TMZ Sports - Page 50

Jeff Bezos and girlfriend Lauren Sanchez were among a throng of celebs to watch the men's finals Sunday at Wimbledon.

It's the second time we've seen them together since the ink on his divorce docs dried.  

They weren't the only famous ones to witness Roger Federer take on Novak Djokovic. Kate Middleton, Prince William, Pippa Middleton, Benedict Cumberbatch, James Middleton, Sir Cliff Richard, Stanley Tucci, Tom Hiddleston, Kendall Jenner, Fai Khadra, Vera Wang, and Woody Harrelson were also glued to their seats.

Federer will attempt to win his ninth Wimbledon title, and Djokovic could become a five-time champ in SW19.

BTW ... this is Kate's 3rd visit to Wimbledon this month. She's obviously a fan.

Robert Kraft has a new lady in his life ... someone he's been holding hands with at multiple major public events -- but her identity is a mystery!!!

People first noticed Kraft's new lady at the French Open in Paris back on June 9 -- when the New England Patriots owner showed up to watch some tennis from the VIP boxes with a female friend on his arm. You can see the two holding hands. 

Fans -- and even major media outlets -- mistakenly identified the woman as Ricki Noel Lander, Kraft's ex-girlfriend ... but our sources say that woman is definitely NOT Ricki. 

The following month, Kraft attended the Women's World Cup final in Paris on July 7 to watch Team USA defeat the Netherlands ... with the same new lady on his arm. 

Again, fans and media outlets mistook the woman for Lander. 

Sources connected to Kraft tell us he's still on good terms with Lander -- but they broke up last year and they're living separate lives. 

USA Olympic legend Amy Van Dyken has a new sport -- she's a wheelchair crosFfit athlete -- and she just came in 2nd place in the inaugural WheelWOD Open!!!

Amy racked up SIX gold medals during her incredible swimming career -- scoring 4 medals at the 1996 Games and 2 more in 2000.

But, her life was changed forever in 2014 when she was paralyzed from the waist down in a freak ATV accident that severed her spinal cord.

Amy -- ever the competitor -- decided to get BACK into CrossFit after the accident ... and now she's become one of the premiere wheelchair athletes in the world.

In fact, the 46-year-old entered the 2019 WheelWOD Open in Canada earlier this month -- and CRUSHED IT -- finishing in the top 4 in every event ... coming in 2nd place overall!!

Amy says she wasn't exactly in the best place emotionally after her accident ... but learning to do CrossFit from her chair has "given me my life back."

She trains in Phoenix -- spending 2 to 4 hours in the gym at a time -- and says her competitive fire isn't just relit ... it's burning out of control and she can't wait for the next WheelWOD Open to take that #1 spot.

"Girlfriend doesn't play to get 2nd. Girlfriend plays to WIN. Have you seen my collection of gold medals?!?!! I'm just sayin'"

Kobayashi has some Grade A beef with Joey Chestnut ... the former wiener-eating champ says JC is a huge cheater -- and is questioning if the guy is REALLY pounding 70-plus hot dogs!!!

We got Kobayashi out in NYC and he didn't hold back when we asked about Chestnut ... saying (through a translator) he thinks Joey's a food-chomping cheat.

"I've personally, definitely witnessed some cheating, yes," Kobayashi says. "One example, we were eating for a pizza P'Zone competition years ago and he was throwing the hardest part to eat -- the crust -- into the box the whole time."

In fact, Kobayashi thinks Joey is such a swindler, he's questioning Chestnut's most famous record -- 74 hot dogs in 10 minutes!!!

Kobayashi says Major League Eating is helping prop up Joey in order to drive interest in the sport ... and adds that he thinks the dogs Joey's been gobbling up are smaller than usual.

As for their relationship, Kobayashi says he and Joey just don't get along ... and he tells us he can't see himself EVER being friends with the guy.

By the way, if you're wondering what Kobayashi is up to these days ... he says he's about to enter a taco-eating contest in California -- and tells us he's got a dream job for the future!!!

Ex-NFL QB Anthony Wright is lucky to be alive today ... a witness to his shooting last week says the former Baltimore Raven was "fading" quickly after he was shot in the back and chest.

It's all in new 911 audio obtained by TMZ Sports ... where a man says he saw Wright get shot "by a guy with a silver 9 millimeter" after an argument in North Carolina on July 1.

"He's breathing, but he's fading," the witness tells dispatch ... "He got shot right in the chest and in the back. Two shots."

Cops say the dispute that started the incident involved a custody situation with Wright's girlfriend's ex ... and led to the 43-year-old needing emergency surgery.

But, police said Wright was in stable condition after the operation ... and it's great news, considering the grim scene the witness painted to dispatch.

