TMZ Sports - Page 23

Kim Zolciak and Kroy Biermann seemed like a couple on the mend from the outside -- but were fighting nonstop behind closed doors -- before one fight sent Kroy over the edge, causing him to file for divorce once again.

Sources close to the estranged couple tell us ... Kim and Kroy had been arguing for several weeks about money before Thursday's filing ... and things had gotten "nasty." As for specifics ... we're told each has been on the other's case about not paying various bills. They blame each other for their serious financial mess. As one source said, "They've gotten ridiculously petty over who hasn't paid bills. They're counting down to pennies."

We're told Kroy was regularly threatening to file for divorce. However, it was during a fight Thursday morning when Kroy threatened once again to file for divorce, Kim dared him ... so he did.

TMZ broke the story ... Kim and Kroy filed separate divorce petitions back in May,but had a change of heart in July -- pulling their divorce filings.

At the time, we were told they still really loved each other and could work things out -- leaning on religion to help get them through -- but clearly, things soured.

Kroy's asking for sole legal and physical of their 4 minor children as well as child support, alimony and attorney's fees.

Ex-NFL running back Stevan Ridley is finally sharing video of the race that ultimately put Kevin Hart in a wheelchair ... and you can see the comedian came up injured just as the guys were about to cross the finish line.

Per the vid, the race went down on a roadway somewhere outside of a home this week ... with the two not even putting on any sort of running gear for the face-off.

With Hart in a pair of sweats and Ridley in a white tee and short shorts ... the guys actually raced twice before Hart got injured.

In their first run ... you can see Ridley just beat out Hart by a few steps. In their second, Hart actually hung well with the former New England Patriots back -- that is, of course, before he tore a bunch of muscles in his body and had to pull up short.

Hart can be seen in the clip grabbing at his hip before coming to a stop. He ultimately shared on Thursday that he had ripped up his lower abdomen and adductors in the run and he's now in a wheelchair.

"Guys," he said in a video explaining the situation, "I blew all my s***."

For Ridley's part, he didn't rub too much salt in the wound while posting the clips to his social media page Friday ... writing only in the caption, "Gotcha?? Got whooo?!"

Spain soccer boss Luis Rubiales is under FIFA investigation for planting an unwanted kiss on one of his players following the country's World Cup victory this week, the soccer governing body announced Thursday.

"The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has informed Rubiales that it is opening disciplinary proceedings against him based on the events that occurred during the final," a statement released by FIFA read.

The international governing body went on to say Rubiales might've violated rules dictating "Offensive behavior and violations of the principles of fair play" for the unsolicited kiss of midfielder Jenni Hermoso after Spain's epic 1-0 win over England in the World Cup Final on August 20.

Rubiales, who is 46, has received widespread rebuke for his actions after the match. He was also photographed carrying a player over his shoulder and grabbing his crotch.

After initially acting defiant, Rubiales apologized, saying, "I made a mistake, for sure."

"I have to accept it. In a moment of such emotion, without any bad intention or bad faith, what happened, happened, in a very spontaneous way."

The soccer president added ... "I have to learn from this and understand that a president of an institution as important as the federation -- above all in ceremonies and that kind of thing -- should be more careful."

But, the apology wasn't enough for many, including the country's top politician, Acting Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez who called the apology "insufficient and inadequate."

FUTPRO, the union that represents Hermoso, the player who was kissed, released a statement on her behalf, saying "acts that should never go unpunished."

As for what will happen to Rubiales, FIFA won't say until the investigation is completed. However, they did offer a rebuke of his actions.

"FIFA reiterates its unwavering commitment to respecting the integrity of all individuals and strongly condemns any behavior to the contrary."

Despite FIFA's investigation still being underway, there's a chance Rubiales loses his job before the disciplinary committee concludes its work. There are mounting calls for Luis' job in Spain, and the Royal Spanish Football Federation is planning to meet Friday to discuss the controversy.

Dennis Rodman just added more ink to his body to honor his girlfriend ... this time, he got a huge photo of her face tattooed right on his butt cheek.

