TMZ Sports - Page 50

Oscar De La Hoya took a break from training for his return to the boxing ring ... to SING with a mariachi band on Cinco de Mayo, and TMZ Sports has the footage.

The 48-year-old hit up Maestro, a Mexican food restaurant in Pasadena (he's like the mayor over there) and started feeling himself when the mariachi band began to play.

So, Oscar -- who once released a Latin Pop album back in the day -- decided to grab the mic and take over the lead singing duties.

Look, he ain't exactly Marc Anthony ... but it's not bad for a guy who was mowing down his dinner just minutes before taking the stage.

The crowd loved it and cheered him on as he sang hits like "Amor Eterno" by Rocio Durcal and "Sigo Siendo el Rey" by Vicente Fernandez.

FYI, Oscar's self-titled album was released in 2001 and actually got nominated for a Grammy for Best Latin Pop Album alongside Shakira, Christina Aguilera and Luis Miguel!!!!

Oh, he lost to Shakira's MTV Unplugged album -- which, in her defense, still holds up.

As for the boxing side of things, Oscar announced he'll be returning to the ring on July 3 ... but his opponent has still not been announced.

Huge opportunity for Michelle Waterson ... who knows a victory over Marina Rodriguez tonight will get her one step closer to her goal -- avenging her loss against the champ, Rose Namajunas.

Waterson -- aka "The Karate Hottie" -- is currently ranked #9 in the UFC's strawweight division and coming off an incredible victory over Angela Hill.

She's squaring off against #6 ranked Rodriguez on Saturday night -- and says there's extra motivation to get that "W" ... revenge.

The current strawweight champ is Rose Namajunes -- who choked out Waterson when they clashed in 2017.

Michelle says she thinks about that fight all the time ... and she's laser-focused on earning a chance to run it back.

"I would love a rematch," Waterson tells TMZ Sports ... "In actuality, I was doing really well against her right up until I wasn't. So, it was just that moment that lost me the fight."

"You have to be able to rein it all in on that very, very special day and those very, very special 25 minutes and I've come to realize that and I understand how important it is to stay in the zone the entire time."

First, she needs to get through Rodriguez -- who's been impressive since joining the UFC in 2018 ... with only 1 loss on her record.

"9 fights into my career, I believe that I'm going to be the greatest."

That's 30-year-old MMA star Kayla Harrison predicting that she -- NOT Amanda Nunes, Cris Cyborg or anyone else -- will go down as the best mixed martial arts fighter ever.

TMZ Sports talked to Harrison -- a 2x PFL tourney winner who's undefeated in the cage -- after DOMINATING Mariana Morais at PFL 3 ... where she won by TKO in only 83 seconds.

After the fight, Harrison sent a message to the MMA world ... saying, "If anyone thinks they can step to me they can come get in the cage. From now on, I'm the baddest woman, in this room and in any room."

Of course, only 1 person can be the baddest ... and if it's Kayla, that means it's not the current (widely accepted) G.W.O.A.T., Nunes -- the UFC's bantamweight and featherweight champ.

But, was Harrison -- who is also a 2x Olympic gold medalist -- calling out Nunes?! Kayla says definitely not.

"It's not personal. It's not directed at Amanda [Nunes]. It's not directed at Claressa [Shields]. It's not directed at Cyborg. This is about me and my belief in myself."

FYI, Harrison and Nunes are super cool with each other ... and even train at the same gym -- American Top Team -- in Florida.

Why'd Kayla make the bold proclamation ... well, she says she got tired of being politically correct.

"I think I just realized that it’s time to stop being this golden girl or like this miss congeniality. I truly believe that what I said I feel is the truth. So why wouldn’t I say it."

There's more -- after her fight, Harrison took a jab at "YouTuber idiots" who think they can fight ... so we asked the combat sports star about Jake Paul.

Antonio Brown invited 6ix9ine to work out at his personal training facility in Florida ... and you know who's pissed off about it??

Pretty much the entire internet.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers Super Bowl champ posted video with the controversial rapper on Friday ... running some 1-v-1s and easily catching passes over the rainbow-haired MC.

But, there's just one problem -- a lot of people have distanced themselves from Tekashi recently ... after the rapper was labeled a "snitch" for ratting out his gang member friends during his 2018 RICO case.

Folks on Instagram didn't shy away from calling A.B. out for the questionable move ... with NBAer J.R. Smith commenting, "Bruh...," and NFL player Terrelle Pryor adding, "Damn AB."

Other critics were harsher... with one person saying, "AB they gonna clown you for this one dawg," and another commenting, "Oh Hell No."

