Boxing

Jake Paul admits he's seriously wrestling with the idea of taking a boxing match against his older brother Logan Paul -- but says he's 100% certain he'd whoop that ass if they do!

"I sort of change my mind on it every day," Jake said about fighting his brother ... "One day I'll do it, the next day I'm like 'I don't think I should do that.'"

Remember, Jake called out Logan -- along with Conor McGregor and others -- following his KO victory over Nate Robinson on Saturday ... leading many to wonder, would he REALLY fight his own bro?

Now that he's had time to think about it, Jake says it's come down to this -- "I would just do it to prove people wrong."

Jake says he's sick of hearing everyone praise Logan as the superior fighter -- saying, "I'm like a 10-times better boxer."

"I've had 2 fights and I've been in the ring for a total of 7 minutes and I've knocked down my opponents 6 times in that 7 minutes."

Jake previously told us he's dead serious about pursuing a boxing career -- and wants to take on some bigger names.

Since then, athletes like ex-boxing champ Antonio Tarver and NHL star Evander Kane have called out Jake.

Bottom line ... he doesn't HAVE to fight Logan -- he's got options.

"If you want to get some legitimacy in the game, fight somebody with a name!"

That's former boxing superstar Antonio Tarver -- who famously defeated Roy Jones Jr. TWICE -- calling out Jake Paul for a sanctioned fight!

"I want to fight him, because I want to show him there are levels to this," Tarver tells TMZ Sports.

FYI, Tarver is 52 years old and hasn't fought in 5 years. Jake is 23 and coming off a highlight-reel knockout of Nate Robinson.

Antonio -- who famously starred as Mason "The Line" Dixon in "Rocky Balboa" -- says he was VERY impressed with Jake's performance and thinks a fight with Paul would be super entertaining and a lot closer than most people think.

"When you look at Jake Paul's ability, you would be crazy not to believe he's much better than his 2-0 record indicates," Tarver says.

Paul has been calling for fights with guys like Conor McGregor and Dillon Danis ... but Tarver says if he's serious about a career in boxing, he needs to fight a BOXER.

George Foreman was so impressed with Mike Tyson's performance against Roy Jones Jr. -- he thinks the 54-year-old could still make a serious run at a heavyweight title RIGHT NOW.

Yes, he's dead serious.

"If he gets 3 more exhibitions like that, at that level, I would even back him in challenging any title contender, even a champion," Foreman told TMZ Sports.

"If the right situation arrived, Mike Tyson could be in for a good title shot ... and [with 3 more] of these exhibitions, he can beat some of these guys who can be champion out there."

In fact, Foreman says he'd pick Tyson to beat guys like Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder ... under the right circumstances.

"If you go 8 two-minute rounds, I'd back Tyson," Foreman said ... "10 two-minute rounds, I'd back Tyson!"

Foreman said he didn't expect to feel so charged up about Tyson -- but he says his feelings are genuine, he was extremely impressed.

Forget Brad Pitt, there's a new "Fight Club" in town -- and this time, it's Snoop Dogg calling the shots!

The rapper has teamed up with Triller co-owner Ryan Kavanaugh to launch a brand new pro boxing league called "The Fight Club" ... and we're told there's already a blockbuster event in the works!

TMZ Sports was talking with Kavanaugh about Snoop's wildly entertaining performance as a commentator at the Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr. fight ... when Ryan dropped the bombshell on us.

"This was the first event of a league that we have called 'The Fight Club,'" Kavanaugh said.

"It's a league owned by Proxima, which is the parent company to Triller and Snoop, and this was the first of many, many events."

Kavanaugh says Snoop is a co-owner of the league -- plus, he'll be doing fight commentary and helping book the fights and musical acts!

"This is gonna be big," Kavanaugh says ... "The whole idea is we want to change up the way that boxing is done."

The plan is for "The Fight Club" to put on both sanctioned fights and non-sanctioned fights ... basically, like the Mike Tyson card.

Kavanaugh says he's already got a MAJOR sanctioned fight in the works involving some huge stars.

"I can tell you that the main fight — I can't say it yet — but it’s gonna be something that everybody wants to see. If you thought [Tyson vs. Jones Jr.] is big, I think that this would be even larger from a worldwide-appetite perspective and something that people want to see."

