TMZ Sports - Page 50

U.K. prime minister Theresa May just laid down the gauntlet to Russia -- saying NO members of the British government OR the royal family will attend the World Cup over a chemical attack on a double agent living in England.

May is FURIOUS over the attack on Sergei Skripal -- a former Russian spy who was jailed in Russia in 2006 for selling state secrets to British intelligence officers.

He was released in 2010 as part of a spy swap -- and was living in England. He was being visited by his 33-year-old daughter, Yulia, when they were both poisoned in an attack British officials are blaming on Russia.

May has already expelled 23 Russian diplomats from the country -- and has blocked Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov from his upcoming planned visit to Britain.

But, May REALLY let the Russians know she's pissed when she called off plans for high-ranking British officials and Royals to attend the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

"There will be no attendance by ministers or indeed members of the royal family at this summer's World Cup in Russia," May proclaimed in a speech to Parliament.

"Don't sleep on Floyd Mayweather" when it comes to MMA ... because the guy can REALLY wrestle -- so says Floyd's hired muscle.

We spoke with Floyd's personal private security force -- Jizzy Mack and Greg La Rosa -- and asked them how their boss is prepping for his MMA debut.

The guys say they haven't seen Floyd training with UFC welterweight champ Tyron Woodley yet -- but acknowledge "he's a beast" and would definitely be the man to get Floyd UFC-ready.

But, the most interesting part ... both guys claim Floyd has legit ground skills.

"Floyd's tough all around ... he can wrestle."

These guys spend MOST of their lives right by Floyd's side -- from traveling to the gym -- and they would know how Floyd's been training for his rumored transition into MMA.

As for Tyron, he says he's spoken with Floyd and agreed to train him -- and even spelled out how his training camp would go on "The Hollywood Beatdown."

The Miz has had a change of heart about CM Punk's UFC career -- now, he's SUPPORTING the guy ... despite mocking Punk after his brutal debut loss back in 2016.

Remember, the DAY after Punk lost to Mickey Gall at UFC 203 ... Miz and Dolph Ziggler spoofed the fight on "WWE Backlash."

But now with Punk returning to the Octagon at UFC 225 in June, Miz says he won't make fun of Punk anymore.

Instead, Miz says Punk should be APPLAUDED for chasing his dream ... adding, "I hope he does well."

He also says Punk doesn't give a crap about all the haters because, "if you come from WWE, you have a thick skin because you're hated on all day, every day."

The big question ... will Miz ever follow Punk's footsteps and take a real MMA fight, too?

Trump's White House ain't playin' when it comes to March Madness -- so says Deputy Press Secretary Raj Shah, who tells TMZ Sports a "very high stakes" pool is ON for the tourney.

You might remember -- Donald caused quite a stir last year when he broke Obama's tradition and didn't fill out a bracket.

So ... does this Oval Office pool signal a change of heart for POTUS??

Raj wouldn't say ... but he did reveal his pick -- and told us D.C.'s other power players are split on who's going all the way.

"Basketball Wives" star Evelyn Lozada says if her life were on the line and she could only call one of her exes to save her ... she'd call Chad Johnson in a heartbeat.

Shaunie O'Neal and Evelyn were on "Van Lathan's The Red Pill Podcast" when Lathan asked each lady which one of their famous exes they'd call if they were in a life-threatening situation and could only call one.

Shaunie went with Shaq (duh, they have a perfect post-marriage life) while Evelyn chose the Ex-NFL star.

"Chad. And not that I don't have faith in Carl, Carl would be there, but we're talking about if my life is on the line."

The Carl she's referring to is ex-MLB star Carl Crawford, who Lozada was engaged to and had a son with before they broke up last year.

As for Lozada, she was married to Ochocinco for a little over a month in 2012 before a highly publicized domestic violence incident led to divorce.

