TMZ Sports - Page 50

WWE legend Joseph Laurinaitis -- AKA Road Warrior Animal -- died during a romantic getaway with his wife to celebrate their wedding anniversary, this according to police documents.

Laurinaitis -- one half of the famous Legion of Doom tag team -- was with his wife, Kimberly, at the Margaritaville Lake Resorts in Osage Beach, Missouri on Sept. 22 for a quick getaway.

According to the police report, obtained by TMZ Sports, Laurinaitis had set up a whole romantic evening for Kim -- starting with a fancy dinner and returning to their room, which was covered in rose petals and a gift basket.

But, after they arrived back to the room, Laurinaitis suffered a medical emergency -- and collapsed on the bed.

Kim tried to perform CPR, but unfortunately, Joseph could not be saved, according to officials.

The medical examiner launched an investigation into his death -- and notes medication for Laurinaitis was collected at the scene.

Laurinaitis is considered one of the best in-ring performers of all time -- he wrestled for most of his WWE career with Road Warrior Hawk and won multiple tag team championships as The Road Warriors/Legion of Doom.

He was only 60 years old.

RIP

Jared Goff's smokin' hot model GF, Christen Harper, had the perfect setup to watch the L.A. Rams on Sunday ... supporting her man in a bikini at home!!

The 25-year-old NFL QB and 26-year-old SI Swim model have been dating for more than a year ... but fans aren't allowed at SoFi Stadium until further notice due to the COVID pandemic.

So, Harper had to improvise for L.A.'s home matchup against the Giants ... and her viewing party looks a lot more appealing than sitting around a bunch of drunk fans in a crowded stadium for several hours (no offense, SoFi. You're beautiful too).

"I guess watching football from home isn’t thaaaat bad 🏈," Harper said on IG ... with the Rams game visibly on display on the big screen TV behind her.

Goff and Harper sparked dating rumors as early as January '19 ... and went Best Buy official when TMZ Sports caught up with them at the electronics store a few months later.

As for Harper's gameday attire, maybe it's good luck -- L.A. won, 17-9, and Goff went 25-32 with 200 yards and a TD.

Either that or the Giants just suck that bad.

Davante Adams clearly ain't happy over being ruled out for the Packers' "Monday Night Football" game ... saying, "I guess I don’t know my body as well as others."

The Green Bay superstar has been battling a hamstring injury since Week 2 ... and it was so bad, it forced him to miss his team's win over the Saints last weekend.

But, Adams had planned on returning for the Packers' game against the Falcons on Monday ... though it now seems team docs have other ideas.

Adams tweeted (and later deleted) early Monday morning that he's been ruled OUT for the matchup -- despite clearly believing he's ready to go.

"Sorry fans and friends I wont be on the field tonight," Adams said. "I’ve done everything I need to do and proved Im ready but I guess I don’t know my body as well as others."

"Good luck out there my boys."

It's obviously a big blow for Green Bay ... Dude is a 3-time Pro Bowler who's racked up for more than 5,000 receiving yards in 88 career games.

As for fantasy football purposes ... it's a REALLY tough blow if ya had gambled on the wideout playing.

Finally, some good news for the NY Jets ... their star defensive end Quinnen Williams is officially off the hook for bringing a gun and ammo to an airport back in March.

As we previously reported, the 3rd overall pick of the 2019 NFL Draft was arrested back on March 6 when officials say they found a Glock 19 in Quinnen's luggage while going through a security checkpoint at NY's LaGuardia airport.

Officials say the gun was not loaded -- but they did find one 15-round high capacity magazine in Quinnen's bag.

22-year-old Williams was arrested and initially hit with two charges -- Class E and D felonies for criminal possession of a firearm.

At the time, Quinnen's attorney, Alex Spiro, told us the gun was "lawfully owned" and the issue was more about "the manner" in which the firearm was stored in the luggage.

Now, Spiro says the criminal gun charges have been formally dropped -- and Quinnen was instead hit with a minor citation.

"As we said from the outset, this matter has been resolved with no criminal charges," Spiro said in a statement.

"This case was nothing more than a technical issue with the storing of the firearm which is why the government gave Mr. Williams nothing more than a ticket."

L.A. Rams star Jalen Ramsey was so heated after brawling with NY Giants WR Golden Tate on Sunday, he reportedly waited outside of the locker room after the game for round 2!

Yeah, these guys HATE each other.

Here's the deal ... right after the Rams defeated the Giants on Sunday, Jalen Ramsey and Golden Tate got into a straight-up fist fight at midfield.

Ramsey and Tate really don't like each other -- Jalen used to date Golden's sister, and has two kids with her.

