TMZ Sports - Page 50

Turns out Rihanna, A$AP Rocky and a ton of other celebs love cars that go real fast ... especially if they're speeding down the famed Strip for the Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix.

The much anticipated glitzy event -- which got off to a very rocky start -- turned into a massive success ... based on the actual racing action, and the A-list talent who showed up for Saturday night's race.

RiRi and her man sat in with Team Ferrari, putting on headphones to hear the drivers during the race ... while the likes of David Beckham, Heidi Klum, Shaquille O'Neal, Paris Hilton, Cara Delevingne, Axl Rose and Patrick Dempsey roamed the track right before the race.

Arguably, Justin Bieber nabbed the best seat in the house for the race ... as he got to wave the checkered flag as Team Red Bull's Max Verstappen crossed the finish line for his 18th victory of the season.

Ferrari's Charles LeClerc, who started in pole position, finished 2nd and Red Bull's Sergio Perez was third.

The race was Formula 1's first in Las Vegas since 1982's Caesars Palace Grand Prix, and it was easily the most talked about race on the schedule this year.

But, it almost turned into a major flop -- locals were pissed about the monthslong construction and traffic delays, spectators railed about sky-high ticket and hotel prices ... and then, during the first practice session, a drain hole cover flew up and damaged a car driven by Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz.

However, in the end, the race itself turned out to be pretty exciting ... making sure normie spectators, and celebs alike, got their money's worth.

Ashlyn Harris has a lot to say to internet trolls about what was happening behind the scenes when she and Ali Krieger broke up, and she started dating Sophia Bush -- and she says there was absolutely no cheating.

The former soccer star says she's tried to remain silent about the details, but Saturday -- due to the rumors of infidelity, she decided to share it all. She says, "Let me be clear: I did not step out on my marriage. I was always faithful in my marriage, if not always totally happy. Like in many partnerships, there was work and therapy and processing done."

In her Instagram post, Ashlyn added the split was well planned out -- "We spent the entire summer working to tackle the separation and divorce steps outlined for us by our therapists, lawyers, and our shared agency."

Ashlyn says they were betrayed by someone who leaked their breakup news before they intended to go public at the end of Ali's soccer season.

As we previously reported, Ashlyn started dating Sophia less than a month after filing for divorce from Ali in September. Krieger and Harris married in late 2019 in Miami.

Ali seemed to fuel the rumor about infidelity being the reason for their split when she wrote on Instagram, "Preparing for playoffs while in my Beyoncé Lemonade era" -- and, of course, the "Lemonade" album chronicles Bey and Jay-Z's relationship issues after she discovered he cheated on her.

While video showed Ashlyn and Sophia seemingly getting flirty during a June event in Cannes -- Ashlyn's new revelation makes it seem like she and Ali were done at that point ... just not publicly.

She says she and Ali are now focused on co-parenting their 2 young children.

WNBA player Kysre Gondrezick is raising hell, calling out prosecutors involved in Kevin Porter Jr.'s assault case ... saying the District Attorney continues to push a "false narrative" despite the fact she's repeatedly denied her ex-boyfriend attacked her.

TMZ Sports spoke with Gondrezick this week ... and she claims the Manhattan D.A.'s office's handling of the September incident has "compounded my trauma even more than the actual experience."

The 26-year-old tells us she gave officials a statement one week after Porter was arrested and explained the original criminal complaint was nowhere near what happened. Now, she wants the D.A. to publicly acknowledge her side of the story ... that she fell and hit her head after KPJ abruptly woke her up after a night out. She's adamant he never struck her.

As we previously reported, KPJ was accused of hitting Gondrezick multiple times and putting his hands around her neck -- resulting in a fractured neck vertebra and a laceration above her eye.

It was later revealed the neck ailment was NOT Porter's doing, as it was a pre-existing injury.

As for the laceration, Gondrezick says it was the result of the fall, and a makeup smear on the hotel room wall backs up her story.

KPJ was arrested for assault and strangulation ... but one charge was dropped due to "insufficient evidence."

Gondrezick says she is opening up to protect herself -- not KPJ -- as she does not want authorities to silence her. She's also calling on officials responsible for pushing the current narrative to be held accountable.