Evelyn said she's not at all overlooking that or saying it's not a big deal, but based on the question, it's Chad over Crawford and former NBA star Antoine Walker ... her other famous ex.

Don't laugh off Conor McGregor hitting the campaign trail -- 'cause one of the most powerful members of Ireland's government says the Notorious could totally run for office!

We got Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar out at SXSW in Austin ... and he told TMZ Sports it'd be crazy to rule out the UFC megastar parlaying his popularity into a political career -- something McGregor hinted at recently.

Varadkar knows about defying the odds -- dude was Ireland's first openly gay and ethnic minority PM when he was elected in 2017, not to mention the youngest one in the country's history.

Leo also just met Arnold Schwarzenegger (which we got on video) -- and said if The Governator could do it, why not Conor??

Get ready to throw away your Girl Scout cookies, normies ... 'cause Sylvester Stallone's out here muscling 100-POUND WEIGHTS in his private gym -- and crushin' it like Rocky in his prime!!

Hard to believe, but Sly's already 71 years old ... but that hasn't slowed down his workout routine, clearly.

Regular pull-ups (or chin-ups if you're a workout nut) ain't enough for the senior Italian Stallion ... so, he strapped the weight of a small human around his waist and LETARIP!!!

What's even more shocking ... Sly captioned the vid -- "Another easy workout! You’re only as old as you and your joints feel!"

Not as savage as the 1-armed pull-ups ... but pretty damn impressive.

1-handed MMA star Nick Newell says his uphill battle to make the UFC ain't unlike the one Ronda Rousey and other female badasses faced back in the day ... and he's making his case for the same outcome.

We spoke to Nick after his dominant comeback fight at LFA 35 over the weekend, and he doubled down on his pitch for a UFC fight -- telling us he's done more than enough to scrap inside the Octagon.

"I'm gonna win fights there," Newell told TMZ Sports. "I'm ready to start snappin' some necks and cashin' some checks."

But Nick, who's 14-1 after his latest win, didn't sound too confident he'd get the call -- comparing his situation to the era of women's MMA before Rousey broke through.

Of course, women are now bigger in the UFC than arguably any major pro sports org. -- so "Notorious" is hoping Dana White changes his tune.

Donald Trump will be rubbing elbows with his supporters in one of the ritziest gated communities in Southern California.

TMZ has learned the fundraiser will go down at the home of Ed Glazer, the owner of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He lives in the super exclusive Beverly Park community in Beverly Hills.

Our sources say it was first billed as a "victory party" but later changed to a fundraiser.

Glazer has commissioned a company to install tents for the occasion -- a 40x50, a 40x40 and a 10x15. There are 64 guests who are invited for the event which will be held sometime between 5 and 10 PM.

The price of admission ... minimum $35,000 per person, with a top price of $250,000.

Bad news for Kansas City Chiefs tight end Demetrius Harris ... dude just got sentenced to JAIL TIME after getting caught with more than an ounce of weed.

As we previously reported, Harris was pulled over in Missouri back in March 2017 and, during the stop, cops found more than 35 grams of marijuana in the car.

He was initially charged with felony possession -- but later struck a deal with prosecutors in which he pled guilty to a lesser possession charge (misdemeanor) and in exchange he got 2 days in jail.

A spokesperson for Bates County Circuit Court tells TMZ Sports Harris will not get credit for time served -- he must complete the 2-day sentence at a later date. No word on when he plans to turn himself in.

Harris was also sentenced to 80 hours of community service and 2 years probation and must complete an NFL drug program.

Once again ... all of this for WEEEEEEEEED.

Jose Altuve INSISTS he wasn't angrily staring through Donald Trump's soul at the White House on Monday -- he just has resting angry face.

The photo of Altuve went viral ... showing the Houston Astros star with the ultimate mean mug while standing behind Trump during the ceremony to honor the World Series champs.

But on Tuesday, Altuve spoke with reporters and insisted he was NOT trying to disrespect the President.