But, the couple went through a public breakup last year ... and after the split, Golden accused Jalen of not treating his sister well.

"I’m not happy at all with the disrespect that he’s shown towards my sister," Tate told The New York Post last year, "and the things he’s done in the past, but I don’t really want to go too much into it."

In fact, when a fan on social media insisted Golden was going to have to talk with Jalen over the end of the couple's relationship ... Tate said, "He know he gonna have to see me."

Fast-forward to Sunday afternoon at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles ... and Jalen saw Golden alright.

After the Rams finished beating the Giants, 17-9, Tate and Ramsey reportedly threw haymakers at each other in a wild fight near the 50-yard line.

That, of course, ignited an all-out brawl ... with players leaving both bench areas to enter the fracas.

Fortunately for both teams, nobody appeared to be injured in the melee -- and it was all broken up after just a few minutes.

But, after the game, Ramsey reportedly wanted round 2 with the Giants star ... ESPN reported the defensive back lingered outside the Giants' locker room after the fight to try to get another piece.

The two, however, did NOT ultimately meet up again for a 2nd go-around.

Neither Rams coach Sean McVay nor Giants coach Joe Judge had too much to say about the incident after the game.

"I don’t know all the details," Judge told reporters, "so I’m going to reserve comment on that until I find out everything."

Ya gotta love the effort!!

Here's Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Malik Jackson straight-up CHEATING during a 4th quarter goal-line stand ... and it's actually pretty impressive!

The 49ers were trying to mount a miraculous comeback in the final 2 minutes of Sunday night's game ... and had just moved the ball right to the Eagles goal line.

Right after the refs had spotted the ball inches from the end zone -- Jackson used his foot to secretly nudge the ball back about half a yard, which is HUGE in that situation!

And, the funniest part ... HE DIDN'T GET CAUGHT!!

Unfortunately for Jackson, the 49ers handed the ball off to Jerick McKinnon on the next play ... and the running back scored anyway -- but still, funny stuff!

In the end, the Eagles ended up winning the game 25 to 20 ... and Jackson has become a viral sensation on social media.

The New England Patriots are en route to Kansas City to play the Chiefs on Monday night ... after new rounds of testing showed no new COVID cases.

Remember, it was Friday night that Patriots QB Cam Newton tested positive for COVID-19 ... raising serious concerns about an outbreak within the organization, just like the Tennessee Titans.

As a result of Cam's test, the Pats vs. Chiefs game -- initially scheduled for Sunday in KC -- was postponed to Monday to allow for more testing.

But, according to multiple reports, ZERO players and staffers outside of Cam have tested positive since Friday ... so the team will go ahead and travel Monday morning, in order to play Monday night.

As for the Chiefs, backup QB Jordan Ta'amu had tested positive over the weekend -- but no other Chiefs players or staffers have tested positive either.

Both Newton and Ta'amu are in quarantine and will not attend the game.

After the game, the Patriots will get right back on the team, plane and fly back to New England, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.

Darryl Strawberry wants to personally help former NBA star Delonte West kick drugs ... 'cause the MLB legend knows firsthand how addiction can ruin lives.

The 58-year-old former NY Mets star famously battled alcohol and cocaine addiction -- but he's been sober for over a decade and now dedicates his life to helping others conquer drugs.

So, with 37-year-old West -- who was reportedly using drugs and living on the street -- entering rehab last week with the help of Mark Cuban, we called Strawberry to ask what advice he has for the hooper.

"Delonte West is just like anyone else that probably has some deep-rooted issues that have never been dealt with, ya know? Putting on a basketball uniform and being successful, that just covers up everything that happens to a person."

Strawberry continued ... "It reflects back to when he was probably young somewhere, some kinda trauma, abuse or something affected him and it can leave you crippled and paralyzed. So, no one signs up to be in that situation he is. I didn't sign up to be in that situation."

But, Darryl -- who now runs Strawberry Ministries with his wife, Tracy -- isn't just talking about West's struggles ... he actually wants to work with Delonte.

"I would love to help him."

Strawberry says he doesn't want to interfere with Delonte's current treatment program ... but after he completes rehab, Straw wants West to know he'll be around to help keep on the right back.

"My hopes and thoughts and prayers are with him. Here was a guy that was successful playing in the NBA, and here he is struggling. He's down and out."

"I just want him to know that people like me, that are in recovery, been for a long time, is praying for him and thinking about him," Darryl tells us.

"If there's anything I can ever do to encourage him and sit down and have a talk with him, I just hope he can reach out and do that."

Italian kart driver Luca Corberi took road rage to another level and put racers' lives at risk ... when he threw a temper tantrum and a bumper on the track as they flew by.

