MMA

CM Punk says he would LOVE to get back in the cage with Mickey Gall ever since he got destroyed in their tilt two years ago ... but Gall says Punk's a liar -- telling TMZ Sports, "HE DON'T WANT THAT!!"

Gall is convinced Punk's been talking about running it back knowin' damn well the UFC won't let the former WWE star back in the Octagon with him and let him get his ass kicked AGAIN.

"I think he's a liar. I think he's a liar. I don't think he actually wants that," Mickey told us.

"I don't think they'll let that happen to him again."

BUT ... Gall says there is a scenario where he WOULD give Punk a rematch -- and it involves CM's bout with Mike Jackson at UFC 225 this weekend.

Conor McGregor's gonna LOVE this -- Forbes just named him the 4th highest-paid athlete over the last 12 months ... over guys like LeBron James, Neymar and Roger Federer.

So, how much cash has Conor raked in? Forbes is estimating he's made $99 mil -- most of the cash was from his fight with Floyd Mayweather. Conor was ranked #24 the previous year with $34 mil in earnings.

Speaking of Floyd ... he's #1 -- with an estimated $285 MIL!!! (He was ranked #16 the previous year with only $44 mil).

He's followed by a pair of soccer superstars ... Lionel Messi ($111 mil) and Cristiano Ronaldo ($108 mil).

Remember, Conor once told Ronaldo to his face that he was coming for him on the Forbes list ... to which Ronaldo responded, "I don't think so."

He still might get him one day ... but it's not today.

Others on the list include ... Steph Curry ($76.9), Matt Ryan ($67.3), Matthew Stafford ($59.5) and Kevin Durant ($57.3).

UFC champ Tyron Woodley is ALL ABOUT Snoop Dogg's new foray into MMA -- and now he's breaking down Snoop's fighting video on "The Hollywood Beatdown!"

Snoop just started MMA training at Jay Glazer's Unbreakable gym in L.A. -- and Tyron says he'll probably get on the mat and spar Snoop himself at some point!

But the question ... which skinny, MMA-training rapper would win in a fight -- Snoop or Wiz Khalifa?

There's a lot more ... including Tyron's take on the Nick Diaz arrest and Cris Cyborg's future in the UFC.

UFC superstar Cris Cyborg says she learned A LOT in her court-ordered anger management class ... and wants to use the knowledge to "be an example for other people."

As we previously reported, Cyborg was ordered to complete an "impulse control program" as part of her sentence in the battery case stemming from a 2017 altercation with UFC fighter Angela Magana.

Cyborg completed the program and the battery charge has been dropped. So, when we saw her outside Cobrinha Fitness in L.A., she was proud of her accomplishment,.

"I studied the anger management," Cyborg said ... "Every mistake you do, you learn."

Cyborg says she knows other people will try to make her snap in the future -- and she plans on using her new skills to avoid a physical confrontation.

"I have to control myself."

As for her fighting future, Cyborg talked about that too ... and told us she thinks she's on a collision course for a rematch with Holly Holm.

Cyborg also got a new Tesla -- and couldn't wait to show off one of her car's new tricks!

UFC legend Michael Bisping isn't planning on fading away now that he's retired from fighting -- dude has BIG plans ... telling TMZ Sports, "I'm taking over Hollywood."

Oh, and yeah ... he definitely FaceTimed us from the sauna.

But Bisping's not joking about his acting career -- he's got 3 big action movies in the works including a new 'xXx' movie and a sequel to the Gerard Butler, 50 Cent flick, "Den of Thieves."

39-year-old Bisping says he's truly touched by the outpouring of support from the MMA community after announcing his retirement ... saying, "I didn't realize I wasn't hated that much!"

UFC superstar Cris Cyborg is a new woman -- she completed a court ordered anger management course stemming from her battery case with another UFC fighter ... and now she's in the clear!

TMZ Sports has learned ... Cyborg had cut a plea deal with prosecutors stemming from a May 2017 altercation with UFC fighter Angela Magana at a fighter retreat in Vegas.