Gondrezick's attorney, Bobby Altchiler, also weighed in ... and he claims his client has been receiving death threats due to the mishandling of the case -- calling it unethical and immoral to not correct the information that is already out.

Bottom line -- Altchiler reiterated exactly what Gondrezick wants.

"Just be honest, for God's sake."

KPJ is due in court later this month.

Cleveland Browns legend Josh Cribbs is a bit uneasy with his former team's current quarterback situation after Deshaun Watson went down for the season ... telling TMZ Sports he doesn't have confidence in backup Dorian Thompson-Robinson until he proves he can handle the gig.

Of course, the 6-3 Browns are without their $230 million man for the rest of the 2023-24 campaign due to a shoulder injury ... which means they'll try to keep their hopes alive with DTR under center.

The former UCLA signal-caller saw the field in Week 4 against the Ravens ... and it wasn't great -- he threw for only 121 yards, tossed three interceptions and was sacked four times.

With that being said, Cribbs is somewhat cautious going into Sunday's game against the Steelers ... saying he may not be too high on DTR yet, but he has faith in the team as a whole.

"I rely on action, on stats -- as of now I don't have confidence into DTR until he goes out there and proves it," Cribbs says. "He has a great opportunity to redeem himself in the eyes of his fanbase and the eyes of his teammates."

"His teammates are charged to believe in him wholeheartedly and go out there and win, but the fans are not," he adds. "So, I have faith in the Browns team that they can get the job done."

"So, if we can put it all off of DTR's hands, to say I don't just believe in DTR. I believe in the team because it's gonna take more than DTR. Even if he just simply hands the ball off every single play, it's gonna be up to the team to dictate how this game goes, as well as Coach Kevin Stefanski."

Cribbs commends the Browns and Stefanski for coming up with new ways to get the job done despite dealing with numerous injuries this season -- including Nick Chubb and Jack Conklin to name a few -- and he's not ready to draw the curtains on their Super Bowl chances ... even making a Jurassic Park reference to get his point across.

As for the players, Cribbs tells us he's got a good pulse on how the vibes are in the locker room ... saying he spoke with cornerback Greg Newsome II recently, and he explained how the guys are able to stay level-headed no matter what happens on the field.

There's more -- Cribbs also spoke highly of Watson ... praising the former Pro Bowler for putting his "heart and soul" into the team before the injury.

Hollywood's biggest stars are flying high these days ... eschewing commercial air travel for a more luxurious and lavish experience ... in their own private aircrafts.

Big-time celebs like Kim Kardashian, Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, John Travolta, Lady Gaga, Kylie Jenner, Rick Ross, Drake and Floyd Mayweather are among those who own their own jets ... and they get around.

For starters, Kim's private jet is a $150 million G650ER aircraft ... the same model Jeff Bezos owns.

Kim's customized her jet to her liking ... she calls it "Kim Air." She likes to serve her guests waffles, among other in-flight goodies.

Kylie, meanwhile, dropped $72 million on her private jet back in 2020 ... it's decked out with a master suite, closet, entertainment suite, two bathrooms and has her initials embroidered on the seats.

Like her big sister, Kylie calls her jet "Kylie Air" ... and the in-flight menu includes salads and pasta, plus cocktails and wine.

Beyonce's not only the Queen B, she's also the queen of the skies ... her private plane is huge, with room for 15 to 19 passengers aboard the Bombardier Challenger 850.

Bey bought the plane way back in 2012 for $40 million as a Father's Day gift for husband Jay-Z ... and it's been whisking their family around ever since.

Taylor's got a fleet of private jets at her disposal ... which she put to good use during her 'Eras' tour.

T-Swift has two multimillion-dollar planes, which she's used for over 100 flights this year alone ... with more trips likely on the way as her tour goes overseas.

Peyton Manning got behind the wheel of late NFL legend John Madden's bus ... hilariously attempting to steal the iconic Madden Cruiser from the Pro Football Hall of Fame!!

But no need to check the jail records ... it was all part of the quarterback's "Peyton's Places" show on ESPN, where Manning and 49ers great John Taylor got an up-close experience with the vehicle.

In a clip of the Omaha Productions project, Manning and Taylor line-hop to get right onto the bus in Canton ... before the two-time Super Bowl champ decides to make a run for it!!

