TMZ Sports - Page 50

For the third time in the last 14 months, Ezekiel Elliott is being sued over an alleged dog biting incident ... and this time, the accuser is looking for more than $1 MILLION in damages.

In the new lawsuit, obtained by TMZ Sports, Jennifer Gampper claims she's one of Elliott's neighbors and says on May 20, 2021, she was attacked by one of his dogs near his Frisco, Texas-area home.

Gampper claims that while the company Perfect Synthetic Grass (which she's also suing) was performing landscaping work at the residence ... Elliott's pooch escaped the house and attacked her.

In the suit, Gampper says she suffered severe and permanent injuries ... but doesn't get more specific.

Gampper is asking for monetary relief of over $1,000,000.

As for Elliott, his attorney, Frank Salzano tells us he's concerned about Gampper, but that doesn't mean he's at fault.

"Mr. Elliott and his representatives are aware of the lawsuit filed on July 30th, which stems from a previously reported incident from May 21st of this year.  As Mr. Elliott expressed at that time, he was - and remains concerned - for the party involved."

"However, as in most disputes, there are extenuating circumstances to this matter which will impact the legal proceedings which we are not at liberty to disclose.  As such, we have no further comment at this time."

You'll recall, cops actually investigated the incident ... and said two people were injured in the alleged attack, listing Gampper as one of the "victims" in a report.

Cops added that three of the running back's dogs escaped that day ... and said they ultimately ended up issuing Elliott 3 citations.

As for the dog that allegedly bit Gampper -- Zeke's Rottweiler, Ace -- a court official tells us it had a "dangerous dog hearing" after the incident, and was ultimately required to be removed from the city.

Of course, this is far from the first time Ace and the rest of Elliott's dogs have been accused of being violent.

Remember, back in June 2020, a pool cleaner alleged in a lawsuit that Ace bit her arm and dragged her ... before the 26-year-old's two bulldogs began attacking her legs.

Court records show that case has since been closed. We reached out to the accuser's attorney in that case for further details, but so far, no word back yet.

Elliott was also sued earlier this summer, in June, when a pet resort employee claimed Ace viciously bit him too on March 25, 2021. That case is still playing out in the court system.

Before these talented tots were competing at the Olympics, they were just a couple of kids enjoying their childhood!

As the closing ceremony approaches and the summer games wrap up, we're taking you on a trip down memory lane to a time way before these big-time athletes were competing for gold!

From swimmers and gymnasts, to the track and field athletes ... The list of Olympic sports seems endless, but there's always more to add. This year there was the edition of karate, skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing.

Test yourself to see just how well you know these Olympic athletes by scrolling through our gallery of Olympic kids!

Caeleb Dressel was winning in 2021 even before the Olympics ... 'cause TMZ Sports has learned the swimming superstar unloaded his quaint Florida home in June for $250K!!

Property records show Dressel listed the place in the leadup to his run in Tokyo ... and it sold just a couple weeks before he won gold 5 times over.

Unclear if Dressel ever lived in the pad ... but he appeared to land some good cash for it nonetheless.

The Gainesville-area home is unassuming -- particularly for an Olympics mega-star -- it's one story with 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.

It does sit on a 9,000 square foot lot and is connected to a big park through a back gate ... but seems likely Caeleb's now eyeing something a little bigger after his brilliant summer.

No word yet on the amount of cash Caeleb will rake in from his Olympics performance ... but coupling that money with the $250K from the house sale should be more than enough to get him a cozy mansion somewhere.

A perfect topper to a hell of a last few weeks if we say so ourselves.

Simone Biles faced incredible pressure at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics ... and by overcoming the stressful situation, she'll now be a strong advocate for mental health, according to Dominique Dawes.

Dawes -- a gymnastics icon with 4 Olympic medals -- applauds the 24-year-old for stepping back when she needed to ... telling TMZ Sports Biles was doing "what was right for her mentally as well as for her physically."

"It didn’t matter about having to prove fans wrong or prove the federation wrong or whatever it is, and you know, listen to what those around her are telling her what she should do."

Of course, Biles withdrew from competition last week after dealing with a mental block and "twisties" ... which she explained is when your mind and body don't connect while performing.

Dawes continued ... "But yet, she at 24 was mature enough to know, hey this is not a healthy environment for me to participate in right now."

Biles did recover ... and won the bronze in the balance beam finals on Tuesday -- her 7th Olympic medal (which ties for the most by a female American gymnast).

"She gave herself the time that she needed," Dominique tells us, "and then was able to get back out there and shine and that’s exactly what she did."

Dawes says mental health issues have been more openly talked about in sports over the last few years ... and Biles is now carrying the torch.

