Boxing

Jonathan Majors was arrested in New York City this weekend -- and, according to police, he's being accused of putting hands on a woman ... but Jon's team is calling BS.

Law enforcement sources tell us the actor was booked Saturday morning on charges of strangulation, assault and harassment. We're told cops responded to a call for service around 11 AM ET near the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan.

We're told the alleged victim in this case, a female, relayed to police that Majors had gotten into a dispute with her and proceeded to attack her. Their exact relationship is unknown.

Our sources tell us the alleged victim had visible injuries -- including a laceration behind her ear, redness and marks to her face. She was taken to an area hospital and is in stable condition. As for Majors ... he was cuffed and taken to jail on the spot, as police felt there was enough evidence for probable cause. We're hearing he is currently out of custody.

Majors is a huge celeb these days -- he's been in everything from Marvel's latest 'Ant-Man' movie to Michael B. Jordan's 'Creed III' flick ... and other blockbusters as well over the past couple years. The guy has gotten rave reviews for his performances, and is seen as a rising star. He was even at the Oscars a few weeks ago, and was among the many presenters.

A rep for Majors tells TMZ ... "He's done nothing wrong. We look forward to clearing his name and clearing this up."

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David Benavidez says an ass whoopin's waiting for Caleb Plant on Saturday ... telling TMZ Sports he's gonna "put a beating" on his longtime enemy during their upcoming fight, and Canelo's next on the hit list!

We spoke to Benavidez (26-0 w/ 23 KOs) -- one of the most talented fighters in the world -- ahead of his highly-anticipated matchup, pitting David vs. Caleb in the main event of Saturday's Showtime Boxing card.

"This fight has everything everybody wants to see,"  Benavidez said. "It has bad blood, it has drama, it has two fighters that really don't like each other go at it. I really dislike Caleb Plant."

He's not kiddin' either. The two boxing stars got into a heated confrontation at their kickoff press conference last month in Los Angeles, with their teams having an exchange of words.

In fact, the beef goes back years, all the way to 2018, when the guys were involved in a scuffle at a boxing gym.

So, as you can see, the friction's real, though Plant (22-1, 13 KOs) told us he believes the verbal attack reeked of "desperation" by Benavidez.

"He can say whatever he wants but I know at the end of the day, he is really scared of me," Benavidez said.

"Everybody I put my hands on I hurt and I know that for a fact... he knows that for a fact."

Benavidez added, "I just don't like this guy. I've been thinking about it for four months, every day, there's only one goal in my head and that's really to put a beating on this guy."

Once he's done with Plant, Benavidez says he's gunning for Canelo.

"After I beat Caleb Plant, and the way I'm gonna beat him, I feel like people are gonna put way more pressure on him to make this [Alvarez] fight happen," Benavidez said.

"If he doesn't make this fight happen, he's gonna get a lot of criticism."

Until then, Benavidez is ready for his 24th knockout win on March 25.

Aaron Rodgers left one small detail out when discussing his ayahuasca adventures -- at least, that's what Jake Paul is saying ... 'cause The Problem Child claims he downed the psychedelic brew with the NFL superstar!!

The YouTuber-turned-boxer spoke about the four-time MVP's approach to mental cleansing and spirituality in an interview with Fox News Digital this week ... and not only is Paul down with it, he says he's experienced it firsthand!!

"Aaron and I were actually together when we did the ayahuasca," Paul said to Fox News Digital. "He’s more publicly known for speaking about it, but I was actually there with him when we did it."

"We spent the week there doing it," he added. "Definitely share that similarity in terms of spirituality and reflecting and going into the deepest parts of the mind. Definitely have been doing some of that."

Of course, Rodgers previously praised ayahuasca ... saying it helped him "be way more free at work, as a leader, as a teammate, as a friend, as a lover. I really feel like that experience paved the way for me to have the best season of my career."

Ayahuasca isn't the only practice Paul and Rodgers agree on -- Jake also said he was planning to do a darkness retreat at some point this year, which Aaron did last month to help figure out his NFL future.

Rodgers has yet to back Paul's recount of the trip, but the boxer's got a ton of big name friends ... so it wouldn't be too surprising.

