TMZ Sports - Page 10

Who should be next up to challenge for the UFC's Middleweight title?? The champion, Dricus Du Plessis, has now weighed in ... telling us the answer is Khamzat Chimaev!

DDP joined Babcock on the TMZ Sports TV show (airs weekdays on FS1) ... where he was asked whether Chimaev vs. Robert Whittaker at UFC 308 to jump Sean Strickland, who many assumed would fight Du Plessis next.

"[Khamzat] went in there and was the first guy to ever submit Rob, and he did in the first round. That warrants a jump-the-gun on Sean Strickland for me. And if you ask me personally, that's a fight I would rather want, because it's a fight that the people want. It's a fight that more fans want, and I believe that Khamzat's the next best guy," Dricus said.

Of course, Strickland and Du Plessis previously fought at UFC 297 ... a fight DDP won by decision, leaving Scotiabank Arena in Toronto with the MW strap.

As for how a fight between Khamzat and other champ would look, we asked Dricus.

"You see Khamzat, he backs people up. I don't back up," DDP said ... noting Chimaev has faced the most difficulty against guys like Gilbert Burns and Kamaru Usman, who Du Plessis says "went out there and they fought him," adding, "They didn't defend his wrestling. They wrestled him back. They fought him."

Dricus continued ... "I don't know how to back up. I'm going to go out there and fight you. We've seen this with Khamzat, slowing down after the first round, round and a half. And I think that is because he uses so much power. He has the wrestling technique, of course, but he uses his strength as a weapon. In this case, he has a gun and I have a tank when it comes to the strength. There's not a middleweight that's going to overpower me. It's not going to happen."

As for what Dricus would say to Strickland -- who will surely be pissed at the latest turn of events -- the champ has a message for the challenger.

"Finish your fights."

And, for Chimaev ... "If it's Khamzat, you think you're strong, you think you're powerful, you have not felt anything. And I can't wait until I see it on his face because I see it on every single person I fight's face."

The Yankee fan who ripped a foul ball from Mookie Betts' glove has ties to Rob Gronkowski ... 'cause the Patriots legend says he went to school with the guy!!

The former superstar tight end came to the realization during his appearance on the "Up & Adams Show" ... when he was checking out footage of Austin Capobianco and fellow NYY fan, John Peter, interfering with Betts after he snagged the ball out of the air.

Gronk had an aha moment in real time ... seemingly completely unaware of his connection to one of the fans prior to joining the show.

Shaun White and Nina Dobrev are ready to take their relationship to the next level ... the couple are officially engaged after 5 years together.

The "Vampire Diaries" actress shared her happy engagement news on Instagram Wednesday, where she penned a caption seemingly inspired by the upcoming Halloween holiday.

Alongside a series of sweet photos from the proposal, Nina wrote ... "RIP boyfriend, hello fiancé 💍♾️."

Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift are "absolutely happy" in their highly publicized relationship ... with the Kansas City Chiefs superstar thanking his inner circle for protecting his "real" romance.

Trav expressed sincere gratitude to his "Grotesquerie" costar Niecy Nash-Betts during the most recent episode of his "New Heights" podcast with his brother, Jason ... praising the actress for remaining tight-lipped when folks hit her up for tea on his personal life.

NNB explained her phone's been ringing off the hook ever since the Ryan Murphy show aired ... with friends and interviewers trying to get some intel on not only what happens on the show -- but also all about Traylor.

Charles Barkley was targeted with yet another prank on the "NBA on TNT" set on Tuesday ... this time, the Hall of Famer was victim to a Halloween-themed smoke attack!!

The Chuckster was at his usual spot on the desk alongside Shaquille O'Neal, Kenny Smith and Ernie Johnson as he weighed in on the New York Knicks ... when out of nowhere, his area started to fill with fog.

Barkley's analysis was quickly derailed ... and he looked puzzled as he started to choke.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is breaking from his political party by endorsing Kamala Harris ahead of Election Day ... This is the first time Arnold has endorsed a Democrat for president. He warns another Trump administration would be disastrous for the country.

The actor and former politician posted a lengthy letter explaining his decision to endorse Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz, on X Wednesday ... noting he's issuing a rare endorsement with only days to spare before November 5.

Despite being the former Governor of California, where he ran as a Republican, Schwarzenegger noted he "hates politics" and doesn't "trust most politicians."

Seems Linda Holliday still ain't over her breakup with Bill Belichick ... as she was spotted over the weekend rockin' a "Kill Bill" Halloween costume.

A photo of her in Uma Thurman's iconic "The Bride" yellow get-up -- complete with a fake samurai sword -- made its way to social media on Tuesday ... and according to the "GoJo and Golic" podcast, the snap came from a costume party Holliday attended on Saturday night with her gal pals.

Holliday, of course, dated Belichick for more than a decade ... but split with the legendary NFL coach some two years ago.

An unidentified fan chose a poor time to heckle Dodgers star Freddie Freeman ... shouting "You Suck!" at the first baseman during a moment of silence at the World Series, honoring people afflicted with cancer.

The Dodgers slugger was honoring his mother ... whom he lost to cancer at the age of 10.

