Boxing

After Ryan Garcia beats Javier Fortuna next month, the young boxing superstar tells TMZ Sports his sole focus will be boxing Gervonta 'Tank' Davis ... and he says he's putting him to sleep!

"That fight will not go the distance. No way possible can it go the distance. I will not let Gervonta Davis off the hook," Garcia said about the potential super fight with Tank.

"I'm gonna beat your ass. I promise that -- I will whoop your ass and I will put you to sleep!

And, Garcia's clearly dead serious ... warning 27-0 (25 KOs) Tank not to let his IG fame fool him, 'cause at the end of the day -- despite his 8+ million followers and funny clips -- he's still a 22-0 boxer.

"Just know that there's a lot more than meets the eye with me. Don't think I'm soft," Garcia said.

"You come find out and actually make that decision to fight me, you'll find out real soon there's nothing soft about me."

Of course, the 23-year-old lightweight has to get through Fortuna (37-3, 26 KOs) first -- that bout is set to go down on July 16th at the Crypto Arena in Los Angeles (it's airing on DAZN).

"He's an ex-world champion. He's a veteran," Garcia said about Fortuna.

"But, the fact that I'm coming into, I feel my prime and my best ability skillfully and mentally, I feel like this will be a short night for Javier Fortuna."

Garcia added one last thing, "I just know I'm gonna fight Tank after I beat Fortuna."

MMA fans, we have a target date for Francis Ngannou's Octagon return ... with the UFC's heavyweight champ telling TMZ Sports he expects to be back by early 2023, at the latest!

Of course, Francis last fought in January ... when he beat interim champ, undefeated fighter Ciryl Gane to unify the belts.

In March, about 6 weeks after the unanimous decision win, Ngannou was forced to undergo surgery to repair serious damage to his knee, including ACL reconstruction and MCL repair, which were sustained before and during the fight.

So, when we ran into the 35-year-old star outside Avra in Beverly Hills, we asked Francis how his knee was feeling.

"It's getting better," Ngannou told us, adding, "It's been only 3 months, so yeah, I'm still doing physical therapy."

Now for the question on the mind of all Ngannou fans ... when will you fight??

"If everything goes well I'll be ready by the end of the year because it's gonna be 9 months. So, let's say late December or early next year."

As for Francis' preferred opponent ... he opted not to call anyone out.

"You know, as for now let's fight for the situation and get everything squared up, and then when I will be close to the return, we will see where the landscape is at 'cause a lot of things can happen."

There have been a lot of rumored opponents for Ngannou ... including Jon Jones, Stipe Miocic and even Tyson Fury.

But, first things first ... get healthy!

Calabasas moonwalkers Blueface and DDG are running pretty tight these days, making music and even cutting their teeth in the world of boxing.

We ran into the 2 rappers Wednesday in Los Angeles during what appears to be a music video shoot. They were pretty tight-lipped on the subject ... but told us to check back later.

What they did want to talk about -- or rather, vent about -- was DDG’s lack of a boxing opponent in the upcoming Social Gloves event at the Crypto.com Arena.

While the “Thotiana” rapper is scheduled to fight former Lakers champ Nick Young ... DDG has been left ass out after PnB Rock just bailed on their fight.

We can definitely see why DDG wants in on the action. During a Social Gloves event last year, he put in work on TikToker Nate Wyatt’s face — fresh off from splurging at the strip club the night earlier.

Jake Paul and Tommy Fury will settle their beef ... after seemingly years of back-and-forth trash talk, failed negotiations, canceled flights and an ultimatum from Jake -- fight me now or never -- the two boxers will finally square off in a ring.

Jake announced the news early Thursday morning ... proclaiming Tommy, Tyson Fury's younger brother, stepped up to the plate and accepted his challenge.

"Okay people he grew a set overnight. It's official, I'm taking this little Fury's head off," Paul said on Twitter.

JP also announced he and Tommy will co-main event alongside Amanda Serrano, who fights under Jake's MVP promotion and is fighting Brenda Carabajal at the mecca of boxing, Madison Square Garden.