A boxer simply couldn't wait for his fight on Saturday to start going after his opponent ... 'cause he straight-up shoved the hell outta the guy during a face-off -- forcing him to fall to the ground!!

The wild moment happened between super featherweights Michael Gomez Jr. (18-1) and Levi Giles (13-0) on Friday ... as part of the weigh-ins for the Lawrence Okolie vs David Light card.

Video shows Gomez Jr. lead with his head as he goes full steam ahead toward Giles ... and when he gets within arm's reach, he pushes him to the ground.

It's safe to say Giles was not expecting the shocking move ... as he flew back a couple feet.

The two guys had to be separated by security ... but that didn't stop them from jawing back and forth as they remained on opposite ends of the stage.

Gomez Jr.'s stunt is getting mixed reviews online ... with some saying it's a great way to sell a fight -- but others think it's a bad sign if he can't keep his cool.

Terence Crawford's Nebraska home was allegedly burglarized, TMZ Sports has learned ... and hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of jewelry stolen, including two luxury watches worth over 100 grand apiece.

The alleged theft occurred at the undefeated boxer's home in Omaha between March 17 and March 20, according to a Douglas County Sheriff's Office incident report.

Per the report, the unknown suspect(s) broke into his home and stole several pieces of jewelry. The haul included two gold chains featuring the logo "TBC" -- Crawford's initials -- a "Bud" personalized gold chain, and a gold cross necklace.

Two incredibly expensive watches were also reported stolen -- a diamond Patek Philippe watch and an Audemars Piguet and bracelet set.

All told, the pieces totaled over $317K ... and Crawford is asking for the public's help, even offering a hefty reward.

“I got 100k for whoever know who broke in my house and stole my jewelry," the 35-year-old announced.

This isn't the first time Crawford's home has been robbed. According to DCSO, an unknown suspect took a gold Rolex, worth a little over $137K, from the same residence in Oct. 2021.

Crawford -- 39-0 and one of the best pound-for-pound boxers in the world -- has been ordered to defend his WBO welterweight title against Alexis Rocha ... though boxing fans badly want him to fight fellow future Hall of Fame fighter Errol Spence in a super fight this year.

Tyson Fury is LIVID with Oleksandr Usyk after their fight negotiations came to a screeching halt this week ... with the heavyweight champion calling his potential opponent a "bug-eyed, gappy teeth, ugly little rat bastard" after the two sides failed to reach an agreement.

"You little slimy f***er," Fury (33-0-1) said in the scathing clip on Thursday. "Tried all week to get out of it, begging for a rematch [clause] like a little girl. You got your rematch [clause] and didn’t even want to fight at that."

Fury and Usyk (20-0) were initially slated to fight on April 29 ... but that ain't happening now, after both sides couldn't see eye-to-eye over how to handle a potential second bout.

Fury claims his team presented the best possible outcome ... but ultimately, Usyk never wanted to fight him in the first place.

"You little shithouse p***y," Fury added. "Always know, p***y, that you were never man enough to tangle with the Gypsy King ever in your life, you little s***house. You little 14-stone coward. You little s***bag, you rat little bastard."

Fury wasn't done there ... but you get the gist.

There's still hope the fight between the two undefeated boxers -- which would have been a four-belt unification bout -- can still happen ... but fans will have to wait.

Dak Prescott's plant leg just got a whole lot better lookin' -- TMZ Sports has learned the Dallas Cowboys superstar got it tatted over the weekend ... with tributes to his mom, brother, Kobe Bryant and more.

The quarterback hit up Andres Ortega out at Onder Ink in Arizona just days after his star wide receiver, CeeDee Lamb, got a back piece done by the artist -- and Prescott came away from the shop with a massive new tattoo.

The artwork covers nearly his entire right leg -- and it features a ton of imagery that's near and dear to the 29-year-old's heart.

The picture of the moose is a nod to his brother, Jace, who died by suicide in 2020. The photo of a Pegasus honors his mother, Peggy, who passed away from cancer in 2013.

The tattoo also pays homage to several sports icons -- there's images of a Black Mamba for Kobe, a Jumpman logo for Michael Jordan ... and a picture of Muhammad Ali.