There's more ... "From being the best receiver in the league to 3rd string at Tampa and now doing workouts with a snitch ... #rockbottom."

Canadian Football League player Ahmad Thomas added ... "Taking L’s all across the board?"

We could keep going ... but you get the idea.

The black eye and bloody mouth will fade ... but Jake Paul was still able to get a permanent reminder of his altercation with Floyd Mayweather -- immortalizing the incident with a new tattoo!!

The YouTube superstar showed off his new ink Thursday night -- just hours after he was roughed up at Hard Rock Stadium by Floyd and the boxer's bodyguards ... and it's pretty damn funny.

The tat -- located just below his right knee -- reads "Gotcha Hat" and features a picture of a baseball cap.

Of course, after Jake famously stole the hat off Floyd's head following the Floyd-Logan news conference in Miami -- he shouted repeatedly, "Gotcha hat!"

The scene was wild ... Jake got pummeled after stealing the cap -- and showed off a shiner and a bloody mouth in a video of the aftermath.

But, Jake's been having a great time with it all regardless ... talking all kinds of smack, getting the tat AND selling new "Gotcha Hat" merch.

Logan and Floyd are set to face off on June 6 ... and we're fired up for that -- but there's got to be Jake vs. Floyd immediately after that.

Washington Capitals forward Tom Wilson says his attack on Rangers players earlier this week was completely justified ... insisting all he was trying to do was defend his goalie.

The 27-year-old explained the situation in his first meeting with media members since Monday night's drama ... saying New York players started it all when they messed with Caps goaltender Vitek Vanecek.

"Their guy goes to our net and kicks at our goalie and goes in there with his stick," Wilson said.

"At a young age in hockey, you’re taught to stand up for your goalie, so that’s what I was doing."

Wilson then explained he violently took down Rangers star Artemi Panarin because he claims the dude just straight up jumped on his back in an aggressive way.

"I think anybody’s first reaction would try to be just to throw them off you and wrestle them down to the ice," Wilson said. "And, that’s what I thought about it at the time."

Wilson added he believed it all to be a "fairly routine hockey scrum."

Seemed the NHL agreed, 'cause Wilson was NOT suspended and was only hit with a $5,000 fine ... which enraged the Rangers, who called the punishment complete B.S.

In fact, they were so upset with it ... when the two teams met again on Wednesday night, NY players could not stop going after the Capitals -- inciting brawls seconds after the puck dropped.

The two teams fought so much, Wilson was ultimately forced out of the game due to injury.

Wilson -- who appeared to be contrite about the whole situation at his news conference Friday -- did say he personally reached out to Panarin after the incident, and is glad he's doing better.

The Rangers, meanwhile, paid a $250,000 fine for blasting the NHL's head of player safety, George Parros, in a scathing statement after Wilson's punishment was announced.

Legendary NFL coach Mike Holmgren says the Aaron Rodgers drama in Green Bay is all the Packers' fault ... and he says if he were running the show there, it would've never gotten to this point.

The 72-year-old -- who coached the Pack from 1992-1998 -- broke it all down on the "Carmen and Jurko" show on ESPN Chicago ... saying straight-up the Packers blew their marriage with the QB.

"I can't imagine a relationship between the coach, or management, or whoever is making the decisions and a star quarterback like that getting to this point," Holmgren says.

"I just can't imagine it. I wouldn't allow it. It wouldn't happen."

Holmgren says the team should have looped in Rodgers before it drafted Jordan Love in 2020 ... adding Green Bay should've done everything in its power to keep the future Hall of Famer happy.

"With a franchise quarterback and a guy as good as Aaron -- you don't treat all the players the same," Holmgren said. "You have a line that no one crosses, but I would call him in and say, 'Look, we're going to do this. This is how it's going to affect you.'"

"'We've got to get ready for when you retire. We've got to kind of think of the franchise. But, nothing's going to happen now. You're the man. You're the guy.'"

Holmgren says he believes that would have resolved issues ... and even if it didn't, he says he would've found other ways to fix it.

Of course, Mike acknowledges back in his day he never really had to have conversations like these -- saying when he was with San Francisco, they never told Joe Montana about bringing in Steve Young.

Holmgren, though, explained, "It's a different world now. It's a different world."

Hall of Famer David Ortiz thinks Albert Pujols was done dirty by the Angels ... saying the legendary slugger should have been able to walk away from baseball on his own terms -- and calling his release "devastating."

