TMZ Sports - Page 50

Tech N9ne's not worried about his bank account ... 'cause he just tossed up a small fortune to show appreciation to a few exotic dancers for their moves.

All eyes were on the rapper at the pre-Super Bowl party he hosted in Las Vegas Thursday night at Crazy Horse 3 -- a very popular strip club just across the street from Allegiant Stadium.

Sources tell us ... T9 made a fashionably late entrance, pulling up to the club at around 2 AM early Friday morning -- and he quickly made up for lost time, walking onstage with an absolute bag and chucking bills up in the air as the ladies danced to his song "Hood Go Crazy."

It didn't take long for the entertainers to realize where the money was at ... and soon we're told 11 dancers were all shakin' their asses near Tech.

Apparently, N9ne was loving the attention so much, we're told he had a member of his entourage running to bring him more ones -- which Tech threw in the air for the next 15 minutes.

All told, our sources say Tech unloaded $25,000 ... a pretty nice payday for the ladies working the club last night who we're told took nearly half an hour to count and divide all the catapulted cash.

We broke the story ... Tech coordinated with the club to turn the venue into a money snowglobe -- a deal that included about $20,000 in singles to throw as well as 10 magnum bottles of 10 tequila with 5 bottles of Clase Azul and 5 bottles of Don Julio 1942.

BTW while this was a particularly big day for the entertainers ... our sources say they've been absolutely raking in the dough recently with so many tourists in town for the big game.

Tech's a Chiefs fan -- with a popular KC anthem to boot -- and he seems to have bucks to burn, so we'll see if he shows up to the Super Bowl at Allegiant on Sunday. Lord knows, those tickets are pricey.

WWE's WrestleMania Kickoff was nothing short of bonkers ... with The Rock straight-up slapping Cody Rhodes in the face in a wild on-stage confrontation!!

The whole event went down in Las Vegas on Thursday ... with Roman Reigns addressing the crowd and announcing he will face off against Dwayne Johnson in Philadelphia -- claiming it's his decision and there's nothing Cody can do about it.

Rock then showed up and hopped on the mic ... saying no matter what people think of the controversial matchup, they WILL respect it -- as Rock and Roman come from The Bloodline, the Samoan families with the richest history in professional wrestling.

Everything seemed set in stone as both guys shook hands -- but Cody wasn't having it ... taking the stage and calling the whole thing "bulls***," as he won the Royal Rumble and earned the right to enter the squared circle with Roman.

The guys traded nasty insults about each other's families ... and when Cody said Roman and Rock's grandparents would be ashamed of what they have become, The People's Champ lost it -- rocking Rhodes right in the mouth.

All sides needed to be separated and escorted off the stage ... but it didn't stop there, as a livid Rock confronted WWE chief content officer Triple H afterward, telling him to do something about Rhodes' disrespect -- or he'd handle it himself.

After it all died down, the WWE apparently sided with Rhodes in the whole ordeal ... revealing Cody would get his wish and take on Roman at WrestleMania 40.

Suites for Super Bowl LVIII ain't cheap (no kidding, right) ... but how expensive are they?? Floyd Mayweather revealed he spent over $1.1 MILLION for a sweet box for him and 34 of his friends to attend the first SB in Las Vegas!

The legendary boxer even shared receipts on Instagram, just days before the 49ers take on the Chiefs at Allegiant Stadium.

"I don’t kiss ass and I never have to beg for nothing especially not to get a Super Bowl suite," the 46-year-old wrote.

"I don’t mind accepting invites at times, but one things for sure...The person that’s paying does all the saying. Therefore I get My Own seats and suites so I can do what I want and invite who I want!"

Mayweather -- who has been on the receiving end of many of the highest paydays in sports history -- dropped $1,131,000 on the luxury suite ... and will bring over 30 people with him for the big game.

"I’m blessed to be taking 34 people to experience the 1st Super Bowl in Las Vegas!" Mayweather said.

If you can't make the big game, don't fret, there are a thousand places to party, including at Floyd's gentlemen's club, Girl Collection, in Vegas ... where the boxing legend is already prepping for a wild weekend, loading up with a bunch of $1 bills!

"We had to get the ones to make it rain," Mayweather said, "I need everybody at Girls Collection!"

