TMZ Sports - Page 50

Anthony Joshua has zero recollection of the disastrous 3rd rd. of his Andy Ruiz fight ... where he was pummeled and knocked down twice -- this according to his promoter Eddie Hearn.

Joshua was a massive favorite in the fight against Ruiz ... but was stopped in the 7th round in one of the most shocking upsets in boxing history.

Hearn sat down on DAZN and opened up about the fight and revealed Joshua legit doesn't recall the beatdown he took in the 3rd round.

"He doesn't remember anything really from the 3rd round. In fact, he's taken a little positivity that he managed to go 4 rounds after that because he says, 'ya know, my senses weren't there."

Eddie also laid any speculation to rest that the 7th round stoppage was bad ... saying he not only agreed with it, but was relieved by the ref's decision.

"100% right stoppage. If you actually watch it back, we were watching it last night, and Anthony says 'yes,' and goes to walk forward, and the ref just nudges him and he goes back on the ropes, and then the ref stops it, and I'm actually glad he did cause Anthony would've kept going all night."

AJ's loss threw heavyweight division into a tailspin ... and Hearn has activated the mandatory rematch clause -- although no date has been set.

The New York Yankees contract that paid Mickey Mantle a shockingly low amount of money back in 1957 can be all yours ... if you've got a big pile of cash to buy it!!!

TMZ Sports has learned the deal that Mantle himself signed back in '57 is hitting the SCP Auctions block -- and is expected to fetch over $40,000.

It's interesting ... because Mantle -- who had just hit for the Triple Crown in 1956 with 52 home runs, 130 RBI and a .353 batting average (it was one of the greatest offensive seasons ever) -- was only scheduled to make $60k.

If that seems staggeringly low ... it's 'cause it is -- for a similar season in 2014, Giancarlo Stanton inked a 13-year, $325 MILLION deal ($25 mil a year)!!!

Of course, the Yanks got much more than they bargained for after Mantle signed on the dotted line ... he went on to win the MVP for a second consecutive season in 1957.

As for the contract itself, it's an awesome piece of history ... it's got The Mick's signature AND Hall of Famer Lee MacPhail's on it as well.

Bidding closes in two weeks ... good luck!!!

One of the biggest upsets in boxing history just went down when Andy Ruiz Jr. beat Anthony Joshua ... and Steve Rolls says he's about to follow suit ... telling TMZ Sports he's gonna beat GGG!!

Gennady Golovkin is coming off his first career loss at the hands of Canelo Alvarez ... and is a MASSIVE favorite in this weekend's fight at MSG ... but Rolls says he's gonna hand him a second-straight L.

"As soon as I got the call for this fight and I accepted this fight, had every intention in the world to do what happened last week in that fight this fight coming up," Rolls says.

Rolls is definitely no scrub -- he's undefeated at 19-0 and won the vacant USBA middleweight title in his last fight in December.

"I look forward to shocking the world once again ... I think it will be one of the greatest upsets in boxing history."

Joey Chestnut's celebration of National Doughnut Day is a bitter pastry to swallow, because like Anthony Joshua's upset loss to Andy Ruiz Jr. -- Joey's gone down like a bag of ... y'know.

The famous wiener-eating champ strolled into Friday's second annual World Hostess Donettes-Eating Championship in Austin as the reigning champ but walked away settling for second place.

The winner -- Geoffrey Esper from Oxford, MA -- did him 35 better for this year's belt.

Chestnut entered the competition ranked No. 1 in the world, but fell short in the 6-minute competition. In case you were wondering, the guys gorged themselves on powdered doughnuts.

BTW ... in total, the entire competition feasted on an astonishing 1,160 doughnuts. The good news for Joey is he still holds the record -- he inhaled 257 doughnuts during last year's test!!

They're gonna need a higher ceiling at the Dean Smith Center for next year ... 'cause Greg Anthony's basketball star son, Cole, put his dunking skills on display on Friday ... and the dude can fly!!!

He may be an ex-NBA player's son, but the North Carolina Tar Heels commit has already made a name for himself ... and if you're watching the video above, you know exactly why.

