TMZ Sports - Page 26

Wanna have a trophy case like Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton?? Now's your chance ... 'cause Formula One is auctioning off awards from the canceled Emilia Romagna Grand Prix to support flood relief in Italy.

F1 is currently taking bids on some seriously rare, autographed items ... with all proceeds going to the Emilia-Romagna Region's Agency for Territorial Safety and Civil Protection.

The 2023 pole position award, the first, second, third place and constructor trophies, as well as a podium bottle of champagne are all up for grabs ... but they're not gonna come cheap.

The pole position award is currently going for more than $47,000 ... and with the first place trophy getting nearly $25,000 in bids so far.

All drivers and team principals put their John Hancocks on each piece ... making them even cooler for any F1 fan's collection.

The May 21 race was scrapped due to severe rainfall that rocked the northern Italy area at the time ... with fears there was no way to safely host the weekend's festivities.

F1 has already stepped up to help recovery efforts ... with the org. donating 1 million euros last month.

Prosecutors have hit Tony Ferguson with a charge of DUI after he allegedly wrecked his truck in Hollywood last month, TMZ Sports has learned ... but we've also learned the UFC star is already fighting back in the case, pleading not guilty to the misdemeanor.

The 39-year-old entered the plea at his arraignment last week ... less than a month after authorities say he crashed his pickup truck into two parked cars outside of a Hollywood club just before 2 AM.

The scene was terrifying ... the truck ended up on its side following the collision -- though, somehow, no one was injured.

At the time, law enforcement sources told us Tony had refused to take a field sobriety test and was "very uncooperative" at the scene. They also said cops who eyeballed him claimed he reeked of booze and had bloodshot eyes.

Denver Broncos legend Terrell Davis looked like he wanted to disappear during the NBA Finals on Sunday ... finding himself sandwiched between two rowdy groups of Heat fans as his Nuggets lost Game 2 -- and his reaction was priceless!!

The Hall of Famer was at Ball Arena in hopes of witnessing Denver take a 2-0 lead in the series ... but unfortunately for him, Miami had a huge 4th quarter to steal the win on the road.

During the comeback, Heat fans were understandably excited when Jimmy Butler hit a corner three-pointer to put Miami up 95-89 with under seven minutes left ... and TD had a front-row seat for the celebration.

The broadcast showed a woman wearing a Jimmy Butler jersey lean over and give another Heat fan sitting nearby a high-five right in front of Terrell's face ... and judging by his expression, the former running back wasn't too thrilled about it.

Naturally, the clip went viral on social media ... with fans joking about the Denver legend's miserable body language.

Of course, Davis has had a lot to smile about this postseason ... as the Nuggets were previously undefeated at home before Sunday's loss.

The Heat secured the 111-108 win ... and TD's gotta be at least a little bit worried now.

Gracie Hunt is heartbroken over the passing of her grandmother, Norma Hunt -- saying in an emotional note on Monday the matriarch of the Kansas City Chiefs was "an absolute legend."

Gracie shared the message on her Instagram page one day after the Chiefs announced Norma had died at 85 years old.

"My Mimi Norma was an absolute legend," Gracie wrote. "The only woman to see all 58 Super Bowls. With a precious Texas accent, she was humble, beautiful, brilliant, hilarious, joyful, fun and fierce. She was an eternal optimist, the best cheerleader and so much more."

"She was extraordinary," Gracie added.

The daughter of Chiefs chairman and CEO Clark Hunt shared several photos of her and Norma as part of the post ... including one that showed the two holding hands during the 2020 Super Bowl, which the Chiefs won.

"My heart is broken," Gracie said, "but I know she's in Heaven with her Savior, and reunited with the love of her life. And they're probably smiling up at Jesus and down at the Chiefs at the White House today."

Kansas City star Patrick Mahomes also mourned Norma's passing on Sunday ... writing in a tweet that she "was the best."

"Glad to be a part of this special organization she help build," the quarterback said. "She will be missed! Prayers to the entire Hunt family. 🙏🏽💔"

Kansas City Union Station also paid tribute to Norma on Sunday by lighting the outdoor fountain in Chiefs colors.