Mayweather isn't the only wealthy celeb dropping real cold hard cash on a SB LVIII suite ... Olivia Culpo allegedly spent millions on a box for her fiance Christian McCaffrey's mother, Lisa.

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are stirring up memories of past high-profile NFL couples -- including one controversial ex-couple -- at least for Keegan-Michael Key.

KMK hosted the NFL Honors -- the league's annual end-of-season award ceremony -- and, obviously, the funnyman had to bring up Traylor.

He pointed out Kelce isn't the first NFL baller to date a pop star ... name-dropping Russell Wilson and Ciara and Tony Romo and Jessica Simpson before cracking a joke about Brad Paisley and Peyton Manning's friendship.

While Russ and Ciara are still going strong nearly a decade into their relationship, JS and TR didn't make it nearly that long ... with their relationship causing constant drama for the pair.

You'll recall ... Romo and Simpson started dating in late 2007, and just like T-Swift, Simpson became a huge staple in the crowd at Dallas Cowboys games.

Dallas struggled in 2008 though -- the first full season Simpson and Romo dated -- missing out on a playoff spot by one measly tie to the rival Philadelphia Eagles.

Some fans, rather unfairly, blamed the team's issues on Romo and Simpson's relationship ... the couple broke up the following year after Tony found out Jessica was still in contact with her ex, John Mayer.

Worth noting ... Romo's been very supportive of Swift and Kelce since they took their relationship public in September -- recently saying he's rooting for the couple to marry after accidentally referring to Swift as Kelce's wife back in December.

BTW, Key made a few more jokes involving Swift and Kelce though none at the couple's expense ... instead poking fun at the Carolina Panthers and ex-Pats head coach Bill Belichick.

Michael Irvin is stoked his Cowboys are planning to bring back Mike Zimmer to their coaching staff ... telling TMZ Sports he thinks the move could finally get his former squad over the hump.

Mike McCarthy reportedly made the decision to hire Zimmer as his new defensive coordinator on Thursday after Dan Quinn bolted for Washington earlier this month ... and when we got Irvin at the "A Night Out With Legends" bash in Las Vegas on Thursday night, he was clearly pumped for the addition.

The playmaker said he believes the Cowboys were a little too boom or bust under DQ -- but that should change with Zimmer running the show in 2024.

"Mike Zimmer will bring a more calm approach," Irvin said outside the Tommy Gucciardo party, which was presented by Ticketbash.com, "and he'll make every team walk the ball down the field."

Irvin said that should be a game-changer for the Cowboys -- as they already have one of the best units in the league on the other side of the ball.

"If you've got an explosive offense," Irvin said, "and the other team has to walk the ball down the field, it gives you a better chance at winning."

Irvin, of course, knows firsthand what Zimmer can bring to a team ... the coach was actually with Dallas during Irvin's playing days in the 90s.

However, Michael obviously doesn't think the hire will lengthen McCarthy's leash one bit in Big D ... telling us the head coach's seat isn't getting any colder no matter what happens this offseason.

"I ain't feeling sorry for Mike McCarthy or any other man with pressure," Irvin said.

Ben Affleck's definitely getting the last laugh over his undying love of Dunkin' ... after thousands of memes mocked him for reppin' the coffee and donut shop so hard.

Turns out the Oscar winner raked in a staggering $10 MILLION for his Super Bowl commercial last year, according to CNN. Remember, Ben appeared as a Dunkin' drive-thru worker in the 30-second clip, and his star power was a major treat for Dunkin'.

The company reportedly sold more donuts the day after the Super Bowl than any other day in its history. Capitalizing on that smash hit, Ben then signed on as an official spokesperson -- and will appear in another commercial for them during this year's SB.

But, it ain't just Ben who made major bucks on Super Sunday -- Larry David also snagged $10M for his now-controversial FTX ad ... and CNN says at least 2 other A-list celebs are making $5M this year for appearing on-camera for less than 20 seconds in ads.

Keep in mind, companies are also dropping $7M just to air a 30-second spot!

As for Ben's new SB spot ... Dunkin's ad men have him trollin' himself for his "miserable" expression at last year’s Grammys.