The 19-year-old was the McDonald's All-American game and Jordan Brand game MVP ... and was easily considered one of the best high school hoopers this past season.

Rener Gracie is MMA royalty -- a member of the legendary Gracie family which created Brazilian jiu-jitsu.

But, he's also a fashion designer -- and he tells TMZ Sports his business went CRAZY a few weeks ago when he made a deal on "Shark Tank."

Rener is the creator of Quikflip -- which started as a hoodie that transforms into a wearable backpack.

The 35-year-old martial artist was a hit on "Shark Tank" -- and ended up making a $500,000 deal with Lori Grenier.

Now, Rener says the exposure from the show has resulted in a MASSIVE sales increase -- and coupled with his new famous and powerful business partner, he's ready to take over.

After weeks of issuing "no comment" statements regarding Tyreek Hill's criminal child abuse investigation ... prosecutors are now saying there is NO ongoing probe into the Chiefs star.

Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe announced back on April 24 that after weeks of investigating child abuse accusations, he could not charge Hill or his fiance, Crystal Espinal, with a crime.

Then, after disturbing audio -- which appeared to show Hill and his fiance arguing over their son's injuries -- leaked a day later ... KCTV (which had been leading the Hill coverage) said the DA had re-opened its investigation.

Several attempts to confirm those reports with Howe and his office were met with, "We have no comment at this time," responses.

But now, Howe appears to be saying prosecutors NEVER reopened the probe, telling The Kansas City Star, "It is not an active investigation,” and adding that comments he made at his April 24 news conference "still hold true."

It's big news for Hill -- as the Kansas City Chiefs only decided to suspend Tyreek after reports said the criminal investigation had been reopened after the audio files leaked.

In fact, head coach Andy Reid himself appeared to be under the impression the investigation was reopened, telling that to reporters at a pre-draft press conference in April.

But, it appears that was never the case, with Hill's attorney, Trey Pettlon, telling the K.C. Star, "It’s my understanding the criminal investigation has been closed for quite some time now."

"And obviously there’s been some misinformation about that, but it is closed.”

As for Hill's future, he still has an active case ongoing with the Kansas Department for Children and Families ... and Roger Goodell says he is still waiting to interview the WR over the allegations.

Brian France -- the former CEO of NASCAR -- just pled guilty to misdemeanor drunk driving stemming from an August 2018 arrest in the Hamptons ... TMZ Sports has learned.

France, 56, was pulled over on August 5, 2018 in Sag Harbor, NY -- and during the stop, cops say he bombed a field sobriety test and later blew a .18 on the breathalyzer ... more than twice the legal limit.

According to the police report, cops say they also found oxycodone pain pills. To make matters worse, we're told France name-dropped President Trump during the arrest in an effort to skate on the charges.

Now, the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office says France has pled guilty to one count of misdemeanor DUI and in exchange, he got 100 hours of community service and must complete an alcohol education course before June 5, 2020.

If he completes the terms of his plea deal, prosecutors will allow France to withdraw his guilty plea and reduce the charge to a traffic violation.

France was originally charged with misdemeanor criminal possession of a controlled substance, aggravated DWI and DWI, and was facing up to a year in jail for each charge.

France was the CEO of NASCAR at the time of the arrest -- a role he held for 15 years -- but took a leave of absence following the incident and later stepped down. Brian's uncle, Jim France, is currently serving as Chairman and CEO of NASCAR.

The late H. Wayne Huizenga's incredible Florida mansion has a new owner ... and the lucky buyer got it for a bargain -- $16.02 MILLION!!!

Huizenga -- who was worth more than $ 2.8 BILLION -- died in March 2018 at the age of 80. Besides owning the Miami Dolphins, Marlins and Florida Panthers, he also founded Blockbuster Video and Waste Management. Dude was RICH!!!

During his life, Huizenga bought up this amazing 20,653-square foot waterfront pad in Fort Lauderdale ... which boasts 10-bedrooms, a home gym, workshop, theater, billiards room and a kitchen with a pizza oven.

