TMZ Sports - Page 50

Aaron Hernandez's death has been ruled a suicide by hanging by the medical examiner and officials say they recovered 3 handwritten suicide notes.

Cardell Hayes was just sentenced to 25 years in prison for killing ex-NFL star Will Smith.

As we previously reported, the New Orleans Saints star was shot and killed by Hayes after a road rage incident on April 9, 2016.

Hayes was found guilty of manslaughter and attempted manslaughter back in December.

Ronda Rousey is getting married!!!

The UFC superstar just revealed she's engaged to her UFC fighter boyfriend, Travis Browne -- who she's been dating since 2015.

Browne popped the question with a massive diamond ring -- and said he proposed under a waterfall in New Zealand about a week ago because "it felt like the right place to do it."

Ronda says she hopes the wedding will be soon -- but says she also doesn't know what goes into planning a wedding ... so, she's keeping an open mind about the date.

Congrats!!!

We reached out Dana White who says, "I'm very happy for Ronda and I'm looking forward to the wedding!"

La La Anthony's got her own team of all-stars helping her cope this week with her split from Carmelo.

Kim Kardashian, Serena Williams, Ciara and Kelly Rowland are among the close friends who've gone "above and beyond" to be there for La La ... sources tell TMZ. Two of those women -- Kim and Ciara -- have gone through very public breakups, so they've been offering La La advice with positive phone calls and support.

La La also had dinner Wednesday night at Del Posto in NYC with Ludacris and his manager, Chaka Zulu ... who considers her a little sister.

We're told La La's main focus is taking care of her son and staying busy with work -- she's shooting for "Power." Her friends, meanwhile, are trying to surround her with positive vibes.

Conor McGregor believes he'll walk away with more than $100 MILLION after his fight with Floyd Mayweather ... and says Dana White was just being conservative with his $75 million prediction.

White told us earlier this week he believes McGregor vs. Mayweather WILL happen -- and told Colin Cowherd that Conor should make around $75 mil and Floyd will get around $100 mil.

But Conor just weighed in on social media saying White's numbers are low.

"How's that 75milli make your stomach feel? It's actually 100+ milli if we go by the non conservative numbers the fight will actually do and that's not including my endorsements and business ventures."

He added, "28 years of age. Fresh c*nt. Doubt me now."

Remember, back in November, Conor called his shot -- saying he wanted $100 million for the fight.

Ask, and you might receive ...

There's more ... Conor also released some footage of him giving boxing advice to one of his proteges.

He explained that he's been focused on boxing lately but "make no mistakes, the kicking and grappling aspects, and everything else got to do with unlimited free fighting, is still very much present in my thoughts."

He also suggests that if Floyd bails on their superfight, he could convince Manny Pacquiao to take his place.

"Floyd may crap his jocks after all and if so I will go back to true fighting or just pick another boxer like manny or something. But whatever that's another conversation."

11:57 AM PT -- Massachusetts officials say the Medical Examiner WILL release Aaron's brain to Boston University ... but they have not given a specific time frame.

"The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner is conducting an investigation into the circumstances of Aaron Hernandez’s death, which may require further analysis of his body," the Secretary of Public Safety and Security said.

"Once that is complete the brain will be released to Boston University. No one is going to stand in the way of the family’s wishes for Boston University to have Aaron Hernandez’s brain."

There's a standoff over Aaron Hernandez's brain.

Hernandez's lawyer, Jose Baez, just accused the Worcester Medical Examiner of illegally retaining Aaron's brain after agreeing to release it to the hospital of the family's choice for the purpose of CTE medical research.

Baez says the M.E. actually agreed to send the brain to Boston University CTE unit, which is renowned in the field. The family wants to know if Aaron was affected by CTE and hopes the examination will help other families.

Baez says a doctor in the Medical Examiner's Office went back on the deal and decided they would keep the brain and do the exam, rather than sending it to B.U.

The attorney is threatening a lawsuit if the M.E. continues to withhold the brain.

What's particularly interesting ... Aaron Hernandez's brain is irrelevant to his time in prison, the murder of which he was convicted or anything else involving the justice system.

The brain has everything to do with football -- something in which the prison has no involvement.

Since the prison says he committed suicide, there's nothing revealing about examining his brain.

John Salley knows exactly what Carmelo Anthony should do amidst all his basketball and woman drama -- head west and play for the Lakers!!

The 4-time NBA champ says Melo's not the type to seek advice about his split with La La, but he's optimistic things will get better for the superstar on and off the court ... and thinks L.A. is the place to start fresh.

Serena Williams' baby will be one the most physically gifted super-athletes of ALL TIME ... so says Glen "Big Baby" Davis.

Here's the deal -- Serena is arguably the greatest female athlete who ever lived. Her fiance, Alexis Ohanian, is 6'5" and smart (he's one of the co-founders of Reddit).

And with their super-DNA combined, Davis says he's convinced the result will be an ultra-smart, ultra-talented, insanely gifted Bo Jackson-style baby.

It's looking like Gisele Bundchen may have been behind Tom Brady's decision to bail on the New England Patriots' White House celebration.

Just hours before the White House ceremony began Wednesday, Gisele promoted an anti-Trump protest called The People's Climate March -- saying, "On April 29th in Washington- D.C. - March for climate, jobs, and justice. To change everything, we need everyone."

It's no secret Gisele dislikes Donald Trump. The day before the election, someone on social media baited her, saying, "Gisele I heard you and tom were backing Trump! Is that true??" She fired back, "NO!"