"He walked up to him and pointed the gun right at him then and ran off."

Police say they were able to arrest the alleged shooter, William "Willie" Moses Hooker Jr., a few days after the altercation ... and eventually hit him with attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill charges.

Hooker is currently in a North Carolina jail under $1 MILLION bond.

Wright was a stud backup for years in the NFL ... playing for the Dallas Cowboys, Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals and New York Giants.

Roy Halladay -- nearly two years after his tragic death -- is STILL having an impact on the Phillies' locker room, so says stud pitcher Zach Eflin.

"We're always thinking about him," Eflin tells TMZ Sports ... "There's a lot of things I take away from him."

Halladay died after the plane he was piloting in the Gulf of Mexico crashed into the water on November 7, 2017.

It was a horrific moment for baseball -- losing such a legend at just 34 years old -- but Eflin says his legacy is still carrying on strong in Philadelphia.

In fact, Eflin tells us he's still to this day using tips Halladay taught him during their offseason together ... and says, "He's awesome, man. He was an amazing person."

Venus Williams has always been serving up good looks!!!

Here is an 18-year-old version of the professional tennis player showing off her skills while competing in the West Classic tennis tournament at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California back in 1998 (left). 

And 21 years later ... The now 39-year-old Olympic gold medalist was photographed earlier this month competing in the ladies singles first-round match during day one of Wimbledon in London, England (right). 

Williams is currently ranked 44th in women's singles and has earned 49 total women's singles titles. 

These good looks are something to love!!!

The question is ...

When pro athletes meet their match on the court it can be quite a racket!!!

So, just before a title is given out at the Wimbledon finals, take a swing at which tennis pros have let the intensity make ... and break ... a match on the court.

From strung out stars like Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic to Daniil Medvedev and Ajla Tomljanovic, these passionate players take a major hit to the heart when the stakes are so high.

Ezekiel Elliott is now at the center of a criminal probe after the security guard he pushed down changed his mind and pressed charges against the NFL superstar.

The guard, Kyle Johnson, recently filed a criminal complaint with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. It's unclear what exactly he's alleging, or if Zeke's been taken into custody yet ... but his camp is already pushing back against this latest development ... claiming extortion.

The running back's lawyers, Scott Rosenblum and Jason Lampert, issued a statement Saturday saying, "Over the course of the past several weeks, Mr. Elliott has been the target of extortion." They added, "Kyle Johnson’s filing of a criminal complaint against Mr. Elliott in connection with the Las Vegas incident is the latest attempt to do so. Mr. Elliott and it his team are in contact with all of the proper authorities and are fully cooperating with them in their investigations."

TMZ broke the story ... Zeke shoved the security guard down to the ground at EDC earlier this year after getting into an argument with a woman he was there partying with. He was handcuffed by police at the time, but was NOT arrested because Johnson didn't press charges.

Seems like he's had a change of heart now -- despite saying he'd let the whole thing go if he got a legit apology from the Cowboys star. He'd claimed that Zeke's initial apology was BS, saying it wasn't sincere and that eye-contact wasn't made.

WWE Wrestler Jeff Hardy -- aka Brother Nero -- was arrested down in South Carolina for allegedly being drunk in public. 

Jeff was arrested and booked Saturday for public intoxication and impairment in Myrtle Beach, where he posed for this mug shot. Jeff's distinguishable features are on full display -- his large gauges in his ears, and his unique facial hair make him stand out like a sore thumb among the weekend lineup for MBPD. 

It's unclear what exactly led to his arrest -- we're working on getting more deets -- but we're told he was released at some point Saturday on less than $200 bond.

Jeff is currently dealing with a knee injury -- for which he underwent surgery earlier this year and is recovering -- that's kept him out of the ring for a bit. He normally wrestles as one half of the Hardy Boyz for the SmackDown brand of the company. 

Jeff was arrested for a DWI last year in North Carolina after he was reportedly involved in a car crash, and allegedly blew a 0.25 BAC. 

Serena Williams fell short at Wimbledon Saturday ... losing in straight sets.

Serena was looking for her 24th career Grand Slam win, and her 8th Wimbledon victory, but it was not to be. Romanian Simona Halep beat her handily ... 6-2 and 6-2.

This is Serena's 3rd Grand Slam loss in a row. What stings even more ... had she won she would have tied Margaret Court's all-time record which was set back in 1968.

As for Simona ... she's on a roll. She won the French Open last year. 

TMZ Sports has obtained video showing Mark Rypien's wife desperately crawling on the ground in pain after she was struck by the former Super Bowl MVP in a domestic violence incident. 