"It started with Michael Phelps and Naomi Osaka and it will continue with Simone Biles."

"I know when she comes back to the States she’s going to be a strong advocate for mental health.

We also asked the gold medalist what advice she has for Biles now that the Olympics are over and done with.

"Just enjoy and bask in this moment, and really work on her healing."

Francis Ngannou says Derrick Lewis vs. Ciryl Gane is a great fight ... but what it's not?? A title fight, 'cause there's already an undisputed UFC heavyweight champ -- and it's him.

TMZ Sports talked to 34-year-old Ngannou on Friday ... ahead of tonight's interim heavyweight title fight between Lewis and Gane at UFC 265.

"It's just a contender fight. It's not an interim or whatever them guys are talking about. It's a contender fight. They're fighting for the #1 spot contender. It's not a title fight for me."

FYI, 36-year-old Lewis is the #2 ranked heavyweight ... and 31-year-old Gane #3.

So, not for an interim title in "The Predator's" mind ... but that doesn't mean Francis doesn't think it's a kickass matchup.

"I think it's a good fight. I like the fight. I like the styles. Opposite sides. It can be a fun fight."

Of course, "The Black Beast" has crazyyyy power (he's KO'd 20 MMA opponents) ...while Gane is an incredible athlete for a man his size, and has great fundamentals.

The winner will presumably face Ngannou sometime in the near future.

We asked Francis if he had a message for the rest of the division ... and he left us with this.

Kirk Cousins is getting cut -- not by the Minnesota Vikings, but his hometown hospital ... and it's all thanks to his stance against taking the COVID-19 vaccine.

Cousins is one of the most famous celebs out of Holland, Michigan ... becoming a high school superstar before taking his talents to Michigan State.

The 32-year-old signal-caller has served as a spokesperson for the Holland Hospital in the past ... but a spokesperson says they will be distancing themselves from Cousins for the time being.

"While we acknowledge that each person is entitled to their own viewpoints, those who speak on our behalf must support the messages that align with the hospital’s position on matters of vital importance to individual and community health," the statement said.

Remember, Cousins said he'll do everything in his power to stay healthy and safe during the NFL season ... that is, except getting the vaccination.

As a hospital, they saw no choice but to move on from Cousins, who is actively and openly refuting recommendations from leading medical experts and the CDC.

Holland Hospital was nice during the breakup, however, ... adding, "We are proud of our association with Kirk. He embodies many values we respect and share as a part of our work culture."

Worth noting -- while the NFL is implementing rules that push their players towards the vaccine, Cousin’s Vikings have among the lowest vaccination rate of any team in the league.

Barack Obama's 60th birthday may have gotten scaled back from a bash to a small shindig ... but it's still about as star-studded as it gets.

Several celebs still on the guest list have been making their way to the summer garden party at the former president's $12 million Martha's Vineyard mansion to celebrate B.O. turning the big 6-0 ... including a pair of powerhouse couples -- John Legend and Chrissy Teigen, and Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union ... this according to the New York Times.

Don Cheadle's also arrived, and huge names like Jay-Z and Beyonce, Eddie Vedder, George Clooney and Steven Spielberg are all still expected to attend.

So who didn't make the scaled-down guest list? Many of Obama's former administration officials including David Axelrod, and many comedians like David Letterman, Conan O'Brien and Larry David ... giving the latter a fantastic idea for a future episode of "Curb Your Enthusiasm." Axelrod's the big surprise ... he engineered Obama's 2008 election victory.

As we reported ... Barack's 60th was scheduled to be a massive event, but the Obamas decided to scuttle the plan over COVID concerns with Delta surging.

Ever wanted Lionel Messi AND Cristiano Ronaldo's autographs on one item??

Well, you're in luck if you've got some serious cash laying around -- 'cause a card featuring the two soccer legend's signatures just hit the auction block ... and it's an INSANE piece!

The Leaf Superlative Sports "Superlative Trailblazers" card features a picture of Ronaldo on the top half, paired with a piece of one of his white Real Madrid jerseys and his slick blue signature.

On the bottom half, Messi's autograph is accompanied by a swatch of one of his sky-blue Barcelona kits.

In the bottom left corner, meanwhile, you can see the card is numbered "1/1" ... meaning it's the only one of its kind in existence!!

As for the back of the card, Leaf Trading Cards guaranteed its authenticity there with a huge "congratulations" note.

Bidding for the item at Goldin Auctions is set to end this weekend ... and our sources say the card could sell for around $20,000!!!

Not a bad price at all considering Messi's now moving on to a new team and cards with his Barcelona swag will become even rarer.

"We got options, options, options!!!"