Gisele clearly has an influence on her hubby. Right after the election, he muzzled himself about politics for what he obliquely called "a good decision ... made for our family."

For some reason few media outlets are reporting the obvious ... Donald Trump feels betrayed. The president has gone out of his way for years to sing Brady's praises, yet at Wednesday's ceremony he made no mention of Brady, despite calling out other players.

As one source said, this is now at feud level ... "When Donald Trump feels betrayed, it's over."

Fair to say ... the relationship between Trump and Brady is kaput.

Colin Kaepernick's former 49ers head coach, Jim Harbaugh, is coming out STRONG in defense of his old QB -- saying Americans "must celebrate" him for his National Anthem protest.

Harbaugh -- who's now the head coach at Michigan -- authored the write-up for Kaep who was named as one of Time magazine's 100 most influential people.

In his piece, Harbaugh praises Colin as a great player and a courageous person -- and says the U.S. is "lucky" to have him as a citizen.

"Colin Kaepernick was alone in his early protests last year when he boldly and courageously confronted perceived inequalities in our social-justice system by refusing to stand for the national anthem," Harbaugh wrote.

"At times in our nation's history, we have been all too quick to judge and oppose our fellow Americans for exercising their First Amendment right to address things they believe unjust."

"Rather than besmirch their character, we must celebrate their act."

More trouble for boxing star Adrien Broner ... who was arrested in Kentucky early Thursday morning after Covington PD officers pulled over his white SUV, which had several bullet holes in it.

Broner was driving a white Chevy Suburban and trying to cross into Kentucky when officials noticed a warrant for his arrest stemming from a failure to appear in court for a previous arrest in 2014 for disorderly conduct and alcohol intoxication.

While taking Broner into custody, officers noticed several bullet holes in the SUV -- and Broner claimed he had been shot at by an unknown suspect after leaving a bar in Cincinnati earlier in the evening.

Broner says he was not hurt in the shooting and doesn't know why he was attacked. Cops say they did find evidence of a shooting at the alleged crime scene including several shell casings.

Officials tell TMZ Sports the vehicle is being turned over to the Cincinnati PD for further investigation.

When, not if, Carmelo or La La Anthony pull the divorce trigger, there will be a road map on how they will divide their $200 plus million fortune.

Sources connected to the couple tell us they signed a prenup before getting hitched in 2010. We're told the prenup benefits Carmelo way more than La La, and for obvious reasons. He's in the middle of a $124 million contract with the Knicks and has earned north of $200 million in his career.

Melo has a lot more in the money dept. He's been a top brand ambassador to the Jordan brand and Foot Locker.

As for La La ... she was making money as an MTV VJ when they met and has continued to work through the marriage as an actress, model and producer.

All that said, prenups are not necessarily airtight and are frequently challenged by the person who ends up with the short end of the stick. These challenges almost always result in a settlement where the person with the money antes up more than required under the written agreement.

One other thing. Some prenups actually include "cheating clauses," which entitle the non-cheating party to more money if the spouse strayed. As we reported, a woman claims she's pregnant with Melo's kid. We don't know if this clause is included in their prenup.

Utah Jazz center Jeff Withey has been accused of domestic violence in a police report filed by his Playboy Playmate of the Year ex-fiancee, Kennedy Summers ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Law enforcement sources confirm the report was filed in Manhattan Beach, CA on Tuesday and references multiple alleged incidents. We're told cops are focused on one alleged incident from 2016.

Our law enforcement sources tell us cops were called to an incident involving Withey and Summers last year, but no report was made at the time and nobody was arrested.

Sources connected to Summers tell us she filed the report now because Withey and the Jazz are in an NBA playoff series with the L.A. Clippers and she's concerned for her safety when he's in L.A.

Kennedy’s rep, Zack Teperman, tells us ... "Given the ongoing circumstances, our client now needs to protect herself and come forward about everything so this doesn't happen to her or others in the future."

Withey and Summers have had relationship issues for years -- they broke up back in 2016 after Summers trashed the NBA player on social media when she found out he took someone else on a movie date behind her back.

They reconciled and got engaged a few months later before finally calling things off for good in October.

We reached out to Withey's camp for comment. So far, no word back.

A male Kansas City Royals fan reached back and socked a woman in the face after she allegedly spit on him in the stands at a game ... and BOTH people got arrested.

Serena Williams' rep is finally confirming -- after an oddly long delay -- the tennis superstar and her fiance, Alexis Ohanian, are expecting their first child.

No shocker here ... our sources told us it was true when Serena posted the shot of herself with the caption, "20 weeks." Her rep just released this statement: "I'm happy to confirm Serena is expecting a baby this Fall."

Here's the thing ... it's been about 7 hours since Serena let the cat out of the bag on Snapchat.

Hell, she might be 21 weeks pregnant by now! In any event ... mazel tov.

Cody Garbrandt says Demetrious Johnson better ice up ... 'cause he's coming for the UFC legend right after he smashes through T.J. Dillashaw.

Cody and TJ are set to square off at UFC 213 in July -- it will be Cody's first fight since winning the UFC bantamweight championship back in December. The two hate each other's guts and are coaching opposite each other on "The Ultimate Fighter 25" which premiers tonight on FS1.

But after they square off in the Octagon, Cody tells TMZ Sports he wants Mighty Mouse -- and says meeting DJ at the 125 pounds won't be a problem.