TMZ Sports - Page 50

Jayson Tatum has become the latest NBA superstar to honor Kobe Bryant with a tribute tattoo ... and the Boston Celtics superstar's new artwork is AWESOME.

The 23-year-old revealed the ink this week ... showing off two black mamba snakes on the inside of his knee that form the shape of a "24" -- Kobe's old jersey number.

The tattoo artist who did the piece, Steve Wiebe, tells TMZ Sports ... Tatum got the work done in Los Angeles this month -- sitting for an hour and a half to get it all completed.

Of course, Tatum is a HUGE fan of Kobe's ... he's said often Bryant was his favorite player growing up -- and he's talked glowingly of the time the two spent together.

In fact, Tatum and Kobe would work out together from time to time in offseasons ... and Tatum has said the drills with the Lakers legend helped mold his game.

As we previously reported, plenty of NBA players have gotten Kobe ink on their bodies after the Hall of Famer died in a helicopter crash in January 2020.

LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Matt Barnes all got tats after the tragedy. Vanessa Bryant and celebs like The Game and Snoop Dogg also famously got tribute ink as well.

New Orleans Saints and Pelicans owner Gayle Benson is doing her part to help ensure Louisianians gets back on their feet after Hurricane Ida ... donating $1 MILLION to storm victims.

Benson and the Saints announced the charitable act on Monday -- saying they're praying for those impacted by the hurricane that has wreaked havoc on Louisiana since it made landfall over the weekend.

"As South Louisiana and the Gulf Coast begin to assess the significant damage inflicted by Hurricane Ida, please know our prayers are with all of those who have suffered from the impacts of this historical storm," Benson and the Saints said.

"We have great faith in the resilience and strength of our community and look forward to doing everything in our power to help lead in the recovery."

Benson and the Saints say the $1 million will go to their Gulf Coast Renewal Fund ... and they urged others to join in with donations as well.

"We will continue to be in close communication with governmental and community leaders to determine where aid and assistance can most effectively be directed," Benson said.

The Saints added that the Superdome suffered only "minor damage" in the storm ... and they're hopeful it won't impact any part of their upcoming regular season schedule.

"We know how much winning games can unite and inspire people in our region," the Saints said, "and we can't wait to take advantage of that responsibility and opportunity."

Dale Brisby is getting hyped as 2021's version of Joe Exotic -- and while he does have a new show on Netflix, Dale says there's one huge difference ... he's not behind bars!!!

The star of "How To Be a Cowboy" joined us Tuesday on "TMZ Live" to tell us how a long-time ranch manager and pro bull rider becomes the subject of a wild new TV docuseries.

As a bunch of city slickers, we gotta say it was eye-opening! Dale says he has a fresh group of interns -- half a dozen of 'em -- hungry to learn how to be a real-life cowboy, or how to ride a bull.

He says they're bucket list items for some, and a career starter for others.

The Netflix show drops Wednesday and the reviews are already comparing it to last year's Netflix phenomenon, 'Tiger King.'

Dale seems pretty comfortable with the comparisons, but he makes it clear he doesn't come with Exotic baggage. His character, though, seems just as bold.

BTW, if you're digging Dale's look ... you gotta see him explain why his shades never come off, even when he's riding bulls.

Soulja Boy is ready to settle his beef with Kanye West the ol' fashioned way -- by throwing hands -- telling TMZ Sports he wants to come face-to-face with Ye for a celeb boxing match for the ages.

Draco recently threatened to beat up West on social media, saying he'd "knock out" the Donda artist ... so when we ran into the hip hop star in L.A. on Monday, we asked about the warning.

"That's just me having some fun, you know what I'm saying? We ain't trippin', man," Soulja says ... "Unless Kanye wants to get in the boxing ring, know what I'm saying? I think we could make $100 to $200 million."

Of course, the beef started when West cut Soulja Boy's "Remote Control" verse out of Donda ... and that really pissed him off.

Soulja's got his hands full ... Aaron Carter recently challenged him to a fight (Celebrity Boxing is trying to lock down the match).

But, a scrap between West and Soulja Boy could be one of the biggest celeb fights of all time.

Bottom line, Soulja's message to Ye is this ... "Kanye, lets get in the boxing ring."

Golf fans will now have to find a new way to troll Bryson DeChambeau ... 'cause the PGA Tour just announced it will no longer allow fans to shout "Brooksy" at the star golfer.