Bam Margera is a danger to himself and others, according to the police officers who located him in L.A., and promptly put him on a 5150 psychiatric hold ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... LAPD officers tracked down Bam Sunday afternoon by tracking his phone, and they eventually found him at Trejo's Tacos -- the L.A. hot spot owned by Danny Trejo.

We're told they made contact with Bam and found his erratic speech and behavior -- combined with recent suicidal threats he's made -- enough reason to call in a psychiatric evaluation team. Once they met with Bam, they determined he needed to be 5150'd.

Our sources say Bam was taken to a mental health facility, where, by law, he can be held for up to 72 hours. It's unclear if he's still getting treatment.

As we reported, Bam's latest spiral started last week when he threatened to smoke crack until he died if he doesn't get to see his son.

The former "Jackass" star is in the middle of a divorce from his estranged wife, Nikki ... and he says she won't let him see their boy.

Shakira and Lewis Hamilton may be a thing after all -- 'cause she keeps going to his races, and hanging out after ... which is exactly what happened again this weekend.

The Colombian singer actually returned to her old stomping grounds for Sunday's F1 Spanish Grand Prix to see Lewis up close and in person -- and her guy didn't disappoint.

Lewis, driving for Mercedes, matched his best finish of the year as he came in 2nd.

After the race, he credited his team, saying he felt he'd driven the best car of the season -- but ya gotta wonder if he had a little extra incentive with Shakira there.

Anyway, he was all smiles at the podium ... which turned into a post-race hang with a bunch of his friends, including Shakira, who joined him and his crew for dinner and drinks.

She was even sitting right next to LH -- and if you look close ... you can see his arm wrapped around her.

Lewis has his other arm hanging over his buddy to his right ... so this could just be platonic. However, considering he and Shakira recently did this same thing after the F1 race in Miami,  this latest sighting is sure to raise some eyebrows among shippers.

The contact doesn't seem like anything on the verge of PDA, per se ... but it's right on the border between friendly and maybe more than friends. Eye of the beholder, we suppose.

In any case, Shakira certainly likes being in Lewis' company. Not only did they reportedly get cozy at the Miami Grand Prix last month -- but they ended up on the water together too ... which effectively thwarted any chances of Tom Cruise getting with Shakira.

You'll recall ... there were rumors TC was actually interested in courting her -- but it looks like she's got her sights set on Lewis, whom she continues to be seen with in public.

Shakira is probably the most eligible bachelorette on the planet right now -- thanks to her split from Gerard Piqué -- and so far, there's one dude in first place for her attention.

Former XFL player Darez Diggs -- the brother of NFL stars Stefon and Trevon Diggs -- helped orchestrate the brutal attack of a man in an elevator earlier this week ... new video, obtained by TMZ Sports, shows.

The incident happened on May 29 in an apartment building in downtown Los Angeles ... and in the footage, you can see the altercation starts in an elevator lobby.

The clip shows after one of the elevators stops ... a man gets out, exchanges words with Darez -- and then retreats back inside the lift quickly.

The man then can be seen frantically trying to close the elevator's doors ... but before they close, Darez -- who also goes by Mar'sean Diggs -- stops them with his hand.

Darez then gets into the elevator and trades more words with the man ... before two of Darez's apparent acquaintances run in with fists flying.

The footage shows the men pummel the guy to the ground, ripping off his jewelry in the process. At one point, you can see one of the men kicks the guy in the face -- before they drag him into the lobby.

The men all stand around talking further ... before they seem to rip another chain off the guy's neck.

Darez then seems to leave everyone in the lobby in a different elevator.

The LAPD tells TMZ Sports ... they were called to the scene, but the suspects had already fled when officers arrived.

Cops tell us a report for a robbery was taken -- saying the complainant told them three men had stolen an orange purse containing diamonds and other jewelry during the incident.

So far, no arrests have been made ... but police say an investigation remains ongoing.

Darez played college football at Morgan State before transferring to the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He went on to play safety for one season for the XFL's Los Angeles Wildcats in 2020. He now works in the fashion industry -- running his own lifestyle brand called Blue Boii.