Of course, Madden -- who was famously terrified of flying -- would crisscross the country in his luxurious Madden Cruiser, going from city to city, depending on his broadcasting schedule.

The whip was actually a Greyhound bus before Madden flipped it in the late '80s.

The Madden Cruiser has now been restored to its original condition ... including two color TVS, radio, two laser disc players, stereo and VHS layer.

Jackson Mahomes was partying his face off to kick off the weekend ... and he had the best seat in the house to watch a DJ do his thing.

Patrick Mahomes' little brother was front and center Friday night at Mosaic Ultra Lounge in Kansas City, MO -- where James Kennedy was handling music for all the club-goers ... and putting on a pretty good set, if Jackson's reaction here is any indication.

Check it out ... in footage obtained by TMZ, you can see the 23-year-old influencer raging as Kennedy spins his records, and even got on his feet at one point and cheered JK on.

Looks like Jackson was also making it rain behind James too ... with confetti, that is.

JM might've been having a blast here, but he's got some very serious issues to deal with in the near future ... including a preliminary hearing in his sexual battery case.

Hulk Hogan's son, Nick Hogan, found himself in a jail cell early this weekend -- 'cause he got arrested for DUI ... and the location is notable.

According to online records, Nick got busted Saturday morning just before 4 AM in Clearwater, FL -- where cops booked him on suspicion of driving under the influence ... noting he allegedly refused to submit to sobriety testing.

The exact circumstances that led up to the arrest are unclear for now, but they're logging this as a misdemeanor -- and they had Nick pose for this mug while he was being processed. As of this writing, he hasn't been released from custody.

On its face, it's a simple DUI arrest ... which, while serious, wouldn't normally be all that big a  deal -- especially if nobody got hurt. However, Nick had previously been involved in a scary car accident way back in the 2000s when he was just a teen ... also in Clearwater, FL.

It was a well-documented saga at the time ... Nick was driving with a Marine friend of his -- John Graziano -- who suffered a serious brain injury from the wreck ... but survived.

Nick, who was 17 at the time, ultimately pleaded no contest to reckless driving involving serious bodily injury. In the lead-up to that plea, cops had alleged alcohol was involved. Nick went on to serve an 8-month sentence behind bars in the aftermath.

Of course, the Graziano family also sued the Hogans over the accident ... and they settled out of court.

Nick doesn't appear to have any reps at the moment -- so we reached out to Hulk's camp for comment ... but no word back yet.

Model Danii Banks understands the main gripe with her flashing boobs at an NFL game -- the fact lots of kids were in the stadium -- but she's confident no little ones saw her top drop.

The OnlyFans model tells TMZ, she was in a 21 and up section when she freed her nipples during last Sunday's Las Vegas Raiders game ... and it wasn't like she and "the girls" were featured on the stadium big screen.

So, Danii believes kids couldn't possibly have seen her brief topless moment. Well, unless they had binoculars in a nearby section -- but what are the chances of that?

Danii, as we first reported, ended up getting booted from Allegiant Stadium for the sexy stunt, but says it was only security guards and police who had a problem when they saw the nudity.

DB did post a blurred version of her going topless on her social media ... which is now littered with comments from haters saying she never should have flashed her boobs around young fans.

She says she understands those concerns, to an extent, and apologizes to any parents if their kids happened to get an eyeful of Banks' assets.

Not everyone is mad at Danii though ... she says she's gotten thousands of new OnlyFans subscribers since last Sunday night, and she tells us how a bachelor party played a big role in her top coming off.

Shaquille O'Neal is refusing to criticize Draymond Green for his role in a wild fight earlier this week ... telling TMZ Sports straight up, "I woulda did the same thing!!"

Everyone's piled on the Warriors star after he put Rudy Gobert in a chokehold and wouldn't let go during a tussle at Tuesday night's Golden State vs. Minnesota game ... but when we got The Diesel at his charity event in Los Angeles on Thursday, he said he just couldn't join the masses on this one.

As for why ... Shaq said it's simple -- "you've got to stick up for your teammate."

"If me and you are having an interview and somebody comes here," Shaq told our photog, "I'm going to have to whoop their ass. Because you're my homegirl."

Of course, Warriors coach Steve Kerr wouldn't exactly agree with Shaq on this one ... while he said he appreciated the fact that Green was defending Klay Thompson during the scuffle, he told reporters this week the Dubs forward just took things way too far.

