TMZ Sports - Page 50

Seems Anthony Joshua is already regretting his public offer to spar Tyson Fury -- admitting, "When I look back at some of the s**t I say, I think, 'Why did I say that?'"

Joshua had appeared on Sky Sports and said he'd be down to help Fury prepare for his upcoming rematch with Deontay Wilder ... even offering to be his sparring partner in camp.

So, why?

AJ says he thinks if Fury wins the rematch, "He'd be more inclined to fight me next and quicker" than Wilder.

The funny thing ... Fury actually ACCEPTED Joshua's offer and wants to train with the guy.

When Joshua was asked about the awkward situation (sparring his next likely opponent), the heavyweight champ says he WILL follow through on his offer.

"Sparring Fury is only going to do me good, in my opinion. So, I'm never too big for my boots where I can't learn anymore," Joshua said to iFL TV.

"Fury is a world-class fighter and I'm a world-class fighter that is still trying to improve so I can become like an elite-level fighter when I'm fighting."

"So, that opportunity, for me to spar Fury, is for my own benefit as well."

How do you celebrate closing roughly $1 BILLION in MLB contracts in one short offseason?!?

That's the question we posed to MLB superagent Scott Boras -- and while he's trying to downplay the historic impact of his work, you can tell he's pretty fired up!

FYI, Boras is arguably the most powerful agent in pro sports ... at least judging by the deals he's negotiated in the past couple of weeks.

Gerrit Cole signed a $324 million contract with the Yankees. Anthony Rendon inked a $245 mil deal with the Angels. Stephen Strasburg's getting $245 mil from the Nationals. And Mike Moustakas got $64 mil with the Reds.

So far, Boras' clients are at $878 mil in contract money this off-season -- and with Hyun-Jin Ryu, Dallas Keuchel and Nicholas Castellanos expected to close deals soon, Boras should easily pass the $1 BILLION mark.

"It’s really a great thrill," Boras told us at Reagan National Airport in Virginia.

"The biggest celebration is that you get to call the players you represent and let them know that something they’ve worked so hard for is complete."

Boras has a reputation for being a pretty hard-nosed negotiator -- so we asked if there are teams that are afraid to deal with him out of fear they'll have to break their piggy banks to get SB's clients.

"Oh, I don’t think anybody is [afraid]. When you represent great players everybody wants to talk with you."

There's more ... we also spoke with Scott about Bernie Sanders, who recently tweeted about the deal Boras inked for Gerrit Cole -- "If pitchers can make $324 million, we can pay every teacher in this country at least $60,000."

Boxing star Adrien Broner has been ordered to pay more than $700k to a woman who claims AB sexually assaulted her at a nightclub back in 2018, court records show.

As we previously reported ... the woman using the alias Katherine Larson claimed she was sitting on a couch when Broner smothered her and shoved his tongue down her throat at a Cleveland nightclub on June 8, 2018.

The woman claims Broner continued the assault until his friend pulled him off her.

The woman went to police and filed a report -- and later filed a lawsuit against Broner. Earlier this year, Broner pled guilty to assault and unlawful restraint of Ms. Larson.

Pro hockey player Akim Aliu says he's spoken with the Colorado Eagles equipment manager who wore blackface to a team Halloween party ... and has accepted the staffer's apology.

As we previously reported, Aliu says Tony Deynzer dressed up as him for the minor league hockey team's 2011 Halloween party ... with a custom jersey and blackface.

Aliu says he took photos with Deynzer at the time because he didn't want to create a scene -- but told TMZ Sports he was FURIOUS.

Now, Aliu and the Colorado Eagles have issued a joint statement saying they not only talked things out -- but Aliu requested the team to NOT fire the guy.

"Mr. Aliu also spoke with Tony Deynzer who had requested to speak with him about the incident," the statement said.

"The content of that conversation will remain private, suffice to say that Mr. Deynzer offered a heartfelt and emotional apology directly to Mr. Aliu which Mr. Aliu accepted."

Aliu added his own statement saying, "I accepted the apology by the Eagles and by Mr. Deynzer. I believe that we must confront racism head on."