A Disney day with the kids wasn't all sunshine and smiles for Tom Brady -- 'cause the NFL legend got talked into riding the "Tower of Terror" ... and it scared the hell out of him!!

Check out footage Brady posted of him and his daughter, Vivian, on the Disney World classic from their outing at the Florida theme park Sunday ... he was losing it as the ride jolted up and down!!

"The happiest place on earth," Brady captioned the video ... "(until you realize your kids were lying about tower of terror being 'mad chill') 😂"

The afternoon looked amazing for Brady otherwise ... he and his kids hopped all over the park, posing for a pic in front of Cinderella's Castle.

They even stopped to build a lightsaber in the Star Wars portion of Walt's place ... and, at one point, the G.O.A.T. paused to, fittingly, admire some resting goats.

Shayna Baszler is a 3x WWE Tag Team Champion, but last week's title was the most special in her decorated wrestling career ... 'cause she did it alongside her longtime friend, Ronda Rousey!

"It's not like we set out a plan," Baszler said, "We just both wanted it and did our thing to get us here, and so here we are. It's cool."

Shayna and Ronda -- whose friendship dates back to their days in the UFC -- won the Tag Team Titles in a Fatal 4-Way tag team match on "RAW," defeating Raquel Rodriguez and Shotzi, Bayley and IYO SKY, and Sonya Deville and Chelsea Green.

"That moment at the end of the match where I crawl back in the ring, and we're hugging was a real emotional moment," SB said. "When we think back to trying to pay for enough food to eat throughout the week and still make weight and living on the beach in Venice."

Baszler got emotional as she reflected on winning the titles with Rousey, explaining the journey to becoming champs wasn't easy and instead full of obstacles.

"I don't think people really understand how much we had to fight for this," Baszler said. "Maybe that's something for a book in the future. It's not like it's been easy. It's not like this is just handed to us. We had to fight and claw and demand for this opportunity."

"The Queen of Spades" believes reaching the pinnacle of the women's division with Ronda after all the work they've put in to reach this point is a career-defining moment.

Bam Margera's family seems to be fearing the worst, and his brother's putting out a Twitter APB to find him before he can harm himself.

Jess Margera tweeted early Sunday morning, "If anyone in the LA area knows of Bams current whereabouts or a hotel he might be at please call the LAPD immediately."

Jess says he's trying to get police to ping Bam's phone in order to find his location, but he's hitting some red tape -- which is why he's asking for everyone to spread the word on Twitter.

As he put it, "I don't think we have that kind of time" to wait for police.

As we reported, the former "Jackass" star had a total meltdown 3 days ago over not being able to see his son, Phoenix, amid his divorce from Nikki ... and vowed to smoke crack until he dies.

One clue to Bam's current whereabouts came in a video TMZ obtained and posted on Saturday.

In the clip, Bam is hanging with some random folks at a Pennsylvania bar and grill. Witnesses say he told them he was getting ready to fly to L.A. to check into rehab.

Jess clearly believes Bam did get on a plane to L.A., but he's not buying the rehab part.

Tom Sandoval cheating on Ariana Madix is sorta paying off for her and her friends -- the whole 'Scandoval' thing landed her and Scheana Shay on a baseball diamond.

The "Vanderpump Rules" stars were drafted Saturday by the San Diego Padres to throw out their ceremonial first pitch before a game against the Chicago Cubs ... and they were pretty giddy about the gig.

Ariana and Scheana were rocking matching Padres jerseys and brown ball caps at Petco Park, where Scheana said, "This has been a dream of mine."

As for their actual pitches -- not exactly strikes from either of 'em, but they did reach the vicinity of home plate. Much better than several other celebs we've seen on a pitching mound. Definitely not looking at you 50 Cent. 😉

Mind you, neither Scheana or Ariana are San Diego natives, but you get why the Padres recruited them -- 'VPR' is hotter than ever since Tom's affair with Raquel Leviss came to light.

TMZ broke the story ... Ariana and Tom broke up in March after she learned of the months-long affair.