Prince Harry flew back to the U.S. and made a surprise appearance at the 2024 NFL Honors -- after a short visit with his cancer-stricken father King Charles III in England.

The Duke of Sussex strolled out onstage at the Resorts World Theatre in Las Vegas Thursday evening to present the Walter Payton Man of the Year award to Pittsburgh Steelers defensive tackle Cameron Heyward.

Heyward seemed totally awestruck by Harry as the NFL star accepted his statue and stepped up to the mic to make a speech.

Check out the vid ... Heyward addressed the audience while motioning with his arm to Harry, saying, "That's freakin' Harry. Oh my god, I'm in shock. That's Prince Harry."

Harry smiled, taking it all in stride while shaking hands with Heyward on the stage and posing for photos with him after the event.

As you know ... Harry hopped a Tuesday flight to London from L.A. to visit King Charles after his recent cancer diagnosis. When he arrived in the UK capital, Harry went straight to the royal residence, where he reportedly stayed with Charles for about 45 minutes before taking off.

While his exit appeared abrupt, it's no secret Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, have been estranged from Charles and the rest of the Royal Family for quite some time. And the world has had a front-row seat to all their drama.

Too Short is living up to his lyrical billing by throwing dollar bills at Vegas exotic dancers, and covering the floor with greenbacks ... all while his strip club anthems are blaring.

The "Money On The Floor" rapper hit up Crazy Horse 3 in Las Vegas Wednesday night into Thursday morning, rolling up with a crew of 20 people, including fellow rappers Tech N9ne and X-Raided ... and if ya thought it was raining hard in L.A., ya gotta see what went down on The Strip.

Our strip club sources -- yep, we got those too -- tell us Short requested a table in the VIP section right next to the main stage and, naturally, he was immediately swarmed by more than 30 strippers. As they say, game recognize game!

His crew ordered 2 magnum bottles of Don Julio 1942 Tequila, nothing but top shelf, and they threw $15,000 in singles ... and as you can see, the club brought him the first $5k in singles in a lighted-briefcase as Short had 2 strippers on his lap.

Naturally, Too Short took the greenbacks up to the main stage and started throwing money everywhere ... spreading it over a dancer's back as she twerked in front of him. Textbook move.

The most baller part ... Too Short's "Money On The Floor" is playing while he drops fat stacks on, and above, the stage where a dancer's flashing her pole skills to his jam.

Crazy Horse 3 seems like the place to be leading up to Super Bowl LVIII, which will be played just across the street at Allegiant Stadium.

Tech N9ne was back Thursday night to host and rain $20K on the performers. While several NFL players were expected, too -- it's a safe bet they were NOT the centers of attention.

Even though 49ers wideout Ray-Ray McCloud has deep roots in the music industry, he won't try to rub elbows with Taylor Swift at the Super Bowl ... telling TMZ Sports, "This is football."

Many have wondered if the receiver would attempt to get in TayTay's ear at some point at Allegiant Stadium on Sunday ... because, after all, the guy's a musician who just recently became the CEO of entertainment agency Legend Tribe Entertainment.

But, he said out in Vegas this week there's no chance he fraternizes with Travis Kelce's girlfriend at the Big Game ... saying flat-out, "Hell nah!"

"I'm a big fan of greatness," he told us. "She's great at what she do. She big time. But, hey, this is football. We don't care about no album coming out. We don't care about none of that."

"Congrats to her on the Grammy thing she did, but we don't care about none of that, man."

Instead, Ray-Ray says he's locked in on the game ... although he did at least tell us he'd try to have some kind of ear on Usher's halftime show.

While the 27-year-old will absolutely not sneak out of the locker room to catch it -- "I'm trying to get a ring first," he said -- he told us he hoped the "Let It Burn" crooner would play "Superstar" and "Confessions" during the performance.

It's Friday, and as we head into the weekend ... TMZ is firing on all cylinders, especially on TV -- where we covered a helluva lot of juicy topics.

On 'TMZ Live,' we broke a story about a special tribute that Super Bowl LVIII organizers are planning to launch during Sunday's broadcast ... which essentially amounts to a tip of the hat to Sin City itself.

There's a particular song that'll be played throughout -- and it'll get kicked off by the most famous rendition of the tune known to date ... sung by one Frank Sinatra, no less!