The insane incident went down at the FIA KZ World Championship Sunday after Corberi was reportedly disqualified for coming into contact with another driver.

Instead of bowing out like a professional, Corberi chose to stand by the side of the track with a bumper that had fallen off ... and waited to throw it at a passing driver.

Problem is, it seems he missed his target, and the bumper pinballed around on the track before striking another driver. Luckily, it looks like nobody was hurt, and nobody lost control of their karts due to Corberi's bumper toss.

The announcer was baffled by his behavior, and said ... "I'm sorry, that is absolutely unacceptable."

The angry 23-year-old driver wasn't done though, and physically attacked the racer he initially threw the bumper at after the race was over. This led to a brawl involving several other drivers until everyone was separated.

Calling all (rich) Kobe Bryant fans, an incredibly unique collectible from the Mamba's historic 60-point farewell game is up for grabs ... but it'll cost a fortune!!

A large section of the Staples Center hardwood court -- where Kobe played his final NBA game -- is set to hit the auction block ... and the piece is truly 1-of-a-kind.

The floorboard features KB's original jersey number, 8 -- painted in white, outlined in Lakers purple -- signed by the L.A. legend before he walked off the court he dominated on for nearly 2 decades.

Remember, Kobe -- who was 38 years old at the time -- had one of the greatest final games in sports history ... dropping 60 points on the Utah Jazz during the April 13, 2016 contest.

Bryant started off slow, but was UNSTOPPABLE in the 2nd half ... leading his Lakers squad to a come-from-behind victory.

It was truly a jaw-dropping performance by the Hall of Famer ... and that's why the court section is expected to sell for a whopping $500,000!!

We're told the seller will donate 10 percent of the proceeds to the Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation -- a foundation named after Kobe and Gigi Bryant -- which promotes youth sports.

Online bidding starts September 4 at Heritage Auctions ... and a live auction will be held September 26.

Mamba would have turned 42-years-old on Sunday, and Monday (8/24) was dubbed Kobe Bryant day ... with everyone from James Harden, Anthony Davis and LeBron James celebrating the basketball legend's life.

"Just sell the damn team and shut up!"

That's U.S. Congressman Max Rose clapping back at NY Knicks owner James Dolan after the billionaire donated money to his political opponent ... after Rose called for Dolan to sell the team!!

It's a feud that escalated quickly right here on TMZ Sports -- and it's only getting nastier.

Rose -- a decorated war veteran and lifelong Knicks fan -- told us he's sick and tired of watching the Knicks suck ... and publicly called for Dolan to sell the damn team already!

Dolan -- who's banned fans from Madison Square Garden for urging him to sell -- clearly saw the clip and immediately began a campaign to support Rose's opponent, GOP Congressional candidate Nicole Malliotakis.

According to the NY Post, Dolan sent an email to friends bashing Rose and trying to rally support for Malliotakis.

"Max Rose thinks he can make our team and my ownership his political platform," Dolan said in the email obtained by The Post.

"I need to let him know that we will not stand for this. The best way to do this is to help his opponent. He is in a tight race for the US Congress in Staten Island. ... Please join me in helping Nicole defeat Max Rose for Congress."

So, we called up Rep. Rose ... and yeah, he had some thoughts!

"Well, we all know that Jim Dolan has the Midas Touch ... so I'm not exactly too concerned here. Look, I didn't make it political, he did! My message was simple: for the good of New York City to make the Knicks great again -- sell the damn team!"

"Think about what's been happening in the 21st century. On an aggregate basis, the Knicks have the worst record in the NBA and nonetheless, they have spent the most! What more signs do you need that this guy has been a world failure?"

"They've gone through over 10 coaches, a massive amount of executive staffs, trading players left and right. The only constant has been Jim Dolan. So, let's sell! This has been a tough year but in 2021, New York can turn the corner. Jim Dolan sell, we can say goodbye to Bill De Blasio and we can finally beat this pandemic."

There's more ... Rose also brings up Dolan's beef with NYK great Charles Oakley and warns Dolan, "I will not be silenced."

Antonio Brown's letting everyone know he's still got a "Whole Lotta Money" ... 'cause he just copped an INSANE iced out pendant and chain to celebrate his record label.

The 32-year-old superstar wide receiver started his music career -- and CAB label -- after the New England Patriots cut him last September due to multiple off-the-field incidents.

AB has released songs, mixtapes and music videos ... but wanted to take it a step further, so he hit up celeb jeweler Leo Frost and commissioned the bling.

We're told the CAB Records pendant is decked out in 18k gold and is filled with 32 carats of VVS diamonds.

The Cuban link handset chain is also 18k yellow gold ... and has 65 carats of VS1 diamonds.

