TMZ Sports - Page 50

Hasim Rahman Jr. says he knows where Tyron Woodley went wrong against Jake Paul -- leading to a brutal knockout -- telling TMZ Sports he will absolutely NOT make the same mistakes as the future UFC Hall of Famer.

"Bro, [Jake's] a little boy, and I'm gonna treat him like one. That's what Woodley didn't do. Woodley gave him too much respect, and he sat back with his hands down and he got caught," 31-year-old Rahman Jr. bluntly said when we asked where Tyron went wrong when fighting 25-year-old Paul.

And, 6'3" Rahman Jr. -- who has previously fought north of 260 pounds -- believes he has another advantage ... size!

"All of Jake's opponents have been smaller than him. All of them have been much smaller. This is the first time he's going to be in there with someone that's walking him down and much bigger than him."

Paul -- who's 6'1" and was 191 pounds when he fought Woodley (T-Wood weight 189 for 2021 rematch) -- has faced fighters who all stand under 6 feet (Gib, 5'9". Robinson, 5'8". Askren, 5'11". Woodley, 5'9").

Rahman Jr., 12-1, just fought April 29 ... where he suffered his first loss, via TKO. But, that didn't stop the son of the former 2x heavyweight champ from accepting the Paul fight when Tommy Fury dropped out ... even though Hasim claims Jake made him accept strict rules meant to diminish the heavyweight boxer in the ring.

Hasim says although the fight will be contested at 200 pounds ... he'll only be permitted to rehydrate to 210 pounds just hours before the bell rings. A guy Rahman Jr.'s size could typically gain 15, 20 or more pounds in between making weight and the fight.

"If you really wanted to make a statement you would've came up to heavyweight and fought me. But you didn't. You wanted to bring me down, and stack the deck against me, so you could actually have a fighting chance. He knows he has no chance against me had it been at my weight class," Hasim says.

We also talked to Rahman Jr. about Logan Paul advising his brother to not take the fight, and much more.

LeBron James says Brittney Griner's been in captivity for way too long without the U.S. bringing her home, so if he were the WNBA star, he'd question returning to America.

Bron made the comments during a recent taping of "The Shop" ... when the conversation apparently turned to the incarcerated American hoops star.

"Now, how can she feel like America has her back? I would be feeling like, 'Do I even want to go back to America?'"

It's clear -- at least from the short trailer that was released -- that LeBron doesn't believe the U.S. is doing nearly enough to bring BG home.

Of course, Griner was arrested in a Russian airport near Moscow in mid-February ... after Russian authorities said they found vape cartridges with cannabis oil in her bag.

Initially, the American public wasn't made aware Griner was arrested ... which was strategic on the part of America. With the Russia-Ukraine war waging, the U.S. knew Griner could be used by Russia to gain leverage against the West.

But, that strategy only worked for a couple of weeks. Eventually, the news got out, and it's been one of the biggest stories since.

Griner's case has consistently been covered in America, and across the world.

Brittney's wife, Cherelle Griner, recently spoke with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.

(Note: in fairness to LBJ's point, "The Shop" episode seems to have been filmed before Cherelle spoke to the president.)

Biden also wrote a letter to Brittney ... which she recently received.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre has regularly fielded questions from reporters at the WH about all topics Griner-related.

The United States Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, has also been in communication with the Griner family. U.S. Congressman Colin Allred, a former athlete at Baylor (like Brittney), has also spent countless hours working to free Griner.

Politicians aside, everyone from fellow athletes to regular people have been touched by the Griner case ... and have prayed for her safe return.

In fact, supporters of other prisoners locked up abroad, particularly in Russia, have been peeved by how hard the U.S. government has seemingly tried to get BG back, while other families believe the same level of effort isn't being paid to the cases of their loved ones.

As for her release ... unfortunately, nothing looks imminent.

After months of sitting in a Russian cell, Griner recently appeared before a judge and indicated her desire to plead guilty to the drug charge.

Griner has not yet been sentenced. She could face 10 years in prison.

Full "The Shop" ep. drops Friday on HBO.

A surfer beat the crap out of a younger bodyboarder after they crashed into each other while riding the same wave ... and the brutal attack is all on video.

The dustup happened at a popular surf spot in Gold Coast, Australia ... where punches started flying after a wipeout.

The surfer was the clear aggressor, swimming over to the bodyboarder and landing several blows to the face.

Other folks in the water race over to get the surfer away from the bodyboarder ... with at least one onlooker telling the surfer his target was half his age and only a kid.

The surfer seems frustrated, throwing up his hands as the video ends ... and it seems he was set off by colliding with the bodyboarder inside a nice barrel.

Le'Veon Bell's football career is over -- at least for now -- the NFL star says he won't play this season ... and it's all 'cause he wants to now focus on his boxing career.

