TMZ Sports - Page 50

Greg Hardy vs. Jon Jones?!

That's what Greg wants in a BAD way -- telling TMZ Sports he KNOWS he's gotta scrap with the G.O.A.T. if he truly wants to be known as the greatest combat sports athlete ever.

The 30-year-old ex-NFL superstar is making it clear he's closed the door on his football career to focus on MMA -- and says his goal is to climb the heavyweight ranks and fight for the title.

First step is getting past Juan Adams at UFC on ESPN on Saturday -- but Hardy says he can see himself upgrading opponents to guys like Stipe Miocic and Daniel Cormier as he continues to chalk up the Ws.

As for Jones, Hardy says he has nothing but respect for the guy -- even noting that he emulates Jon's fighting style in the Octagon.

"It's impossible not to dream of Jon Jones," Hardy said ... "It would be an honor and a pleasure to go to war with him, if I make it that far."

Hardy is currently 4-1 as a pro MMA fighter -- with all 4 of his victories coming by 1st-round stoppages.

Greg says he doesn't have any personal issues with Adams -- who's been talking A LOT of trash -- only giving this message ...

"I forgive you, I understand your ignorance and I apologize for sending you to the hospital. Hope you get better soon, brother."

Genie Bouchard met her biggest fan on Wednesday ... and if you had any doubts about that, check out the massive Genie Bouchard tattoo on the dude's forearm!!

The tennis superstar came face-to-face with a man named Michael in Switzerland recently ... and he showed off his permanent tribute to his favorite athlete.

"This is insane," Genie says. "How did I get to a point to deserve such a dedicated fan that they would get a tattoo of me on their body?"

"If you told 8-year-old me playing my first tournament that I would one day affect someone so much that they would permanently alter their body in my honour... I would not have believed it."

The fan explains that Genie is his biggest inspiration to get out of bed and grind it out everyday ... so he decided to give her a spot on his body!!

"Hearing this makes my heart the happiest it could ever be. Part of me also thinks you’re completely psycho Michael"

"I hope you don’t regret this! And now, you are forced to be a fan for life lmao," Bouchard joked.

The tributes to Tyler Skaggs are still pouring in ... the Angels pitcher who tragically died this month was just immortalized with an insanely realistic mural outside of his old H.S. in Santa Monica.

Jonas Never -- the street artist legend who's painted famous murals of Conor McGregor and LeBron James in L.A. this past year -- did the art, and it's beautiful.

The piece is on the side of a teahouse just yards away from Santa Monica High School where Skaggs grew up pitching ... and it's about 10 feet wide and 10 feet tall.

27-year-old Skaggs graduated from SaMoHi in 2009 -- he was selected in the 1st round of the MLB Draft later that year.

Jonas says he was "proud" to be the one who did the honor ... and says Skaggs' mom, Debbie, and his wife, Carli, both stopped by to see the work.

As we previously reported, Skaggs died at the Angels' team hotel when they were on a road trip to play the Texas Rangers on July 1.

Peyton Manning ain't closing the door to the idea of running an NFL team -- telling TMZ Sports he REALLY likes being a fan right now ... but "we'll see."

"I kind of like being a fan," the future Hall of Famer told us on his way out of Spago in Beverly Hills.

"[I get to] go to a lot of games ... see the Broncos play, Colts play, see the Giants play ... so I'm kind of enjoying doing that part of it right now but we'll see."

There are multiple teams who have reached out to Manning to run football operations -- but Manning clearly isn't ready to make that life commitment right now ... just a few seasons after retiring as a player.

Peyton also weighs in on the current state of the QB position in the NFL ... and shouts out Patrick Mahomes from the Chiefs.

The 43-year-old also talks about how the NFL has handled issues regarding players getting violent off the field ... explaining why he thinks Roger Goodell and his crew are "trying their best."

Logan Paul says he and KSI are thiiiis close to finalizing the details on a rematch ... and it's gonna BIG!!!

Remember, the two YouTube superstars clashed at Manchester Arena in England for a 6-round Pay-Per-View boxing match back in August 2018 ... a match that ended in a majority draw.

The fight did impressively well -- even drawing compliments from UFC honcho Dana White -- and leaving many wondering when they would run it back.

But, when we spoke with Logan at Quavo's celebrity charity basketball game on Tuesday in Los Angeles ... he told us some of the big details are being ironed out as we speak.

Paul says the fight will DEFINITELY take place in L.A. and the venue is down to either the Staples Center or The Forum ... two iconic arenas.

As for KSI, Logan says he's confident he'll beat the brakes off his YouTube rival ... telling us, "KSI's a bitch, bro! I mean it!"

Paul also says KSI hasn't been taking his boxing training seriously -- and "he looks like a f*cking meatball right now."

Conversely, Logan says he's in the best shape of his life ... and as you already know, he's fighting all comers in the boxing ring he set up in the backyard of his L.A. home -- including fake Ivan Drago.