"I believe the time for big positive change in the sport has arrived and that this moment can be used to promote diversity, inclusiveness, and safety in the sport and our community"

Eagles owner Martin Lind says the team has issued a formal apology as well -- noting, "Listening to Akim was both emotional and inspirational and a very moving moment in my career."

"I let him know how sorry we were as an organization and how it in no way reflects our values. I was appreciative that Akim was willing to take my call and listen to what we had to say."

The woman who allegedly stabbed NFL wide receiver Terrelle Pryor is finally being released from jail ... almost 3 weeks after she was locked up.

24-year-old Shalaya Briston appeared in an Allegheny County courtroom via video conference Tuesday for a bond hearing in her attempted homicide case.

Briston -- who is still locked up -- is facing serious prison time for allegedly stabbing Pryor in their Pittsburgh area apartment on Nov. 30 ... before taking him to the hospital.

During the hearing, the judge agreed to release Briston on house arrest -- she'll stay with her mother and won't be allowed to leave the home for anything other than court. She'll be required to wear an ankle monitor.

The Shepard family is gonna have some more presents under their Christmas tree this year ... 'cause the NY Giants star and his model wife, Chanel Iman, have welcomed their new daughter!!!

The beautiful couple shared the news from their hospital bed on Tuesday ... saying "Our Christmas gift came early" ... officially announcing Cassie Clay Shepard to the world.

It's baby #2 for the Shepards ... they welcomed their first daughter, Cali, in August 2018.

29-year-old Chanel and 26-year-old Sterling met at Victor Cruz's 30th birthday party in 2016. They have been inseparable ever since ... and got married in March 2018.

Of course, the Shepards enjoy their free time away from the kids as well ... remember their epic Turks and Caicos couples vacation with Baker Mayfield, Saquon Barkley and their ladies earlier this year?

Denver Broncos safety Kareem Jackson was just slapped with a 2-game suspension -- ending his 2019 season -- after cops busted him for DUI back in September.

Jackson -- a 31-year-old stud defender -- was arrested on September 19 in Denver after officials say he was speeding and driving under the influence.

KJ -- a former 1st round pick who was a star at Alabama -- immediately reported the arrest to Broncos officials ... who passed the news on to the NFL.

The league investigated ... and on Tuesday they handed Jackson a 2-game suspension.

The Broncos are 5-9 and have no shot to make the playoffs ... so it's not that big of a blow for the squad.

Jackson owned up to his screw up ... and posted a heartfelt apology on Twitter.

"I would like to apologize to the Broncos organization, my teammates & fans. I understand the severity in my lapse of judgement and I will certainly not make this mistake again. I know I am fortunate to play in the NFL and am held to a high standard of professionalism and conduct."

The Broncos also released a statement addressing Jackson's arrest.

"Kareem Jackson was arrested for driving under the influence on Thursday, Sept. 19. He immediately informed our team of the incident, which we promptly reported to the NFL and thoroughly reviewed as an organization."

“There are high standards for the personal conduct of all members of our organization, and we have expressed our extreme disappointment to Kareem for his poor judgment. Under the NFL Policy and Program on Substances of Abuse, he has been suspended for the Broncos’ final two games of the 2019 season.”

As far as his legal issues ... Jackson appeared before a judge in Colorado earlier this week and plead guilty to a reduced charge -- driving while ability impaired.

Joe Burrow's emotional tribute to his hometown during his Heisman acceptance speech has kick-started a national campaign to help out ... with over $115k raised for the local food pantry.

The LSU superstar brought awareness to the financial challenges surrounding Athens County, OH while tearing up on Saturday ... saying, “Coming from southeast Ohio it’s a very impoverished area and the poverty rate is almost two times the national average."

"There’s so many people there that don’t have a lot and I’m up here for all those kids in Athens and Athens County that go home to not a lot of food on the table, hungry after school. You guys can be up here too."

One Athens man was so moved by Burrow's message, he started a fundraiser to help put food on the tables for people in Athens.

"Let's answer Joey's call to action by supporting a local nonprofit that serves food to more than 5,000 households in Athens County each year," Will Drabold said in the post.

Of course, Burrow is beloved in his hometown ... and was an absolute beast for the Athens Bulldogs before becoming the best college player in the country.

The campaign started on Sunday ... and it's already raised a whopping $116,000 for the Athens County Food Pantry.

Props to all involved.