The NBA legend hit up an artist in Florida this week to get the piece done -- the second time this summer he's gotten a tribute tat for Yella Yella placed on his body.

You'll recall, the first time was back in July -- when he got her portrait put on his face. This time around, he opted for his backside ... while adding a photo of his face to the imagery as well.

Rodman shared a video of the whole process on his social media pages on Thursday ... revealing Yella Yella had no idea of his plans when the two went on a late-night venture to the tattoo parlor.

In the footage, you can see the tats came out great ... taking up one-half of the 6-foot-7, former basketball player's butt.

WWE Superstar Bray Wyatt has tragically died at the age of 36, WWE executive Triple H announced on social media.

"Just received a call from WWE Hall of Famer Mike Rotunda who informed us of the tragic news that our WWE family member for life Windham Rotunda - also known as Bray Wyatt - unexpectedly passed earlier today. Our thoughts are with his family and we ask that everyone respect their privacy at this time," the Hall of Famer wrote.

Wyatt joined WWE’s main roster in 2010 under the name Husky Harris, before leaving a year later. He rejoined the main roster in 2013 as the leader of The Wyatt Family.

He was a three-time world champion in WWE, including the WWE Championship once and Universal Championship, twice. He took a brief hiatus from August 2018 to April 2019 and returned with a new character, a mix of Bray Wyatt and his other side, The Fiend.

Wyatt came from a long line of wrestlers. His dad was Hall of Famer, Mike Rotunda. His grandfather was Blackjack Mulligan, and his uncles were Barry and Kendall Windham.

Bray was a part of a bunch of big matches throughout his career ... including his WrestleMania 31 match against The Undertaker in 2015.

Before joining the world's biggest wrestling promotion, Wyatt wrestled under the name "Alex Rotundo" in the FCW (Florida Championship Wrestling).

As you'd expect, Wyatt was a helluva athlete ... and even won a state wrestling championship at Hernando High School in Florida, where he wrestled at 275 lbs. Bray was also a star football player in H.S. and even went on to play at the College of the Sequoias (a Juco in Cali) for two seasons, before transferring to Troy University. Wyatt, a guard, was listed at 6'2" and 295 lbs.

The WWE Universe was crushed by the news ... with fans and fellow wrestlers sharing condolences on social media.

The Rock wrote ... "Im heartbroken over the news of Bray Wyatt’s passing. Always had tremendous respect and love for him and the Rotunda family. Loved his presence, promos, in ring work and connection with @wwe universe."

Johnson continued ... "Very unique, cool and rare character, which is hard to create in our crazy world of pro wrestling. Still processing losing the goat, Terry Funk yesterday and now Bray today. My love, light, strength & mana to the Rotunda family and Funk family during this tough, heartbreaking time."

FYI, Funk, a legend, passed away on Wednesday.

Ric Flair also shared his thoughts on the awful news ... "When Your Great Friend And Someone Your Son’s Age Dies Within 2 Days, It Really Makes Me Reflect & Think About Life! Don’t Take Any Second For Granted! Rest In Peace Terry Funk & Bray Wyatt!"

Alexa Bliss weighed in, as well ... "I’m just in shock. Extremely heart broken And at a loss for words. What I can say is what an amazing human being Windham is. Amazing friend & one of the most creative minds to ever walk this earth."

"Windham, you’ve brought so much joy and happiness to everyone around you. It’s going to take me some time to really process this. Sending my love to the Rotunda Family & Jojo. We love you Windham 🖤"

Details surrounding Wyatt's death are not yet clear.

R.I.P.

Story developing ...

The Miz has clearly had enough of LA Knight and his mouth ... the WWE Superstar sent a very ominous warning to his rival -- stop disrespecting me, or get hurt.

TMZ Sports ran into The Miz in Los Angeles on Thursday -- prior to the tragic news of Bray Wyatt's passing -- and asked him about the budding feud with Knight, who we referred to as "popular."

"Popular? So popular that you're following him into the store?" Miz sarcastically asked.

"So popular that last year at SoFi [Stadium] at WrestleMania in LA, the guy's name is LA Night. He named himself after the city and he wasn't even on the show. That's how popular he is."