The 3-time MVP was given his walking papers after 9 seasons with the L.A. Angels on Thursday ... with baseball fans wondering if they've seen the last of 41-year-old Pujols on a baseball diamond.

If that's the case, Ortiz -- who grew up with Pujols in the Dominican Republic -- is PISSED ... saying the future first-ballot Hall of Famer earned the right to decide when he's done.

"Brother @albertpujols, all the way with you incredible career one of the most beloved player of all time on and off the field l do not agree on the move that just happen," Ortiz said in an Instagram post on Friday.

"That was devastating for fans and player l know this is a business but l was expecting someone like you to walk away like you deserve."

Of course, there were rumblings Pujols was considering retirement after the 2021 season anyway, but Ortiz says a man who has done so much for the sport deserves more respect.

There will be no Aaron Rodgers/Jordan Love-like drama in Tampa ... 'cause new Bucs rookie QB Kyle Trask says Tom Brady's already offering to be his mentor!!

The former Univ. of Florida signal-caller -- who was drafted in the 2nd-round by Tampa Bay last week -- says Brady is already looking to meet him, throw with him and take him under his wing.

“He actually did reach out to me a couple of days after the draft," Trask said of Brady to NFL Network.

"Just checking in on when I was going to get into town so that we can get together and maybe do some throwing and things like that. That meant a lot to me."

Trask says others in the org. have been equally as welcoming ... telling the Network, "You can definitely tell that they have a great culture and a great group of people just in this building and I can’t wait to get started."

Of course, things aren't always this way in the NFL ... Rodgers and his drama with the Packers after they drafted Love in 2020 certainly highlights that.

But, Brady's always made an effort to get along with his backups/potential replacements ... in fact, Jimmy Garoppolo just said this week TB12 really helped him after the Patriots brought him into New England in 2014.

Wayne Gretzky is not only The Great One on the ice ... but clearly off of it too -- 'cause the NHL legend made a fan's life by re-autographing a baby shoe, and the story is awesome.

Back in 1986, a little boy and his mother ran into Gretzky -- but they had one problem ... they had no hockey memorabilia for Wayne to sign.

So, Mom thought quickly on her feet, handed over her little boy's Nike shoe ... and Gretzky gladly slapped his John Hancock on it.

The piece actually came out pretty cool ... it's a baby shoe with Wayne Gretzky's signature on it!!

But, after 30-plus years ... the signature faded, and the boy who had kept it all that time was heartbroken.

So much so, he says he tried EVERYTHING he could to get in touch with Gretzky to have him re-sign the shoe.

Fortunately, after years of reaching out, he posted his story on a Facebook group's page ... and the guys at Upper Deck eventually caught wind of it and decided to lend a helping hand.

They were able to ultimately get the shoe back in front of Gretzky ... and, after explaining to him the story of it all -- the hockey legend gladly signed it again!!

The piece is now truly incredible ... Gretzky wrote "1/1" on it alongside his signature -- and Upper Deck authenticated it and sent it back to the fan, who couldn't have been more grateful.

"I can't thank everyone enough that helped get this done," the fan said. "This shoe will remain in my Family forever. If I thought it was priceless before, it has now become even more priceless if that’s possible."

Sam Ehlinger's younger brother -- Univ. of Texas linebacker Jake Ehlinger -- was found dead near campus on Thursday ... TMZ Sports has confirmed.

A spokesperson for the Austin Police Department tells us cops received a call at around 12:18 PM, and a short time later, found Jake's body just blocks away from the university.

The spokesperson did not reveal a cause of death or any other details surrounding the tragedy ... but did note the department is considering it all "non-suspicious."

Jake walked onto the Longhorns' team in 2019 -- joining up with his older brother, Sam, who was a STAR quarterback for UT for the previous few seasons.

Jake did not log a snap in his first two years on the team.

Sam and Jake were very close ... in fact when Sam was picked by the Indianapolis Colts in the 6th round of the NFL Draft last week -- the two brothers shared a long embrace with other family members.

Jake was just 20 years old.

RIP

Tristan Thompson has his legal guns putting the heat back on the Instagram model claiming she has salacious texts from him ... telling Sydney Chase to put up or shut up.

The Celtics star -- who's with Khloe Kardashian -- had his attorney, Marty Singer, fire off a legal threat to Chase ... who claims she had sex with Tristan after he got back with Khloe.

In the letter, obtained by TMZ, Singer says Chase is refusing to prove the existence of the alleged texts and it can only lead to one "inescapable conclusion ... that they do not exist."

As we reported ... Tristan's legal team previously fired off a cease and desist to Chase, claiming they never had a relationship and he never sent her any texts ... and she initially denied receiving the threat.