The tat also features Daffy Duck doing Dak's signature touchdown celebration; Dallas' skyline; and a sign from the Pine Creek Estates mobile home park in Louisiana where Prescott grew up.

Floyd Mayweather's jeweler tells TMZ Sports Jake Paul is fibbin' about the way things went down in Miami earlier this month ... saying there were nowhere near 50 guys in TBE's entourage during their altercation outside of a Heat game.

Shuki International had a front-row view of the two fighters' tiff in the South Florida street back on March 8 -- as he attended the NBA game with the legendary boxer -- and he says there were only about eight guys with Floyd at the time of the ruckus.

He also tells us Mayweather didn't seek out Jake -- saying their encounter was strictly coincidental.

"Jake is exaggerating," Shuki said. "We just finished the game, pulled out, and Jake was there. Floyd was with his eight bodyguards."

"And [Jake] just run like a rabbit."

Of course, Jake's side of the story is a little different ... he said Floyd waited outside the arena for him in order to confront him with several dozen other people -- and he took off because he didn't want to get jumped.

"I'm tough," Paul said at the time, "I don't need to prove my toughness, but I'm not f****** dumb. I'm not gonna sit there and try to fight 50 dudes."

Shuki, though, seemed to imply run-ins like these might become commonplace between the two if Paul doesn't issue an apology soon.

The jeweler tells us Floyd's still got beef over the way Jake took his hat during the Logan Paul pre-fight press conference in 2021.

"He's gotta do the right thing," Shuki says. "He's gotta respect the world champion."

As for a potential fight between Mayweather and Paul -- Shuki tells us he doesn't think it'd even be a contest ... expecting a Floyd KO in a matter of seconds.

BJ Flores -- Jake Paul's boxing trainer -- was terrifyingly shot in a robbery attempt in Colombia on Friday ... but, thankfully, it appears he's going to be OK.

The former fighter, who began working with Paul in 2021, said the incident happened when he was at a stop light while vacationing in Medellín.

Flores said two armed motorcycle drivers pulled up to him while he was in the passenger seat of a car at a red light, and pointed a gun at his forehead.

They "tried to steal my wallet and my watch," the 44-year-old said in a social media post. "They shot me one time in the leg and I defended myself the best way I could."

Flores, fortunately, got away ... and immediately raced to the emergency room. He said docs told him a bullet was still lodged in his thigh.

According to his social media page, Flores is currently undergoing surgery to remove it.

Prior to going under, Flores captured his injuries on camera ... showing a knot on his head, a cut on his hand, and a bloody wound on his leg. He added that he believes the shooting was a targeted attack.

"Thank you for the well wishes," Flores wrote on his IG. "I will learn from this….. Be safe out there please. Life is precious. 🙏🏻🙏🏻 I love you all."

Flores fought professionally from 2003 to 2018 -- piling up a record 34-4-1. He met Paul in retirement, sparring with the YouTuber before eventually taking over full-time training duties for the aspiring boxer.

Paul has yet to comment on the shooting.

Le'Veon Bell is channeling his inner Rocky in preparation for his next fight ... getting in an insane ab workout this week that looked more like torture than a typical sweat sesh.

The former NFL superstar is boxing YouTuber JMX in April ... and he's clearly taking it seriously, 'cause check out footage of the work he got in at the gym on Wednesday -- it's intense.

The ex-running back -- who quit football in 2022 to focus on his boxing career -- laid on the ground shirtless ... while one of his training partners heaved a weighted ball right at his stomach.

Bell took shot after shot after shot, obviously in pain each time -- but he kept coming back for more.

Eventually, after at least six body blows -- he tapped out ... but he made sure to show afterward how strong his abs were.

The training should come in handy for Bell next month -- as his upcoming opponent doesn't appear to be any sort of tomato can. If you're unfamiliar, JMX is 4-0 in his celeb fights -- and is coming off an impressive knockout win over TikToker Ginty.

Then again, Bell KO'ed Adrian Peterson last year and also gave MMA star Uriah Hall a run in the ring a few weeks later.

Francis Ngannou vs. Jon Jones ain't happening (at least no time soon), but there's another megafight seemingly on the horizon ... The Predator tells us he's currently discussing a two-fight deal with former heavyweight champ Deontay Wilder!