The multiple-time WWE champ continued ... "He's a fad. He's like a Napster, MySpace, Vanilla Ice, LA Night, they're all synonymous."

Of course, The Miz and LA Knight have been trading barbs on Raw. Knight has accused Miz of being washed up, and the longtime WWE star responded by describing LA as a "blip on the radar."

In other words, he ain't 💩💩💩!!!

In fact, Miz says he doesn't understand why people even care about Knight (and do they ever care -- he's huge right now with the fans).

"Honestly, I can't believe people are talking about him. He's a fad ... and I'm just sick of his, I don't know. I don't wanna do it right here, right now but it's like if he keeps disrespecting me the way he's disrespected me, he's not gonna make it to WrestleMania in Philly. Let's put it that way."

Those sounded like fighting words ... so, we asked ... "Is that a threat or challenge?"

"It's a promise!"

Jamaican runner Andrew Hudson was left with shards of glass in his eye after a freak cart crash at the track world championships ... when two vehicles collided en route to the race.

The incident happened on Thursday ... when Hudson, Team USA superstar Noah Lyles, and other sprinters were being escorted to the 200-meter semifinals at Budapest’s new National Athletics Centre.

Aerial footage shows one cart smash into another on a pathway ... forcing one passenger out of their seat.

Another video from inside the cart Hudson was in shows the 26-year-old was clearly injured ... as he's shown rubbing his right eye following the collision. According to reports, Lyles could tell Hudson was in trouble ... saying, "He thinks he got glass in his eye."

As it turns out, Hudson did have pieces of broken glass in his eye ... which medics removed prior to the race. Luckily, the Jamaican athlete was cleared to compete.

"I can't see out of my right eye, but I'm okay," Hudson said after the race. "The doctor flushed out some shards of glass."

Lyles -- who won the event in 19.76 seconds -- explained the crash in more detail, saying everyone was really worried about Hudson.

"We just wanted to make sure that he got his chance to run," Lyles said, "and everybody got their fair chance to see the hard work that they did."

Hudson -- who's ranked 11th in the world this year -- ended up finishing fifth in 20.38 for his first world championship.

The World Athletics said everyone, including the volunteer who was thrown out of the cart, is okay, and "the Local Organising Committee is investigating the incident and reviewing the transport procedures."

Kroy Biermann and Kim Zolciak just ain't meant to be -- after filing for and then calling off their divorce  -- Kroy has filed for divorce against Kim once again.

Kroy filed the divorce papers Thursday, obtained by TMZ, stating their marriage is "irretrievably broken." He wants sole legal and sole physical custody of their 4 kids moving forward, and is asking for child support as well as alimony.

What's more ... Kroy's asking for exclusive use of the marital residence, the same home he and Kim have shared through their ups and downs.

TMZ broke the story, Kim and Kroy filed separate divorce petitions back in May ... and it got nasty fast. Kim accused Kroy of smoking weed -- and being a potential danger to their kids -- and he said she had a serious gambling addiction. It was also discovered the couple owed more than $1 million to the IRS.

The two also had home visits from the police -- hurling accusations at each other while officers were on scene.

Kim and Kroy remained in the same home during their divorce proceedings, but had a change of heart in July when they decided to pull the divorce docs.

Leading up to the decision to pull back their divorce, we'd seen the family attend church together and other family events.

Win or lose, it's Hakuna Matata for the New York Liberty ... 'cause the WNBA squad is teaming up with Broadway's "The Lion King" to bring the hit musical to the halftime show!

The announcement was made on Thursday ... the show at intermission, inspired by the musical, will go down on September 7 when Sabrina Ionescu and the Liberty take on the Los Angeles Sparks at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

Outside of the halftime show, there will be special appearances from members of the Broadway company, plus giveaways and other cool Lion King experiences at the arena.

"The New York Liberty are honored to team up with the iconic Broadway production, The Lion King, as we continue to elevate our world-class fan experience at Barclays Center," Liberty CEO Keia Clarke said.

