting the kids' lives, like Kanye and Kim's kids," Jake tells us. "They're gonna be the ones that take the most trauma from this."

Of course, Kanye's antics recently got him temporarily banned from Instagram ... and he's openly argued with Kim, Pete, Trevor Noah and more over the past few weeks.

Paul -- who's been outspoken about the positive benefits of boxing -- isn't making light of the situation ... he seriously thinks this could help end the beef for good and both sides can move on.

Jake says his Most Valuable Promotions will handle everything -- as long as they show up and do their thing in the ring, they'll get their $30 mill AND some pay-per-view bucks, too.

As for the money ... Jake says that's no problem, and he's already got financial backers involved ... even though he didn't need them.

"Everyone knows I was the highest-paid boxer last year," Jake says. "I can guarantee the money myself, but we have partners and stuff. The money's good."

UFC rising star Paddy Pimblett is roasting Ilia Topuria -- AKA "Mr. Hand Sanitizer" -- after the rival fighters came to blows in a hotel ... after engaging in a social media tiff a few months back.

TMZ Sports talked to 27-year-old Paddy "The Baddy" one day after he got into it with 25-year-old Topuria ... and it's safe to say the scuffle didn't do anything to squash the beef.

Pimblett -- 17-3 as a pro -- says he was just minding his own business, "warming me eggs up" in the hotel kitchen when Ilia -- "that little bitch ass" as Paddy refers to him -- approached him in an aggressive manner.

Paddy says Topuria made the first move, "So, I bounced hand sanitizer off his head so from now he'll forever be known as Mr. Hand Sanitizer."

"He tried to throw a right hook at me which is about four years away from me because he's like 5'7". It's hard to make it look good on his part when he looks like an absolute idiot. I can't believe he posted that video. He's made himself look so stupid saying 'I warned you.'"

"Well you're the one with hand sanitizer bounced off your head lad. Nothing happened to me. You didn't land a single punch. There was six of you and ya done nothing," Paddy said.

The drama started last April when Paddy Tweeted ... "Lad how stupid are these Georgians man ... no wonder the Russians terrorize their lives." Pimblett erased the message and apologized, but it's clear Ilia didn't forget.

The guys clearly still have issues ... so we asked Paddy if he was interested in fighting Topuria in the future.

"He's beneath me. As I say it, I don't even know his name, lad. He's Mr. Sanitizer to me. That's all he is. I don't know his name, lad. He's gonna get knocked out Saturday by my man Jai [Herbert], and then he'll crawl back to the featherweight division."

FYI, both men are fighting this weekend at UFC Fight Night ... but they're not fighting each other. Pimblett's taking on Rodrigo Vargas (we also talked to PP about his fight).