TMZ Sports - Page 50

Stephen Thompson's beaten Jorge Masvidal and a bunch of other killers in the Octagon, but hasn't fought for a title in over 4 years ... a wait that "Wonderboy" says will soon be coming to an end.

Very, very soon.

TMZ Sports talked to the 38-year-old, #4 ranked UFC welterweight just days before he fights 34-year-old Gilbert Burns at UFC 264 ... and asked if a dub will earn him a title shot.

"I think so. I mean, fighting a guy and beating a guy who just fought for the title. He's the number 2 ranked guy in the division, are you kidding me?! I think that would be great!"

Of course, Burns lost to champion Kamaru Usman back in February ... via a 3rd round TKO.

Wonderboy says he accepts he's at the tail end of his career ... and feels like this is his last chance to become UFC champ.

"I'm 38 years old, I got a small window to kinda do what I wanna do with this and I do it because I love to fight, man."

Wonderboy says he's had big wins -- and some bad losses -- and feels like he doesn't have anything to lose in the Octagon.

"I've been knocked out, I've lost. it's not that bad, bro! It's really not. I can just go out there and fight now, you know, to the best of my ability."

The Bucks and Suns are both competing for a title for the first time in forever this season ... which means it's time to introduce the new wives and girlfriends of the NBA Finals!!

Of course, everyone knows Suns superstar Devin Booker’s boo, Kendall Jenner -- the couple went public about their relationship just a few months ago, but they did a bad job of keeping their love a secret over the past year.

While that's still considered a relatively new relationship, 8-time All-Star Chris Paul and his wife, Jada, are going a decade strong ... and hoping to celebrate a different kinda ring this postseason.

Former #1 overall pick Deandre Ayton has been playing out of his mind and making his presence known this season ... and his girl, Anissa Evans, has been his biggest fan for all his breakout performances.

As for the Bucks, they may not have any Kardashian ties ... but center Brook Lopez and his lady Hailee Strickland are one hot couple ... and Jeff Teague's girlfriend, Tyrina Lee, will be giving him motivation!

We can't forget about 2-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo -- he has some most valuable love from his longtime bae, Mariah Riddlesprigger!!

Tristan Thompson appears to have beef with Lamar Odom ... and Khloe Kardashian is smack in the middle of things.

Here's the deal ... Khloe posted an Instagram photo Friday showing her taking an outdoor shower in a skimpy bikini, and Lamar complimented her in the comments, telling her she's a "hottie" ... a response Tristan's not taking kindly.

Tristan tagged Lamar in the comments and then seemed to loft a threat his way, writing ... "@lamarodom God brought you back the first time. Play if you want, different results 🤷🏽‍♂️🤷🏽‍♂️"

The comment is obviously referring to Lamar's infamous 2015 drug overdose at a Nevada brothel, which nearly killed the former NBA stud.

As you know ... Tristan's got a child with Khloe, but she's got a long history with Lamar. Khloe and Odom were married from 2009 to 2016 and they had their own reality show, "Khloe & Lamar."

Tristan and Khloe recently called it quits (again) after allegations of cheating (again) ... but he wished her happy birthday last month on his IG and often comments on her posts.

NFL superstar Frank Clark is now facing up to 3 YEARS behind bars ... after prosecutors hit him with a felony charge of possession of an assault weapon Friday, TMZ Sports has learned.

We're told Clark was arrested by California Highway Patrol on March 13th after allegedly being caught with an illegal firearm shortly after midnight.

It's not the first time he's run into this kind of trouble -- as we previously reported, Clark was arrested on June 20 ... after cops say they saw an uzi in his Lambo SUV during a routine traffic stop.

Officers say the firearm was sitting inside of an open duffle bag in the ride ... so they arrested the 28-year-old Chiefs pass rusher.

According to a source close to Clark, the football player claimed the gun was NOT his ... and instead belonged to a member of his security team.

Prosecutors have NOT yet charged Clark for the June incident.

If convicted on the charge from the March incident, Clark faces up to three years behind bars.

The two-time Pro Bowler is due in court next week for a hearing on the matter.

