Boxing

46-year-old Anderson Silva says he's got about 4 years of fighting left in him ... telling TMZ Sports his plan is to hang up the gloves before his 50th birthday.

Oh, and he's down to box Jake Paul!

Let's start with the YouTube star turned 4-0 boxer who just beat Tyron Woodley ... who's long been rumored as a possible opponent for the UFC legend.

"Everything is possible. Jake Paul and Logan are doing a lot of good work in this new entertaining show. We'll see. Everything is possible. I respect both. [Jake] is doing good, working hard. So, we'll see, maybe this is possible too."

Silva -- who's boxing Tito Ortiz on September 11 on Triller -- is only a few months removed from defeating 35-year-old former champion, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in the ring.

We also asked Spider about retirement ... and while it's clear the end isn't exactly imminent, it's definitely in sight.

"My goal is my last fight is 49 [years old]. 49, I'm done. Probably, I'm done. That is my goal. Fight 3 more years and done. 49. That's the number. Maybe I can fight more, but right now my goal is when I turn 49, I stop fighting."

Bottom line, Silva says he feels great and loves fighting, has more fights in him ... and one of those fights just might be against Jake Paul.

Tommy Fury is sick of Jake Paul using his name for cred in the boxing world ... he's ready to take on the YouTube star, and says he'll make short work of it.

Tommy was leaving L.A. Friday for his home back in the UK ... and made it clear to our photog he was annoyed his name was used by Jake to promote his fight against Tyron Woodley.

Jake's not even a real boxer -- so says Tommy -- because he's only fighting MMA opponents. BTW ... Tommy honed in on Woodley's punch that sent Jake into the ropes.

Tommy makes it clear ... Jake's never gonna be a real competitor -- at least against him -- so might as well get it over with now.  Fury knows the fight would draw a huge audience, and that means $$$$$$$$$$$$$. And, that's why Tommy calls it a "win-win."

As for predictions ... lights out within 3 minutes.

There's no doubt Jake would accept the challenge. It could draw a record-breaking audience on Pay-Per-View, although it's a little weird for someone like Tommy -- who's on track in the world of boxing -- to actually get in the ring with the likes of Paul.

Oscar De La Hoya has tested positive for COVID-19 and is out of his comeback fight with Vitor Belfort, TMZ Sports has learned.

58-year-old Evander Holyfield has agreed to step in and box Belfort on September 11 on Triller, our sources tell us.

The one remaining hurdle is getting Holyfield-Belfort approved by the California State Athletic Commission.

If the commission does not sanction the match, we’re told the entire event will still go down ... but it’ll be moved to Florida.

The fight was supposed to be ODLH’s return to the ring after more than a decade ... after losing his last fight to Manny Pacquiao in 2008.

De La Hoya dedicated himself to getting back in peak physical condition in preparation for the fight over the last few months ... and looked to be in great shape, recently showing us his 6-pack as he left dinner in L.A.

As for Holyfield, The Real Deal -- one of the greatest fighters in boxing history -- last fought in 2011 ... but has recently talked about his desire to make a comeback to the ring.

Belfort -- an MMA legend -- has been more active over the last few years ... last fighting in the UFC in 2018.

The Anderson Silva vs Tito Ortiz fight is still a go.

Bottom line ... Oscar’s out, and Evander Holyfield and Vitor Belfort are fighting -- either in Cali or Florida.

No, Tyron Woodley did NOT get screwed over by the judges on Sunday ... so says Mike Tyson, who tells TMZ Sports Jake Paul was the clear winner of the epic boxing match.

The split decision in favor of the YouTube superstar was met with serious backlash on social media ... with folks from Claressa Shields to Ben Askren to Tyron himself saying he should have had his hand raised after 8 rounds.

So, in order to settle the debate once and for all, we caught up with Iron Mike at the Four Seasons in New York and asked for his take ... and there's no doubt in his mind who won.

"Jake Paul won," Tyson told us ... adding, "I love Jake Paul. Tyron Woodley did his best."

Now, Woodley wants to get a rematch with Paul to prove he can really whoop his ass ... but Jake may not let it happen if Tyron doesn't agree to get the "I Love Jake Paul" tat.

Canelo Alvarez was asked point-blank whether he'd fight Jake Paul ... and he DIDN'T say no.

31-year-old Alvarez was leaving Beauty & Essex in L.A. ... when a photog asked the world's top pound-for-pound pugilist about boxing the 4-0 fighter.

Here's how the conversation went ... translated from Spanish to English.

Photog: "What do you think of Jake Paul? Are you gonna give him a chance?"
Canelo: "Not right now."