The running back made the announcement just minutes ago at a promotional event for his upcoming fight with Adrian Peterson -- revealing he's going to try to take this year to begin his formal transition from football player to full-time fighter.

"Last year, I almost sat out the whole year to try to focus on boxing, because I kind of knew that's what I wanted to transition to," Bell said.

"This year, I know I'm not going to be playing this year because I want to focus on boxing."

Bell -- who played eight total games last season for the Baltimore Ravens and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers -- has been slowly making the move into the fight world, incorporating mitts into his workouts routinely.

But, at 30 years old, most thought he'd still try to extend his NFL career.

Bell, though, made it known he believes he can carve out a real niche in boxing -- and he said he's hoping a win over Peterson during their match later this month kick starts all of that.

"This is my introduction to kind of showing what I've been doing," Bell said, "and how I've been going about myself."

The Philadelphia Flyers are making a nice gesture in cancer survivor Oskar Lindblom's name after waiving the forward this week ... by donating $100k to a local charity.

The Flyers broke the news on Tuesday ... saying they will buy out the rest of the 25-year-old's $3 million contract to free up cap space.

President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Chuck Fletcher said it was a "very difficult decision to make" ... especially after all Lindblom has gone through while with the organization.

As we previously reported, Oskar was diagnosed with a form of bone cancer in 2019 ... and made his return to the ice in August 2020. He later announced he was officially cancer-free.

"No one can question the desire, will and strength to overcome all that Oskar has been through off the ice in order to return to the game he loves," Fletcher added.

"He is truly an inspiration to us all, and he will always remain a special part of the Philadelphia Flyers family."

The Flyers added they will donate $100k in Oskar's name to a local charity that supports families impacted by cancer.

Jake Paul wants Hasim Rahman Jr. to put more than his boxing career on the line when they face off in the ring ... calling on the champ's son to agree to take on a hilariously embarrassing Instagram handle if he loses.

The two fighters went at it in their official press conference for the August 6 bout at Madison Square Garden ... and in true Problem Child fashion, Jake wanted to make a bet with Rahman Jr.

When HRJ refused to make a monetary agreement, Paul got creative.

"When I beat you, you have to change your Instagram name to 'ILetMyDadDown,'" Paul said Tuesday ... adding he already scooped up the handle just in case.

BTW -- we looked it up, and it appears Jake is a man of his word.

Rahman Jr. shot down the offer, saying he wasn't going to entertain Jake's charade ... but it's clear he wants the guy to cave in and take the bet.

Of course, Jake is known for making friendly/humiliating deals with his opponents -- Tyron Woodley got "I Love Jake Paul" tatted on his middle finger after losing to the YouTube superstar in 2021, although it has pretty much faded away by now.

Paul was also planning to make a $1 million bet with Tyson Fury for his fight against Tommy ... before the fight got scrapped.

New team. Same number.

Baker Mayfield will be wearing his customary number 6 this upcoming season ... thanks to his new teammate, All-Pro punter Johnny Hekker, who agreed to let the polarizing QB have the number he sported throughout his college and NFL career.

Mayfield was introduced by the Carolina Panthers at a press conference on Tuesday ... when a reporter asked him about the importance of number 6, and whether he'd be rocking a new digit this season.

"I guess it's time to break the news," Baker said. "I made a deal, did my own negotiating with Johnny [Hekker]. Obviously when it comes to a 4-time All-Pro, [I] had to ask permission. [He] was willing to make those sacrifices."

"Six is special to me, not because it was ever my favorite number. It was the number I was given as a walk-on at Texas Tech and when I transferred, the people at Oklahoma thought it was my favorite number, so they just gave it to me again."

"It's just stuck with me," Mayfield added.

The former No.1 overall pick said the No.6 "symbolizes my story" and that it's "something special to him now," adding, that he's incredibly thankful Hekker -- a 10-year NFL veteran and stud punter -- was willing to accommodate his request.

It's unclear what the number cost Baker ... 'cause it almost certainly wasn't free. Over the years we've seen everything from cash, vacations and fancy gifts exchanged for numbers.

Baker also touched on the transition from Cleveland to North Carolina ... and talked about what the possibility of playing his old team -- the Browns -- Week 1 would mean to him.

"I'm extremely excited for this new start in Charlotte," the 27-year-old said. "It's just an exciting time for myself and my family and this new chapter."

For the first time since 2021, Henry Ruggs appeared in a courtroom in Las Vegas for a hearing in his DUI crash case.

The 23-year-old former Las Vegas Raiders star -- who was charged back in November 2021 with four felonies after prosecutors accused him of killing Tina Tintor and her dog in a fiery car crash -- showed up to the Nevada courthouse alongside his attorneys.

During the hearing, Ruggs' lawyers argued that police had no probable cause to obtain a warrant to collect his blood following the car accident. They asked for the tests -- which cops say showed Ruggs had a BAC of .161 following the wreck -- to not be allowed to be used as evidence in the case.