That's Floyd Mayweather showin' off his INSANE car collection at his Las Vegas mansion ... a garage filled with 16 cars -- including 5 Rolls-Royces!!!

The undefeated boxer uploaded the video tour Friday ... saying he needed help picking a ride to drive over to his gentlemen's club, Girl Collection.

"I don't know what I wanna take out tonight," Mayweather says.

And, here's what's in his garage ...

5 Roll-Royces, 4 Ferraris, a Mercedes McLaren, a G-Wagon, a Bentley coupe -- plus the truck AND car version of the Lambo and Maybach!

"I got about 100 cars but right here -- we like to call this the Sweet Sixteen!"

He finally ended up picking the Maybach (the car version) to "make things nice and easy."

FYI, this Vegas mansion is gorgeous too ... he gave a tour last June, revealing his library-like closet filled with red bottoms to the indoor pool and spa.

Just another day of Mayweather reminding us how rich he is -- the guy just made $100M fighting Logan Paul in June ... and has generated $1.6 billion in revenue in his career.

Soccer power couple Sydney Leroux and Dom Dwyer are dunzo -- the ex-USWNT star just announced they are breaking up after 7 years together.

Leroux and Dwyer first went public in 2014 ... and got married in 2015. They have two children together -- 4-year-old Cassius Cruz Dwyer and 2-year-old Roux James.

"I have always been a transparent person," Leroux tweeted Friday. "With that, I would like to share that Dom and I are ending our marriage."

"My children have always been and always will be my first priority. I ask that you respect my family's privacy during this time. Thank you."

Leroux and Dwyer both played in Orlando ... and had a star-studded wedding, with basically every U.S. sports star you can imagine in attendance.

As we previously reported, Leroux even designed Dom's wedding band ... which was worth a whopping $20k!!!

31-year-old Leroux has been playing pro soccer since 2013 ... suiting up for the Boston Breakers, Seattle Reign, Western New York Flash, FC Kansas City and Orlando Pride.

U.S. wrestling star Gable Steveson just won Olympic gold in freestyle wrestling with an AMAZING last-second (literally) score ... in one of the most improbable wins in wrestling history.

21-year-old Steveson -- wrestling in the 125 kg. (275 lb.) class -- is an absolute BEAST on the mat. He won the NCAA title this year at the University of Minnesota ... as well as the championship at the Pan American Games. Gable hasn't lost a single match in 2 years.

But, Steveson was down late in the gold medal match against 27-year-old, #1 seed Geno Petriashvili from Georgia (country) -- a wrestler who'd won the last 3 titles in the division -- trailing 8-7 with only seconds remaining.

That's when Steveson -- named after U.S. wrestling legend Dan Gable -- displayed his incredible explosiveness and tenacity ... turning the corner on Petriashvili, scoring a 2-point takedown with .1 SECOND LEFT IN THE MATCH!!

(Video of the full match here)

Winning the way Gable did is so implausible ... and if you don't believe it, take a look at the reaction of Steveson's family and friends.

UFC legend (and former Olympic wrestler) Daniel Cormier couldn't believe the buzzer-beater, tweeting ... Ok wow "@GableSteveson this literally was the craziest finish to a match ever! Congrats my brother!!! Olympic champion"

Don't find the wrestling impressive? Take a look at this 275+ pound man flipping after the dub.

O.J. Simpson says he had such a tough battle with COVID last year, he was worried he was going to die ... explaining the virus made it nearly impossible for him to catch his breath.

The former NFL superstar went in-depth with The Athletic about his 2020 battle with coronavirus ... saying things at one point got so dire, death crossed his mind.

"When I had COVID, I almost couldn't get out of bed," Simpson said in a lengthy interview. "I made it to my balcony, trying to breathe. I couldn't catch my breath."

Simpson said his symptoms were so bad, he actually spoke with his children about final arrangements.

"I felt vulnerable," 74-year-old Simpson said, "and for the first time thought I might be near the end."

Simpson was able to recover ... and said he's grateful for it, explaining he's loving his life out of prison in Las Vegas.

Simpson said he golfs "four or five days a week" now, and bragged about how he's still treated like a celebrity.

"People want to buy me drinks," he said. "I'm always taking pictures with people. Ladies hug me."

"People truly care for me," he continued. "You don’t know who truly cares about you until you've gone through some serious stuff, and I've gone through serious stuff."

"The media won’t say it, but that is my life. I'm living a good life now."

Simpson, though, did say his life now includes far less trips to Los Angeles.

He explained he's troubled by being in the city because he's concerned Nicole Brown Simpson's killer could still be there.

Simone Biles was treated like royalty after making her return from Tokyo ... with tons of fans lining up to get a glimpse of the Olympics superstar in Texas!!

