TMZ Sports - Page 20

Jimmy Uso clearly believes another Johnson is going to be dominating in WWE rings for a long, long time ... telling TMZ Sports after seeing The Rock's daughter make her debut this week, he's convinced she's going to be a STAR.

Simone Johnson made her first-ever mark in a WWE ring on Tuesday ... revealing herself as "Ava Raine" on NXT and cutting a promo that had the crowd in attendance going wild.

Uso told us out at LAX this week that he was blown away by the 21-year-old's chops ... saying he thinks it won't be long before she's a household name just like Dad.

"The sky is the limit," Jimmy said. "She's got the workhorse in her like we all do. It runs deep in the blood, and I'm excited for her future."

"I can't wait to see where this takes her."

Uso says if/when she gets called up from NXT to the main roster ... he'll have no issues taking her under his wing -- because, after all, they are basically family.

"Anyway the family can get it, I'm all for it," said Jimmy, who wrestles in a group called "The Bloodline" with his brother, Jey, and WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns, who is Dwayne Johnson's cousin. "I'm ready to see what she can do. I'm ready for her to pop off and represent the bloodline."

Kamaru Usman is planning to fight Leon Edwards in early 2023 -- in the Brit's home country -- but the Nigerian Nightmare ain't concerned about going into enemy territory ... 'cause he says the crowd will actually be on his side.

"I would love to go to England and do this in England," Usman told Babcock when they sat down for the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weeknights on FS1), adding, "I gotta lot of fans in England, a lot of my Africans, a lot of my Jamaican fans in England so I think it only makes sense."

Lots of fans in England ... as in, the crowd will be split 50/50, we asked.

"No, I think I have more fans in there than he would but it is what it is, going to the UK, doesn't matter. They don't help you fight. You gotta fight me. You gotta fight the Nigerian Nightmare when you're in there so that doesn't really make a difference for me," 35-year-old Usman said.

Of course, Kamaru lost his title to 31-year-old Edwards at UFC 278 in August. Usman was cruising, on his way to a relatively painless title defense ... that's until Rocky landed a perfectly placed head kick that turned the lights off for the champ.

Prior to the loss, Usman won 19 fights in a row ... many against the UFC's best, including Colby Covington (twice), Jorge Masvidal (twice), and many others. He also previously beat Edwards in late 2015.

After the fight, the internet did what the internet does ... and there were memes galore. Usman handled the loss graciously.

"I started wrestling in high school and I lost a lot until I started winning. Then I went to college wrestling and then I lost until I did win and then I started fighting, then I lost and started winning," Kamaru says, making the point ... everyone loses. It's how you bounce back.

And, after over 20 minutes of fighting this summer, Usman says both he and Edwards know who's the superior fighter.

Halloween will come a day early for Indianapolis Colts corner Isaiah Rodgers ... 'cause the NFL player copped some spooky mummy cleats for Sunday's game -- that light up!!!

TMZ Sports has learned ... the Indy defensive back hit up his go-to guy Rodney Jackson recently to get some spikes made for the Colts' day-before-Halloween game against the Washington Commanders.

Jackson tells us he actually came up with the idea to make Rodgers' cleats look like a corpse ... and then he decided to add on a bonus -- some creepy green lights!

The final product came out amazing ... the shoes are wrapped in fabric to make them look like a body is inside. Rodgers' jersey number is painted on the side ... and there's also a frightening green face featured on the toes.

Jackson says he used curtains for the look -- telling us he went to several fabric stores before finally finding just the right product.

Jackson said the pieces -- plus the special wiring for the illumination -- took him 12 hours to put together.

Yes, the Lakers are playing like crap right now, but there's one thing they should NOT do -- trade Russell Westbrook ... so says Ty Dolla $ign, who tells TMZ Sports he believes the Purple & Gold can still turn things around with the current squad.

Brodie has been getting a ton of criticism for his sluggish start to the 2022-23 campaign ... with many calling for the Lake Show to end the Russ experiment pronto.

Ty isn't in that group ... 'cause when he was leaving Dash Radio earlier this week, he told us he thinks people are going too hard on the former MVP.

"Don't do that," the crooner told us. "Some of us have ups and downs somedays. But there's definitely going to be the ups again. Shoutout to my brother, Russ, man."

Ty defends Russell's recent blunders ... saying, "Certain times we have f***ing bad shots."

Barack Obama was in full-blown stand-up comedy mode Friday night in Georgia -- where he skewered Herschel Walker as wholly unqualified for the Senate ... among other occupations.

The ex-Prez was stumping for Rev. Raphael Warnock -- who's running to maintain his Senate seat in a highly contested race -- when he started to lay out comparisons between the current Senator and Walker ... going on to crack jokes at the latter's expense.