Yesterday, Jake ripped 23-year-old Fury ... accusing him of ducking him and finding every possible excuse to prevent the fight from happening.

"Tommy Fury, you pulled out last year. Then you agree to fight me now but your dad is trying to pull you out again? We've given you everything you asked for," Paul told Fury.

He continued ... "We're 45 days away from the fight. We agreed to his 2 million dollar purse, we agreed to VADA testing, extra flights, extra rooms, extra tickets to the fight."

And, let's not forget back in December, Jake seemed to be over the Tommy saga ... after Fury pulled out of their Dec. 18 bout due to a chest infection and broken rib.

Jake Paul is over Tommy Fury duckin' him ... giving Tyson's little bro an ultimatum -- fight me now or fight me NEVER -- and it appears to have worked!

"Tommy Fury, you pulled out last year. Then you agree to fight me now but your dad is trying to pull you out again? We've given you everything you asked for," Jake wrote, listing out the so-called demands.

"$2M purse ✅
VADA testing ✅
Tampon’s ✅"

Paul's alluding to their 2021 fight that never came to fruition ... after Tommy sustained an injury. Tyron Woodley ultimately took his place, and was knocked out.

Now, Jake says Tommy's running out of time, and must sign on the dotted line ASAP ... so they can fight August 6 at Madison Square Garden.

To hammer home the point, Jake went on Instagram and said, "We're 45 days away from the fight," continuing ... "We agreed to his 2 million dollar purse, we agreed to VADA testing, extra flights, extra rooms, extra tickets to the fight."

Paul added, "It kept getting pushed until now .. what's the excuse? Oh, 'I can't come and I can't do it because my dad can't be there with me during the fight.'"

It's an excuse "The Problem Child" ain't buying, saying "It doesn't make any f***ing sense."

"You're scared! You claim you're a professional boxer but you don't wanna make the fight with me who you talk so much s*** about?!"

Thankfully for fans who want to see the scrap, it seems the pressure tactic worked for Paul ... 'cause the 8-0 (4 KOs) boxer seemingly accepted the terms via Twitter.

"See you august 6th pal," Fury wrote.

Former pro boxer Julius Francis tells TMZ Sports he's down to fight Mike Tyson in a rematch -- 22 years after they first fought -- following the renewed fame he's received after his recent knockout video went viral.

We spoke with the 57-year-old -- who had the internet in a frenzy after he KO'ed a man while working a security guard shift in the UK earlier this month -- and he told us he's now willing to come out of retirement, if the opponent and the price are right.

"If there is a promoter that’s willing to promote a sanctioned fight," Julius said, "and, I never have liked talking about money, but [if] they could come up with a decent offer, then who knows?"

Francis told us he hears all the time that he should fight Jake or Logan Paul because of the potential huge payday ... but he doesn't view either of them in his category.

Instead, Francis shared there's only one person that could get him to lace up the gloves again ... and that's the man he lost to in a famous January 2000 bout -- Iron Mike.

"I’m going to put it out there," Francis said. "I’m going to say, 'Yes. Yes, we can have a rematch.' I don’t know if anybody will watch it, but I'm going to say, 'Yes.'"

Francis was unexpectedly thrust back into the spotlight while working a security gig outside of BOXPARK Wembley on June 12 ... when he knocked a man out with one punch after the guy had been agitating people nearby.

Julius said he felt "vindicated" by social media's response to his haymaker ... and that he was pleased to see people rally behind him, even going as far to say they appreciate what he did because the guy deserved it.

Francis expressed he has no regrets over the situation ... because he was simply defending himself against the guy.

Despite getting into a physical altercation with an overzealous fan on a plane in April ... Mike Tyson is still flying commercial -- telling TMZ Sports he's got no worries about similar situations in the future.

We got the legendary boxer on his way to what appeared to be another commercial flight at LAX on Friday ... and had to ask -- is he at least somewhat concerned about flying with normies going forward just three months after he punched a man on a plane for annoying him.

Tyson, though, said it's absolutely not crossing his mind ... telling us, "No way!"