AFC North quarterbacks better watch out ... 'cause Cleveland Browns star Myles Garrett has been training with Stipe Miocic ... and the UFC heavyweight says he was blown away by his power!!!

Stipe and the Pro Bowl defensive end focused on power work and and combinations in the cage earlier this week ... and Miocic says Garrett was loving every second of it -- and was crushing it!!

"He's an absolute beast," Miocic tells TMZ Sports. "Whatever that dude does, he's good at."

The Cleveland sports hero is a HUGE Browns fan ... so he says he's down to train Garrett's teammates like Baker Mayfield and OBJ to help out his beloved Brownies in any way.

We asked if Garrett would be able to hold his own in an MMA fight someday down the road ... and it's clear Stipe thinks he's got a legitimate shot.

"He's just gotta stand there and punch someone one time. That dude's got power. He's got a LOT of power."

Stipe has his own fight around the corner -- a rematch with Daniel Cormier at UFC 241 -- and he's got one message for DC.

The guy who hit Tom Brady with a green laser pointer back in the AFC Championship game just fessed up to the crime ... but he'll avoid jail time after pleading guilty Wednesday.

64-year-old Dwyan Morgan was cited for disturbing the peace after he was accused of shining a laser pointer in TB12's eyes during the 4th quarter of the Jan. 20 Pats-Chiefs game at Arrowhead Stadium.

Morgan was facing time behind bars for the offense ... the charge carried a maximum of ONE YEAR in jail plus a $1,000 fine if he was convicted.

But, TMZ Sports has learned the judge decided to take things easy on Morgan after he pleaded guilty to the charge in court ... deciding only to hit him with a $500 fine.

We're told Morgan paid that off ... and the matter is now considered closed.

As we previously reported, sources close to Morgan told us he was a massive Chiefs fan who blamed an excessive amount of booze for the decision to break the laser out.

We're told Morgan had no intention to ever to hurt anyone ... and didn't expect things to blow up the way they did.

Here's New York Mets superstar rookie Pete Alonso SLAUGHTERING a baseball so hard ... IT NEARLY LEFT TARGET FIELD!!!

The incredible home run came in the top of the 8th inning Wednesday when Alonso stepped up to bat against Twins reliever Matt Magill.

Pete took the first 3 pitches ... but then when he got a slider that hung over the heart of the plate -- he absolutely destroyed it, parking it into the 10th row of the THIRD DECK!!!

Seriously, watch the ball fly ... it lands only a few feet from the highest seat in the park!!!

MLB's Statcast says the baseball traveled 474 feet overall ... and is now officially the longest home run hit by a Met since Statcast began keeping track back in 2015.

Oh, by the way, the Mets won 14-4 ... and Alonso now has 31 home runs in his first 94 big-league games.

Here it is!!! The first look at Anthony Davis head-to-toe in his new threads ... and it's probably bringing a tear to LeBron James' eye.

The NBA superstar threw on his #3 Lakers jersey and shorts for the first time on Wednesday for some promo for NBA 2K20 (he's the cover athlete) ... and he's sporting a HUGE grin on his face.

Of course, AD *was* gonna wear #23 after the King gifted his digits to his new teammate ... but the Brow will be stuck with tres for the upcoming season due to manufacturing issues with Nike.

According to an ESPN report ... the Swoosh woulda lost "well into the tens of millions of dollars" if LBJ switched to #6 like initially planned ... thanks to a bunch of James jerseys that were already made.

Tampa Bay Rays catcher Travis d'Arnaud is going to bat for the guys he shares space with behind the dish ... telling TMZ Sports the MLB needs to keep human umpires!!!

Of course, the league is flirting with the idea of ditching humans for robot umps -- ones that'll call balls and strikes based on an electronic strike zone.

In fact, the MLB is reportedly keeping a close eye on the independent Atlantic League, which just implemented the automated ump system.

But, when we got d'Arnaud out in NYC on Wednesday ... he told us he hates the whole idea, saying, "It takes the human element out of the game."

d'Arnaud also says it'd affect the way he catches games ... and says point-blank he wouldn't like it at all.

Floyd Mayweather's reps have been "begging" Khabib Nurmagomedov to sign a contract for a Conor McGregor-style boxing match ... this according to Khabib's manager. 

"Floyd Mayweather to this day keeps begging to fight Khabib, BEGGING!" Ali Abdelaziz tells TMZ Sports.

"I'm telling you, people reaching out to me every week about Floyd to fight Khabib but at the end of the day, we're not interested ... for now."

Ali says Khabib is laser-focused on his Sept. 7 fight against Dustin Poirier in Abu Dhabi for the UFC lightweight title ... and after that he's eyeing either Tony Ferguson or Georges St-Pierre. 

Ali also represents Henry Cejudo -- so we asked how he felt about recently-unretired UFC Hall of Famer Urijah Faber calling for a crack at the Triple C. 

