MMA

"Hi, Mr. White ... the President was hoping to reach you by phone when you're available."

That's a real voicemail that Donald Trump's office left for UFC boss Dana White last week ... all because POTUS wanted to shoot the sh*t about the Max Holloway vs. Brian Ortega fight!!!!

"He calls me on Tuesday," White said on Barstool Sports' "Pardon My Take" podcast ... "For 15 minutes he couldn't stop talking about the fight."

By the way, Tuesday was the same day Trump sparred with Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi about possibly shutting down the government during a debate over his border wall.

Unclear if the conversation with White took place before or after the meeting -- but it sure sounded like Trump was in a good mood.

White said Trump praised both fighters for their toughness and called the bout at UFC 231, "The greatest fight I've ever seen."

White and Trump have been friends for decades -- with Dana even giving a campaign speech for Donald at the Republican National Convention.

Bernard Hopkins doesn't seem to care that Michael B. Jordan and Roy Jones Jr. squashed their beef ... 'cause the legendary boxer says he wants to train the actor to whoop Roy's ass!!

ICYMI ... Michael B. previously told us his boxing skills were so good after filming "Creed II," he wanted a scrap with Roy -- and then the 49-year-old boxer told him to set it up!!

But, when we got Roy out at LAX last week ... he said the beef has been squashed -- and it doesn't look like a fight will go down.

Enter B-Hop ... who says not only should the fight still happen -- he wants to train MBJ to beat that ass!!!

"I'd love to be his trainer. I'd love to be Michael B.'s trainer. ... Michael cannot beat Roy Jones unless he has B-Hop's assistance!"

Of course, Bernard and Roy have history ... the two fought in 1993 and in 2010 -- and Bernard says that most recent bout (the one Hopkins actually won) is the key for MBJ.

"You know what the first lesson I would show him? I wouldn't show him the first fight, I would show him the second one when I won!!"

Shane Mosley has some friendly advice for Dana White -- DON'T ACCEPT OSCAR DE LA HOYA'S BOXING CHALLENGE ... fight him in the Octagon instead!

Remember, Oscar and Dana have been beefing hard lately -- with Dana calling Oscar all sorts of nasty names on ESPN.

So, Oscar issued a challenge of his own -- going on SiriusXM's 'Luke Thomas Show' and saying, "Let's get in the ring. Three rounds. Let's do this."

De La Hoya also told TMZ Sports that he would beat Dana's ass if things actually came to blows.

And, since "Sugar" Shane Mosley knows exactly what it's like to fight the Golden Boy -- he beat Oscar twice -- we asked if he had any advice for the UFC boss.

"Don't take the challenge," Mosley joked at the Smash Global MMA party in L.A. ... "I wouldn't do that. That wouldn't be a smart move."

Mosley's fiancee suggested the boxer give Dana some 1-on-1 personal training ... but Mosely replied, "It's not gonna help."

But, get this, Shane DOES think the guys should fight -- but he wants MMA rules since Oscar would have too big of an advantage in a boxing match.

BTW -- Mosley also reminded us that he and Oscar BOTH fought Shaquille O'Neal back in the day ... and we found the video.

And, it's AMAZING!!!

MMA fighters are terrified of Khabib ... that is, except UFC star Kevin Lee who says he's dyin' to square up with the undefeated champ ... and he's confident he'll kick his ass.

Lee -- the #4 ranked lightweight -- tells TMZ Sports he knows exactly who he wants next after beating up Al Iaquinta at UFC on FOX 31 Saturday night.

Khabib "The Eagle" Nurmagomedov.

Why does Kevin think he'd fare any different than the 27 fighters who were all handed an L from Khabib?

"Everybody's afraid to wrestle with the man and that's what kinda lets him shine through. All of the sudden he thinks he's a good boxer cause he kinda clipped Conor a little bit, but it was really the wrestling threat. Conor was so afraid to wrestle with him."

"I'm bigger, stronger and I ain't afraid to wrestle with no man."

Them fightin' words.