Major League Baseball carved time out of the broadcast to allow players, fans, umpires, and others to pay tribute to those either battling cancer, cancer survivors, or sadly the people lost to the horrible disease, teaming up with "Stand Up To Cancer" for the powerful moment.

Two New York Yankees fans with great seats to Tuesday night's World Series Game 4 were forced to watch almost the entirety of the action on a TV ... after they were ejected for trying to rip a ball from Mookie Betts' glove.

The bizarre scene unfolded in the first inning of the Pinstripes' matchup with the Dodgers at Yankee Stadium ... when Gleyber Torres hit a pop fly down the first-base line.

As the ball came crashing down, it landed in foul territory, though Betts was still able to snag it with his glove before it hit fans' hands. Yet right after he secured it in his webbing, two Yanks supporters attempted to wrestle it away from him.

Dwyane Wade's new statue ain't just feeling the heat from internet trolls ... at least one former NBA star is clowning it as well -- with Chris Webber telling TMZ Sports he thinks the monument looks like Morpheus!

We caught up with C Webb out at LAX on Tuesday -- and when we asked about the Wade sculpture that was just erected at the Kaseya Center in Miami on Sunday ... he couldn't help but roast the artwork.

He told us he thinks it looks more like Laurence Fishburne's character in "The Matrix" ... or even Chris Rock's Pookie from "New Jack City."

Tom Brady seems to be responding to news that his ex-wife Gisele Bündchen is having a baby with her jiu-jitsu trainer ... with a cryptic Instagram post that's causing a raging debate at TMZ.

Gisele's pregnancy was revealed Monday and Tom has since posted on his IG story ... using heart emojis and a famous Fleetwood Mac song to seemingly share his feelings on the development.

But check out the clip from "TMZ Live" ... Harvey and Charles aren't sold on this being Tom's response ... even though some folks in the office are convinced this is Tom being in his feelings.

The lyrics Tom went with are interesting ..."Oh, mirror in the sky, what is love? Can the child within my heart rise above? Can I sail through the changing ocean tides?"

Former star MLB pitcher Francisco Cordero -- who played 14 seasons in the Bigs -- was robbed at gunpoint for his chain ... and the whole stick-up was captured on surveillance video!

According to El Nuevo Diaro, a news outlet in the Dominican Republic, the 49-year-old was playing dominos with three others outside a grocery store in Santo Domingo on Oct. 25 when two individuals on a motorcycle pulled up.

The passengers quickly hopped off the bike and rushed Cordero, pointing a gun at him.

FC didn't resist, quickly raising his hands. One of the thieves, who was wearing a bandana, then snatched Cordero's chain off before stumbling away.

Here's the first visual of Kanye West's recent big-ticket purchase in Beverly Hills ... and his $35 million mansion looks pretty lavish ... at least from a bird's eye view.

Check out this aerial footage from above Kanye's new digs in Beverly Park North, a gated community in Bev Hills chock full of celebs.

TMZ broke the story ... Ye scooped up the place in an off-market deal, using the same LLC he used to sell his gutted home in Malibu.

4:08 PM PT -- Detroit PD tells TMZ Sports ... "This investigation continues to evolve, and new information has come to light that we are actively addressing."

"We take every investigation seriously, especially when new allegations and facts emerge, and we are committed to acting in a swift and transparent manner."

The statement continued ... "Once new facts are confirmed, we make the necessary changes in our decision-making process."

"Let it be clear: no one in the City of Detroit is above the law. Anyone who commits a crime will be held accountable, regardless of their position or status."

Detroit Lions receiver Jameson Williams narrowly escaped being arrested for carrying a concealed weapon earlier this month ... and police are now investigating why he was let off the hook.

23-year-old Williams was riding around Detroit with his brother after midnight on Oct. 8 ... when the vehicle was pulled over for a traffic violation.

During the stop, Williams' brother told cops there were two guns in the vehicle ... and one was located under the NFLer's passenger seat.

Erik and Lyle Menendez are gunning to be released from prison before Thanksgiving and their legal team has a new strategy for freeing the brothers ... seeking clemency from California's governor.

Mark Geragos, the attorney repping the Menendez brothers, joined us Tuesday on "TMZ Live" and told us he's filing documents today asking Gavin Newsom for clemency.

That's pretty significant on its own, and sources connected to the Governor's office tell us they have the clemency petition on their radar ... which is pretty interesting, considering Newsom talked about the Menendez brothers in a recent podcast.

Celebs in costumes always hits different, 'cuz when it comes to Halloween there's no stoppin' these stars from going all out! Sometimes however, they select the same look and it gets real tricky real quick! So, we've gotta ask -- Who'd You Rather?!

It's a given Paris Hilton and Megan Thee Stallion are both classy n' bougie, but which Sailor Moon are you choosing to rock your world?!

Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice! Celeb couples, Travis Barker and Kourtney Kardashian AND Maggie Lindemann and Jordan Clarkson dressed to impress ... but which duo hit the spooky 1988 classic out of the park?

It's a "Snow White" showdown between Avani Gregg and Charli D'Amelio ... if you had to choose one gal to hold your apple, who's it gonna be?!