Kavanaugh says the undercard will be stacked too -- they're currently looking at social media stars, actors, musicians, athletes and pro boxers to get in on the action.

Boxing superstar Claressa Shields says the boxing business is straight-up SEXIST -- with promoters screwing her out of paydays for years because she's a woman ... and that's why she's jumped to MMA.

25-year-old Shields -- one of the greatest female boxers ever -- just inked a 3-year contract with the Professional Fighters League, a global MMA promotion.

And, get this, Sheilds says one of the biggest reasons she made the move is because of PFL's biggest star, Kayla Harrison -- who's already won PFL's $1 million tournament, TWICE!

"Kayla, I watch all her fights," Shields says ... "She had a chance to fight for a million dollars [in MMA] before I had a chance to fight for a million dollars in boxing and I've accomplished everything there is to accomplish in boxing."

Claressa is right -- she's won every title imaginable and is widely regarded as the top pound-for-pound female boxer in the world.

But, despite her accolades and her talent on the microphone (she's entertaining as hell) -- Shields says she's been constantly low-balled by the shot-callers in her beloved sport.

"Boxing is so sexist," Claressa said ... claiming they treat her like a charity case instead of a world champion.

"These men are fighting for multiple millions that haven't accomplished half of what I accomplished but I'm supposed to just be happy?? Like yeah, go ahead and pay me $300k and then offer me $150k for the next fight?"

So, instead of bitching about it ... Claressa simply left the sport.

She's been training like a maniac and tells TMZ Sports the promoters at PFL aren't trying to turn her career into a circus by immediately booking her to fight Kayla Harrison.

Instead, Claressa says she'll start fighting opponents with similar MMA experience and she'll move up from there.

"I'm happy that they understood that this is not a ... 'Oh, I'm just coming over here like a Conor McGregor vs. Floyd Mayweather type of deal,'" Shields tells us.

"This is a 3-year deal we have together ... It's very lucrative. 160 different countries that they'll be showing my fights. I'll be able to grow my brand and just continue to be a bigger role model."

"And I'm just happy they understood that and just didn't come talking to me like, 'Hey, we want you to get in the cage and fight Kayla Harrison the first main event.'"

As for her training, Shields says she's been in the gym every day -- and has gone from bench pressing 135 pounds to 185 pounds since kick-starting her training in June.

"Just trying to get stronger and fast to be more explosive -- and really just treat my body like a temple so we can get ready to go through all these different changes we're about to go through having to be an MMA fighter."

There's more -- Shields says the MMA community has welcomed her with open arms ... and name-drops some huge stars in the sport who have offered to help her as she begins her new journey.

Jake Paul says he's already reached out to Conor McGregor's camp to start negotiating a boxing match with the Irishman ... saying, "I'm going in there to f**k Conor McGregor up."

The 23-year-old called out Conor after destroying Nate Robinson on the Mike Tyson undercard over the weekend -- and while many scoffed at Jake's comments, Paul tells TMZ Sports he's dead serious.

"My team is talking to his manager but that's all I'll say," Jake said with a smirk.

Then came the smack talk ...

"No other fighter with this big of a platform is calling out McGregor. My dogs have more followers than the guy he's fighting in January."

That's not exactly true ... Conor's next opponent is Dustin Poirier, a widely respected UFC fighter with 1.7 million followers on Instagram.

Jake's dogs, Lil Moo and Thor, have 1.6 million followers.

Jake has 13.9 million.

Paul says it's not a matter of "if" when it comes to Conor, it's a matter of "when" -- claiming, "It's gonna be legendary."

"I'm gonna win, too! That's what I want people to understand!"

Jake added, "I'm gonna dedicate my life to winning that fight because I'm not going in there just to say I did it -- I'm going in there to f**k Conor McGregor up."

There's more ... Jake also tells us he's reached out to Nate Robinson after the knockout and hopes to connect with him in the future.