Cris Cyborg says she and Halle Berry have become so close, the Hollywood star will be her guest of honor at her big fight with Amanda Nunes in two weeks at UFC 232.

Halle's directing and starring in the upcoming MMA movie "Bruised" -- and she's been training for the role at Cyborg's Fitness MMA Gym in Huntington Beach, CA.

In fact, Cyborg says she's super confident Halle's movie will inspire more women to get involved in Mixed Martial Arts.

Now, with Cyborg getting ready for her megafight with Nunes on Dec. 29, the UFC champ says she'd like Halle to walk her into the Octagon if the UFC approves.

Guessing Dana White will greenlight that in a SECOND!

Cyborg is the reigning UFC women's featherweight champion -- and Nunes is the bantamweight champ.

This fight will be for the featherweight belt -- and it's being hailed as one of the biggest fights in the history of the women's division.

Cyborg gave us a little preview of her fight skills at her gym on Wednesday -- and yeah, she looks dangerous.

Post Malone says he has the perfect opponent for Wiz Khalifa's first real MMA fight ... and it's UFC all-time LEGEND Anderson Silva ... which has us at TMZ Sports asking an important question ...

Why does Post Malone want Wiz Khalifa dead?

Wiz has been training MMA at Jay Glazer's Unbreakable Performance gym for a while now, and he looks GREAT, but Posty's answer on who he should fight first left us scratching our heads.

"I wanna see Wiz and Silva. They got the same type of body type, long and skinny." Post said when we got him out in L.A.

Yes, that Anderson Silva ... the same one that ran off a 17-match winning streak in the UFC and is regarded by some as the finest MMA fighter of all time. That guy.

Post and Wiz have worked together for years -- as a matter of fact, Wiz was instrumental in the early success of Post's breakout hit, "White Iverson" -- so we're not sure when Post decided Wiz had to die.

On the other hand ... maybe Post really thinks Wiz could compete with Silva.

Say no to drugs kids.

You knew Wiz Khalifa could scrap in MMA ... but did you know he could box too???

It's true ... at least, now it is -- after the rapper got a private, 1-on-1 fighting lesson from Evander Holyfield!!!

The Real Deal and Wiz hit up Jay Glazer's Unbreakable Performance Center in L.A. recently ... and the "Black and Yellow" spitter got in a dope training sesh with the champ.

Evander gave him some pointers on his defense ... Wiz explained how he's put some weight on his skinny frame -- and Glazer was there to document it all.

So ... why were the two hittin' the mitts together in the first place??

Wiz has a song dedicated to the boxing legend called "Holyfield" -- so, seems only right Evander gave him some fighting pointers in return.

Wiz has told TMZ Sports in the past he'd take -- and maybe even WIN -- a pro-MMA fight if the money was right ... but the question now is -- would he do the same for boxing?!?

Stay tuned ...

Jon Jones is BACK!!

The UFC superstar just got his license to fight in California reinstated -- essentially clearing the way for him to fight at UFC 232 on Dec. 29.

TMZ Sports broke the story ... Jones tested positive for the banned substance Turinabol (an anabolic steroid) before his fight with Daniel Cormier at the Honda Center in Anaheim in July 2017.

The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency meted out a 15-month suspension for Jones -- and the California State Athletic Commission said it would honor that punishment.

Even though Jon's upcoming fight against Alexander Gustafsson is set to go down in Vegas, the Nevada State Athletic Commission won't license him unless he's clear in California.

The good news for Jon ... he appeared at a CSAC hearing on Tuesday with his attorney and the board voted 6-0 to reinstate him and granted him a temporary license.

Jones also paid his $205,000 fine.

After he was reinstated, Jon had a message to the California State Athletic Commission -- "Make sure you guys watch."

For his part, Jones has always insisted he never intentionally took the Turinabol -- claiming he's not a cheater.

At the hearing, CSAC executive director Andy Foster actually defended Jones -- saying, "I do not think Mr. Jones is intentionally a doper."