24-year-old Biles touched down in Houston on Thursday ... and was immediately greeted by her biggest supporters at the airport, as well as her beloved French bulldog.

The party continued in parade form ... with the 4-time gold medalist cruising through the streets in a turquoise Range Rover convertible -- naturally, the fans went nuts.

USA Gymnastics teammate Jordan Chiles was also part of the festivities ... popping out of the sunroof of a minivan and giving all the fans a wave.

Once the hype settled down, Biles decided to check out Houston Texans training camp Friday ... of course, we're assuming her eyes were laser-focused on #36 -- her NFL player boyfriend, Jonathan Owens.

Owens previously talked about his boo at Texans practice ... saying he was proud of the way she handled herself and offered advice every day while she was in Japan.

Despite Simone's controversial time in Tokyo, the folks in the Houston area showed nothing but love for their local hero.

Derrick Lewis might hit like a ton of bricks, but UFC star Ciryl Gane says The Black Beast is NOT the most dangerous guy he's stepped in a cage with, telling TMZ Sports that honor belongs to Alexander Volkov.

We talked to 31-year-old Gane -- a perfect 9-0 in the cage (including 6-0 in the Octagon) -- about his UFC 265 main event fight with Lewis for the UFC's Interim Heavyweight Title ... and asked if this was the riskiest fight of his career.

"No, I don't think so. I think Volkov was more dangerous than him. Yeah, I think Volkov was more well-rounded at first, Volkov was taller, heavier, and more technical than him," Gane says.

If you're not familiar, 32-year-old Volkov is a problem in the Octagon. He's 6'7", and has has beat some of the best competition in MMA, from Alistair Overeem to Fabricio Werdum.

But, Lewis is also incredibly dangerous ... and has scary power. He's got 20 knockouts on his record ... and the last time he was in the Octagon, he put Curtis Blaydes to sleep.

Of course, a win would set Gane up for a scrap with Heavyweight champ Francis Ngannou ... but that fight will have to wait a few months 'cause Gane's expecting a baby!!

"I think I'm gonna rest a little bit. I don't know if you know, but I’m waiting for a second daughter."

Conor McGregor ain't letting gnarly leg surgery keep him away from a good meal ... the UFC star hit an L.A. hotspot for dinner Thursday night, and vowed to TMZ Sports afterward, he's on his way to a big recovery!

The 33-year-old -- who broke his leg during his fight with Dustin Poirier on July 10 -- was in great spirits while crutching around Craig's in West Hollywood.

You can see in the footage, he was moving pretty well despite having major surgery less than a month ago ... getting around a mob of people and into a car without much assistance at all.

As for the recovery the process, McGregor said it's all "doing good, doing good."

"Three weeks, three days -- it's been good," said Conor, who was feeling so well he even signed some autographs for fans. "It's been good."

McGregor also promised to make an epic comeback from the brutal leg procedure ... telling us, "It's going to be some recovery. It's going to be some recovery!"

As we previously reported, McGregor went under the knife for nearly 4 hours last month and needed a rod, plate and screws to fix the damage he suffered during his fight with Poirier.

But, McGregor has looked great in the days since the operation ... hanging with Justin Bieber, getting in lift sessions at the gym and now crushing some good food at one of L.A.'s best eateries.

Jake Paul vs. Manny Pacquiao is a fight you will NOT see ... 'cause the Filipino legend tells us he's laser-focused on bolstering his legacy -- and a fight with the YouTube star doesn't help.

... but he didn't slam the door on Manny Pacquiao vs. Floyd Mayweather II.

TMZ Sports talked to the 42-year-old boxing great while he was training at Wild Card Boxing in Los Angeles ... and we asked Manny if he had any interest in boxing Jake.

"No, I will not. I will not. I want to fight the best to add on to my legacy."

Of course, 24-year-old Paul -- who's fighting ex-UFC champ Tyron Woodley later this month -- previously told us he had his sights set on ... the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world, CANELO ALVAREZ.

But, Pacquiao ain't interested ... but Jake shouldn't take it as a shot at his skills in the squared circle.

"I’m not underestimating Paul, but he’s, he doesn’t have a lot of experience of boxing. So, in that point, he’s already, disadvantage for him to fight in boxing."

FYI, Manny -- who's coming off wins against stars Adrien Broner and Keith Thurman -- has a huge fight against 31-year-old boxing champ Errol Spence on August 21 ... and clearly isn't slowing down despite his advanced age for a fighter.

We asked Pacquiao if he wanted a rematch with Floyd Mayweather ... so he could avenge his 2015 loss against Money.

Manny says he's down to do it (even though Mayweather's retired) ... adding Floyd is invited to the Spence fight.