Over at 'TMZ on TV,' the gang talked about a new claim Britney Spears is floating -- namely, that she allegedly made out with Ben Affleck back in the day ... in the year 1999.

Brit doesn't even seem sure of the details herself -- but she posted a pic (and then quickly deleted it) ... which left Harvey and the staff less than convinced it actually happened.

Finally, on 'TMZ Sports' ... Babcock and Lucas talk Baker Mayfield and what sort of new contract he deserves in the wake of a pretty decent season with the Buccaneers.

Check your local listings for when TMZ is on in your area or catch up on past episodes!

Before this handsome fella lookin' spiffy in his suit turned into a Super Bowl champion, he was just a little New Yorker -- who came from a family of athletes -- playing hockey, basketball, baseball and of course FOOTBALL!

Being one of the greatest tight-ends of all time helped lead his team to Super Bowl wins in 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2021. He may not have played for the Chiefs or the 49ers, but now being an NFL analyst ... he's had plenty to say about this year's Super Bowl.

Need on more clue ... just ask his quarterback BFF TB!

Antonio Gates will have to wait at least 12 more months for his gold jacket ... TMZ Sports has learned the NFL legend did NOT make this year's Hall of Fame cut.

Our sources tell us when officials made calls Thursday morning to inform finalists and their reps if they got the green light or not to Canton ... Gates received bad news.

It's, of course, shocking ... as most pundits believed the 43-year-old was definitely deserving of the first-ballot nod.

After all, the ex-tight end compiled 11,841 receiving yards on 955 catches ... while recording 116 total touchdowns. According to Pro Football Reference's Hall of Fame Monitor metric system, only three tight ends in the history of the league -- Tony Gonzalez, Rob Gronkowski and Travis Kelce -- were more deserving of a bust.

Gates himself certainly appeared to think he was in ... he told us back in November he believed he and Julius Peppers were going to get the call.

It's unclear who got in ahead of Gates this year ... but other finalists included Dwight Freeney, Devin Hester, Andre Johnson, Torry Holt, and Patrick Willis.

Caitlyn Jenner seemed to plead for Elon Musk's legal backing to fight Disney after being dropped from "The Kardashians" -- but she's not actually pursuing it ... TMZ has learned.

Sources with direct knowledge tell us Caitlyn has zero plans to sue the Mouse House and was simply shining a light on her experience with the studio by commenting under the EM's original post ... where he explicitly said he would provide legal support (namely, funding) to those who felt they'd been discriminated against by Disney or its subsidiaries.

Caitlyn's comment under Elon's post read ... "Hulu (Disney subsidiary) never put me on my family's show - I had been on since day 1- when it switched from E!" On its face, it certainly sounded like she was serious ... especially since Elon seemed to be seriously baiting.

Now, while our sources tell us CJ has no plans to take Elon up on his offer to sue right now, if any bombshell information surfaces from the Kardashians' reality show on Hulu that pushes the envelope against Caitlyn ... we're told she would possibly revisit the idea.

You'll recall ... Caitlyn starred in almost all 20 seasons of E! 's "Keeping Up With The Kardashians" alongside her ex-wife Kris Jenner, her stepkids Kourtney, Kim, and Khloé, and biological daughters Kendall and Kylie. Caitlyn never appeared in the revamped series though, "The Kardashians," when it moved over to Hulu in 2022.

Last month, CJ expressed similar frustration over the Disney non-invite when replying to an X post from political consultant Richard Grenell, who blasted the network for its "partisan" stance.

The reality star commented at the time ... "I wonder if that's why they fired me from my family's reality show when it switched over to Hulu (@Disney), from E!. I must not be woke enough."

Cailyn added -- "Too bad… I remember when Bob Iger was a young, hard working, valet, carrying my bags, for me right after I won the Olympics."

ICYMI ... Elon is funding former "Mandalorian" actress Gina Carano's lawsuit ... where she claims Disney+ and LucasFilm wrongfully terminated her from her job after she posted her political views on social media.

That's why this Caitlyn convo is even happening -- because Elon is legitimately putting his money where his mouth is on this issue against Disney.