Photog: "Why don’t you want to give him a chance?"
Canelo: "He’s not ready."

Photog: "Do you think it might be a good option?"
Canelo: "If he wants someone to fight, we have this guy right here ..." (Points to a friend)

Photog: "What needs to happen in order for you to give him a chance?"
Canelo: "He needs to keep improving. Good luck."

Photog: "What do you think of a fight between you and your brother vs. the Paul bros?"
Canelo: "No."

Of course, Paul -- who has wins over AnEsonGib, Nate Robinson, Ben Askren, and Tyron Woodley -- told TMZ Sports back in June that Canelo was on his (future) hit list.

Alvarez has not been a fan of Paul's foray into the squared circle ... previously telling us he believed the Paul brothers were disrespecting the sport.

But, now it seems Alvarez has changed his mind about Jake ... even if he stopped well-short of guaranteeing they'd someday fight.

BTW, Canelo was at Beauty & Essex for a meeting with Kendall Jenner ... and it seems a partnership with her 818 Tequila is in the works.

Oscar De La Hoya is opening up on one of the most traumatic experiences of his life ... revealing he was raped at age 13 by an "older woman" -- something he's still struggling to come to terms with today.

The 48-year-old boxing legend detailed the alleged incident for the first time this week ... claiming it happened at a boxing tournament in Hawaii with a woman who was "over 35."

"I was raped at 13, from a woman, an older woman," ODLH told the L.A. Times. "13, lost my virginity over being, you know, being raped, basically."

De La Hoya says he used fighting to cope with the trauma from his childhood ... which included the experience in Hawaii.

"You suppress everything," he added. "You’re living this life, the 'Golden Boy,' but, oh s***, wait, that’s still there. Like, I never thought about it, I never processed it, I never really thought how my feelings are ... until one day it just comes out, and you don’t know how to deal with it."

ODLH -- who has previously dealt with drug and alcohol abuse -- says he has been working on improving his health ... because he felt he was "going to throw my life away."

De La Hoya himself has faced sexual assault accusations in the past -- he was accused of raping a 15-year-old girl in 1996 when he was 23, which reportedly resulted in a settlement outside of court ... and another woman claimed he raped her in 1999, which he's adamantly denied.

In 2019, a woman sued ODLH for sexual assault and battery -- but he told us at the time the allegations were "completely false."

Now, De La Hoya is preparing to make his return to the boxing ring for the first time since 2008 ... going up against UFC star Vitor Belfort on September 11.

Jake Paul's retirement lasted a whopping 25 hours ... 'cause the YouTube superstar-turned-boxer says he's officially back in the fight game again.

"Updated status: I’m coming out of retirement," Paul tweeted on Tuesday.

Hey, we tried to warn ya -- there was a super slim chance Jake was actually retiring for good when he claimed he was walking away from the sport on Monday ... especially since he's poised to get a FAT paycheck from the Tyron Woodley fight.

Just as expected ... Paul is back.

Remember, "retiring" really doesn't mean much in boxing and MMA -- a ton of guys have gotten back in the ring after calling it quits.

The legend Muhammad Ali retired a couple times ... and George Foreman and Randy Couture are among others who stepped away before changing their mind.

More recently, Conor McGregor has retired at least 3 times in his career ... and that may very well be the guy Jake is channeling with this latest publicity stunt.

Jake's quick return now opens the door for a Woodley rematch ... which Paul claims could happen as long as Tyron holds his end of the deal and gets the "I Love Jake Paul" tattoo.

Soulja Boy is ready to settle his beef with Kanye West the ol' fashioned way -- by throwing hands -- telling TMZ Sports he wants to come face-to-face with Ye for a celeb boxing match for the ages.

Draco recently threatened to beat up West on social media, saying he'd "knock out" the Donda artist ... so when we ran into the hip hop star in L.A. on Monday, we asked about the warning.

"That's just me having some fun, you know what I'm saying? We ain't trippin', man," Soulja says ... "Unless Kanye wants to get in the boxing ring, know what I'm saying? I think we could make $100 to $200 million."

Of course, the beef started when West cut Soulja Boy's "Remote Control" verse out of Donda ... and that really pissed him off.

Soulja's got his hands full ... Aaron Carter recently challenged him to a fight (Celebrity Boxing is trying to lock down the match).

But, a scrap between West and Soulja Boy could be one of the biggest celeb fights of all time.

Bottom line, Soulja's message to Ye is this ... "Kanye, lets get in the boxing ring."

Ric Flair's barbed wire bat -- the one he used to smash and bloody Mick Foley's face at SummerSlam in 2006 -- just sold for nearly $20K at auction.