Mike Tyson almost got into a second fight after stepping into the ring with Roy Jones Jr. -- because some wacko swung on him trying to prove something ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Sources familiar with the situation tell us ... Mike was leaving Staples Center Saturday night after his bout with Roy -- which was called as a draw -- and on the way out, he came across a small group of fans looking for autographs.

When he walked over to do some signing, we're told a man in the crowd yelled out to Mike ... asking why he wouldn't let the guy fight him. Our sources say Mike jokingly responded, joking with the dude that it probably wouldn't end well for him.

Next thing you know, we're told the dude swung at Mike ... and then proceeded to reach into his waistband, as if trying to pull out a weapon. Our sources say Mike's team jumped in right away before things got ugly.

We're told the guy took off -- and our sources also say some folks on Mike's team recognized him from a previous signing, where they say he also tried starting trouble.

Law enforcement sources tell us cops got a call about a possible battery involving Mike Tyson around 11 PM PT (well after Mike tussled with Roy) ... but when they responded to the scene, all parties had left and no report was taken.

Lil Wayne is blaming an "unrelated 3rd party" for screwing up his plans to perform at the Mike Tyson fight -- telling TMZ Sports there's no bad blood between himself and Triller.

Our Weezy sources tell us the rapper cut short his Thanksgiving weekend celebration with his family in Louisiana so he could be in L.A. to perform at the fight -- and he DID actually make the trip out.

But, something went wrong on the day of the fight leading Wayne to bail on the entire event.

So, what happened?

"Unfortunately there was an unrelated 3rd party who attempted to insert themselves in the production process between Triller and Lil Wayne the night before the event and the morning of and it unfortunately caused enough of an issue that Wayne couldn’t perform," Triller said in a statement co-issued by Wayne.

The details behind the scenes are unclear -- but one source put it this way ... one of the event's producers "interfered with Triller and Lil Wayne at the last minute trying to insert themselves and ended up creating a mess and all around confusion. At a certain point, Wayne got frustrated and decided it was best to pull out of the performance. By the time Triller learned about the mess it was too late."

Wayne -- who is actually a co-owner of Triller -- said he's proud of the way the event turned out, "but was truly disappointed I was precluded from performing by the 3rd party."

Floyd Mayweather is calling on everyone to stop clowning Nate Robinson for getting knocked out this weekend ... saying, "I will never kick my brother when he’s down."

36-year-old Robinson became a meme on social media in the moments after he was KO'd in his debut boxing match against 23-year-old Jake Paul. Some of the images were straight-up mean.

Enter Floyd ... who's calling on everyone -- and specifically the Black community -- to back off the ex-NBA star.

"Nate, I’m proud of you and I will always stand behind all my brothers," Mayweather posted on social media.

"I will never kick my brother when he’s down."

Mayweather continued ... "It’s ok for people to voice their opinions on social media, but no black athletes or black entertainers, especially black NBA players should make a mockery out of you."

"We are supposed to all stand with each other through the good, bad and ugly. I’m here to uplift you and let you know we all love you and congratulate you for just making an effort."

Floyd added a "sidenote" at the end of his post -- addressing issues he's had in the past with other Black people.

"The times I’ve had issues with another brother is when they came at me first. I was just defending myself."

As for Nate, he posted on social media after the fight saying he's okay -- and thanked everyone who reached out.

RESPECT. RESPECT. RESPECT.

54-year-old Mike Tyson and 51-year-old Roy Jones Jr. just fought to a DRAW -- in one of the most impressive performances by two fighters in their 50s EVER.

The showcase of skill, power, athleticism and boxing smarts was just amazing. No knockdowns. No violent knockout. But, what an incredible performance from two legends.

The fight was technically an "exhibition" -- which means it wasn't sanctioned by the California State Athletic Commission and won't count on their professional records ... but it was scored for fun by three judges from the WBC (World Boxing Council), who ultimately saw it as an even fight.

"I'm good with a draw, the crowd was happy with it," Mike said after the fight.

Roy noted Tyson still hits like a truck -- but added, "We gotta do this again!"

The takeaway is this -- both guys look like 50-year-old versions of themselves ... but we mean that in the best possible way.

Roy fought smart -- working distances, angles, setting traps ... no-look jabs!