The 55-year-old former fighter insisted he's more zen now.

"You know about [my weed brand] Tyson 2.0?" Tyson said. "That's what I'm about now, man. I'm all about Tyson 2.0."

It's interesting ... because Tyson previously said his wife was urging him to strictly fly private now.

As for the advice he'd give to celebs who will deal with similar overly excited fans like the one he faced in April -- Iron Mike said there's only one solution ...

Roy Jones Jr. is clapping back at Wladimir Klitschko -- after the former 2x heavyweight champ from Ukraine questioned RJJ's "moral compass" for his close relationship with Russia -- with the Hall of Fame boxer saying he doesn't want to see anyone hurt ... Russian or Ukrainian.

And, Jones Jr. makes it clear ... if Wladimir continues to badmouth him, they can get in a ring and figure out their differences.

"I have people on both sides of the fence. I don't wanna see nobody die. Nobody fight like that because people die of war. I don't wanna see nobody on either side die. I have loved ones on both sides of the fence. You understand me? I got kids on this side, people on that side. I love both sides. I don't want to see nobody die," Roy said.

Of course, the issue couldn't be closer to Wladimir ... whose been on the ground in Ukraine throughout the entire Russian invasion, witnessing almost endless death and destruction.

In fact, Wladimir's brother Vitali Klitschko is the mayor of Kyiv ... the capital (and most populous city) of Ukraine.

During W. Klitschko's Hall of Fame induction last weekend, the now immortalized pugilist had some very strong words for Roy ... who was also inducted the same weekend.

"There's one person for whom I have a real question. One person broke Ukrainian law by going to the occupied peninsula of Crimea through Russian territory," Klitschko said.

"So, Roy, whose side are you on? On the side of the aggressor, or on the side of the defender of his right to live? I respect you as a fighter but I really question your moral compass."

FYI, a few years back, Roy became a citizen of Russia (he remains a U.S. citizen, too).

But, Roy says the last thing he wants to see is people die in a war.

"If it was up to me, we wouldn't even have a war. You understand where I'm coming from? So don't try to put me off in there like I'm some guy, 'Oh, he's happy this.' "I don't know enough about it to be happy about it. How could I tell you, I don't know that Russia wrong. I don't know that Ukraine wrong. I don't know who the hell might be right or wrong. And I don't care 'cause that's not my field."

Jones Jr. continued ... "If I was a president, senator or politician, then I'd be ready to argue with him, but I'm not. So, the only thing I can argue with him about is if he thinks he can whoop me, then we can have that argument."

Whether or not Jones Jr.'s response is enough to appease Wladimir is unclear. And, if it's not, Roy seems ready to take things to the ring.

Mike Tyson is finally telling people why he beat the hell out of an overbearing fan on a recent flight ... with the boxing legend explaining he was just high and irritable at the time!

"Hey listen, I'm usually good at these things," Tyson told Jimmy Kimmel on his show Thursday night.

"I was wrong, that should've never happened. That's me back in my primitive child stages, I shouldn't of done that, but I was just irritated, tired, high, and pissed off. S*** happens!"

"I don't wanna hurt nobody!," MT sang.

So, the dude tried Mike at the wrong time ... and Tyson beat him up for it.

Of course, Mike, who was removed from the plane along with the bloodied and bruised passenger, wasn't charged with a crime for the April 2022 incident.

Melvin Townsend III, the 36-year-old man who was on the receiving end of the beating, hired an attorney several days after the fight ... but it's unclear if he's struck a financial deal with Tyson.

Jokes aside, it certainly seems Mike regrets his actions ... even though anecdotally, most believe the former heavyweight champ was well within his right to serve up the beating.

Kimmel also asked Mike about a possible boxing match with Jake Paul. Mike and Jake are actually buddies ... but Tyson's clearly open to the idea.

Roy Jones Jr., a dual United States/Russian citizen, tells TMZ Sports he's working behind the scenes to free Brittney Griner, even saying he's willing to travel to Moscow to escort the WNBA star home.