At various tournaments throughout the past year, fans have ribbed Bryson with the jeer ... and he's hated it -- snapping at patrons nearly every time.

Of course, the shade is a nod to Bryson's beef with fellow golf star Brooks Koepka -- and it's something Koepka fans have gotten plenty of joy out of the last few months.

But, PGA Tour commish Jay Monahan said Tuesday the taunts will no longer be allowed ... calling the "Brooksy" remarks "disrespectful."

"The barometer that we are all using is the word 'respect,'" Monahan told reporters. "And to me, when you hear 'Brooksy' yelled or you hear any expression yelled, the question is, is that respectful or disrespectful?"

"It has been going on for an extended period of time, and to me, at this point, it's disrespectful. And that's the kind of behavior we're not going to tolerate going forward."

Monahan said the "Brooksy" comments -- and any other acts deemed disrespectful by fans -- will now result in a ban from events.

It's got to be refreshing for Bryson to hear ... 'cause just a few days ago, he reportedly told one fan to "Get the f*** out!" after the person had screamed "Great job, Brooksy!" at him.

Dude's been pretty good despite it all -- so, begs the question ... could the ban now lead to even better performances from the superstar going forward??

Ric Flair's barbed wire bat -- the one he used to smash and bloody Mick Foley's face at SummerSlam in 2006 -- just sold for nearly $20K at auction.

TMZ Sports has learned the Lucille-like bat, which was on the block at Goldin Auctions, was bid on 17 times ... and ultimately raked in $19,680.

The starting bid was $3,500.

The match is pretty iconic ... Flair repeatedly hit Foley in the face with the bat, turning him into a bloody pulp. But, Ric wouldn't stop, demanding Mick say, "I quit!"

It was the culmination of a rivalry between Naitch and Foley that lasted more than a decade.

As for the bat itself ... it's an Alex Rodriguez model Louisville Slugger C271 -- wrapped in barbed wire.

And, you know the bat's legit ... 'cause it's coming directly from the folks at WWE -- who have also included a letter of authenticity.

There's more really cool wrestling memorabilia that sold ... like Big Boss Man's match-used nightstick from SummerSlam in 1988. It sold for $6,765.

There's also Brutus Beefcake's shears from his '89 SummerSlam match ... when he teamed up with Hulk Hogan and took on Randy Savage. The scissors went for $8,400.

Amadeu Campos Silva -- a promising young bull rider -- died after a "terrible accident" at an event in California on Sunday, the Professional Bull Riders announced. He was 22 years old.

Campos was riding a bull named Classic Man during the championship round of the PBR Velocity Tour in Fresno ... when he was bucked off after about 5 seconds.

As he went down, Campos' spur got stuck in his rope, which led to Classic Man stepping on his chest. He was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he sadly passed away.

Campos was born in Brazil ... and came to the U.S. after competing in PBR Brazil in 2017 and 2018 to pursue a World Championship.

He also competed in the PBR World Finals in 2020.

"Amadeu Campos Silva was a son, a brother, a soccer teammate, and a smiling presence in the locker room, here in the U.S. pursuing his bull-riding dream," Sean Gleason, PBR's CEO, said on Twitter.

"Amadeu was a rising star in our sport; a cowboy with so much potential on and off the dirt," Gleason added.

"The entire PBR and western sports family extend our thoughts, prayers, and heartfelt condolences to Amadeu's family and friends."

"Please say a prayer tonight for them, and may Amadeu's soul eternally rest in peace."

Cam Newton is a Patriot no more ... New England has released the veteran QB in a shocking move.

The Pats announced the cut on Tuesday ... paving the way for rookie Mac Jones to be the starter in New England going forward.

Newton hasn't exactly lit it up for the Pats in his time under center -- he threw for just 2,657 yards and 8 TDs along with 10 interceptions in 15 games last season.

And, his preseason work this summer wasn't exactly inspiring either.

Still, Cam inked a 1-year, $5.1 million contract this offseason to play for the Pats ... and all indications were he would begin the season as QB1 in New England.

As for what's next for the Pats now, it's clear Bill Belichick is ready to ride with Jones -- the former Alabama superstar who the team drafted with the #15 overall pick in the spring.

Jones had a very good preseason -- throwing no interceptions and completing 36 of his 52 pass attempts in three games.

It's unclear, meanwhile, if Newton will find much interest from NFL teams now that he's a free agent.

Naomi Osaka just made one young fan's day at the U.S. Open on Monday ... by gifting her a collectible Olympics pin as a "thank you" for showing so much support during her first-round match!!