And, Mike Tyson looks like a 54-year-old version of an athlete not from this Earth ... the speed, the body movement, the power -- he's like a hurricane in short black shorts.

No knockouts in this fight ... but man, was this an impressive performance from two legends.

And, to think Tyson hasn't fought in 15 years -- combined with all of the issues he's had since the last time he stepped in the ring -- it's just mind-blowing.

"Man, I'm proud of both of these brothers tonight," Snoop Dogg said during the 7th round.

By the way, Snoop was AWESOME as a fight announcer -- adding humor and excitement to the whole event.

After the fight, Mike and Roy showed nothing but love and respect to each other.

Jake Paul just DESTROYED Nate Robinson -- knocking the ex-NBA star out cold with a devastating right cross that sent Nate crashing to the mat.

Wow.

23-year-old Jake was in control the entire fight Saturday night -- knocking Nate down once in the 1st round -- and twice in the 2nd.

But, there was no getting up from knockdown #3 -- Paul hit him with a nuclear bomb right on the button.

36-year-old Nate eventually got up -- but the former NBA star needed some help off the canvas.

Paul only landed 8 punches in the fight ... but he made 'em all count.

Snoop Dogg was announcing the fight and cautioned other athletes looking to get in the boxing game -- "You don't play boxing."

After the fight, Paul praised Nate during a post-fight interview with Jim Gray ... "He was better than I expected ... I wanted to say thank you to Nate."

"It takes a lot of balls to step in the ring and I don't want to take anything away from that."

After the fight, Nate called out Conor McGregor -- telling Jim Gray he wants to stay in boxing for a long, long time.

Lil Wayne will NOT be performing at the Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr. fight after all -- even though he signed a contract saying he would ... TMZ has learned.

Sources tell us ... organizers for the mega event this weekend had a flight booked for Weezy so he could take the stage Saturday ahead of the fight set to go down at Staples Center in L.A. in just a few hours. We're told LW simply never got on the plane.

Sounds like it was a last-minute cancelation -- we're working on getting more info about why that happened, but in any case ... it's a no-show for Wayne, and our sources say folks at Triller are working on adding another big name to the lineup.

So far, rapper SAINt JHN has stepped in and signed on to perform at the fight. We're told there's a real possibility Snoop Dogg could get on the mic, too. He's an investor at Triller, so it's feasible he'd do that.

Even with Weezy out, there's a stellar entertainment lineup -- featuring performances from stars like Ne-Yo, Wiz Khalifa, French Montana and YG.

Plus, THE FIGHTS! Both Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Jr. have said they're gunning for knockouts -- and they looked in incredible shape during Friday's weigh-in.

Plus, the undercard features Jake Paul vs. ex-NBA star Nate Robinson -- and those dudes HATE each other. Should be a good scrap.

As for Wayne, it's strange that he wouldn't follow through if it wasn't an emergency -- the dude was literally plugging his involvement in the fight just on Friday night (on the heels of him dropping his 'No Ceilings 3' mixtape, to much fanfare).

We've reached out to Wayne's camp as well for an explanation and to make sure everything's okay ... so far, no word back.

If Jake Paul wants to put the camera down and retire from YouTube, he's got a serious future as a fighter ... so says boxer J'Leon Love, who tells TMZ Sports the social media star can actually hang with the big dogs of the sport.

"He can make it," Love tells us. "He already has made it because he has the push of the fans. the skill set is there."

Of course, the 24-3-1 super-middleweight has been helping JP train for his highly anticipated fight with Nate Robinson this weekend ... and Love admits he was first caught off-guard by Paul's skills.

"I was like, 'Damn, okay. hold on. You've done this before,'" Love tells us.

And, get this -- Love says Paul has been sparring with real-deal undefeated champs in training ... and the dude's been able to hold his own.

"He is becoming more and more polished every day," Love added. "He has definitely a long road in the boxing game, but he's on his way for sure."

Love raves about Paul's work ethic, willingness to learn, and how serious he takes the craft ... and thinks he's improved immensely since his first two fights.

"I wish you guys could see what we see in the gym."

Aaron Carter is ready to rumble ... and he wants to beat the crap outta any boy band-type singer willing to step in the ring with him!!!