TMZ Sports has learned the Lucille-like bat, which was on the block at Goldin Auctions, was bid on 17 times ... and ultimately raked in $19,680.

The starting bid was $3,500.

The match is pretty iconic ... Flair repeatedly hit Foley in the face with the bat, turning him into a bloody pulp. But, Ric wouldn't stop, demanding Mick say, "I quit!"

It was the culmination of a rivalry between Naitch and Foley that lasted more than a decade.

As for the bat itself ... it's an Alex Rodriguez model Louisville Slugger C271 -- wrapped in barbed wire.

And, you know the bat's legit ... 'cause it's coming directly from the folks at WWE -- who have also included a letter of authenticity.

There's more really cool wrestling memorabilia that sold ... like Big Boss Man's match-used nightstick from SummerSlam in 1988. It sold for $6,765.

There's also Brutus Beefcake's shears from his '89 SummerSlam match ... when he teamed up with Hulk Hogan and took on Randy Savage. The scissors went for $8,400.

Jake Paul just beat future UFC Hall of Famer Tyron Woodley via a split decision victory -- and then the fighters seemingly agreed to a rematch in the ring.

24-year-old Paul fought a good fight ... and was the more active fighter over the 8 rounds.

Woodley had his share of positive moments ... stunning Paul near the middle of the 4th round.

After the fight, during the post-fight interview -- which went down in front of a packed house at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland (Jake's hometown) -- the guys came face-to-face and seemed to agree to a rematch.

The condition ... if Woodley got the "I Love Jake Paul" tattoo done.

The action wasn't just in the ring ... stars like Dave Chappelle, Dustin Poirier, Andre Berto and a bunch of Olympians from Ohio were in the building.

Chappelle was REALLY into the fight ... jumping up-and-down behind the ring for nearly the entire scrap.

Paul said Woodley put up a better fight than he expected ... but called the split decision "bulls**t."

And, Jake won in more way than one ... sharing a post-fight kiss with GF Julia Rose.

As for the rest of the card ... Tyson Fury's bro, Tommy Fury won a 4-round unanimous decision victory over Anthony Taylor.

After getting his 1st dub on American soil, Tommy called out Jake ... challenging him to a fight.

"Tyron, let your hands go! F*** it!!!"

If you were wondering what Dave Chappelle was yelling during the Jake Paul vs. Tyron Woodley fight, TMZ Sports has you covered ... 'cause we just got video of the comedy legend in the stands Sunday night -- and it's hilarious!!!

Of course, DC had ringside seats for the big event ... which means his every move was picked up by cameras on the Pay-Per-View broadcast -- from yelling to clapping and REALLY getting into the fight.

No matter how loud Chappelle was cheering, there was no way the mics were gonna be able to pick up exactly what he was saying ... but after checking out these vids, taken by Anthony Jones, we wish they did!

Before the fight, DC led an Ohio State-classic "OH-IO" chant -- after all, the fight was in Cleveland ... so we're sure there were plenty of Buckeyes in the stands.

Next, he took his focus to the fighters ... giving out some hilarious advice.

"Jake, grab his cheeks!!!," DC said, which is a reference to Paul recently complimenting Tyron's "big booty" and saying he wanted to squeeze his ass.

DC was then shouting for Woodley to let his hands go and throw some punches ... saying, "From Ferguson, Missouri, let them hands go!"

"This is for the culture, this is for the culture!!!"

Chappelle's cheerleading didn't really help, though ... as Jake secured a split decision win.

But, DC didn't seem too worried about it -- he actually linked up with the Paul bros after the fight and said he wanted free tickets to the rest of their fights!!!

An hour before Jake Paul and Tyron Woodley took the ring Sunday night, a man contacted police and said he planted 17 bombs around the arena and was going to blow the place up, TMZ Sports has learned.

According to a police incident report, cops got a call from a person claiming to be from Afghanistan around 10:15 PM ... stating he placed pipe bombs underneath the stage, in the bathrooms and under seats at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, where the fight went down.

The man -- who said the bombs were going to go off in minutes -- told cops he was targeting non-believers, who he believed should be killed. He told police Paul was a non-believer.

The caller stated he planted the devices 1.5 hours before the event started.

At one point, the caller told authorities they should evacuate the arena ... as the bombs were about to detonate.

FYI, there were reportedly about 16,000 fans in the buiilding.

Police dispatched the bomb unit -- including a bomb sniffing K9 -- and swept the building.

Thankfully, it seems it was an empty threat or terrible prank ... 'cause no explosive devices were located.