Cyborg had been cited for battery for allegedly punching Magana in the face -- and faced up to 6 months in jail.

She initially pled not guilty --- but later accepted a deal in which she agreed to complete an "impulse control program" and stay out of trouble for 6 months.

Had she failed to hold up her end of the bargain, the judge could have locked her up for 45 days.

Fortunately, it won't come to that ... court records show Cyborg completed all of the terms, so the charge has been dismissed and the case is now closed.

If you're wondering what an impulse control program is ... it "teaches offenders to be accountable for their actions and provides participants with positive alternatives to inappropriate and impulsive behavior."

What do you give a UFC legend who just whooped Michael Bisping's ass? A HUGE painting that took 40 hours to finish.

18-year-old Shane Birenbaum -- a big GSP fan who's from Canada -- happened to run into St-Pierre while on vacay in Florida.

GSP and Shane chopped it up ... and the artist showed some of his work to the legendary UFC fighter.

St-Pierre was a fan ... and asked Birenbaum to create a piece of his own. The only instructions ... something dope.

Shane worked off of a photograph taken right before GSP put the hurt on Bisping.

We talked to Shane, who told us he delivered the art -- which took him around 40 hours to finish -- to GSP a few days after his birthday ... a belated bday gift.

It's unclear exactly how much dough GSP dropped ... but Shane says he'd normally charge between $2K and $3K for a similar piece.

GSP told Shane the painting will live at Tristar gym -- where St-Pierre trains -- 'cause it's too dope to hang on a living room wall.

Conor McGregor made a mistake when he attacked a UFC bus -- but it's not like he beat his wife, so fans should give him another chance ... so says MMA legend Bas Rutten.

"There's guys who beat up their wives. Guys who beat up their women," Rutten tells TMZ Sports ... "I think that's way worse, to me, than something like [the bus attack]."

A lot of people are still pissed at Conor for the bus attack in Brooklyn that injured UFC staffers and fighters ... but Rutten says, "We all did things like that."

"I mean, it's Conor McGregor ... He did a lot of good. He got caught up in the moment. Let him figure it out."

"Of course, he's gonna have to pay. He's gonna have to go to court and make everything right," Rutten says ... but Bas is confident Conor will survive that, too.

Tainted meat scandal be damned ... the former President of Mexico Vicente Fox says when it comes to boxing, Canelo Alvarez is the best in the world!

Well, what he really said was, "El mejor del mundo" ... yes, we're bilingual. You're welcome.

FYI, Fox was the Mexican Prez from 2000 to 2006 ... we didn't know he was a boxing fan.

Of course, the issue with Canelo ... dude tested positive for PEDs and backed out of the May 5 Gennady Golovkin rematch.

Alvarez blamed tainted Mexican beef for the positive test and insisted he never intentionally cheated.

Chuck Liddell already has his fight strategy for his 3rd scrap with Tito Ortiz -- "I'm gonna knock his head off."

TMZ Sports broke the story ... the 48-year-old MMA legend is coming out of retirement to fight on a MMA card promoted by Oscar De La Hoya -- and can't wait to get back in the cage with his old rival.

"When it's all over with, it's gonna be 3-0," Liddell said ... bragging about the 2 wins he already racked up over Ortiz during their fights back in the mid-2000s.

"He's trying to convince himself he can beat me -- it ain't gonna happen," the Ice Man told us outside a launch party for Humbyl crptocurrency in West Hollywood Monday night.

Ortiz sees the fight going down in a different way ... just last week Tito says he plans to make a couple million dollars "kicking Chuck Liddell's ass."

Bellator stars Paul Daley and Michael "Venom" Page don't see eye to eye (they freakin' hate each other) ... and are rumored to be fighting in the near future.

Page -- 12 and 0 as a pro -- has a fight at Bellator 200 this weekend ... so TMZ Sports asked Daley -- a veteran fighter who's went into battle with guys like Tyron Woodley and Nick Diaz -- to send his rival a message ahead of the fight.