As a result, the 'VPR' reunion is drawing huge ratings for Bravo, Tom's band is selling out venues ... and Ariana is cashing in with brand deals, "Dancing with the Stars" and now baseball.

Aaron Gordon is a helluva basketball player and apparently one whale of a teammate too ... 'cause TMZ Sports has learned the Nuggets star gifted Jamal Murray a sick diamond pendant before the start of this week's NBA Finals.

We're told AG was so thrilled over the way Murray's helped lead Denver this season ... he hit up Mile High Jewelers to make a custom piece to show his appreciation.

Gordon wanted the new bling to represent Murray's signature on-court celebration ... and the jeweler certainly delivered.

You can see the piece features a bow and arrow ... with Murray's initials and jersey No. 27 in it. We're told it's all filled with 10 carats of white and blue VVS diamonds.

We're also told it took 10 days to make, which is an expedited time as Gordon wanted to be sure Murray had it before the start of the NBA Finals on Thursday.

And, check out the video, Murray was pumped to receive it earlier this week!!

"[Aaron] wanted to show his appreciation for his outstanding play, effort and being a great teammate/brother during his time in Denver," the jeweler told us.

Murray is certainly deserving of the present from Gordon -- the 26-year-old averaged 20 points, 6.2 assists and 4 rebounds per game in the regular season ... and has absolutely balled out this playoffs.

Sammy Guevara just wrestled in the biggest match of his career, and the wrestling star says he was freakin' out before stepping inside the squared circle ... but it had virtually nothing to do with his big title fight.

Nope ... Sammy says he was scared to death to announce he and his wife, fellow AEW star Tay Melo, were expecting their first baby!!

If you missed it, Guevara and Melo made a grand entrance before his Double or Nothing championship match at the T-Mobile Arena in Vegas last Sunday ... using cue cards to announce their first bundle of joy was on the way.

Sammy and Tay joined us on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weekdays on FS1) where Guevara revealed the couple wanted to announce the pregnancy to the fans in a creative way ... and came up with the idea of doing it before his historic match against Darby Allin, Jack Darby, and the champ, Maxwell Jacob Friedman in the main event.

"I was personally more excited for the entrance," Guevara said. "I feel like we were like opposite. She was more nervous for me for the match, and I was more nervous, excited for the entrance."

Guevara says he didn't know how fans would receive the news ... especially since the couple hasn't always been a crowd favorite, and admits he almost got caught up while in the ring thinking about the bombshell reveal.

"I had to snap out of it," Sammy said. "I almost started crying. It was just very surreal. Us four young guys, wrestling for the world title and then right before that, going out there and announcing we're having a baby."

"The crowd's coming back around on me," Sammy said. "We were not always the most loved people out there. For them to give us that big reaction. Everyone's happy, showing us the love. It was just like, overwhelming in a way where I was like, ok, we gotta get back into it."

The NBA Finals are underway ... and while most of the sports world is focused on Nikola Jokic and Jimmy Butler, it's time to put the spotlight on the REAL stars of the series -- the wives and girlfriends of the Miami Heat and Denver Nuggets!!

Jokic's wife, Natalija, has been supporting the 2-time MVP ever since he was in high school ... and continues to do so in the stands throughout her man's pro career (alongside his famous brothers).

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope's pregnant wife, McKenzie, might pull up to a few games with her growing baby bump ... and DeAndre Jordan's "boo bear", Bethany, will certainly be pulling for her man as well.

When it comes to the Heat, expect to see Udonis Haslem's wife, Faith ... considering this may very well be her last chance to watch his games before he retires.

Kevin Love's model wife, Kate, knows her way around the Finals dating back to his days in Cleveland ... and there's hope Katya Elise Henry will get to catch Tyler Herro come back from injury and get some minutes.

It's not just the players with beautiful partners -- Erik Spoelstra's wife, Nikki, has been there every step of the way ... and we're sure she helped keep him calm throughout the Eastern Conference Finals.