"As two long-standing staples in the New York entertainment landscape, we look forward to our first-of-its-kind collaboration on September 7."

"The Lion King" is one of the most successful shows in Broadway history ... and has been performed across the world in nine different languages. The musical is celebrating its 25th year on Broadway and is the highest-grossing B'way show of all time (over $1 billion!!!).

MLB star Stephen Strasburg is walking away from the game -- the 2019 World Series MVP is reportedly planning to retire at 35 years old ... amid a battle with a medical condition.

Strasburg -- the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 MLB Draft -- last played in June 2022 ... pitching just four innings after having surgery to treat thoracic outlet syndrome a year prior, which resulted in having a rib and two neck muscles removed.

According to the Washington Post, a press conference is scheduled for Sept. 9 before the Nats host the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Strasburg was one of the most-hyped prospects after a stellar career at San Diego State ... but unfortunately, the ace dealt with multiple injuries over the course of his career.

The report says Strasburg is still dealing with "severe nerve damage" as a result of his condition ... and struggles with everyday tasks like opening doors and lifting his children.

FYI, according to the Mayo Clinic, TOS is "a group of disorders that occur when blood vessels or nerves in the space between your collarbone and your first rib are compressed" ... which results in shoulder and neck pain, as well as finger numbness.

Bryce Hall is riding high after his huge Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship victory earlier this month ... but there's one thing that's still leaving a bad taste in his mouth -- his loss to Austin McBroom.

The internet superstar joined Wyld and Stephanie on the "TMZ Verified" podcast this week ... and while he made it clear he wants to relax for a bit before getting back into fight talks, he said he has an idea of what he wants to do next.

"Austin McBroom again," Hall said. "Even though he doesn't have the draw. I would just say that for my own personal ... like, I know what I can do now."

Of course, Hall fell to McBroom via TKO at Social Gloves' YouTubers vs. TikTokers event back in 2021 ... with the former admitting after the bout that he wasn't much of a fighter.

Things are drastically different now -- Hall is fresh off beating Gee Perez via second-round TKO at BKFC 48 ... and it's safe to say he feels a rematch with McBroom would go in his favor a second time around.

"I can take Austin McBroom again."

There's more -- Hall also revealed some big names hit him up in the DMs after his win over Perez ... including Jake Paul's most recent foe, Nate Diaz, who gave him props for beating a then-undefeated fighter.

Hall also said fellow internet star Deji has been in his DMs ... which is no surprise, 'cause he hasn't shied away from making his intentions known on social media.

Blueface was stabbed during his boxing workout yesterday -- but we're told cops now have the man who they think is responsible for the attack in custody.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ Hip Hop, 36-year-old Brandon Henry Snell was arrested and booked for felony assault with a deadly weapon Wednesday afternoon after turning himself in ... and is currently sitting in jail.

You can see in the video, Blueface and a man get into a physical fight ... with the man's Rottweiler jumping in the background along with the action.

The animal never got involved in the fight. For what it's worth, we're told the dog was with Snell when he surrendered ... and it hung out at the police station until a family member came to retrieve it.

As we previously reported, Blueface was inside the Kaminsky Boxing Gym in L.A.'s San Fernando Valley when he was accosted ... with the "Thotiana" rapper describing the incident as similar to being attacked by a "boogieman."

Blueface got on IG Thursday to update fans on his recovery process, where his 5-year-old son offered up some valuable life advice ... suggesting his dad hang up his gloves, at least in that particular gym.

The kid may have a point ... someone bringing a knife to a fistfight is totally cause for concern.

Roberto Clemente didn't only personify greatness off the field ... the Hall of Famer was a problem at the plate, winning countless awards throughout his Hall of Fame career, including the 1964 Silver Bat Award for leading the league in batting average!

Lucky for baseball fans, the award, which looks absolutely awesome, is now on the block at SCP Auctions.