Also -- if you haven't watched all of Burrow's acceptance speech, the whole thing is amazing. Check it out.

The Ontario Hockey League goalie who nearly bled out on the ice after being severely cut by a skate was just released from the hospital, his team announced Tuesday.

17-year-old Tucker Tynan was in bad shape last Thursday night ... when his leg was slashed after an opponent crashed into him in the Niagara IceDogs' game against the London Knights.

The collision crumpled Tucker to the ice ... and emergency personnel quickly rushed him into surgery after they noticed blood profusely pouring out of his leg.

The good news? Tucker pulled through just fine ... and his IceDogs squad just announced he's left the hospital and is headed home for some R&R.

"Tucker Tynan has been discharged from hospital in St. Catharines," team officials said. "He is en route home to Chicago for some rest and recovery."

For his part, Tynan sent a message from the hospital bed over the weekend saying he was grateful for all the support during the scary time.

"Just wanted to say thanks to everyone for the kind words, truly they mean more than anyone can ever know," Tucker said.

"An unfortunate situation, looking forward to recovering and coming back even stronger and healthier than before."

Kumail Nanjiani walked into his workout regimen for "Eternals" as one big softy and emerged totally yolked thanks to high-intensity training, and a major focus on 2 key body parts.

Check out these workout videos of Kumail pumping iron with Grant Roberts ... the celeb trainer tells TMZ Kumail's transformation from scrawny to sculpted was all about intensity, and they trained for a little over an hour a day, 5 times a week for 10 months.

Kumail hit every body part training with Grant, but we're told the actor needed the most work on his shoulder and biceps, which were physically lacking when he started hitting the gym back in January -- Grant's words, not ours.

As you know, Kumail's super proud of his new look for the upcoming Marvel movie. He just pulled the curtain back on his transformation, showing off his guns and ripped torso.

Kumail's trainer tells us they did all the muscle sculpting with dumbbells -- raising sets and overhead pressings in every angle imaginable -- and that's where most of his energy went.

Here's UFC star Mackenzie Dern showing her holiday spirit ... rocking a tiny bikini in Brazil, where it's 80 degrees and sunny in the middle of December!

The 26-year-old jiu-jitsu champion is coming off an impressive fight against Amanda Ribas -- who she fought in October, just 4 months after Dern gave birth to her daughter, Moa.

Dern lost the scrap, but the fact she was able to get back into fighting shape in just 124 days -- and fought Ribas all the way to a decision after three 5-minute rounds is pretty damn amazing!

Now, Dern is back home in Brazil where she's getting in some quality beach time with her family -- including longtime boyfriend Wesley Santos, a pro surfer.

No word on when Dern will return to the Octagon and fight again -- but she's been back in the gym and we're told she's planning on taking a fight in early 2020.

Welcome to the league, rooks!

The Seattle Seahawks' defensive back core held its annual rookie dinner Monday night ... and a pair of first-year NFLers were hung with a $17,500 check!!!

The booze-and-steak-filled night all went down at Daniel's Broiler in Bellevue, Wash. ... and according to some of the vets, it was the most expensive rookie dinner in a while.

The receipt is absolutely nuts ... the guys bought a TON of expensive food and alcohol, piling up $11,000 worth of Louis XIII alone.

There was also Wagyu steaks, lobsters, calamari and all the fixin's ... and in total, the bill came out to $17,579.10!!!

As for the guys who whipped out the credit cards for the check ... Ugo Amadi and Marquise Blair were saddled with that task -- but neither seemed to be too pissed (at least judging by the videos we've seen).

Of course, perhaps they should've been ... neither is signed to that big of a contract -- Amadi is on a 4-year, $3,165,196 deal, while Blair inked a 4-year, $6,236,648 one.

But, hey, at least the vets seemed to appreciate the gesture ... with second-year corner Tre Flowers saying, "I been waiting on this day for a year lol."

The rookie dinner is nothing new in the NFL -- it's been going on for decades ... with Hall of Famer LaDainian Tomlinson previously telling TMZ Sports he had to pony up some major dough when he was a rookie in 2001.

"The late Junior Seau and the veterans hazed me by taking me to dinner and spending $18,000 of my money!" LT said.