Clark is one of the Chiefs' best players ... he's logged 14 sacks since joining K.C in 2019, and is in the middle of a 5-year, $104 MILLION contract.

Tragic news from Chris Eubank ... the boxing legend just revealed his 29-year-old son, Sebastian, has died ... with reports he was found dead on a beach in Dubai.

Eubank made the emotional statement Friday, saying "Never did I ever imagine I would write these words or experience the feeling I now have at the loss of my son."

"My family and I are devastated to hear of the death of Sebastian just days before what would have been his 30th birthday."

According to reports, Sebastian drowned near his home in Dubai ... where he lives with his wife, Salma, and one month old son, Raheem.

Sebastian is the third oldest of Eubank's five kids -- his mother, Karron Meadows, married Eubanks in 1990 and divorced in 2005. They have 4 children together.

His dad was a big time fighter in the '80s and '90s ... and held the WBO middleweight and super-middleweight belts in the early and mid 1990s.

Chris is considered one of the best British boxers of all time.

Sebastian was following his father's footsteps as a pro boxer ... he went by the ring name "Alka Lion" and won 2 professional fights (last fight in March 2019). He just made his MMA debut last year.

He was also a professional trainer.

Eubank continued ... "As well as being a personal trainer and professional boxer, Sebastian was also a deep thinker who liked to challenge accepted wisdom."

"He was loved and respected by all who knew him and will be forever in the thoughts of friends and family."

Dana White says former President Donald Trump won't be able to hide from the spotlight at UFC 264, because he'll be right next to the Octagon ... where fans can loudly cheer and jeer him.

The UFC honcho joined us Friday on "TMZ Live" to pump up Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier's third fight ... and, in the process, he settled a debate about where Trump will sit Saturday night in Vegas.

It's the first major sporting event Trump's attending since leaving the White House -- and with all that's happened since he lost the election, it's a good bet (even in Vegas) the ex-prez will hear plenty of boos.

Dana, a longtime Trump supporter, says his pal isn't one to shy away from any heckling.

As Dana tells us ... Trump "don't care, he's not that guy, he's not hiding in a box somewhere, that's not his style." Instead, he says Trump will sit right behind him.

No doubt he'll be flanked on all sides by Secret Service, and Dana says agents have been sweeping T-Mobile Arena for a few days now to ensure Trump's safety.

Presidential sideshows aside ... the fight itself should be awesome. McGregor and Poirier have been talking tons of smack leading up to Saturday's showdown, and Dana even took a knee to the ribs during Thursday's press conference.

Need a quick virtual escape?? NFL QB Mitchell Trubisky and his new wife, Hillary, are here to help -- with the newlyweds showing off their amazing honeymoon in Cabo ... and they look incredible!!

The Trubiskys -- who got hitched last weekend after dating for 2 years -- have been celebrating their marriage in Mexico over the past 5 days ... from fancy dinners to lounging around and catching rays.

Lucky for us, Hillary has been capturing lots of moments, and we get to live vicariously through them!!

The trip hasn’t only consisted of chilling by the water -- earlier in the week, the new Mr. and Mrs. headed over to Tamarindos Farm just inland of San José del Cabo ... where they toured the property, handpicked fruits and veggies, took cooking classes and ate their finished product!!

The party seems to still be going strong on Friday, as the couple took to the seas today for a boat outing!!

Who knows when it will end ... but as long as the photos keep rolling in, nobody will be complaining!!

Don't let the age difference fool ya -- Manny Pacquiao tells TMZ Sports he's feeling great before going up against Errol Spence next month ... and he's showing us just how shredded he is!!!

Of course, 42-year-old "PacMan" is still one of the best boxers in the world ... and he's out to prove he's not slowing down anytime soon when he takes the ring against the 31-year-old champ on August 21.

We caught up with Pacquiao during a workout sesh in L.A. on Friday ... giving a large crowd a show by putting his quick hands on display and getting in a bit of stretching.

Pac even gave us some 1-on-1 time as well ... opening up on all his preparations for the big fight.

