Gossip / Rumors

You knew it was coming ... here's Dana White lashing back at Demetrious Johnson -- essentially calling BS on all the claims DJ made in his scathing statement about the UFC.

Earlier this month, Mighty Mouse blasted Dana -- saying the UFC has bullied, mistreated and mis-marketed him over the years ... and he feels completely disrespected.

Enter White -- who we saw in Bev Hills -- who responded to DJ point by point.

Dana on UFC contract and Pay-Per-View deals:

"He didn't want Pay-Per-View. He wanted upfront money, no Pay-Per-View. He wasn't very confident in his abilities to sell Pay-Per-Views. He has the lowest-selling Pay-Per-View in the history of the UFC in the modern era."

Dana on DJ's fighting future:

"I think a fight between him and T.J. Dillashaw would be something that people would actually be interested in and could sell Pay-Per-Views and could make money. But he absolutely refuses to fight the guy. It's ridiculous."

Dana on marketing DJ:

"We're not marketing him right? We built a TV show around him. 'The Ultimate Fighter' was about what an incredible fighter he is. We put him on Fox many times and tried to build him and it is what it is. It's not me."

Dana on where DJ ranks as a fighter:

"The media claims he's the pound for pound best fighter in the world. I think Conor McGregor is the pound for pound best fighter in the world."

Halle Berry couldn't stomach rumors she was pregnant, so she let her stomach do the talking to prove she's not.

The 50-year-old actress was leaving Cecconi's restaurant in WeHo Thursday night ... baring just enough to throw shade on everyone who jumped to conclusions based on photos taken a few days ago.

As we reported, we confirmed Halle's not having another kid, but hey ... this is hard evidence.

Another big star calling "fake news" on a major newspaper -- with Dana White saying reports he's not involved in the Mayweather vs. McGregor talks are complete BS.

The UFC honcho was at Mastro's in Bev Hills on Thursday when we asked about a Los Angeles Times article that says it's the UFC's ownership group (WME-IMG) and NOT White currently involved in negotiations.

"We live in a world right now where you can't believe anything that you read," White said in a shot at the L.A. Times ... "Who else would be running the Mayweather, McGregor deal than me?"

When we asked if WME was running point, White told us, "What does WME know about making big fights?"

"Trust me, I'm running the Mayweather, McGregor deal."

Chicago Cubs star Addison Russell is strongly denying accusations of domestic violence against his wife ... calling the claims "false and hurtful" in a statement Thursday.

Melisa -- Russell's wife of 1 year -- posted a pic on Instagram Wednesday hinting the couple had split due to infidelity. Melisa's close friend went one step further, commenting Russell had "mentally and physically" abused his wife ... sparking an MLB investigation, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

But Russell is adamant he's done nothing wrong, saying “Any allegation I have abused my wife is false and hurtful. For the well-being of my family, I’ll have no no further comment.”

Bill Cosby's wife was MIA from court for the 3rd consecutive day of his sexual assault trial, and it's standing out to the media ... and possibly the jury.

We checked, and Bill and Camille Cosby haven't been photographed together in public since April 26, when they walked separately into an NYC office building.

While Cosby has shown up for his trial in PA with 2 former co-stars this week -- Keshia Knight Pulliam on Monday, and Sheila Frazier on Wednesday -- Camille no-showing could hurt her husband's defense.

Fact is, in sexual assault cases, attorneys typically want the spouse of the accused to publicly show support. There are reports Camille will eventually be in court, but first impressions matter ... especially with juries.

Ryan Lochte NEVER thought about killing himself -- or hurting himself in any way -- after the 2016 Rio Olympics ... despite media reports suggesting otherwise, this according to Lochte himself.

Earlier this week, Lochte told ESPN he "was about to hang up my entire life" after the Rio incident -- and when asked if that meant he considered suicide, nodded his head slowly.

But Lochte tells TMZ Sports, "To be clear, yes I was in a very dark place after Rio, but I never thought about taking my own life."

"That’s the media twisting what I told ESPN. I would never do that. That’s not me."

Lochte goes on ... "I’m a fighter, always have been, and always will be. I knew that I would do whatever necessary to get through that horrible time, and most importantly to once again earn the trust of my friends, family, and the public, who have always been so supportive of me."

Lochte says he's in a great place now -- both personally and professionally -- and he's excited for his fiancee, Kayla, to give birth to their son any minute now.

That amazing water slide video -- where the guy glides across the surface of the pool -- is really fishy. Or at least one key part of it is.

Like the rest of you, we've been watching the clip over and over ... trying to understand how it could be. Admittedly, we suck at physics, but we slowed down the video and noticed the electric glider's shirt appears to be fully on as he scoots across the water. Just as he reaches the pool's edge, a woman walks in front of the camera -- after she passes, the guy is pulling his shirt back over his head.

Hmm ... seems like there could have been an edit.

Still, we also found a slew of other vids from the resort in Ocho Rios, Jamaica and there are NO obvious edits in these clips. Like we said ... physics. Go figure.

Big Papi says he's NOT gonna unretire and hit for the Boston Red Sox this season -- despite a big endorsement from his legendary ex-teammate, Pedro Martinez.

Pedro got everyone talking Monday when he tweeted out, "Big Papi is working out, and I know he is in baseball shape, and the @RedSox could use a bit of his bat."

So, when we saw David Ortiz at CC & Amber Sabathia's PitCCh At Foundation charity event in NYC, we had to ask if a comeback was on the table.