He added, "I just don’t believe it. If he is, he’s the worst doper in combat sports. He fails the one test he knows is coming."

Great news from Brian Ortega's camp ... the UFC star is improving by the minute after that bloody loss to Max Holloway this past weekend ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Ortega suffered a broken nose and thumb during Saturday night's fight at UFC 231 in Toronto -- and his left eye was swollen shut. The doctor stopped the fight in the 4th round.

We spoke with Ortega's coach, Rener Gracie -- who's been coaching Brian since Ortega was 13 years old. The two are super tight and Gracie was working the corner during the Holloway fight.

Gracie tells us T-City was initially crushed by the loss ... and even apologized to his team at the hospital for letting them down.

But, Gracie says the apology was completely unnecessary -- telling TMZ Sports he's proud of the young fighter for the tremendous effort he displayed against "one of the best to ever do it."

Now, Gracie says Ortega is "doing much better" -- he's healing up and excited to getting back to work ... and tells us why the loss will ultimately be a GOOD thing for his career.

Conor McGregor or Max Holloway.

That's who UFC star Frankie Edgar tells TMZ Sports he wants to fight next.

"I'm hoping I get Max. I'm hoping Max sticks around at 45, and we get to finally get to square up. I think it makes the most sense."

Edgar is currently the #3 ranked featherweight contender behind Jose Aldo (#2), Brian Ortega (#1) and Holloway (Champ).

But, Dana White said this weekend he wants Max to move up weight classes ... so, if that happens, Edgar has his sights set squarely on the Irish superstar.

"I don't know, maybe Conor's free. Conor wants to get down and fight. We were supposed to fight a long time too. If I'm not fighting for the belt, then I guess Conor's the next best thing."

Neither matchup is all that far-fetched -- Edgar was scheduled to fight Holloway at UFC 222 back in March ... but "Blessed" was forced to drop out with an injury.

McGregor said in the past he offered to step in against Frankie ... but the UFC shut that down.

In other words ... both fights almost went down in March.

Jake Paul is firing back at Deji's claim he's "too p***y" for a rematch ... telling TMZ Sports he's got MUCH bigger opponents in mind ... and one of them is Conor McGregor's right-hand man!!!

We spoke with the social media superstar -- who Forbes just named the 2nd-highest paid YouTuber of 2018 -- about Deji calling for a rematch of their boxing super fight from August.

Jake slams the door on another fight with Deji ... saying he wants a REAL challenge -- either Bellator star Dillon Danis or his internet rival FaZe Banks!!!

Now we know Jake has been calling out Conor for a while ... so maybe he's getting slightly more realistic going after Danis.

As for Banks -- if you follow YouTube beef (yes, it exists), you know there's a big history between the 2 ... from Jake accusing Banks of assaulting his assistant (which he later apologized for) to Banks now dating Jake's ex, Alissa Violet.

Jake says he's seen all the trash Banks has been saying on Twitter ... and tells us he's down to settle everything in the ring.

If Brian Ortega takes out Max Holloway this weekend, he's already got another big fight in his sites -- Khabib Nurmagomedov.

"We all have our bucket lists, right? And, my bucket list is to fight Max and fight Khabib," Ortega told the guys on the "TMZ Sports" TV show.

"Those are the top guys in the sport ... those guys are the top dogs."

In fact, Brian was at UFC 229 back in October when Khabib destroyed Conor McGregor and says it was essentially a scouting mission.

"I was watching the fight and we were there and all I could think of was, 'If I was in there, I would do this differently.'"

"And, that's kinda when you start realizing that maybe you should share the Octagon with him ... if you think you have the answer."

Ortega also says he already knows how the fight would play out if they ever get to square off.

But, before any of that happens, Brian takes on Holloway at UFC 231 on Saturday night.

Dana White says Rachael Ostovich is "totally cool" fighting on the same card as Greg Hardy in January ... despite his history with domestic violence.