"Shit, I ain't got too much to say to him, because he's got to focus on the fight this weekend," Daley told us ... "Mike is gonna win that fight, and he should win it convincingly."

"If he struggles with Richols, then really, for his family's sake, he shouldn't sign the contract with me. That's my message with him."

Here's where it gets really good.

Paige VanZant tells TMZ Sports ... the boob job rumors are true -- and it's really no big deal.

The UFC star's chest has been the topic of some Internet debate recently ... even Michael Bisping weighed in on the issue on a podcast.

Now, Paige wants to set the record straight once and for all ... telling us, "Yep, I did get a boob job."

She continued, "I'm a girl and always wanted my own boobs. They never came so I bought them."

So, how will the new additions affect her day job? They really shouldn't ...

However, there was a fighter, Pearl Gonzalez, who was temporarily stopped from competing in New York in 2017 because of breast implants ... but the NY State Athletic Commission later cleared her to fight.

Rampage Jackson is putting an end to rumors he's headed to an MMA fight with 50 Cent -- telling TMZ Sports there's no way in hell Fiddy ever REALLY gets in a cage with him.

50 started trash talking Rampage earlier this month -- saying he's the superior "Jackson" and would wreck the former UFC champ if they ever stepped in a cage.

The rapper fueled speculation that the two were working on a deal when he posted a photo with Bellator president Scott Coker.

So, when we saw Rampage at LAX, we had to ask ... and Jackson told us straight-up he's INCREDIBLY ANNOYED by all the fight talk ... 'cause it's never happening!

"50 probably drinking too much of that champagne that he got," Rampage said ... "Who actually think 50 trying to fight?

"I just don't feel like 50 trying to step in no cage with me ... he ain't no fighter."

"I ain't trying to challenge him to no rap battles."

Rampage added ... "It's annoying as f*ck."

Tito Ortiz says he's 100% committed to making Ortiz vs. Chuck Liddell III happen ... and when it does "it's gonna be the hugest fight in MMA history."

TMZ Sports broke the story ... Liddell and Oscar De La Hoya told us they were working on finalizing a deal for the MMA legend to make his return to the cage ... and the desired opponent? Tito.

Ortiz and Liddell have history ... Chuck beat Tito in 2004 and 2006 -- and the guys have been rivals since.

Tito says the match -- "the fight that all the fans want to see" -- is all but set, with a target date of October or November of 2018.

For the people saying 48-year-old Liddell and 43-year-old Tito Ortiz are old and washed up?

"I feel healthy," Ortiz told us, "I'm the million dollar man. Let's make a couple more million kicking Chuck Liddell's ass."

How freakin' bad does UFC star Kamaru Usman HATE Colby Covington?

"If I see this beady-eyed, snake-head-lookin' dude in any room, my heart rate goes up. I just want to punch a hole through his head."

Yeah, that bad.

We talked to Usman -- the 7th ranked welterweight in the world -- the day before his headlining UFC Fight Night against Demian Maia in Chile.

Kamaru says the whole division knows he's the best fighter -- even champ Tyron Woodley -- but there's only 1 guy who gets his blood boiling.

Covington.

The beef goes back ... Usman once told us C.C. had "p***y-itis," and they almost came to blows before UFC 223.

So, if Usman leaves the Octagon with a W Saturday ... you know who's next up on the wish list -- and if it goes according to plan, there will be blood.

"I just want to punch a hole through his head."

He just turned 1 ... but Conor McGregor Jr. already has his own house!!

Yeah, it's a bouncy house ... but it's dope and it's all set up at the UFC fighter's massive Ireland estate.

Conor Sr. is getting in some quality father-son time before he goes back to fighting ... and it's pretty cute. He even pushes the kid on a swing and CJ loves it.

It's a different side of Conor ... much different than the raging maniac we saw in Brooklyn, when he went berserk on a UFC bus and injured several people.

Makes you wonder if Conor ... a master P.R. guy ... is using social media to rehab his image, especially with criminal charges still looming in NY.

If he does avoid jail time -- next up is likely a date with Khabib Nurmagomedov ... one of the most violent men on the planet.