A police spokesperson told us no arrests have been made ... and the investigation is ongoing.

Jake Paul went from boxing to playing tonsil hockey after his big win over Tyron Woodley ... with the fighter sharing a sexy makeout with his girlfriend, Julia Rose!!!

The 24-year-old was all smiles following his split decision dub over the ex-UFC champ ... hitting up Barley House in Cleveland shortly after taking care of business in the ring.

Jake, Julia, Logan Paul and even the Problem Bot showed up for the party ... as well as UFC star Sean O'Malley.

The bash was nuts ... with cardboard cutouts of Jake's face, sparklers and a bunch of booze.

But, the biggest highlight of the night is the snap Jake posted on his Instagram early Monday morning ... showing off a steamy and sloppy kiss with his GF.

"This is what winning looks like," Jake captioned the shot ... and yeah, he ain't lying.

Of course, Julia was in the stands cheering on her man as he kept his undefeated record alive ... and the hot couple shared another smooch right after the win.

The whole city was electric all night ... even LeBron James tweeted his regrets missing out on the fun.

"CLEVELAND IS JUMPING!!," King James said. "Should have flew back to the crib."

Just before Jake Paul won his boxing match over Tyron Woodley on Sunday ... several fans beat the hell out of each other in the stands at the arena -- and the scrap was VIOLENT.

The melee took place just prior to Paul and Woodley's walkouts ... when a fan in a white T-shirt could be seen screaming at another -- appearing to yell, "f*** you."

Footage from the scene shows the screaming guy was then punched in the face ... and then all hell broke loose.

You can see in the video, two other fans joined the fracas ... with everybody throwing -- and landing -- wild haymakers.

It's unclear what started the fight or how it ended ... but we're guessing security was ultimately called to the scene to break it up.

Not clear if any arrests were made ... we've reached out to cops -- but so far, no word back yet.

As for the fighting in the ring ... Paul was very impressive in his fourth-ever boxing match, beating Woodley via a split decision.

The two fighters seemed to agree to a rematch afterward ... with Paul giving Woodley another shot if the former UFC champ got the "I Love Jake Paul" tattoo done.

Tyron Woodley is going to lose to Jake Paul -- IF you listen to the oddsmakers -- who are DEAD WRONG, according to UFC star Michael Chandler, who tells TMZ Sports his college wrestling teammate is going to drag the YouTube star to a place he's never been.

We spoke to 35-year-old Chandler about tonight's Jake Paul vs. Tyron Woodley fight ... and asked him for his prediction.

"I believe Tyron wins the fight. I believe Tyron takes Jake Paul to a place where he's never been before. Where he's never been in his past amateur-level sports accomplishments. Tyron Woodley is one of the best fighters in the world. Multiple time world champion."

Full disclosure, Michael and Tyron are tight. They wrestled together at the University of Missouri ... where Woodley was like a big brother to the younger Chandler.

For what it's worth, Vegas has 24-year-old Paul (3-0) as a favorite over the 39-year-old future UFC Hall of Famer.

In order to win $100, you'd have to risk roughly $195. If you bet on Tyron, you put up $100 to win around $150 -- depending on the sportsbook.

Of course, the lead-up to the boxing match has been a mix of fun with some trash talk. That is until a media event this week when someone in Jake's crew apparently said something sideways to Tyron's mom, Deborah.

Since then ... no more playing games for the fighters.

But, the long wait is almost over ... and the men get to finally put hands on each other on Sunday.

And, if somehow, someway Woodley doesn't win the fight ... Chandler -- who is also close with Ben Askren (who was KO'd by JP) -- is ready to step up and rep for Missouri.

Still don't know who's gonna win the big Jake Paul vs. Tyron Woodley fight?? Here's a last-minute prediction from one of the greatest EVER -- Mike Tyson -- who tells TMZ Sports he's going with the Problem Child on Sunday night!!

Tyson -- who's tight with Jake -- has openly been supportive of the YouTuber's skills in the ring leading up to the fight ... and hasn't shied away from telling folks Jake's gonna beat the ex-UFC champ.

But, with the fight rapidly approaching, we had to ask if Tyson's pick has changed at all ... and yeah, nope!!

Tyson says it's all because Paul hasn't lost yet ... and it's obvious Iron Mike doesn't see that changing against Woodley.

Tyson admits "it's gonna be a tough fight," but thinks it's Paul's fists that'll prove too much for The Chosen One.

There's been so much drama between the two fighters as Aug. 29 approaches ... with Tyron's mom even getting in the middle of a verbal altercation with Jake's crew on Thursday.