"I'm still good, I'm doing fine," Pacquiao tells us while sipping on his NXT LVL Hydrogen water. "Ready for a fight."

Naturally, with Pac being in his 40s and still crushing it, we had to ask who would retire first -- Pacquiao or his good friend Tom Brady ... and his answer is awesome!!!

The jersey Reggie Jackson wore when he hit his famous moonshot home run during the 1971 All-Star Game has just hit the auction block ... and it can be all yours, if you've got some serious cash laying around!!

TMZ Sports has learned ... the Oakland A's vest that Reggie donned when he smashed the 539-foot HR is currently being sold at SCP Auctions, and experts say it could go for more than $250,000!!

Of course, while the price tag is hefty, the jersey is a part of MLB history ... as it played it a role in one of the longest HRs EVER recorded in baseball.

You'll recall, Jackson hit the massive blast off of Pittsburgh Pirates ace Dock Ellis in the '71 mid-summer classic ... and it went so far, announcer Curt Gowdy could hardly find it in the air!!

"That one is going, way up!" Gowdy yelled. "It is -- off the roof!? That hit the transformer up there!"

We're told the jersey has been photomatched to prove its authenticity ... and it's been given a perfect grade by authenticating experts.

The guy who allegedly broke into a Lamborghini dealership and jacked NBA guard Terrence Ross' expensive whip has been arrested and charged ... and turns out, cops say the suspect is a 16-year-old kid.

As we previously reported, Ross' Lambo Urus -- a fancy SUV that starts at $220k -- was stolen from the Fields Motorcars of Florida dealership last month ... and the car ended up wrecked in Maitland, about 10 miles outside Orlando.

TMZ Sports has learned ... a male teen was charged with Burglary of a Structure and 3rd Degree Grand Theft after a month-long investigation ... with officials saying they identified the suspect via key witnesses and security footage.

Cops say the suspect crashed a gray Dodge Dart into the dealership around 1 AM to get Ross' key fob, hopped in his whip and drove off. Officials say the Dart was later reported stolen and found at a nearby business.

According to the police, Ross' Lambo was spotted cruising through Orange County around 3 AM ... and just a few hours later, cops received the call that Ross' SUV had crashed into a building in Maitland.

Remember, Ross was devastated to hear the news ... posting a video explaining what he had heard about the incident.

But, the good news?? Ross is rich (he's reportedly made more than $67 million in his career) ... but the hooper can still rest easy knowing cops got the person they believe is responsible for swiping the car.

If you needed further proof Patrick Mahomes is great at EVERYTHING ... here's the NFL star shotgunning a beer so quickly, it appeared he beat Travis Kelce in a chug-off!!

The Kansas City Chiefs quarterback posted the footage Thursday ... and it's impressive as hell -- considering the 25-year-old put down the cold one in under 3 seconds!!!

In fact, the chug was so fast ... it sure looked like he beat Kelce in the beer race, which, of course, is an improbable feat, given the tight end is an expert beer-drinker who outweighs Patrick by 30 pounds!!

The fun and playful scene all went down at the American Century Championship charity golf tourney in Lake Tahoe ... where the two Chiefs stars have partied a time or two over the years.

You'll recall, just last summer, Kelce, Mahomes and their significant others held an EPIC boat party on the lake during the golf event ... where everyone swam, drank and twerked!

Conor McGregor vs. Charles Oliveira, coming soon to a UFC card ... 'cause the UFC lightweight champ says "The Notorious" will KO Dustin Poirier this weekend -- and then fight "do Bronx."

TMZ Sports caught up with 31-year-old Oliveira in Las Vegas -- only days before the highly anticipated McGregor-Poirier trilogy fight -- and we asked ... who ya got??

Here's our conversation with the champ and his translator.

Who are you picking for this fight? Who do you think is gonna win it?
Conor.

The champ is picking Conor?
Yeah, Conor Mcgregor.

By KO, submission?
By knockout.

You’re next fight, you want it to be Conor?
Yes, Conor McGregor.

This is important 'cause Dana White recently said the winner of the main event at UFC 264 will face Charles ... so he's got a lot of skin in the game.