"Would I put my life on the line, take a chance to go to Russia to exchange prisoners? Yes, I would," the Hall of Fame boxer says, before explaining why. "Because if [Brittney] was my daughter, I would want somebody to do the same thing for me."

Of course, Griner's been locked up in a Russian jail for around 4 months, and could ultimately face a decade or more in prison ... all because authorities at an airport near Moscow claim the star hooper attempted to bring drugs (hash oil) into the country.

Enter the legendary fighter ... who although born in Florida, also became a Russian citizen in 2015, with the help of Vladimir Putin.

Roy -- who last week also sat down with "Best Womens Boxing Show PERIOD" for a wide ranging conversation about Griner and his career, amongst other topics -- believes the friends he's made in Russia over the years may be in a position to help Griner.

"I had a friend, a couple of my friends that I knew, I called and I asked him 'Is there any way we can try to facilitate?' because I don't do politics. I'm a sports figure and they love me as a sports figure. 'Is there any way we can use my sports influence to possibly can get anything arranged to help get Brittney home?'"

And, Roy says there is a path to bringing Brittney home ... via a "prisoner exchange."

"My friend called and he called me back and he said, 'yes, they said they'd be willing to do a prisoner exchange.' I said, 'Well it's probably rough because the prisoner exchange is probably a real prisoner.' She's not necessarily a person that's a real prisoner but I'm sure that maybe the U.S. will be understanding of this and get her back home because I'd be terrified if my kid was stuck in a foreign country in jail, you know?"

As for the identity of Roy's friend ... he says one of his buddies is very close to Putin.

"One of my guys is like -- he's the right-hand man to the office of Mr. Putin, so he's high up on the political scheme. He's a reporter and he usually does most of the reporting for Mr. Putin so he can go make direct contact with whoever necessary to help me."

FYI, much of the news media in Russia is state-owned.

UFC star Zabit Magomedsharipov -- considered one of the best 145 lb.'ers in the world -- is retiring from fighting at just 31 years old, TMZ Sports has confirmed.

Zabit, who has a professional record of 18-1, last fought in November 2019 at UFC Fight Night 163. He beat fellow UFC star, and current 4th ranked featherweight Calvin Kattar by unanimous decision.

Obviously, Zabit hasn't been active ... and the reason why isn't entirely clear.

In fact, Magomedsharipov was once ranked in the top 5 ... but the UFC removed him because of inactivity.

Its tough news for MMA fans 'cause Zabit was one of the most exciting fighters to watch perform in the Octagon.

Aside from beating Kattar (who fighting Josh Emmett this Saturday), Zabit also beat Jeremy Stephens and Brandon Davis.

As for Zabit's plans for the future ... that's currently unclear.

It appears Logan Paul has a new lady in his life -- the YouTuber/boxer was spotted out with Sports Illustrated swimsuit cover model Nina Agdal in London this week ... and we're told they were packin' on the PDA.

Sources tell TMZ Sports the 27-year-old social media star and 30-year-old beauty were getting cozy at Novikov on Wednesday night ... and at one point, they even shared a kiss as they sat at a table with friends.

We're told Logan and Nina tried to keep it lowkey as they left the restaurant ... exiting several minutes apart from each other as they headed out to go clubbing.

It sure seems the two are hitting it off -- Agdal recently followed Logan's mom and his closest friends, George Janko and Mike Majlak, on Instagram.

Paul previously had long-term relationships with model Josie Canseco and actress Chloe Bennet ... and Agdal famously dated Leonardo DiCaprio and Jack Brinkley-Cook.

Paul's been killing it lately -- he fought Floyd Mayweather, crushed it at WrestleMania and launched his Prime Hydration drink line ... just to name a few highlights.

Now he's getting close with one of the most attractive women on the planet??

Police say former heavyweight boxer Julius Francis -- who famously fought both Mike Tyson and Vitali Klitschko early in his boxing career -- will not be arrested over his one-punch, street knockout this past weekend.

Metropolitan Police said in a statement Wednesday they have concluded their investigation into Francis' punch -- which went down while he was working as a security guard in the U.K. on Saturday -- and will not arrest the 57-year-old over it all.