Watch ... BO admits Walker was a football great once upon a time, but says that alone doesn't mean he should be considered for jobs he has no experience in -- stuff like flying an airplane or surgery -- and that common sense people would ask those basic questions.

Barack hilariously compares the sitch to him being hypothetically tapped to be a running back ... something he says he absolutely would be terrible at, and that no one would want him doing. In the same vein, he says HW shouldn't be taken seriously as a would-be Senator.

Walker's now-infamous badge moment during the debate was also poked at by 44 -- with Barack likening it to playing cops and robbers. The crowd was busting up at his jokes.

For his part, Walker didn't find it funny ... but did fire back at the former President in his own campaign speech Saturday. He insisted he wasn't a celebrity, but rather ... a "warrior for God." Walker also went on to say Obama's been absent while he's been on the front lines.

Kyrie Irving is the latest celeb being accused of antisemitism after promoting a movie that some say is full of stereotypes and tropes -- but the guy's saying he's being misunderstood.

The Nets star got slammed Friday for tweeting a link to a movie called ... "Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America" which is on Amazon. It's a controversial piece to say the least ... leaning into extreme ideology from certain factions of Black Hebrew Israelites.

The whole idea behind this is that Black people actually have Jewish roots themselves -- and are, in fact, the "chosen people of God" as opposed to Jews of European descent. Like we said ... highly inflammatory, but it's a train of thought several celebs have embraced in recent years. Kanye West, obviously, but also ... Nick Cannon and Ice Cube, to name a few.

Not only does the doc Kyrie promoted discuss this, but it also reportedly spreads conspiracy theories ... including the claim that "white Jews," as it were, perpetuated the slave trade and are, by and large, in control of the media/banking industries ... among other accusations.

It's a lot of the same stuff that got Kanye in trouble ... and Kyrie's been receiving much of the same backlash, so much so that his boss -- Nets owner Joe Tsai -- said something.

He condemned Kyrie's tweet as hate-fueled, writing ... "I’m disappointed that Kyrie appears to support a film based on a book full of anti-semitic disinformation. I want to sit down and make sure he understands this is hurtful to all of us, and as a man of faith, it is wrong to promote hate based on race, ethnicity or religion." Joe adds, this is bigger than basketball.

KI defended himself Saturday, saying he meant no disrespect to anyone's religious beliefs and adding ... "the 'Anti-Semitic' label that is being pushed on me is not justified and does not reflect the reality or truth I live in everyday."

Tiger Woods was mistakenly -- and HORRIFYINGLY -- dragged into a political ad this week, calling for cop killers and mass murderers to be sentenced to death.

The legendary golfer's 2017 DUI arrest footage was front and center in the campaign ad, dubbed "Just Intentional," which was released Thursday by Kris Kobach, the Republican nominee for Kansas Attorney General.

In the ad, Kobach put his Democrat opponent, Chris Mann, on blast over his opposition to capital punishment, splicing in Wood's arrest along with images of two convicted murderers currently on Kansas’ death row.

Kobach’s spokesperson Danedri Herbert told FOX Digital the ad agency they hired was to blame for the error, but they caught it and fixed it within minutes.

Herbert went on ... "What a happy accident that media is going to pick this up and expose Chris Mann as a soft-on-crime liberal Democrat who will let cop killers and mass murderers off easy for their heinous crimes."

A new ad was cut, replacing the Woods footage with images of what appears to be a prison inmate.

Kanye West closing his Donda Academy has left the program's student-athletes in limbo ... wasting a season's worth of developing their talents.

Sources connected to the Donda boy's basketball team tell us the season has essentially been put on ice, with little to no games scheduled. We're told the kids have been dropped from several tournaments because of Kanye's antisemitic rants, and have limited practice.

Our sources say if the kids do want to practice, they have to organize on their own ... Donda isn't there for an assist, though some coaches are working to make it happen.

What's more, we're told it's becoming more and more difficult for students at Donda to transfer to another school's basketball program ... mainly because Donda's season hasn't yet been OFFICIALLY canceled. It's especially bad for the kids who have real talent and prospects to play college ball.

Our sources say one potential savior is NBA star Jaylen Brown, who recently announced he was leaving Donda Sports. We're told Jaylen is trying to save the Donda Academy team, working to help find tournaments for the players.

One game he's helped to schedule for the team already will happen next Sunday against Morehouse College.

"Pawn Stars" Rick Harrison and Chumlee have a chance to snap up a one-of-a-kind piece of memorabilia ... courtesy of an NFL player holding on to a Pokémon card worth 6 figures!!!