TMZ Sports talked to 36-year-old Ngannou -- a combat sports free agent after parting ways with the UFC in January -- and now the question is who does Francis fight, in what discipline, and where does it go down.

It's looking more and more like the answer to those questions are 37-year-old Wilder, boxing, and in Africa.

"We are looking into [Deontay Wilder] because he's available. He's ready for that. He's very excited about [a fight with me]. He wants it. So, we are looking into that. That's something I'm very excited about. We even discussed a potential one fight in Africa and one fight somewhere else. Why not even the two fights in Africa?", Francis told us.

Of course, Ngannou and Wilder are arguably the hardest/biggest punchers in all of combat sports.

12 of Francis' 17 wins came by knockout ... and his KO of Alistair Overeem may be the most brutal punch in recent UFC memory.

As for the Bronze Bomber, all but one of his 43 victories came by knockout.

Both guys clearly have the power to end the fight with a single shot ... but Francis tells us it's about more than simply throwing big power punches, and hoping one connects.

"I can knock everybody out. I have to be clear about something. To hit that person you have to get a clear shot which is more about technique and experience I don't have. So, I'm very aware of that aspect," Ngannou says.

"It's not like 'hit me, I hit you, and then we see who goes down.' It's a combat sport. Everybody trying not to get hit. I'm thinking more about the technique or the boxing side of it. The beauty of it. Then at the end, if you get an opportunity to connect then good. If not, I'm still expecting to win that fight in the decision so that's how I'm preparing myself."

There's much more ... we also talked to Francis about Jon Jones calling him a "big ole p***y," the possibility of signing to Jake Paul's Most Valuable Promotions, and Dana White telling us he believes Ngannou would've been easily handled just like Ciryl Gane was at UFC 285.

Talk about putting your money where your mouth is ... a fan just spent over $13K on a card that was signed and kissed by Paige VanZant!

The first edition card hit auction last week on eBay ... and after 102 bids, the 1-of-1 sold for exactly $13,200, and the Bare Knuckle FC boxer was hyped!

"Thank you to everyone who bid," the 28-year-old said on Monday via Instagram. "This was a really cool experience for me ♥"

The card is pretty sweet ... it features a photo of VanZant in her boxing gear with a pink lip print and she proves the kiss was from her lips by sharing a picture of her kissing the card.

She also signed it with her name and "XOXO".

The whole idea was to help launch her husband, Bellator star Austin Vanderford's new shop where you can buy, sell, and/or trade sports cards.

"Go bid while you can and take a look at everything he’s got for sale if your into football cards :) And follow @vanderford_cards for new listings," VanZant said.

Of course, if you follow the couple, you know they support each other in a big way ... ever since getting married in 2018.

"Oh the places we have been," VanZant said in a recent IG video of Austin. "And oh the places we will go. ❤️ @austinvanderford"

It was the Lakers and Knicks who took priority for Denzel Washington and Spike Lee on Hollywood's biggest night -- the two A-listers skipped the Oscars to catch the NBA teams go at it in L.A.!!!

Washington and Lee ditched stage-side seats at the famed movie award ceremony for courtside ones at Crypto.com Arena on Sunday evening ... and didn't seem one bit displeased with their choice.

The guys were seen sharing a hug before the game ... clearly not stressing about missing the Oscars -- which were taking place at the same time less than 10 miles away at the Dolby Theatre.

Lee, of course, is a huge Knicks fan -- and Denzel is a big Lakers one ... and the two talked smack to each other about their teams throughout the contest.

Lee ended up getting the last laugh -- the Knicks beat the Lakers 112-108 ... though Washington didn't seem too beat up over it all.

The actors weren't the only celebs at the game ... star boxers Gervonta Davis and Ryan Garcia, plus Flea, were there too.

In fact, Washington and Davis had a moment with each other before the game, where Denzel voiced some big support for the fighter.

Ryan Garcia tells TMZ Sports Jake Paul would probably get "beat up" by Floyd Mayweather if the two ever got in the ring ... but he did put at least some respect on the YouTuber-turned-boxer's game -- saying he believes the tilt would at least go the distance.