Oh, and there's also enough dock space to park your 135-ft mega-yacht ... right near the infinity pool which contains its own BELLTOWER!!!

Huizinga's estate previously listed the place for $27 million ... but they were clearly motivated to sell, and later put it up for auction where it sold on June 5th for a cool $16 MIL.

So, who's the highest bidder? Turns out the new owner is Charles E. West, Jr. -- the founder of Pet Supermarket.

Beyonce's publicist is calling for Bey's insanely faithful followers to fall back ... and stop harassing and threatening people like the wife of the Golden State Warriors owner.

Yvette Noel-Schure responded to the Beyhive's hateful Instagram bullying of Nicole Curran by reminding them of better times. Attempting to silence the buzz, she posted a #tbt photo of Bey and Jay-Z from their last tour, and then lectured them about spewing hate in their queen's name.

Yvette reminded the hive the On the Run II Tour "was a place of joy, unimaginable entertainment from two of the best performers in the world, and a place of love." Nice, calming touch.

Then she went in ... "I know your love runs deep but that love has to be given to every human. It will bring no joy to the person you love so much if you spew hate in her name. We love you."

As we reported ... the hounding of Nicole began after a TV camera showed her leaning over Beyonce to talk to Jay-Z. The moment went viral due to the perceived side-eye from Bey.

Curran tried to clear things up and pled for everyone to "help and support each other," but the Beyhive was so relentless she deactivated her Instagram account, saying the barrage of insults and cyberbullying also included death threats.

All this, Curran says, because she was asking Jay what he wanted to drink and leaned closer because she couldn't hear him.

The Dunking Deutschman is goin' American ... 'cause Dirk Nowitzki has officially started the process to become a U.S. citizen!!!

The recently retired 40-year-old Dallas Mavericks superstar and his Swedish wife, Jessica Olsson, are working on getting their green cards together ... which is the first step in a VERY long process to becoming a citizen.

"So once we accomplish that, then you have to be a green-card holder for, I think, over five years before you can even think about doing that [becoming a U.S. citizen]," Dirk told the Dallas Morning News.

"So we're going to do that and see how it goes. But obviously our [three] kids were born here and they all have U.S. passports and the wifey and I have been on a visa for the last few years. So hopefully that's going to be accomplished soon."

According to the Dept. of Homeland Security, Dirk's right ... he can apply for full citizenship 5 years to the day of obtaining his green card.

Dirk has previously said he won't give up his German citizenship -- the goal is to be a dual-citizen.

"But we're living here [in Dallas]," Nowitzki told DMN ... "This is where life is. We're going to continue to travel a lot in the summers, but once the school year starts, my oldest [daughter Malaika] is going into first grade next year."

Dirk and his wife won't be able to vote or hold a U.S. passport until they become official citizens in 5 years -- but they're not worried.

Until then, Nowitzki will fill his days eating ice cream and chilling with his family.

Deadpool, Batman, Spider-Man and Jesus all walk onto a plane ...

No, this ain't the start of the next 'Avengers' movie ... it's the Pittsburgh Pirates' epic costume party on Thursday!!!

The Buccos beat the snot out of the Braves in Pittsburgh in the morning ... and to celebrate -- they threw on their best outfits and hit the airport for their road trip to Milwaukee.

The guys really went all out ... MVP candidate Josh Bell made a hell of a Batman, shortstop Cole Tucker really loved his Frozone costume -- and pitcher Richard Rodriguez dressed up as Jesus.

A bunch of the starting pitchers -- including ace Chris Archer -- went with Ninja Turtles ... and catcher Elias Diaz was a stunning plus-sized Power Ranger.

The winner of the day (besides the Pirates, who are now just 4 games back of the Cubs in the NL Central) ... outfielder Gregory Polanco -- who had an Avatar costume complete with a tail!!!!

Conor McGregor WILL make his return to the Octagon in 2019 -- despite that whole "retirement" thing -- this according to Dana White.