The footage was shot June 30 around 5:45 PM in Spokane, Washington -- where cops were called to respond to an incident involving the 56-year-old NFL legend and his wife. 

Mark told cops at the scene that he had hit Danielle Rypien because she was covering his eyes while he was driving and he was scared. He told cops he "knocked the wind out of her."

You can see in the video Danielle is clearly in pain and struggling to breathe as she crawls on all fours from the vehicle to a nearby grass area ... where she eventually collapses. 

Medical personnel later responded and evaluated Danielle -- determining she did NOT need emergency medical attention so she was not transported to a hospital. 

Mark was arrested for assault/domestic violence and pled not guilty. He was released without bail and is due back in court later this month. 

Danielle issued a joint statement with Mark supporting him and insisting he did not commit a crime and she does not want him prosecuted. 

Danielle also stated that she believes Mark suffers from CTE brought on by the hits he took during his NFL career -- and suggests the brain injury is to blame for his violent outburst. 

We also obtained the 911 calls made by multiple witnesses -- who all describe the terrifying scene in detail.

Chandler Parsons is giving TMZ Sports an oral history of his participation in the epic twerk fest with bikini models on the yacht in Ibiza ... and he's insisting there was no hooking up going on.

Suuuuuure.

"It wasn't what it looked like. Just some friends hanging out on vacay," Parsons says.

Riiiiiiiight.

"It wasn't even like that. we really just chillin', hanging out."

Mhm, okay, Chandler. Whatever you say.

The NBAer says he and Blake Griffin are just buddies with the incredibly attractive women ... and they were all just relaxing and enjoying themselves and NOT BANGING, despite both being single and super rich.

UFC star Urijah Faber's comeback could be a short one -- like 1 fight -- IF he doesn't get a crack at champ-champ Henry Cejudo, the HOFer tells TMZ Sports.

40-year-old Faber walked away from fighting in December 2016 ... but recently inked a deal to fight Ricky Simon at UFC Fight Night 155 on Saturday -- almost 3 years after retiring.

The California Kid tells us he hasn't decided what he'll do after his fight -- meaning he could hang the gloves back up.

"The truth is, I'll make that decision later. I'm really enjoying this process at the moment. For me, 1 fight at a time," Faber tells us.

But, there's 1 big catch ... he'll absolutely without any doubt fight Cejudo.

"Fighting Henry Cejudo, Mr. Cringe himself," Urijah says ... "I'll fight that dude all day. Believe that."

Remember, Henry called out Urijah in the Octagon after winning the bantamweight title last month.... saying he had a hit list and Faber was on it.

"Styles make matchups. He's not gonna break me, that's absolutely sure. I'm not worried about getting out wrestled or out grappled. His pressure is what's won him fights. That's something I can handle. Pressure is all good with me."

Wanna live like a baller NFL owner?!? 

Well, now you can buy the massive Northern California estate the late Kansas City Chiefs honcho Lamar Hunt built ... if you've got $20 MILLION to blow!!! 

Hunt died back in 2006 -- but his widow, Norma, still owns the massive 6,615 square foot compound Lamar bought in Napa Valley back in 2000. 

The place is insane -- it sits on 40 acres of land complete with its own Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard ... a vineyard that's already won a ton of awards over the years. 

The house itself is just 3 bedrooms and 5 bathrooms ... but it boasts one of the coolest views of the valley we've ever seen! 

Oh yeah, and the wine cellar on the property is pretty rad too. 

Hunt's wife, Norma, held onto the estate for years after his passing ... and now she's ready to part ways with it, listing it for $19.95 million through Compass Realty in San Francisco.

The greatest female boxer in the world wants a piece of the greatest female UFC fighter in the world ... with Claressa Shields guaranteeing she'd KNOCK OUT Amanda Nunes!!!

"If we were to fight, I would win," Shields told us bluntly ... "In boxing, yeah, Amanda Nunes would go to sleep."

24-year-old Shields is a MONSTER in the ring -- she's 9-0 and the undisputed women's middleweight champion of the world! BEAST!!

Of course, Nunes ain't no punk -- she's widely considered the greatest female MMA fighter EVER ... after smashing everyone from Ronda Rousey to Cris Cyborg and Holly Holm. 

Sheilds says Nunes would obviously have the advantage if they stepped into the Octagon, but in a pure fistfight ... oh man, Sheilds says Nunes wouldn't stand a chance! 

So, could it happen? 

Don't rule it out ... Nunes prides herself on her striking ability and we've seen MMA fighters jump into the boxing ring before (McGregor vs. Mayweather anyone!?). 

In the meantime, Claressa says she REALLY wants a crack at welterweight champ Cecilia Braekhus, a 35-0 superstar who hails from Norway.