Beneil Dariush has won 8 fights in a row, but if the UFC star extends that streak to 9, he'll earn himself a title shot against the lightweight champion ... all he's got to do is beat Charles Oliveira, one of the baddest men in the world.

TMZ Sports caught up with 34-year-old, #4 ranked Dariush a week before his UFC 289 co-main event scrap against current #1 contender "do Bronx" ... and asked him what a win would do as he continues his quest for the belt.

"The UFC said if I win this fight, I'm the number 1 contender, so yes [they told me I'll get the next title fight]," Dariush told us.

Dariush, who first fought for Dana White's organization in early 2014, has been fighting in every sense of the word for a title fight, and now he's finally on the doorstep.

Though, BD's supporters would argue he's long deserved the opportunity ... and it's hard to argue with his resume.

Beneil hasn't lost since March 2018. During his 8-fight win streak, he's beaten Tony Ferguson, Drew Dober and Mateusz Gamrot.

We asked Dariush if being so close to a title shot provided extra motivation ... and his answer may surprise you.

"To be honest with you, when it comes to motivation, I don't lack any. It's hard to add on to the motivation that I have right now," Beneil told us, adding, "My biggest motivation is knowing that God has given me a gift, and I'm not gonna waste it. I'm not gonna squander it."

There's much more with Dariush ... we talked to him about the stylistic matchup, pitting two Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belts against each other, and whether BD believes the fight will stay on the feet, or go to the ground.

We also talked to Oliveira ... who is looking to earn another title shot himself.

Of course, Charles was previously the champion at 155 lbs. ... but lost to current belt holder Islam Makhachev in October 2022.

Now, Oliveira is ready to make another run at the title ... "I feel good, I feel happy, I'm ready, and focused on getting the win," Charles told us.

As for a title shot ... CO says he hasn't explicitly been told he'd be next with a win, but he believes it's pretty clearly what should happen.

"Nobody told me, I don't know about Ben, but I think that will happen. I think we both deserve it, whoever wins this Saturday should get a title shot."

Jemele Hill denies that an alleged demand for Joe Rogan-level money from Spotify is the reason for her exit from the audio giant ... although, it seems clear she is, in fact, leaving.

The longtime sports reporter/media personality is said to be negotiating a split from Spotify, where she's exclusively hosted her all-issues podcast -- "Jemele Hill is Unbothered" -- since 2019. Several outlets are reporting that she's now seeking a new home for her show.

Jemele's 'Unbothered' podcast network -- which features other Black podcasters -- is also shuttering. Reports say Spotify might let her out of her deal early, or simply let it lapse.

Now, for the controversy ... a conservative outlet, Outkick, framed this parting of ways as Jemele getting the boot after "daring the company to pay her or another black host $100 million" ... the same way they'd paid Joe for an exclusive deal (it turned out to be $200M).

If you read the article, you come to find out that the writer is referencing an old quote she gave the NYT last year about Joe's big contract, in which she said ... "What I would like to see is for them to hand $100 million to somebody who is Black." The way Outkick and other right-wing sites are reporting this is ... Jemele asked for that $100 mil, and was told no.

Well, she's pushing back on that ... taking to Twitter to bat down any notion that she gave Spotify an ultimatum, especially one that pit her against Joe. Of course, her quote from 2022 has clearly been taken out of context ... and she's setting the record straight on what's what.

Jemele says, "People: A lot of what’s been reported just isn’t true. My podcast hasn’t been cancelled. I never asked Spotify for $100M. This s*** is truly comical."

She goes on to say her podcast, for now, will continue -- adding ... "Next week’s guest is: Sabrina Elba. In the coming weeks: Blair Underwood, Kasi Lemmons, JR Smith, Kenny Latimore and more." Finally, she says ... "When I have something to say, I’ll say it."

Jemele also clarified further in a back-and-forth on Twitter with someone who was pointing out the quote to her, to which she responded ... "You should probably comprehend better, or maybe read the original piece -- which was about me wanting to see Spotify make that investment in prominent Black podcasters. I never told Spotify or the NYT, that I deserved  $100M. My deal at Spotify is pretty fair. This was about investment and growth."