The judge, however, denied the motion.

Ruggs appeared to be stoic in the courtroom as his attorneys spoke, displaying little emotion. He wore a white button-down shirt, a black bowtie, and blue pants and did not address reporters inside or outside of the courtroom.

This is the first time Ruggs has been seen in public since late November 2021, when he was ordered to show up for a hearing over a missed breath test.

As we reported, Ruggs is facing more than 50 years in prison if he's convicted on all of the charges against him.

The speculation can be put to rest -- Rob Gronkowski says his football-playing days are officially behind him ... and not even Tom Brady can change his mind.

The 33-year-old future Hall of Famer doubled down on his decision to walk away from the game just minutes ago ... saying he's excited to focus on new opportunities after 11 seasons on the field.

"Yeah, I'm done with football," Gronk said Tuesday. "Love the game. Definitely blessed with all the opportunities the game of football has given me and the relationships I’ve met, obviously, here in New England for nine seasons and down in Tampa for two."

"But, no, done with football. Stepping my feet into the business world, the business ventures and just seeing what’s out there and where I can find my place."

The comments come one week after teammate Mike Evans addressed Gronk's status ... saying he was hoping to see him back on the field for the Buccaneers in 2022, but knows it's probably for the best.

"He takes a pretty big beating," Evans told KPRC 2 Houston. "I've seen his body after some of them games and I understand why [he would retire]."

The Tour de France had to be stopped for several minutes on Tuesday ... after multiple protesters parked themselves in the middle of the course and lit flares to block riders.

The men and women put their bodies in the roadway in what appeared to be an attempt to raise awareness for climate change.

Video from the race's broadcast showed the people quickly running onto the street and spreading out evenly across it -- forcing cyclists to stop and wait for them to be cleared.

Some of the protestors had chains around their necks, while others had shirts that read, "We have 989 days left." They stayed on the course until authorities physically removed them.

Once they were cleared -- event organizers made sure in the restart of the race that all of the previous gaps built before the pause were maintained after it.

File under "incredibly hot take."

Andre Iguodala believes Rasheed Wallace would be a top 5 player in the NBA if he played in today's game ... saying the 2004 champ would be better than 2-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Really.

The Golden State Warriors forward made the head-scratching comment on "The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz" this week ... saying Sheed had what it took to be one of the all-time greats, but chose to "do [his] thing" instead.

"Rasheed Wallace probably could have been a top-five player in the league for a 10-year stretch," Iguodala said on the show. "He was shooting half-court shots left-handed and right-handed."

"If Rasheed Wallace played in modern-day basketball, if he played in our league today, he’d be a top-five player. He’d be better than Giannis and I love Giannis."

Now, Sheed was a great player during his 16-year career ... averaging more than 14 points a game and playing a key role in the Detroit Pistons' title run in 2004.

His ability to shoot from range would certainly fit right in with today's game ... but better than Giannis?!? We're talking about the 2021 Finals MVP, 4-time first-team All-NBA selection, Defensive Player of the Year and 75th Anniversary team pick ... and the dude's just 27 years old.

Tiger Woods is teeing off on LIV Golf ... making it clear on Tuesday that he ain't a fan of the new org., or the golfers who have defected to it.

The 46-year-old railed against the new, Saudi-backed league for several minutes during a meeting with media members ahead of this week's The Open tourney ... explaining he just doesn't understand how guys have ditched the PGA Tour for it.

"I think that what they've done is they've turned their back on what has allowed them to get to this position," Woods said of the LIV golfers.

Woods, who reportedly turned down a massive offer to play in LIV Golf earlier this year, explained he believes the Tour has given athletes the chance to "earn what we get" and establish a legacy -- something he clearly thinks is lacking in the new golf league.

In fact, Woods questioned how anyone taking the guaranteed payday from the new org. could find a desire to try to get better going forward.

"What these players are doing for guaranteed money, what is the incentive to practice?" the golf legend said. "What is the incentive to go out there and earn it in the dirt? You’re just getting paid a lot of money upfront and playing a few events and playing 54 holes. They’re playing blaring music and have all these atmospheres that are different."

Woods also said he agreed with The Open's decision to ban LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman from some of this week's most meaningful events.

"Greg has done some things that I don’t think is in the best interest of our game," Woods said, "and we’re coming back to probably the most historic and traditional place in our sport."

LIV Golf officially kicked off its first event last month in England. More than a dozen of the top players in the world -- including Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau -- have elected to play in it.

The PGA Tour, meanwhile, has suspended all of the defectors indefinitely, saying in a statement in June that anyone who follows suit will face similar punishments.

It's unclear yet what the four major championship events will do with the LIV golfers going forward -- though Tiger said even the slightest possibility of a ban from those tourneys would have turned him off to the idea immediately.