"Officers have spoken to all parties involved and have reviewed relevant CCTV," cops said. "No further action will be taken in relation to the incident involving the security guard and male customer."

Police initially began investigating Francis after he was seen on video throwing a right hook at a man's jaw after the guy had appeared to get into a confrontation with security guards at BOXPARK Wembley.

The man was reportedly causing a scene at the venue, and after he was booted by the guards, he became combative.

BOXPARK Wembley founder Roger Wade believed Francis did no wrong ... saying in a statement following the incident that the former fighter was simply defending himself -- and it seems cops agreed with him.

Francis fought professionally 48 times in his career in the 1990s and early 2000s, losing to both Tyson and Klitschko in their matches.

The upcoming celebrity boxing match between Blueface and former NBA star Nick Young isn't too chummy, and won't be very long -- the "Thotiana" rapper is vowing to put Nick to sleep early!

Make no mistake about it, Blueface has already won the July 30 bout in his mind, because he tells TMZ Hip Hop ... "The Famous Cryp is about to be even more famous ... Nick's going down in the 3rd!"

Earlier this week, TMZ Sports hashed out the details: the proud L.A. natives will both have home ring advantage inside Crypto.com Arena where they will be on the undercard for the Social Gloves event where YouTubers Austin McBroom and AnEsonGib are the main event.

Speaking of YouTubers, Blueface has a history of sizing up social media stars for a fight.

Remember, he bashed TikToker Kane Trujillo's face in (as well as a random ring-crasher) during a July 2021 bare-knuckle fight.

Ex-NFL star, and part-time rapper, Le'Veon Bell is also on the card for July 30, but he's still waiting for a challenger.

As for the fight for L.A.'s unofficial celeb belt (which isn't a thing, yet) ... the physical stats are in Swaggy's favor, but Blueface has him beat in-ring experience.

Former heavyweight boxer Julius Francis -- who famously fought Mike Tyson in 2000 -- showed he's still got thunder in his hands ... knocking out a man cold while working a security gig on Saturday.

The ferocious punch went down outside of BOXPARK Wembley in the U.K. ... after a man appeared to get into a confrontation with security guards for an unknown reason.

In video of the incident, shot by a bystander, you can see the man in the du-rag was clearly not pleased with Francis and other guards ... screaming at them, and seeming to shove some of them as well.

As the guards were trying to get the man away from the area, the guy stepped toward Francis -- who clearly didn't like that.

Video shows Francis hit the man square in the jaw with a quick right hook -- sending him straight to the ground. The man appeared to be out cold for several moments.

No word on if the guy suffered any significant injuries.

Local law enforcement, meanwhile, said in a statement they are investigating it all.

"Police are aware of footage circulating on social media showing an incident involving security staff and a member of the public outside Boxpark in Wembley."

"An investigation into the circumstances, including to establish the identity and welfare of those involved, is underway."

They added no arrests have been made at this time.

Francis fought professionally 48 times in the 1990s and early 2000s -- famously losing to Tyson in a January 2000 bout in Manchester.

Before Ric Flair doles out one last ass whoopin', the WWE legend's gonna take a few (verbal) jabs from Mike Tyson -- 'cause TMZ Sports has learned Iron Mike will be one of the celebs roasting Nature Boy this summer!

We're told 55-year-old Tyson has signed on to be part of the roast of 73-year-old Flair ... going down July 29 in Nashville, TN ... in front of over 1,000 fans!

Ric and Mike -- two of the absolute greatest in their respective fields -- aren't just buddies, they're also business partners.

In fact, Mike's "Tyson 2.0" cannabis company recently struck a deal with "Ric Flair Drip" ... and the men will be selling different marijuana products (think edibles, etc.)

And, Tyson won't be alone in roasting the 16x world champ ... Starrcast, the company behind the event, tells us they're in the process of locking down other celebs and wrestlers for the roast.

If Ric makes it through the roast, two nights later he's scheduled to wrestle in the final match of his incredible career. His opponent is still being sorted out.