"The president was talking ... what do you want me to do?" Altuve said.

"I was just standing there listening. It was an honor to be there. If I didn't want to go, I just wouldn't go."

"I'm behind the president ... probably one of the most important guys in the world. I can't be laughing or doing stupid things while he's talking. I need to listen."

Guess not everyone's obsessed about teaming up with LeBron this offseason -- at least, not Danilo Gallinari.

We got the Clippers star up in the Bev Hills ... and asked him if he thought Bron might pull a fast one and ditch the Lakers for L.A.'s other hoops squad this summer.

Danilo wasn't so sure about that -- but when we asked if he'd even want the King ballin' with him on the Clips, Gallo didn't mince words.

"I like the teammates that I got now. I like the team that we got now."

Ex-Oakland Raiders cornerback Sean Smith was just remanded into custody to begin a 1-year jail sentence after pleading guilty to felony assault stemming from a 2017 attack in Pasadena.

As we previously reported, Smith beat the hell out of his sister's boyfriend in Old Town Pasadena on July 4 -- punching and stomping the man so badly, he suffered 5 facial fractures.

The victim required major reconstructive surgery including a metal plate under his right eye.

Smith initially pled not guilty, but eventually struck a deal with prosecutors in which he agreed to plead guilty to felony assault by means of force likely to create great bodily injury.

In exchange, Smith got 1 year in jail and 5 years probation. The judge also told Smith he's not allowed to own a gun -- for the rest of his life. He's also ordered to pay the victim restitution.

Smith was handcuffed and taken into custody right in the courtroom to begin his sentence. He already has 1 day of credit under his belt -- so only 364 more days to go.

One of the frontrunners to fight CM Punk is making his case for the big-money bout ... saying he'll make it an unforgettable scrap -- by knocking Punk the hell out!!

We spoke with MMA fighter/personality Mike "The Truth" Jackson after confirming Punk was taking a 2nd fight at UFC 225... and he dropped some real talk about why he should get to knuckle up the former WWE superstar.

"It's styles, it's personalities, it's somebody who's gonna sell the fight," Jackson told TMZ Sports. "Let's make money, Dana!"

As for the likelihood of Mike getting the call ... he says he's already chatted with a UFC matchmaker and Punk's coach, but "nothing is set in stone."

That said, they're both 0-1 and got wrecked by the same fighter in their UFC debuts (Mickey Gall) ... plus, we found video proof he can cut a promo!

How did Steph Curry get down for his dirty 30??

By pullin' up to his party in a frickin' YACHT ... and slamming a plate of ribs during a live E-40 set!!

And that's just a taste of what went down at Steph's oceanside shindig ... where the 2-time MVP and his Warriors bros rang in his birthday "Ballers" style.

A ton of lit song and dance went down Monday night in SF ... featuring Curry himself, who hopped onstage to lead a Rick James karaoke bro down!!

Of course, his teammates weren't gonna let him have all the fun -- right, KD, Draymond and Klay?

E-40 wasn't the only music artist in attendance -- Paramore's Hayley Williams was also in the house to serenade him with the happy bday song.

Steph looked happy as hell the whole night ... and we would be too with hundreds of millions in the bank at age 30.

Party on, Stephen.

Attorney Shawn Holley, a member of O.J. Simpson's "Dream Team" that got him acquitted of double murder, says she was disturbed by Simpson's interview with Judith Regan, but it doesn't necessarily mean he committed the crime.

Holley, who worked for Johnnie Cochran during the trial, was a key member of the defense team. She says O.J. isn't stupid, and the only way he would have agreed to such an interview is if he spoke hypothetically and assumed the character of the murderer. She says he was told to behave in a certain way during the interview and he did that.

She admits its super weird for O.J. to assume the character of the man who murdered his ex-wife.

Holley says, at the time she and Johnnie represented Simpson, they believed in his innocence. As for whether her view is now shaken ... well, watch what she says.