Back to Caitlyn ... things may not have worked out with "The Kardashians" -- but she's gone from reality TV to FOX, working for the network as a Fox News contributor, which she's really enjoying.

Kaskade will be in the DJ booth when Super Bowl LVIII kicks off on Sunday ... stepping in at the last minute to replace Tiësto, who backed out of the gig due to a sudden family emergency.

As we previously reported, the "Godfather of EDM" was originally set to spin tracks throughout the entire game ... but was forced to return home hours before the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers take the field.

TMZ Sports has learned ... Kaskade is taking the reins from Tiësto -- making him the league's first-ever in-game DJ in the history of the Super Bowl.

Kaskade spoke about the news on Thursday ... saying, "As a kid who grew up in Chicago watching the Super Bowl every year with my family this chance to actually be part of it is absolutely mind-blowing."

Moving forward with Kaskade is a no-brainer -- he's one of the biggest names in the industry ... and has had residencies at pretty much every big venue in Sin City, most recently at Zouk nightclub at Resorts World.

"Las Vegas has been my second home for the past decade, as an architect of creating a landscape that includes House and Dance Music residencies as part of its destination," Kaskade continued.

Kobe Bryant's presence will be felt outside Crypto.com Arena forever -- the late Lakers legend's statue was officially revealed at the venue at an incredibly emotional ceremony ... where it was announced two more tributes will go up at a later date.

The new bronze figure shows Kobe pointing to the sky following his 81-point performance against the Toronto Raptors in 2006 ... a pose Kobe personally chose.

It also includes a nod to the triangle offense and the five championships he won during his Hall of Fame career.

The Black Mamba's wife and kids, former Purple and Gold players, staffers, front office execs and more were present for the unveiling ... which happened to take place on a special day -- 02/08/24 -- to symbolize Kobe's two jersey numbers with L.A., as well as the digit his daughter, Gigi, sported during her young, promising basketball career.

Vanessa Bryant, Phil Jackson, Stu Lantz, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Derek Fisher and Lakers owner Jeanie Buss took the stage ... and each gave a touching speech as the statue was revealed for the first time.

Vanessa revealed there will be three different statues of Bryant -- one each of Kobe's two different jersey numbers ... and a third featuring Gigi.

Vanessa also playfully said "tough s***" to anyone who didn't like the statue, considering it's exactly what Kobe wanted.

It's a day Laker fans have been anticipating ever since the devastating Jan. 2020 helicopter crash that killed Kobe, Gigi and seven others ... and there will no doubt be tributes left near the bronze figure as its made available to the public over the next few days.

Kobe's statue joins fellow all-time greats outside the building ... like Magic Johnson, Jerry West, Abdul-Jabbar, Shaquille O'Neal and more.

Kobe is undoubtedly one of the greatest to ever wear a Laker jersey ... winning five NBA championships, two scoring titles, two Finals MVPs, a regular season MVP and earning 15 All-NBA nods.

Tracy McGrady is adamant Kobe Bryant is a top-five NBA player ever ... and he says anyone who disagrees with that sentiment should "get the f*** outta here!!"

The seven-time All-Star went on an expletive-laden rant on the topic on his Instagram page this week ... explaining that anyone who thinks Kobe doesn't deserve a spot amongst basketball's GOATs is just being "disrespectful."

He said those who argue that Bryant's resume deserves to be knocked down due to the talent surrounding him don't have any leg whatsoever to stand on.

"Did Magic Johnson play with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who was an all-time leading scorer?" McGrady said. "But you want to sit here and talk about Kobe playing with Shaq?!"

McGrady -- who played 15 seasons in the NBA -- continued to make his point ... saying Bryant won two NBA Finals without O'Neal. He added that if Kobe is widely considered the closest thing to Michael Jordan, how can he not be considered a top-five player?

"Tell me the other motherf***er that's close to MJ that played the game?!" he said. "Ain't nobody else close to MJ."

"So how is [Kobe] excluded out of the conversation if he's close to MJ and MJ is the greatest of all time?! Help me understand that ... They so disrespectful when it comes to Bean."

Fans and NBA stars all over agreed with T-Mac in the comment section of his post ... with Stephon Marbury, Richard Hamilton, Jamal Crawford and Nate Robinson all leaving notes of support.