The 23-year-old superstar advanced to the second round after winning in straight sets just hours ago ... and the little girl was cheering for her the entire time!!

Osaka -- who had an early exit from the 2020 Olympic Games -- said she had a few trading pins left over from her time in Tokyo ... so she decided to give an extra to her biggest fan in the stands!!

FYI -- Olympic pin trading is a tradition that goes back more than a hundred years ... with athletes, reporters and fans all swapping the little items during the Summer and Winter Games.

Osaka was asked about the gesture in her post-match interview ... saying, "I just heard her when I was playing my match and she was so cute."

"So, thank you for cheering me on!"

The camera then showed the fan smiling from ear-to-ear -- at least, we're assuming, 'cause the whole mask situation -- and waving back at Osaka.

"I thought it would be a nice little memory," the #3-ranked player added.

The Cristiano Ronaldo move from Juventus to Manchester United is official ... and the soccer superstar couldn't be happier about it, saying, "I'm back where I belong!"

Man U formally announced the Ronaldo signing Tuesday ... and it wasn't long after that Cristiano got emotional about running it back with the team he had so much success with from 2003 through 2009.

"Everyone who knows me, knows about my never ending love for Manchester United," Ronaldo said in a statement on his Instagram page.

"The years I spent in this club were absolutely amazing and the path we've made together is written in gold letters in the history of this great and amazing institution."

The footballer continued, "I can’t even start to explain my feelings right now, as I see my return to Old Trafford announced worldwide. It’s like a dream come true."

Ronaldo became a legend in his first stint with Manchester United, winning his first-ever Golden Boot award as well as his first-ever Ballon d’Or honor with the Red Devils.

Jay Cutler might be having problems playing the field after splitting with Kristin Cavallari, but she's doing just fine ... TMZ's learned she's dating a big country star.

According to our sources ... Kristin and singer Chase Rice have been seeing each other for about 2 months now, though we're told it's pretty low-key and casual so far.

Our sources say they've been talking and hanging out pretty regularly, getting to know each other, but seem to be heading toward that territory best described as smitten with each other.

We're told Chase and Kristin were introduced through a mutual friend in Nashville -- where they both live most of the time -- and hit it off, but their relationship isn't exclusive just yet.

As we reported ... Cutler recently admitted he's not had much fun back in the dating world since he and Cavallari officially called it quits in April 2020, describing the scene as "hard as hell."

Jay described the many challenges he's faced, including the major change of using apps and social media platforms to court women, adding ... "I'm at a different phase of my life now with kids and priorities are just changed."

Speaking of kids ... our sources with knowledge of Kristin's situation say Chase hasn't met hers yet.

MMA fighter Kyle "Boom" Reyes -- who trained out of Randy Couture's gym in Las Vegas -- died on Monday, according to various reports ... days after his family said he underwent surgery.

He was 30 years old.

Reyes was born in Guam ... and made his professional MMA debut in 2009 for the Pacific Xtreme Combat promotion.

Kyle -- who lost to current UFC champ Alexander Volkanovski in 2014 -- fought for different promotions across the world, and had a pro record of 15-7 at the time of his passing.

He trained out of Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas.

It's unclear exactly what caused Kyle's passing ... but his family said he underwent surgery to repair a torn bicep and broken hand last Friday.

However, Reyes was found unresponsive in his room the following day, and was rushed to the hospital, according to his family.

Once in the hospital, Reyes -- who was in the ICU -- developed pneumonia and suffered a collapsed lung.

According to the last update before his death, it seemed Kyle's condition was improving ... sadly, however, he passed Monday.

The MMA community has already begun showing love for Reyes ... with Trevin Jones, Daniel Rodriguez, Cody Stamann, Dan Ige and Alex Volkanovski, among the many fighters offering their respects online.

Reyes' family has set up a GoFundMe.

R.I.P.

Jake Paul just beat future UFC Hall of Famer Tyron Woodley via a split decision victory -- and then the fighters seemingly agreed to a rematch in the ring.

24-year-old Paul fought a good fight ... and was the more active fighter over the 8 rounds.

Woodley had his share of positive moments ... stunning Paul near the middle of the 4th round.

After the fight, during the post-fight interview -- which went down in front of a packed house at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland (Jake's hometown) -- the guys came face-to-face and seemed to agree to a rematch.

The condition ... if Woodley got the "I Love Jake Paul" tattoo done.