Of course, McGregor beat Poirier when they fought in 2014 ... and DP KO'd Conor in the January 2021 rematch.

Drake took full advantage of the Dodgers being out of town Thursday ... setting up a date on L.A.'s field with Johanna Leia -- and the whole thing looked like it was taken right out of a Drake song.

While Justin Turner and the boys were in Miami wrapping up their series with the Marlins ... the rapper took advantage of the opportunity to borrow their arena for a cozy date night -- and it's clear, he balled out for the occasion.

A helicopter camera spotted the 34-year-old at a table with Leia near the dugout on the third-base side of the field ... and there was a white table cloth, multiple dishes, flowers and even a personal bartender for the couple.

In fact, the two appeared to have gotten personalized Dodgers jerseys for the occasion ... with Leia rockin' hers right at the table!

Drake recently sat between Leia and Michael B. Jordan at a Sierra Canyon H.S. basketball game. If you're unfamiliar, Leia is the mom of Sierra Canyon star and UCLA commit Amari Bailey, who's teammates with LeBron James' son, Bronny James.

And, with Drake often attending the games to catch Bronny in action ... it's possible the new relationship started courtside.

Only fitting basketball would bring new love to Drake's life, right??

A golf fan was booted from the Scottish Open on Friday ... after he stole Rory McIlroy's club straight out of the star's bag and began playing with it on a tee box.

The bizarre scene was captured on video ... and you can see in the footage, as Rory was gearing up to hit a tee shot on hole #10 at The Renaissance Club in North Berwick -- a fan casually walked up to the 32-year-old's bag and rummaged through it.

The guy initially tried to pull out Rory's driver ... but when it got stuck, he went back into the bag and snagged one of McIlroy's irons.

The man then began lining up as if he were going to swing ... all while Rory, Jon Rahm and their caddies looked on with perplexed expressions on their faces.

Eventually, event officials got the guy to give back the club ... but he still tried to walk off with Rory's famous dog headcover.

Security, though, was able to wrestle it away from the man ... before booting him from the area.

"Let me put it this way: you could smell the reason why he did what he did," Rahm said of the incident afterward, according to The Scotsman. "He was clearly not sober. I'm going to say it was vodka. I'm no expert, but he had a long night for sure."

Rahm added, "He probably thought it was a fun idea. And, to be fair, it was quite funny."

An event official said police are now investigating the incident.

Tristan Thompson's pockets could get a little more swollen soon ... he's just been awarded a nice chunk of change in the libel case against his paternity accuser.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, the court has entered a default judgment in favor of Tristan against Kimberly Alexander for the amount of $50k ... plus 10% interest per year until it's paid off. She's also gotta fork over $2,901.75 in court costs.

TMZ broke the story ... Tristan was headed to a victory after the court said it was leaning towards awarding Khloe's ex more than $50k. He sued Alexander for libel last year and wanted $100k in damages after claiming her allegation he fathered her child hurt his reputation, and cost him endorsement deals because companies saw him as a brand hazard.

The judge ultimately slashed the damages in half because Tristan didn't specifically lay out which endorsements he lost due to Alexander's allegations.

How do you spell "most interesting teenager in America?" Zaila Avant-garde!!!

Zaila entered the history books Thursday by winning the 2021 Scripps National Spelling Bee, becoming the first Africa-American champion. The 14-year-old also became the first winner from the state of Louisiana.

The teen took home the title after she correctly spelled "murraya" -- a type of tree -- but not before she joked that the word contained the last name of a comedian ... to the delight of Bill Murray fans everywhere.

Along her way to becoming the first Black American to win in 93 editions of the competition, Zaila also had to spell words like "querimonious," "solidungulate," and "Nepeta." The only other Black winner was Jamaica's Jody-Anne Maxwell in 1998.

There's much more to Avant-garde than her spelling though ... which she only began doing competitively 2 years ago. She's also a gifted basketball player who holds 3 Guinness world records for dribbling skills ... and even her last name is special. Her father changed it from Heard to Avant-garde in homage to the jazz legend, John Coltrane.