There's been backlash over the decision to put Hardy on the Jan. 19 card considering Ostovich was JUST involved in a D.V. incident last month -- and claims she suffered bad injuries at the hands of her MMA fighter husband.

But, Dana White appeared on TSN in Canada early Thursday morning and addressed the issue head-on -- saying he will NOT move Hardy off the card ... and that Ostovich has "no problem" with the decision.

White explained that Hardy will be tied to the domestic violence allegations for the rest of his life -- but he's put in the work to rehabilitate himself and White feels he's a changed man who deserves a 2nd chance.

White says during his conversation with Ostovich, Rachael told him, "[Greg's] story is not my story and I believe in second chances."

Dana says having Rachael's support was a "key factor" in making the decision to keep Hardy on the card.

Ostovich will Paige VanZant that night. Hardy will square off against Allen Crowder.

UFC star Kamaru Usman says Dana White offered him a fight with Colby Covington next month ... and he's waiting on Donald Trump's favorite fighter to sign the contract.

Both fighters have been dying to get a shot at the welterweight champ Tyron Woodley -- and it seems the winner of the proposed January 19 bout would get their wish.

TMZ Sports talked to Usman ... who tells us Dana called this week and made the offer.

Kamaru ain't exactly confident the fight will actually happen ... saying Colby has refused to accept the match on 4 other occasions in the past.

So yeah, Kamaru and Colby hate each other ... and straight-up, Usman says Covington is scared.

If he accepts, Usman vs. Covington would join a bunch of solid fights on the first UFC event on ESPN -- including Paige VanZant vs. Rachael Ostovich and Greg Hardy vs. Allen Crowder.

Usman just dominated Rafael dos Anjos when they clashed on Saturday night at "The Ultimate Fighter" finale.

Covington's last fight was also against RDA -- Colby scored the "W" in a 5-round decision at UFC 225 back in June.

After the fight, Colby underwent surgery to correct a nasal issue. He visited Trump at the White House in August and took a pic with POTUS while Donald held the UFC interim welterweight championship belt over his shoulder.

We reached out to Covington for comment ... so far, no word back.

Greg Hardy's 1st UFC opponent says he has extra motivation to destroy the ex-NFL star -- telling TMZ Sports he wants to get the victory to honor Rachael Ostovich.

Hardy is set to fight Allen Crowder at UFC on ESPN on Jan. 19 -- the same night Ostovich will return to the Octagon after her domestic violence incident.

As we previously reported, Ostovich was hospitalized last month following an altercation with her MMA fighter husband Arnold Berdon, who was later arrested and charged with assault.

Some critics are upset with the UFC -- claiming the organization is tone deaf putting Hardy and Ostovich on the same card because of Hardy's past domestic violence issues.

FYI, Hardy was found guilty of domestic violence by a judge in 2014 -- but the conviction was thrown out in 2015 when he appealed to have the case go in front of a jury ... and his accuser stopped cooperating with prosecutors.

Dana White has previously told us he's spoken with Hardy about the incident -- but he's convinced Greg is a changed man.

So, how does Greg's new opponent feel? We spoke with Crowder -- who's fought against beasts like Curtis Blaydes and Justin Willis -- and he spelled it out for us.

"I definitely want to win this fight for [Ostovich]. I'm very against men beating women. And, I'm definitely not a woman, so he's gonna have a lot harder time with me then he did the last person."

UFC star, Brian Ortega returned to the TMZ newsroom this week -- and once again, he put a chokehold on one of our guys!!!

Here's the deal ... the last time Ortega was here, he taught us the proper way to execute a rear-naked choke and used Lucas to demonstrate.

This time, Ortega wanted to teach us a few tricks about how to put a guy to sleep in a street fight ... once again, Lucas volunteered his neck.

Ya gotta watch the clip ... Lucas taps out even faster than Conor McGregor at UFC 229!!!

Of course, Ortega will get a chance to fight someone his own size when he takes on Max Holloway at UFC 231 in Toronto, for the Featherweight title on Saturday, Dec. 8.

Don't worry, Lucas is fine!