"Conor is a competitor, man. He loves to fight. This is his passion in life," White tells TMZ Sports.

So, who's the opponent?? That's the tricky part.

Dana says he wants to see how the fights at UFC 238 this weekend shake out before announcing an opponent for Conor.

Remember, one of the most important fights of the weekend is Tony Ferguson vs. Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone ... both of whom want a crack at McGregor.

Dana tells us he knows Conor's goal is to get his rematch with Khabib Nurmagomedov ... but Khabib's already committed to fighting Dustin Poirier in September.

"We gotta see how everything plays out," Dana says.

The one thing White would ABSOLUTELY commit to -- Conor will fight in the Octagon before the end of the year.

It's a big deal considering back in March, Conor had said he was retiring from MMA to focus on his whiskey business.

He later said he WOULD fight again if Dana offered him an ownership stake in the UFC -- something Dana has said he simply WILL NOT do.

Tom Brady RAGED Thursday night -- pounding beers, dancing with his teammates and SHOWING OFF HIS 6TH SUPER BOWL RING!!!

The G.O.A.T. -- along with most of his 2018 Patriots teammates -- rolled over to Robert Kraft's mansion on Thursday night for the ring presentation ceremony for winning Super Bowl LIII ... and the party was LIIIT!!!

Even head coach Bill Belichick cracked a smile and flexed a little bit ... showing off his hardware too.

Rob Gronkowski ... you know he turned up -- and the future Hall of Famer was giddy like a kid when he saw the Super Bowl LIII Lombardi Trophy still has that DENT in it from that time he used it for batting practice at Fenway Park!

Josh Gordon was also on hand to get a Super Bowl ring -- despite being suspended for the back end of the season for violating the league's substance abuse policy. Before the suspension, Gordon had racked up 40 catches for 720 yards and 3 TDs.

The rings are sick -- each piece contains 422 diamonds, totaling 9.85 carats ... and 20 sapphires representing 20 AFC East Division Championships.

There are also a few sayings engraved into the rings -- including the playoff rally cry," Still Here," and the Patriots team motto, "We Are All Patriots."

Tom and the Patriots famously beat the L.A. Rams 13 to 3 in Super Bowl LIII -- with Julian Edelman winning the Super Bowl MVP award.

As for Robert Kraft, he seemed super happy and unfazed by the other drama in his life ... the ongoing Asian massage parlor prostitution case in Jupiter, Florida.

State prosecutors have appealed the judge's decision to throw out the video evidence in the case ... so it's an uphill battle for officials -- but a great situation for Kraft.

Al Sharpton says NBA teams are 100% right to scrap the "owner" title ... saying the term is historically insensitive and disrespectful to a large number of players and should be gone.

TMZ Sports reported that multiple NBA teams have gone away from calling their majority stakeholders "owners" because some believe the term has a negative connotation.

We got Sharpton in ATL, and he not only tells us he agrees with the move but gives us a history lesson on why the rest of the league should follow suit.

"Many of the NBA players are descendants of people that were enslaved. When we hear the term owner, it's a much different connotation than other people."

There are a lot of people who think the league is being too "woke," saying the word is used solely to describe the person in charge, and the NBA is nitpicking.

Sharpton says those people are wrong, and any league that's 75% black should do it's best to care about what its employees think.

Houston Rockets player P.J. Tucker ain't happy with the NBA's 1-year ban against Golden State Warriors part-owner Mark Stevens ... telling TMZ Sports, "It should be more!"

As we previously reported ... in addition to the 1-year ban, Stevens was also fined $500,000 for pushing Toronto Raptors star Kyle Lowry during Game 3 of the NBA Finals after Lowry dove into the crowd trying to save a loose ball.

Lowry says Stevens also cussed at him several times during the interaction.

Tucker says the NBA's punishment feels very light -- and says everyone should be outraged by Stevens' conduct.

"Don't put your hands on people," Tucker says ... "There's nowhere in the game for that."

Tucker says he's not sure what the punishment SHOULD be ... but noted, "If a player put his hands on a fan, it would be a lot harsher."