Rick and Chum met up with Raiders' linebacker Blake Martinez Thursday night during a meet and greet at Gold & Silver Pawn Shop in Las Vegas.

Blake brought his very rare card -- a Pokémon Illustrator -- and the guys got a close look. It is said to be one of the rarest cards in Pokémon history, as only 4 were ever made.

That makes it a bona fide commodity ... one experts believe could rake in more than $1 mil. There is one in better condition, which sold for $4 million!!!

As for how it got in Blake's hands -- the Pokémon fanatic's been collecting 'em all since he was 6 years old. This trophy card in particular he had FedExed from a guy in Japan.

While the linkup might seem unlikely to some, we're told the guys came together because Blake and Chum both trade cards on the same website.

Blake is selling the card through Goldin Auctions ... and it's already hit $360K.

The ink on Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen's divorce papers isn't even dry yet, but the oddsmakers are already taking bets on who they'll date next ... and go figure -- Pete Davidson is the favorite to be the supermodel's next fling.

The folks at BetOnline made a list of the former power couple's next potential suitors ... and there are some surprising names to say the least.

On Gisele's side, Pete has the best odds at +1200 ... with hunky actor Jason Momoa right behind at +1800.

There are other stars like Leonardo DiCaprio, John Mayer, Chris Evans and Bradley Cooper ... but there's one guy who would definitely stir the pot if it came true -- Brady's best friend and former teammate, Rob Gronkowski.

Naturally, his odds are set at +6900.

A couple never-gonna-happen options include President Donald Trump, New York Jets QB Zach Wilson and Antonio Brown ... who has been trolling TB12 incessantly over the divorce.

For Brady, he has a long list of lovely ladies ... with none other than Taylor Swift leading the pack at +1400.

Models Adriana Lima (+1600) and Alessandra Ambrosio (+1800) are also options ... with Kim Kardashian right behind at (+2500).

Halle Berry, Jennifer Aniston, Bella Hadid, Candice Swanepoel and Charlize Theron are among the names as well.

Tom's ex, Bridget Moynahan, is listed at +4000 ... so the oddsmakers don't see him rekindling that flame anytime soon.

Gronk's GF Camille Kostek is also at +4000 ... which means people thinking there will be a couples swap would rake in some serious dough.

Some silly options include former porn star Mia Khalifa (+20000) and Zach Wilson's mom (+50000).

We broke the story -- Tom and Bündchen finalized their divorce on Friday ... after 13 years together.

Conor McGregor, Tommy Fury, Nate Diaz, KSI ... Logan Paul?!?!

Jake Paul says he'd actually consider going to war with his own blood in the boxing ring after he beats up on Anderson Silva on Saturday ... telling TMZ Sports he's ready to set up some MASSIVE fights.

Of course, the Problem Child and Spider will be squaring off in the ring in Phoenix just hours from now ... but we couldn't help but ask who he's eyeing after this weekend's big event.

Paul says there will be people lining up to fight him after he comes away with the W ... and if his brother, Logan, ends up being one of them, Jake says he'd entertain the idea!!

"Heck, I could fight Logan Paul," Jake said. "Why not?"

Now, Jake and Logan's mom has previously been adamantly against it ... but as both guys continue their own respective careers, fans have been dying to see it.

TALE OF THE TAPE

Jake is 5-0 -- potentially 6-0 after Saturday night -- but Logan has yet to win in a pro fight. He did go up against Floyd Mayweather in an exhibition bout, though ... and folks were impressed with how he was able to hold his own.

Jerry Jones should pull off a trade for a star wideout ... so says Troy Aikman, who tells TMZ Sports he believes his former team could benefit big time from adding another weapon.

Dallas has largely stayed out of big-name acquisitions in both free agency and the trade market over the last few years ... but Aikman says they should seriously consider going after guys like Brandin Cooks, Chase Claypool and D.J. Moore before the trade deadline passes on Tuesday.

As for why ... Aikman made it clear he's not so sure the 'Boys have enough talent around Dak Prescott on offense to go land a Super Bowl title.

"I do know you better have some offense in today's NFL if you're gonna win games," the Hall of Fame QB tells us. "The way you have offense is you have weapons and you gotta have more than one or two."

Aikman points out that the team lost Amari Cooper in the offseason, and seems to be missing him -- or a player of his caliber -- so far through seven games this year.

Troy didn't name names on who he'd advise Dallas to pursue -- but it's obvious, if he were Jerry, he'd make a deal with someone.

"Could they use another weapon? Yeah," he told us. "I think when they lost Amari Cooper this past year, he was a guy that definitely garnered some attention in coverage and it opened a lot of other things up."