Richard Jefferson has crossed over to the other side ... the ex-NBA star made his debut as an NBA official last night during the Knicks-Blazers Summer League game.

The 17-year NBA veteran was tapped to officiate the second quarter of the contest between Portland and New York ... after the league says he attended daily Summer League Officiating Meetings in Las Vegas.

RJ was received pretty well throughout the night by the fans (except Knicks fans) in attendance at the Thomas & Mack Center in Vegas ... getting cheers from the crowd, but they also didn't hesitate to let the NBA champ hear it when he got a call incorrect.

One Twitter user posted a video of Jefferson being booed ... after he awarded the ball to the wrong team on an errant pass.

Ironically enough, Richard's first experience as a ref came during a game involving the Knicks -- a team he tormented on the court in his career -- something rapper Joe Budden jokingly made reference to on Twitter.

"I guess no one up top has ever heard Richard Jefferson during any Knicks discussion lol… I don't care how many officiating classes he took, he should not be the official (for a quarter) at ANY Knick game ever Foh," Budden said.

Jefferson -- who retired from the Association in 2018 -- ultimately believes the more knowledge he has about the game of basketball, the better analyst he becomes.

Derek Jeter can pinpoint the exact day that his relationship with Alex Rodriguez melted down ... saying it all happened in 2001, when he realized the MLB superstar was "not a true friend."

The New York Yankees legend opened up about it all in ESPN's new "The Captain" documentary -- which is set to run in its entirety in seven parts beginning later this month -- revealing he grew apart from Rodriguez after the former shortstop had made some remarks about him in an '01 interview with Esquire.

Rodriguez, who was very close with Jeter and had just signed a massive contract to play for the Texas Rangers, told a reporter for the outlet that Derek was "blessed" to play for an absolutely stacked NY team.

"He's never had to lead," Rodriguez said. "He doesn’t have to, he can just go and play and have fun, and hit second."

He continued, "I mean, you know, hitting second is totally different than hitting third or fourth in a lineup because you go into New York trying to stop Bernie [Williams] and [Paul] O’Neill and everybody. You never say, ‘Don’t let Derek beat you.’ That’s never your concern.”

Jeter, who at the time was considered the Yankees' best player, took offense to the comments -- saying in the documentary that they "bothered me."

"I’m very, very loyal," Jeter said. "As a friend, I’m loyal. I just looked at it as, ‘I wouldn’t have done it.'"

Rodriguez said in the documentary he apologized, and Jeter said he was down to accept it -- but #2 revealed A-Rod then went on to say "there’s not one thing he does better than me" in another interview, which Jeter made clear officially fractured their bond.

"He’s not a true friend, is how I felt," Jeter said. "Because I wouldn’t do it to a friend."

The two -- who were so close as youngsters in the MLB that they actually had sleepovers at each other's homes -- eventually became teammates with the Yankees in 2004, but famously had an up-and-down, icy time together.

Rob Riggle is dating as he goes through a nasty divorce with his estranged wife, and his new girlfriend isn't just a professional golfer ... she's a former contestant on his game show.

Rob is dating Kasia Kay ... they recently went Instagram official and are leaving "💗" emojis on their photos together, so it's pretty serious.

Kasia's IG feed is littered with tons of pics of her and Rob at golf courses, Hollywood events and NFL games and they look super happy.

Rob and Kasia had a working relationship before getting romantic ... she appeared as a contestant on season 2 of ABC's "Holey Moley," which Rob co-hosts with Joe Tessitore.

TMZ broke the story ... Rob's wife, Tiffany, filed for divorce in October 2020 and listed May 2, 2020, as the date of separation.

It's worth noting, Kasia's "Holey Moley" episode aired in July 2020 -- and a source close to Rob is telling us there was no overlap with his ex-wife.

Kasia posted her first IG pic with Rob in July 2021, a group selfie with RR, "The Office" star Brian Baumgartner and retired MLB star Chase Utley. We're told the relationship's only recently gotten more serious.

Rob's divorce turned ugly shortly when, as we first reported, he accused his ex of spying on him via hidden camera, hacking him and taking $28,000 of his cash. He's now suing Tiffany, in addition to the divorce.

"Cheer" star Jerry Harris will have a lengthy list of rules to follow after doing time for his child pornography case ... including completion of multiple treatment programs.

According to legal documents, obtained by TMZ, Harris' registration as a sex offender will be just the tip of the iceberg.

The terms of his supervised release require him to participate in a mental health program, and take any meds prescribed by the treatment provider.

On top of that, he'll also have to go through a sex offender treatment program, which might include psychological and physiological testing.

In addition to the treatment, there's an obvious criterion -- Harris is forbidden from coming into contact with the minors involved in his case.

As you know, Harris was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison last week after a string of his friends and supporters read statements about the disgraced reality star's character.