The singer has inked a deal with Celebrity Boxing promoter Damon Feldman, who tells TMZ ... Aaron's planning to fight in April or May in Los Angeles, once the coronavirus pandemic slows down.

Aaron's opponent is still up in the air, but we're told his dream match would be against Justin Bieber. We get it ... that would get the most headlines, but for lots of reasons, it's highly unlikely.

If the Biebs ain't down, we're told Aaron's ready to fight anyone else of his ilk -- a singer ready to put his hands to the test.

Aaron's got some experience in this arena ... he fought his brother, Nick Carter, back on their old reality show, "House of Carters."

Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Jr. just ripped off their shirts and showed off their incredible physiques at the weigh-in for their big fight ... and man, these guys are ripped!

54-year-old Tyson and 51-year-old Roy both look amazing for their age -- really, for ANY age -- as they gear up to fight on Saturday night.

Tyson weighed in at 220.4 pounds. Jones Jr. was 210.

Both men appeared calm and focused -- and told TMZ Sports they plan on spending their Friday night relaxing and watching karate movies to get in the right headspace.

Jake Paul also put on a show at the weigh-in -- dressing up like a Super Saiyan from "Dragon Ball Z" ... and warning his opponent Nate Robinson to not let his kids watch the fight, because it will scar them for years to come.

36-year-old Nate is a former NBA star and 3-time NBA Slam Dunk contest champion. He said he's fighting 23-year-old Paul to prove he's still an elite athlete.

Earlier in the day, Roy Jones Jr. told us his pre-fight meal plans -- and why he's so excited to get back in the ring.

Funny moment with Mike Tyson when he was asked about his famous quote, "Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth."

So, what happens when Mike gets punched in the mouth?

"We'll go to Plan B -- I'll punch him back!"

The fight is set to go down Saturday night at Staples Center in L.A. -- the weigh-in took place at a nearby hotel.

Everyone at the weigh-in site was required to undergo COVID testing -- including our TMZ photog, who was also mask'd up and keeping his distance.

As we previously reported, both Mike and 51-year-old Roy have made it abundantly clear they will be trying to take each other out from the opening bell of their 8 round exhibition (available on PPV via cable and satellite, and PPV streaming at Triller).

The event is going to be insane -- with performances from huge stars like Lil Wayne, French Montana, YG, Wiz Khalifa and more.

Vitor Belfort says MMA G.O.A.T. Anderson Silva has been living off the kick that KO'd VB nearly a decade ago ... and now the MMA legend wants REVENGE!!

Remember, Silva knocked out Belfort with a wicked front kick (followed by a flurry of ground and pound) at UFC 126 in February 2011. That's the one and only time the 2 greats ever fought.

Fast forward to today ... 43-year-old Belfort -- who's beaten beasts like Dan Henderson, Rich Franklin, Luke Rockhold and "Rumble" Johnson -- is currently signed to ONE Championship.

45-year-old Anderson Silva was just released by the UFC after his latest loss to Uriah Hall ...but Spider has indicated he would still like to fight.

So, Belfort tells TMZ Sports he wants to avenge the loss by stepping back in the cage with Silva.

"Anderson, ya know, he's living off of that kick. So let's go."

The rivalry is very real ... but, believe it or not ... there's actually someone Vitor wants to beat up even more than Anderson.

Chael P. Sonnen.

"I want Chael Sonnen. I really want him to shut his mouth. We were supposed to fight one time, but he got caught up in steroids," Belfort says ... "I'm okay with it. You can take whatever you want. I'll beat your ass, Chael Sonnen. Let's go!"

That wasn't all the trash talk.

"[Chael's] moms gonna root for me. Chael's family likes Vitor Belfort. They don't like Chael. Even his family don't like Chael."

So, Vitor's got his hands full with Chael and Anderson, right? Couldn't possibly want to fight anyone else, right?

Wrong.

Belfort tells us he also wants to fight boxers in a hybrid-style MMA-Boxing matchup ... and he's calling out some of the greatest pugilists of all-time.

Boxing greats like Roy Jones Jr. Lennox Lexis. Evander Holyfield. Wladimir Klitschko.