The action wasn't just in the ring ... stars like Dave Chappelle, Dustin Poirier, Andre Berto and a bunch of Olympians from Ohio were in the building.

Chappelle was REALLY into the fight ... jumping up-and-down behind the ring for nearly the entire scrap.

Paul said Woodley put up a better fight than he expected ... but called the split decision "bulls**t."

And, Jake won in more way than one ... sharing a post-fight kiss with GF Julia Rose.

As for the rest of the card ... Tyson Fury's bro, Tommy Fury won a 4-round unanimous decision victory over Anthony Taylor.

After getting his 1st dub on American soil, Tommy called out Jake ... challenging him to a fight.

Lil Nas X wants the world to know he has no beef with Tony Hawk -- 'cause the rapper hung out and skated with the legend ... just days after calling out the double standard between his Satan shoes and Hawk's blood-painted skateboard.

Of course, Hawk teamed up with Liquid Death to sell limited edition "Blood Deck" skateboards painted with his blood earlier this month ... which was met with not nearly as much backlash as LNX's kicks with bloody soles.

While Hawk's boards aren't laden with satanic imagery, LNX's shoes are ... but he still felt the outrage was actually for another reason, not the fact that they were demonic as hell (ha).

"Now that tony hawk has released skateboards with his blood painted on them, and there was no public outrage, are y’all ready to admit y’all were never actually upset over the blood in the shoes? LNX said on Twitter, "and maybe u were mad for some other reason?"

But, the two made it clear they are not about to get in an all-out bloodbath over the controversial items ... with LNX rocking his Satan Shoes and Hawk holding his blood board as they posed for a pic!!

Hawk even came up with a clever name for the duo ... saying, "blood brothers?"

Hawk and LNX made a TikTok together ... with the artist pretending to ride down a halfpipe.

Despite the outrage over the blood, the guys aren't doing anything too groundbreaking -- after all, legendary guitarist Steve Vai did this way back in 2000 with his "JEM Y2K DNA" models, which are super collectible and painted with his own blood, too.

JuJu ... WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!?!

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver and influencer JuJu Smith-Schuster just joined the biggest craze on the internet -- the milk crate challenge -- days before the NFL season is about to kick off ... and we're concerned.

If you've been living under a rock, the crate challenge is when people try to climb unstable stacks of plastic bins ... balancing on as many as 7 at one time.

It's a seriously dangerous act -- some people have reported major injuries from trying it -- and even social media platform TikTok has banned the content due to safety concerns.

But, that hasn't stopped JuJu from getting in on the action ... with video surfacing Monday of the 24-year-old recently attempting the challenge.

Thankfully, JuJu was able to make it across the line of crates without a problem ... but the big issue is that there's a chance it could NOT have ended well.

Granted, it looks like there were a couple of guys ready to catch him if he fell ... but still, who knows what coulda happened.

BTW -- JuJu recently signed a 1-year, $8,000,000 deal with the Steelers ... and plays an important role in the team's offense.

He's come under fire in the past for antics like posting TikToks in the locker room and dancing on opposing teams' logos.

With Week 1 approaching, it sure seems like there are much safer ways to pass the time.

Dozens of Jimmy Hayes' fans paid their respects to the ex-NHL player at his funeral on Monday ... emotionally saluting the former hockey player with their sticks at the procession.

New Jersey Devils star P.K. Subban was in attendance at St. Ann's Church in Massachusetts for the ceremonies ... and captured the amazing tribute.

You can see in Subban's footage, people lined up on both sides of the street -- with Dorchester Youth Hockey players wearing their jerseys and holding their sticks to pay homage to the former pro.

Subban also shared some photos of kids holding custom-made Hayes jerseys at the salute.

As we previously reported, Hayes tragically died in Milton, Mass. last week at just 31 years old. A cause of death has not yet been publicly revealed.

Jimmy's wife, Kristen, and his brother, Philadelphia Flyers star Kevin Hayes, gave emotional speeches at the funeral Monday ... with Kristen saying, "You were simply the best. There's no other way to put it."

"The boys and I were your whole world," she added. "Every morning you would wake me up with, 'Hi, big momma' or, 'Big momma looking hot.' You said you felt bad that the boys will have the hot mom in the pickup line at school."

Kristen continued, "I will try my best to fill your shoes, but I know it's nearly impossible."

Jimmy played winger for 7 seasons ... logging ice time with the Blackhawks, Panthers, Bruins and Devils. He retired in 2019.