"It would help them, for sure."

Aikman also spoke with us about a myriad of other hot-button NFL topics ... including the NFC East, Daniel Jones, and Matt Ryan. He also shared his opinion on Aaron Rodgers' controversial comments earlier this week.

Check out the clip ... you'll be WAY more football knowledgeable after it!

Adam "Pacman" Jones is thanking the crew that helped him launch his new weed strain ... by hookin' them up with some crazy iced-out jewelry!!!

TMZ Sports has learned ... the former Cincinnati Bengals star gifted 24 of his employees with the new bling -- after they all played a role in getting his collab with cannabis lifestyle brand, Cookies, off the ground.

Pacman delivered the chains on Thursday ... and they're awesome.

The pieces feature a "PAC" pendant -- a nod to his nickname -- and a chain that is packed with quality diamonds.

Pacman copped 'em from jewelers Tajia Diamond and Victor Rodriguez ... and we're told the total price for all 24 pieces was over $100k!!!

"We blessing the gang," Pacman said of the gifts this week. "We thanking everybody who was a part of Cookies."

Pacman -- who retired from the NFL in May 2019 -- has been working in the weed industry for several years, and recently partnered up with Cookies to release a new line of products that will be available in California stores on Oct. 29.

"We been working on this process, this Pacman strain, for seven years," Jones told us. "Today was one of the bucket list days."

The 39-year-old Pro Bowler is really high (no pun intended) on using the product and feels everyone should utilize it, including athletes.

"Cannabis is, to me, one of the top safest things that you can use that's helped me keep myself calm and keep my rocker down," Jones said.

Legendary Georgia Bulldogs football head coach Vince Dooley passed away Friday afternoon, the university announced. He was 90 years old.

The Hall of Fame coach died peacefully at his home, according to UGA, surrounded by his wife and four children.

The Alabama native spent 25 years coaching at Georgia ... and became the winningest coach for the school with a 201-77-10 record. In 1980 he won a National Championship ... and throughout his career, he was able to secure six conference titles.

Dooley also won SEC Coach of the Year five times.

After retiring, Dooley became Georgia's athletic director ... and during his tenure, UGA sports teams won 23 national titles.

Georgia football alum and Kansas City Chiefs receiver Mecole Hardman paid tribute to Dooley following the news of his passing ... posting a throwback pic of the former coach celebrating.

"REST IN PARADISE VINCE DOOLEY," Hardman said on Twitter. "#DamnGoodDawg."

The Georgia football field was renamed Dooley Field in Vince's honor in 2019. Earlier this year, he celebrated his 90th birthday in front of 70,000 fans at the Oregon versus Georgia game in Atlanta.

By the end of his career, Dooley had been inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame, the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame, and the College Football Hall of Fame.

Watch out, Dak Prescott and Cooper Rush ... Troy Aikman showed he's still got magic left in his right arm -- knockin' down 12 beer cans with two, pinpoint 20-yard throws!!

The Dallas Cowboys legend hit a field in Texas to complete the feat -- and while he tells TMZ Sports the footage might not be "100 percent" real ... he did say the accuracy he showcased in the vid is legit!!

"That was my strength, you know?" the 55-year-old said with a laugh.

Troy performed the stunt in hopes of igniting a viral craze -- where people think of creative ways to knock down pyramids of EIGHT Beer cans -- that will benefit a great cause.

Aikman dubbed it the "#EIGHTBeerChallenge" -- and he said for every one person who participates in it, films it, and shares it to social media, he and his beer co. will donate $8 to Back On My Feet, an org. created to combat homelessness.

"It gives a chance for some of the homeless people in the community to be empowered," Aikman said, "and to get them back on their feet, being an active participant in society, doing a lot of different things."

Aikman said he's planning on showcasing some of the best vids of the challenge on his social media pages over the coming weeks.

Antonio Brown has a new rap beef after finding out Detroit rapper Sada Baby's been taking shots at him for his "Put That S**t On" antics.

Sada dissed AB earlier this week, essentially calling everything he stands for "lame" ... which understandably angered the former NFL star.

On Friday, an amused Sada reposted a DM AB sent, commanding him to "turn your bitch ass soda. water."

It doesn't read all that fluidly, but is likely a diss on the "Aktivated" rapper's love for lean.

Sada didn't back down, and, instead, doubled down on his stance ... slamming AB for taunting Tom Brady over his divorce from Gisele Bündchen, which was made official today.

Like many sports fans, Sada feels AB selling shirts mocking TB12 is a low move and also took issue with his infamous mid-game retirement last season ... with a "b*tch ass" remark of his own.