Chase has since changed her tune, acknowledging she received the cease and desist after it was sent to another email address ... and now Tristan's legal team says she keeps "changing the purported 'facts' to fit [her] story."

Logan Paul insists the dust-up between his brother and Floyd Mayweather was NOT a scripted stunt ... telling TMZ Sports, "I f**king wish that wasn't real."

"I wish it was staged," Logan added ... "That s**t is not funny. It's not fun for anyone."

As we previously reported, Jake Paul took over the media event at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on Thursday and got right into Floyd's face ... stealing his baseball cap and touching off a violent altercation.

Floyd was PISSED -- chasing after Jake while screaming that he was going to "kill" the YouTube superstar.

We spoke with Logan after the incident and he told us the whole situation is giving him even MORE motivation to flatten Mayweather when they step in the ring on June 6.

"That s**t just got personal by default. It was supposed to be like a cute little press conference ...come together, get people excited for the fight. Not people talking about killing people! What the f**k!?"

We asked Logan if he had a message to Floyd ... and of course, Logan delivered.

"This is gonna be the craziest f**king evening to ever take place in the history of combat sports."

"My message to Floyd is this ... we're gonna get you that hat back, Floyd."

By the way, the Floyd incident was the talk of Hollywood on Thursday -- just ask rapper Rich the Kid, who weighed in on the incident when we spotted him in Beverly Hills.

Conor McGregor says Floyd Mayweather should be "embarrassed" by his run-in with Jake Paul on Thursday ... saying the fact he's feuding with YouTubers is just "sad."

The UFC superstar dropped some strong criticism about his old opponent after things went sideways at Thursday's media event at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami ... calling out Mayweather CEO Leonard Ellerbe for allowing Floyd to get involved with such a circus.

"Hey [Leonard Ellerbe], what the f**k is Floyd at?" Conor posted on IG.

"The kid [Jake Paul] curled up, didn’t fight back once, and Floyd is still running around acting the tough guy."

"The kid actually just pulled this shambles of a situation Floyd is in out of the drain for him. He should thank him. It’s embarrassing!"

Conor's point is Floyd is too accomplished and too big of a draw to be fighting unaccomplished non-professionals like Logan Paul and Jake.

"Pro to pro it’s embarrassing," Conor continued.

McGregor predicts the June 6 PPV event will ultimately be a failure -- saying Floyd "will not scratch $10 million for this fight and he knows it."

"It was cancelled once already. The world is watching this on Twitter. He’d fight a half decent pro and command 20m upwards, yet its this s**t."

"Whatever way you spin this, it’s sad. Fight someone for real, on your record, or f**k off mate. Slap head!"

Kim Zolciak's time on another reality show has come to an end ... "Don't Be Tardy" is getting the ax after a long run on the air.

Production sources tell TMZ ... the TV show -- which follows the daily lives of Kim, her husband, Kroy Biermann, her daughters, Brielle and Ariana and the rest of the family -- is not returning for a 9th season on Bravo.

We're told the network decided not to move forward with another season of 'Tardy' because Bravo felt the show had simply run its course after 8 years documenting the famous fam.

The reality show debuted way back in 2012 when it was known as "Don't Be Tardy For the Wedding" ... and the first season follows Kim and Kroy as they prepare to say "I do."

'Tardy' was the first spin-off from "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" ... and Kim famously left 'RHOA' to do her own show.

Canelo Alvarez and Billy Joe Saunders are fighting in front of a MASSIVE crowd Saturday night, but promoter Eddie Hearn says you should NOT worry about Covid ... 'cause there are precautions in place to keep fans safe.

The fight's going down May 8 at AT&T Stadium in Texas -- where there are no restrictions -- and will likely be the most attended event in America since the pandemic struck early last year.

"We're gonna be just under 70,000. So it's gonna be incredible," Hearn says ... "I think I remember seeing Canelo box Liam Smith and it was about 40,000 people there and the atmosphere was just absolutely insane. This is gonna be a very, very special atmosphere."

Some people have said packing the building with fans is a bad idea ... so we asked Eddie to address the situation.

"We're not the first in terms of big numbers returning to Texas. All sports now have been bringing crowds back. You've seen no spikes because of that," Hearn says.

"There will be masks worn, mandatory, on Saturday night. I've noticed, to be honest with you, as a Brit coming into states that have opened up like Texas and Florida, people aren't going out there care-free and just ignoring rules."

"People are actually being sensible and they will be Saturday night, and everyone will have a safe night."