FYI, the Silver Bat (different from today's Silver Slugger award) was given to the player with the highest batting average in both the National and American League during Roberto's era. Clemente won four NL batting titles with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The Silver Bat was modeled after Clemente's Louisville Slugger bat. The 34-inch long award is actually made of 55.6 Troy ounces of silver (that's worth over $1,300 in silver alone). Despite being almost 60 years old, SCP says the bat is still in excellent condition with only a few blemishes.

The award is inscribed with ... “BATTING CHAMPION 1964 NATIONAL LEAGUE B.A. .339.”

"Clemente is one of the most prolific hitters in major league history, batting .317 in his career and reaching the prestigious 3,000 career hit milestone," SCP said.

"This history trophy wonderfully commemorates the season in which Bob had a career-best 211 of those 3,000 hits."

The 211 hits were good enough the lead the league. Clemente was also named an All-Star in '64 (one of 15 All-Star appearances), and earned a Gold Glove (one of 12 he won) for his spectacular defense in the outfield.

As great as RC was on the diamond, he was known just as much for his charitable work away from the field.

Tragically, Roberto died in an airplane crash while trying to deliver aid packages to earthquake victims in Managua in 1972. He was only 38.

The Silver Bat Award auction ends Saturday, but it's not too late to bid, however, it won't come cheap. The bat already has a bid of over $97k.

SCP expects the SB Award, which comes with a letter of provenance from the Clemente family, to ultimately sell for around $350k.

Kobe Bryant's long-awaited statue finally has a release date -- the Lakers legend's wife, Vanessa, just announced the five-time champion's tribute will be unveiled outside Crypto.com Arena on a special date -- 2/8/24.

"As you know, Kobe played his entire 20-year NBA career as a Los Angeles Laker," Vanessa said in a video from the team facility.

"Since arriving in the city and joining the Lakers organization, he felt at home here playing in the City of Angels."

"On behalf of the Lakers, my daughters and me, I am so honored that right in the center of Los Angeles, in front of the place known as 'The House That Kobe Built,' we are going to unveil a statue so that his legacy can be celebrated forever."

Feb. 2, 2024 is truly symbolic -- Kobe wore Nos. 8 and 24 during his Hall of Fame career ... and his daughter, Gigi, donned No. 2 throughout her time on the court.

There are rumblings Gigi may be honored in some capacity as well ... although renderings of the project have not been released.

Kobe will join fellow Lakers superstars like Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Shaquille O'Neal and more ... who have gotten their own statues outside the venue in years past.

Kobe and Gigi tragically died in a helicopter crash in Jan. 2020 ... and fans have been wanting a permanent tribute outside the arena for years.

The best tennis player in the world is no match for Jimmy Butler -- the NBA superstar proved he's got serious skills on more courts than just the hardwood ... by scoring a point off Carlos Alcaraz during a U.S. Open charity event!!

The Miami Heat hooper was serving as an honorary ball boy for the Spanish star's contest against Frances Tiafoe at the Stars of the Open at Louis Armstrong Stadium on Wednesday ... when all of a sudden, he decided to step in and show off his tennis game.

Okay, so Butler might not be the next Federer ... but he certainly held his own as he rallied with the No. 1-ranked Alcaraz, who was obviously taking it easy on the six-time All-Star.

At one point, Butler asked Alcaraz to hit him with a fast serve so he could prove he could successfully return ... but didn't get his wish, as his opponent put in about 5% power on his attempt.

But, it was Jimmy Buckets who got the crowd roaring by the end of the point ... sneaking a shot past Alcaraz to come out on top!!

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is finding the silver lining after Sam Williams was arrested again over the weekend ... saying the defensive end is showing signs of "improvement," because he wasn't driving nearly as fast as the last time he got in trouble.

Jerry spoke with reporters about Williams' most recent run-in with police on Wednesday ... and he admitted his spin on the situation may sound a bit "hollow," but he's seeing it as a positive.

"He is 34 miles per hour less this year than last year -- 98 to 66," Jones said. "So that’s improvement. We will get it down. We will keep working. We will get it down."

Of course, Jones is referring to Williams getting busted for reckless driving last year ... when the 24-year-old totaled his Corvette after ramming into another vehicle. Cops said Williams was driving close to 100 MPH prior to the accident.