"Draymond was wrong," Kerr said. "He knows that. It's a bad look."

Jerome Ford says Kareem Hunt deserves big-time props for helping the Browns keep things together following Nick Chubb's devastating injury ... telling TMZ Sports the guy "brought the juice back" after Cleveland's star RB went down.

Ford went in-depth with us on the state of the Browns earlier this week following the team's big win over the Ravens ... and he made it clear to us that Hunt has played a huge role in Cleveland keeping the wheels on despite the loss of Chubb -- both on and off the field.

"When Nick left," Ford said, "it left a gap in the running back room. And Kareem came in and -- I really don't know how to explain it other than to say that he brought the juice back."

You'll recall, after Chubb tore up his knee against the Steelers on Sept. 18 ... Cleveland turned to Hunt on Sept. 20 to bolster its RB corps.

And, according to Ford, the roster move changed everything.

"He came in, joking and playing," Ford said. "And he gave us the juice that we needed to kind of, like, 'Yeah, Nick's down, but we gotta keep pushing.'"

The Browns are 5-2 since Hunt joined the squad ... and in those seven contests, he's scored six total touchdowns.

Ford says Chubb, meanwhile, is doing well in his recovery ... and helping out whenever he can.

Sean Strickland's the UFC Middleweight champ today, but by the end of 2024, Brendan Allen believes the top of the division will look different ... he expects to be the titleholder!

TMZ Sports talked to 27-year-old Allen, the #10 ranked 185-pounder in the promotion, ahead of his UFC Fight Night main event scrap with #13 ranked Paul Craig on Saturday in Las Vegas ... a big fight for the rising star.

We asked Brendan for his assessment of the division.

"I think I'm the best in the world. It's up to me to prove it," Allen said, adding ... "I think Sean [Strickland] will be there for a little bit. Hopefully, ending of next year it'll be 'And new' for me. That's the goal. I don't care who's there when it's my turn. But obviously, the goal is 'And new' when I get my turn."

Allen, 22-5, is coming off a win over Bruno Silva in June ... his 5th straight victory.

35-year-old Craig had lost two in a row -- against Volkan Oezdemir (July '22) and Johnny Walker (January '23) -- before rebounding against Andre Muniz in July. Paul's 17-6-1 over his pro career.

Brendan also weighed in on Paul's decision to go from 205 lbs. to the 185 lb. division ... a move that could come around to bite Craig, according to Allen.

"I think the weight cut will play a role, but it's not the sole or main reason [I'll win]. I just think that I'm gonna be too good, too fast, too strong. He may be bigger, but I'm just a different guy when it comes to this weight class, and I'm gonna show just that.," Brenda told us.

We also talked to Craig ... who is going to do his best to (at least momentarily) stop the Allen hype train.

The NBA is admitting it's forcing LaMelo Ball to cover up his new neck tattoo ... claiming the Charlotte Hornets star's ink is violating league policy.

The 22-year-old got the "LF" put just below his left ear back in September ... to represent his middle name as well as his LaFrancé clothing line.

But, recently, he's covered it up with a bandage ... and on Friday, NBA spokesman Tim Frank said in a statement to ESPN it's because "players are prohibited from displaying commercial logos or corporate insignia on their body or in their hair during games."

"We try to enforce the rule reasonably, in accordance with its purpose, and taking into account players' efforts to express themselves in a non-commercial manner," Frank added. "But LaMelo Ball's neck tattoo is in obvious violation of the rule and, accordingly, he's required to cover it."

According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, Ball has been fighting the ruling ... and is still in talks with the league about coming up with an alternative solution.

The scenario is similar to one Ball's older brother, Lonzo Ball, had to deal with back in 2018 ... when the league made him cover up a "Big Baller Brand" tattoo he had gotten on his arm.

Suni Lee -- the Olympics star who won gold in Tokyo in 2020 -- just revealed her kidney issues this year caused her to gain 45 pounds.

The 5-foot gymnast made the revelation in an interview with USA Today this week ... just a few months after she left Auburn to get a handle on the ailment.

"I couldn't fit into any of my clothes," Lee told the outlet. "My eyes were swollen shut. It was just so scary."