A potential Paul vs. Mayweather fight appears to be in the works ... after the guys got into a heated back-and-forth outside of the Miami Heat game on Wednesday night.

So, when we got Garcia out promoting his upcoming match with Gervonta Davis out in LA this week -- we had to ask ... who'd win if the fight went down?

Garcia made it clear that despite his friendship with Jake, his money is on Floyd ... "but, guess what," he said, "Jake won't get knocked out."

His explanation for why was simple ... Mayweather couldn't KO Jake's big bro, Logan, in their exhibition match back in June 2021 -- and he obviously believes Jake's a better fighter.

As for the meetup in the streets this week ... Garcia called out Floyd for it all, saying it wasn't "right" to confront Paul with a huge entourage.

But, Garcia told us he isn't too worried about that matchup ... saying his focus is solely on Davis -- who he'll take on next month after years of smack talk.

Floyd Mayweather is, once again, living up to his nickname of "Money" ... dropping around $180K to upgrade a custom Rolls Royce limousine, complete with mink rugs and a 45-inch TV in the back!

TMZ Sports has learned the legendary boxer hit up his go-to car guy Obi Okeke, AKA Doctor Bugatti, to deck out the Rolls he purchased years back.

Mind you, the RR was already far from stock ... it was cut and stretched almost 10 feet when Floyd initially bought the vehicle.

But, that obviously wasn't enough for the undefeated boxer. TBE had Obi turn his luxury car into a "Netflix & Chill on wheels" ... as he placed an insane 2000-watt sound system and a 45" TV complete with Wi-Fi, in the back.

He also added a new engine, custom "TMT" wood interior, and mink floor mats that cost $44,000, totaling a $180K refurbish.

Mayweather regularly upgrades his "toys" ... remember, he had Okeke install an $18K mink fur-lined baby car seat to his (other) $345K+ Rolls Royce for his grandson, Kentrell Jr., last July.

Of course, Floyd made hundreds of millions of dollars as a pro fighter, and is now doing exhibition fights across the world, and those fights also come with a hefty check.

Floyd Mayweather and Jake Paul came face-to-face in Miami after the Heat game Wednesday night ... the legendary boxer and a group of men confronted the Problem Child -- before JP booked it from the area.

The incident happened after the Heat-Cavs game in south Florida ... when Mayweather rolled up on Paul, who appeared to have a lone security guard with him at the time.

After exchanging a few words, Jake made a run for it ... getting out of there before any fists started flying.

Of course, Floyd and Jake have been beefin' since Paul snatched the hat off the 50-0 boxer's head at a press event promoting his brother Logan's fight with TBE in May 2021.

Jake addressed the situation on social media shortly after the incident occurred.

"So I'm leaving the Miami Heat game and Floyd Mayweather and 50 dudes pull up out of nowhere, out of like some side alley, waiting for me outside the stadium, and they're like, 'So what's up? what's all that talk now?' Paul recounted on Instagram.

The 6-1 fighter continued ... "I'm like first of all, what did I say to you Floyd? I just took your hat and you're still mad about it? Come on, bro. And then 50 dudes literally start surrounding me to jump me, and I'm out that bitch, ok?"

As for Floyd, sources close to the fighter say he just happened to run into Jake while leaving the basketball game, denying they were lying in wait. We're told Mayweather believes Jake previously made comments that went beyond the typical trash talk amongst fighters, so he confronted him.

“Jake crossed the line. This wasn’t about grabbing a hat. This was about Jake’s comments to Floyd about Floyd’s deceased family member and other below-the-belt inappropriate behavior,” a source close to Floyd told us.

As for Paul's social media response after the arena incident, our Floyd source responded ... “Jake went to his IG and started name-calling once again when he can hide behind a camera.”

Speaking of Instagram, Jake didn't miss the opportunity to challenge Floyd to an organized boxing match.

"You wanna run it one on one, no problem. But I'm not dumb. Okay? I'm tough, I don't need to prove my toughness., but I'm not f**king dumb. I'm not gonna sit there and try to fight 50 dudes."

So ... Floyd Mayweather vs. Jake Paul this summer sounds about right!