Unfortunately, Ortiz shoots that down ... telling TMZ Sports he's too busy enjoying his retirement and watching quality television programming.

Halle Berry is not pregnant ... repeat, not pregnant ... this according to reliable sources very close to the actress.

This pic raised some eyebrows over the weekend, but Halle shot the rumors down, saying, "Can a girl have some steak and fries??"

Now, she could be lying, but we know she's telling people super close to her it's not true, and she's not really dating anyone anyway.

The 50-year-old has 2 kids.

Usher wasn't at the One Love Manchester concert for two very good reasons -- his son needed him and, more to the point, he wasn't ever scheduled to perform at the concert.

Usher says Sunday was his son's first day at a camp for kids with diabetes. As he put it, "This was an important day for him and for myself as a proud father." He added ... "Stay strong UK."

As for why everyone was expecting him to be at the show -- a UK publicist for the concert initially announced Usher and David Beckham would be "making appearances." We're told that was a reference to recorded messages both made, which were played during the concert ... and NOT live performances or appearances.

The publicist eventually took their names off the list, but by that point ... word had spread.

Still, Usher said ... "So happy to see that last night's concert in Manchester proved that love always prevails."

Rob Kardashian's so-called new girlfriend is playing Internet hoax victim ... but we're told she's the one fueling the rumors.

Rob had a new girl, according to some recent online posts -- 'Basketball Wives' and "Bad Girls Club" vet Mehgan James. But it didn't ring true almost from the get-go ... Rob began posting pics of baby mama Blac Chyna, tweeting that he'd never even met James, much less banged her.

Mehgan then put it out there she had no idea how the rumors started ... re-tweeting Rob's denial.

Now the truth ... Mehgan was the mastermind of the whole thing.

Our sources say Mehgan's "team" contacted a bunch of media outlets planting the story. We're told her goal was SOP ... spread her name, grow her following.

Mehgan's at 806k Instagram followers -- doubling in a week -- so sadly, mission accomplished.

'Bachelorette' Rachel Lindsay has Bachelor Nation up in arms because a video of her partying with a dude ... appears to totally SPOIL the ending of her season.

For the uninitiated ... a video posted the same night as Rachel's premiere episode showed her kicking it with a handsome guy with facial hair. No biggie, until fans noticed the guy has a strong resemblance to Peter Kraus -- one of the front-runners to win Rachel's hand.

Fans are pissed ... thinking Rach gave away all the mystery. After all, she's already admitted she got engaged to one of the guys.

Take a pill, fans ... sources at the party tell us the guy in the background is a friend of a friend of Rachel's ... and absolutely NOT Peter. If it were him, Rachel would be in hot water with producers. She's banned from hanging with ANY of the contestants while the show's airing.

Soooo ... no spoiler in the video.

Still, don't count Peter out of the running, for obvious reasons ...

Scott Disick's current bender has almost reached the 2-week mark, and Kourtney Kardashian has no clue when he plans to return home to be with his kids.

Sources tell us Scott was supposed to return to L.A. after his Cannes trip last week. Instead, he hightailed it for Monaco, then Ibiza and eventually London. We're told he's had virtually no contact with the Kardashians or his kids, who are now with Kourtney after her Cannes escapade.

As we reported, things went south quick when Scott brought Bella Thorne to France. We're told the people he's been hanging with since then are considered his "party friends," and Scott's close friends are concerned.

While Kourtney's over Lord D, romantically ... we're told she's still expecting him to be a responsible dad. Right now, that's not looking good.

Charles Barkley is going to bat for his old friend, Tiger Woods -- saying people like Jack Nicklaus who say Tiger needs help don't REALLY know what they're talking about.

Barkley appeared on 97.5 FM The Fanatic Philadelphia on Wednesday and was asked for his thoughts on Tiger's DUI. He's clearly upset with people assuming Tiger has a serious substance abuse issue.

"Even Jack Nicklaus, somebody I really respect, talking about, 'Tiger really needs help.' Well he don't KNOW that. We don't know if Tiger has a drug problem."

Barkley added, "He just had a bad reaction [to prescription medication]. He wasn't out there drinking and driving."

Barkley says the "haters" are "in heaven right now because they get a chance to dump on the guy."

Barkley and Tiger were very close friends before 2009 -- and would regularly hit Vegas together. But Tiger cut him off after his marriage fell apart.

Bella Thorne is treating her PTSD -- post-traumatic Scott Disick -- with a dose of her ex-bf, Gregg Sulkin ... just in time for his birthday.

Bella and Gregg did lunch and a movie together Monday. The exes grabbed burgers in Studio City before taking in the flick for his birthday celebration. They broke up last summer, but Bella was still clinging to him as they strolled.

She also hung out with Gregg at his crib. And by hung out ... we mean lying on his back while wearing just a bra.

Bella seems to be screaming "Scott who?" Of course, he's moving on too.

1:14 PM PT -- Sofia has some choice words for folks making a big fuss about her hanging out with Scott Disick. In her own unique way, she says they're just "homies."

Scott Disick may have decided Bella Thorne was actually too old, because now he's hanging with an 18-year-old.

Scott was cruisin' the South of France on a yacht with Sofia Richie this weekend. They were super flirty, as he lifted and carted her around.

Scott brought 19-year-old Bella over to the Cannes Film Festival last week, where we believe he hasn't watched a single flick. She's back in L.A. now, and he's on at least his 4th chick.

BTW, it looks like one of the other women on the yacht is Chloe Bartoli ... one of the 4.