Long story short, Ali says Henry would be down ... but he wants 40-year-old Urijah to fight #1 bantamweight contender Marlon Moraes first ... and if Faber can get through Marlon, he would prove he's worthy of a title shot. 

Stay tuned on this one ... 

Don't write off LaVar Ball just yet ... "Shark Tank" star Kevin O'Leary tells TMZ Sports even though things look bleak for the Big Baller Brand, he thinks BBB is simply too big to die.

FYI, LaVar has been the laughing stock of social media this week after pics circulated showing a clearance sale on his once-pricey merchandise at a local basketball tournament in Irvine, CA.

Plus, his BBB website has been "under construction" for months with no real time table to get back up and running. And, after Lonzo Ball covered up his BBB tattoo, it seemed the run was over. 

But, Mr. Wonderful tells TMZ Sports ... the seemingly bad publicity ain't bad at all -- it's GOOD! 

"Any time you can your brand into the consciousness of the consumer, it's good," Kev tells us. 

O'Leary says a clearance sale isn't necessarily a death sentence for a brand -- it's standard operating procedure in the fashion world because styles change and you have to dump old merch. 

Kevin says the Big Baller Brand has already established itself as a part of culture -- "it's gonna stay around" -- and he's advising LaVar to get back in the market ASAP. 

As we previously reported, LaVar recently made new hires with plans of expanding the BBB brand ... and as of May, he was putting together a new business plan.  

WHAT A CATCH!!!

Borussia Dortmund goalkeeper Roman Burki -- one of the best in the world -- put his hands on display at a famous Seattle fish market ... and the footage is trout of this world! 

Burki -- along with BVB teammate Marwin Hitz and former keeper Roman Weidenfeller -- volunteered to do some fish-catchin' Tuesday at the Pike Place Fish Market. 

Fish catchin' at Pike Place is one of the big draws to the market ... and it's HARD -- imagine trying to grip on a full-grown, scaly, slippery fish! 

But, when the salmon came flyin', Burki stepped up ... and caught the fish with ONE HAND! 

The crowd loved it, the staff loved it ... and the fish didn't know any better because it's dead. 

Who's hungry?!

Floyd Mayweather only had to wait one week to get revenge on Bone Collector's super embarrassing ankle breaking incident -- and this time, Floyd got out alive!!

The Champ took the first L of his career last week ... falling flat on his ass after trying to defend the streetball legend at the $50k Charity Challenge Celeb hoops game at UCLA.

But, Floyd didn't back down on Tuesday when he got back on the court in L.A. for the Quavo x Legends Celebrity Charity Game at the Mamba Sports Academy.

This time, Floyd again matched up with BC -- but didn't get juked out of his jockstrap. In fact, Floyd's team actually won! 

Bone Collector was still able to do his thing, though ... putting 'Wild 'n Out' star Dan Rue in a blender and crossing him up.

But, the best part of the game ... the NFL STARS PUT ON A DUNK SHOW!!!!

Terrell Owens and Cleveland Browns tight end David Njoku went HAM on the court -- really impressive stuff. 

Team Quavo ended up taking the title away from Team 2 Chainz ... but the game raised a BUNCH of money for charity, so everyone wins!!

Leo Durocher, EAT YOUR HEART OUT!!!

A 6-year-old "coach" for a college summer league baseball team got his ass EJECTED on Saturday after kicking dirt on the umpire ... and the video is AMAZING!!

The kid is Coach Drake of the Kalamazoo Growlers -- which competes in the Northwoods League -- and when the umpire blew an obvious call, Drake WENT HAM ON THE BUM! 

He stomped around. He wagged his finger. He kicked dirt and he got all up in the ump's grill -- so he got tossed. 

But, that's just the beginning ... 

Coach Drake stormed back into his dugout and started throwing bats onto the field. 

The best part is when he grabs a 5 gallon bucket of balls and tries to spill 'em onto the diamond ... and the struggle with the bucket is epic. 

Friends of legendary Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan -- who has been battling dementia and Parkinson's disease -- are asking for prayers with one close friend saying, "He is dying."

77-year-old Sloan revealed his battle with the diseases back in 2016 after the symptoms became noticeable. According to the Salt Lake Tribune's Gordon Monson, things have gotten much worse recently ... with one source who's close to Jerry telling the reporter he doesn't have much time left. 

"He’s frail. He’s physically and mentally limited. Around the clock care is required for him," Monson says in his report. 

Despite his worsening condition, Sloan is still social with his friends ... but as Monson notes, "His mind, though, is slipping away."

Sloan's wife, Tammy, has been caring for Jerry -- "doing whatever she can to help her man, spending time and sharing love with him as much as possible."

Monson is asking fans to "send a prayer up" for Sloan -- while noting he's physically incapable of attending another Utah Jazz game. 

Sloan is widely considered one of the greatest coaches of all time -- he spent 23 seasons leading the Utah Jazz ... and brought them to the NBA Finals twice in the '90s.