Thankfully, Lee says she's doing better now ... and, according to USA Today, she looks "very much like the gymnast" who competed in the Games nearly three years ago.

"I haven't had a really bad day in a while," Lee said. "But in the beginning it was like I was waking up swollen. My fingers were so swollen they wouldn’t fit into my grips and I couldn't hold on to the bar."

She added, "My whole body was swollen because I was retaining water, so I couldn’t do a flip. … So it was really different and I had to learn how to work through it."

Lee said she's made some changes to her diet -- eliminating a lot of her sodium intake -- which has allowed her to reignite her pursuit of more medals at the 2024 Olympics in Paris.

"We're still working on trying to figure out how to balance all of it because I do have good days and bad days," Lee said. "But with the good days I just take advantage of what I'm able to do, and on the bad days I just do basics and try and stay as safe as possible."

Shaquille O'Neal continues to give back ... this time the Big Fella refurbished a basketball court at a Boys & Girls Club in Los Angeles, and then spent the afternoon hangin' with the kids, and they were over the moon!

TMZ Sports was there at the BGC of Metro LA when the Hall of Famer, local officials, and Icy Hot (Shaq's longtime partner) reps opened the Comebaq Court ... an initiative launched by the Shaquille O'Neal Foundation which aims to fix courts and fields for kids across the country.

"I came here one time and I saw the court need to be refurbished," O'Neal told us on Thursday, adding, "I asked about the refurbish. They told me 'yes' and this is the result."

"If we can help one, if we can help 100, we can help 'em all"

FYI, this is Shaq's fifth Comebaq Court to date ... he also has fixed up courts in his hometown of Newark, New Jersey, in addition to several other places like Atlanta, Miami, and Las Vegas, where he's spent significant time.

And, there's more to come.

O'Neal may get most of the credit from the media, but Shaq is quick to recognize his less-famous partners who made this possible, including Icy Hot and various counselors who helped contribute.

"Those counselors, the one who volunteers every day, they actually should get most of the credit," Shaq said.

"If you need computers, you need laptops, fresh paint -- then you call Uncle Shaq."

The NBA legend made nearly $300 million over his 19-year career in NBA salary money alone. That's not counting all of the endorsements, and lucrative business moves O'Neal has made during and after his basketball playing days.

So, he's got the money, but this is about much more than writing a check. Shaq cares about the kids' well-being ... and that's awesome. At the end of the day, it's things like this that make Shaq one of the most lovable athletes of all time.

With the holidays coming up, we asked the 51-year-old what he was doing for Turkey Day... and in true Shaquille fashion he told us ... "I don't do anything in my house."

12:22 PM -- Joe Burrow just met with media members to discuss the injury ... and he said he felt "a pop" while he was throwing the touchdown pass to Joe Mixon.

As for the brace he had on his hand when he landed in Baltimore earlier this week, he told reporters it was simply a compression sleeve to keep some of his other "bumps and bruises" in check.

"This is a completely different thing," he said.

Burrow added that he's planning to still be around the team the rest of the year despite being out for the remainder of the season.

The Cincinnati Bengals will have to try to win a Super Bowl this season without Joe Burrow.

The team just announced its star quarterback suffered a significant wrist injury that will keep him from playing the rest of this year.

According to Cincy head coach Zac Taylor, Burrow appeared to sustain the ailment just before throwing a touchdown pass to Joe Mixon in the second quarter of the team's Thursday Night Football game against the Ravens.

Burrow tried to play through the pain ... but cameras inside of M&T Bank Stadium showed he just simply couldn't grip a football -- and sat out the rest of the contest, which the Bengals lost, 34-20.

Taylor said his 26-year-old star will "likely" need surgery to fix the issue.

The team, meanwhile, could find itself in hot water over it all ... as the NFL is reportedly investigating whether or not the Bengals knew about a potential problem with Burrow's wrist leading up to the big "TNF" matchup.

Burrow was seen getting off the team plane in Baltimore wearing some kind of brace on his hand -- yet he was not listed on the team's injury report heading into the game.

Regardless, losing Burrow is obviously a huge blow for Cincinnati ... as the signal-caller is widely considered one of the five best quarterbacks in the game right now.

The Bengals -- now 5-5 -- will turn to Burrow's backup, Jake Browning, to try to save their season.