Overall, the piece has a whopping 97 carats of diamonds.

It's unclear how much AB dropped on the chain and pendant ... but Frost's work ain't cheap -- and neither is that many diamonds.

The jeweler has hooked up some of the NFL's biggest stars in the past ... with ballers like Saquon Barkley and Joe Burrow going to see Frost.

Despite the music, AB -- who is currently in the middle of an 8-game suspension -- is still training for an NFL comeback.

Celebs might not have be able to root for their favorite team in person this season, but that doesn't mean the players haven't felt the love all the way in Orlando!

Stars such as Rihanna, Snoop Dogg, and John Cena are just a few of the celebs to name that are proud to root for the Lakers ... And since these fanatics can't show up courtside for the Lake-show, we're bringing the fan photos to you to get ready for Game 3!

The NFL's COVID problem is getting worse -- Cam Newton has tested positive for coronavirus and will not play this weekend.

The New England Patriots QB was supposed to lead his team against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, but the positive test obviously will end those plans.

Newton tested positive on Friday night -- and according to the team, he immediately entered self-quarantine. The team says no other players or staffers who came in close contact with Cam have tested positive at this point.

The game was supposed to be one of the marquee matchups for the NFL this weekend -- it's being marketed as Cam Newton vs. Patrick Mahomes, two massive stars.

Now, 31-year-old Newton will likely begin a lengthy quarantine process -- and we assume he'll be tested daily (maybe multiple times a day) for the foreseeable future.

Newton is far and away the biggest NFL star to test positive for COVID since the season began. During the preseason, multiple superstars including Ezekiel Elliott and Von Miller had it.

Just last week, several players and staffers from the Tennessee Titans tested positive for COVID -- forcing the NFL to postpone their game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, originally scheduled to go down on Sunday.

As for Sunday's game, the Patriots have issued a statement saying, "We are in close consultation with the NFL, as well as our team independent doctors and specialists, and will follow their guidance regarding our scheduled trip to Kansas City and game against the Chiefs."

"The health and safety of our team, as well as our opponent, are of highest priority."

ESPN's Dianna Russini says the Patriots players were sent home from the team facility Saturday morning -- and told to stay by their phones regarding travel plans to KC.

Russini also claims she spoke with multiple Patriots players who are all "very concerned" about the situation.

Story developing ...

Sergey Kovalev pled guilty Friday in a criminal case stemming from an alleged violent incident with a woman and dog in 2018 ... and the boxing star will now have to spend the next 3 years on probation, TMZ Sports has learned.

Kovalev was accused of punching a woman in Big Bear, Calif. back in June '18 ... after the alleged victim claimed she turned down his sexual advances.

The woman, Jamie Frontz, said the two had met at a boxing gym-opening party ... and began kissing at her rental cabin shortly after.

But, she says when she pulled away from the fighter after feeling like he was too aggressive ... he became violent.

Frontz says Kovalev kicked her dog ... and then later socked her in the face.

In an interview with TMZ Sports about the incident, Frontz claimed the punch caused a broken nose, a concussion and facial lacerations.

Kovalev was eventually arrested and hit with a felony assault charge ... and faced YEARS behind bars.

But, according to court docs, Kovalev cut a deal with prosecutors Friday ... and got the felony charge dropped.

In exchange, 37-year-old Sergey pled guilty to misdemeanor fighting/noise/offensive words ... and was sentenced to 3 years probation.

Kovalev was also ordered to serve a 2-day jail sentence ... but he received credit for time served and won't spend any more time behind bars.

Court docs also show Kovalev must attend/complete an anger management program, as well as pay $220 in court fees.

We've reached out to the boxer's attorney for comment ... but, so far, no word back yet.

Ex-NBA star Stephen Jackson says his fight for social justice is just getting started ... telling TMZ Sports it's become his mission to be there for those who need help following the death of his friend, George Floyd.

Jackson made his presence known shortly after Floyd's death in May ... speaking out in hopes of bringing awareness to the cause.

We spoke with Stack about his new calling on Thursday ... and he says he's been called to make an impact on society.

"What I do know is, is that I'm leading with my heart and I'm doing what God wants me to do," Jackson tells us.

"I didn't ask to be in this position, I wish I could get my twin back. It is what it is."

Jackson says his new journey has made him realize there are more people who need his help ... and he's up for the task.

"So, it's become my passion and I've been embracing it. I know I'm doing God's work. So, wherever it takes me, I'll find out how I'm doing sometime soon."

Jackson -- who was close friends with Floyd -- was one of many to speak out and demand justice by calling for the arresting officers to be prosecuted ... but he says it's not the only incident he will speak out on.