Offset is calling for Fortnite to lift the ban on his teammate FaZe Jarvis -- telling TMZ Sports a lifetime punishment sends the WRONG message to the kids.

As we previously reported, 16-year-old Jarvis -- one of the top Fortnite players in the world -- was banned for life from all Fortnite events after admitting to using illegal software to get an advantage during non-tournament play.

Jarvis claims he was just using the software to goof around while streaming -- and would never do anything to break the rules during competitive play.

Epic Games -- the company behind Fortnite -- has refused to budge ... but now Offset, who recently joined the FaZe Clan is speaking out in hopes of getting Jarvis back in the game.

"Fortnite says the game is for the youth. The youth makes mistakes a lot of times. Let the kids play, that what they love to do," the Migos rapper told us.

"Give him a ban. Like, ban him for 30 days. Give him probation terms or something like that and then if he keeps doing the same violations then you do that [suspend him for life]."

"But, a couple times messing up?! They kids ... know what I mean?"

By the way, Offset's not just involved in the gaming side of FaZe Clan -- he just dropped a new fashion collab and debuted the merch Monday night at the FaZe Arcade on Melrose.

Horrible setback for ex-NBA commissioner David Stern -- who is now in critical condition after undergoing emergency brain surgery.

77-year-old Stern has been hospitalized since Thursday when he suffered a sudden brain hemorrhage at a Manhattan restaurant.

It seems things had stabilized ... but now, The Athletic's Shams Charania says Stern suffered ANOTHER brain hemorrhage, requiring emergency surgery.

The NBA has issued a statement on Stern ... saying, "He is receiving great care and surrounded by his loved ones."

"The Stern family and everyone at the NBA appreciate the incredible outpouring of support.  Our thoughts and prayers remain with David and his family."

Stern served as NBA commish from 1984 to 2014. He famously shook LeBron James' hand when he was selected with the #1 overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft.

Russell Westbrook isn't fazed by the $100 MILLION lawsuit filed against him over an incident with a heckler ... we're told his camp strongly feels the suit is "meritless."

Westbrook is being sued by Shane Keisel -- a U.S. Army vet who got into it with the Houston Rockets player during a March 11 game in Utah against the Jazz.

In his suit, Keisel admits he tried to heckle Westbrook by telling the NBA star "that he should just sit down and ice his knees."

But, Keisel claims Westbrook misheard him believing he shouted a homophobic insult -- "get down on your knees like you used to."

Westbrook went nuclear on Keisel and his girlfriend, Jennifer Huff -- yelling, "I'll f*ck you up. You and your wife. I'll f*ck you up." Video of Westbrook's comments went viral.

In fact, Keisel says he was banned from the Vivint Smart Home Arena and all Utah Jazz games for life. Plus, Keisel says he was fired from his job, kicked out of a pilot training program and has received numerous death threats.

The Jazz claims they conducted an investigation before issuing the ban -- but Keisel says the probe is massively flawed ... with no video evidence showing him making any sexual or racial slurs. And, Keisel says witnesses who were sitting in the area are siding with him, not Westbrook.

He and Huff are now suing both Westbrook and the Jazz for $100 million for defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, false light and more.

A source close to Westbrook slammed the claims telling us, "The lawsuit is meritless. The Jazz conducted their own investigation of the guy's conduct at that game and based on their investigation, they decided to ban him from attending any future Jazz games."

Steven Adams kept it about as real as possible after sinking a game-winning free throw for the Thunder on Monday ... saying the moment caused him to "absolutely s**t" his pants!!

The Thunder were tied 106-106 with the Chicago Bulls with just a few seconds remaining in the game ... when Adams was fouled near the basket and sent to the free-throw line.

The situation was pretty simple for the 26-year-old 7-footer ... make a free throw and win the game, or miss it and give the Bulls a shot at their own game-winner.

Adams sank the first one, and while he missed the second one ... he secured the rebound, sealing the win for OKC.

After the game, Adams said the moment really got to him ... straight-up telling the team's sideline reporter, "I absolutely s**t my pants."

"It's a lot! It's pretty tough!" Adams said. "I didn't realize how much pressure it is."

Meanwhile, during the whole interview, teammate Dennis Schroder was hilariously making fun of Adams for needing to bank in the free throw to win the game!!