TMZ Sports - Page 50

Sure, he wants to take him for $100,000 ... but Oscar De La Hoya says Jay Z is GREAT for the sport of boxing ... unlike Floyd Mayweather.

The Golden Boy just ripped Floyd in a "farewell letter" in Playboy ... claiming the sport will be BETTER without him in it.

But when we saw Oscar at LAX moments ago, he had a completely different opinion about Jay Z -- who's been loading up his Roc Nation Sports roster with big name boxers.

"He's great," Oscar said of Jay Z ... "He's a breath of fresh air."

Oscar and Jay also have a $100k bet (for charity) on the Canelo Alvarez vs. Miguel Cotto fight -- since Oscar reps Canelo and Jay reps Cotto.

University of Illinois linebacker Julian Jones was arrested in Illinois this week on charges of aggravated sexual battery over an alleged incident in Georgia.

The 18-year-old -- who has played in almost every game this season -- allegedly committed the crime in Georgia during the team's bye week back in October.

The team has issued a statement saying Jones has been suspended from the team pending the outcome of the case.

Kim Zolciak looked like the picture of health splashing in the Mexican surf, less than two months after a stroke and heart condition derailed her "Dancing with the Stars" gig.

Kim jumped waves with daughter Brielle and NFL hubby Kroy Biermann (who's got a week off). The whole fam flew to Cancun to celebrate her and Kroy's 4th wedding anniversary ... and quick road to recovery, which includes a bangin' bikini body.

And Brielle's clearly following in mom's footsteps in that department.

Ronda Rousey's endorsement of Bernie Sanders has been WELL RECEIVED by the 74-year-old ... with his camp telling TMZ Sports they were excited to find out the UFC champ is in their corner.

Rousey went public about her support for Sanders earlier this month -- saying, "I’m voting for Bernie Sanders because he doesn’t take any corporate money. I don’t think politicians should be allowed to take money for their campaigns from outside interests."

We reached out to Bernie's camp to see how her endorsement was received and campaign spokesperson Michael Briggs told us, "We think it's great and appreciate the support."

David Spade says he feels TERRIBLE for Jason Pierre-Paul -- claiming the NY Giants star got NO LOVE from people after he blew up his hand ... and that sucks.

"I feel bad because when he had his fingers blown off no one said they felt bad for him," Spade says.

"Everyone just said what an idiot, what a loser, he deserves it ... he was just trying to light firecrackers for kids or something."

"He blew his hand off ... I was the only one going, I feel horrible for this guy ... someone should have some empathy for him!"

Formula 1 racing champ Lewis Hamilton has an unreal excuse for why he crashed his $2 MILLION Pagani Zonda supercar in Monaco this week -- he'd been PARTYING WAY TOO HARD!!!

Hamilton was reportedly driving through the streets of Monte Carlo early Tuesday morning when he lost control and hit a parked car around 3:30 AM.

According to the BBC, Hamilton had one hell of an honest excuse for the wreck -- "It was a result of heavy partying and not much rest for 10 days. I am a bit run down. I have been non-stop and trying to fit training in at the same time and not getting a lot of sleep."

Cops responded to the scene and Hamilton was given a breathalyzer -- but reportedly passed.

Hamilton later went to Instagram to issue a statement confirming the crash and adding, "Nobody was hurt, which is the most important thing."

"But the car was obviously damaged and I made very light contact with a stationary vehicle. Talking with the team and my doctor, we decided together that it was best for me to rest at home."

Cristiano Ronaldo admits ... his 5-year-old son does NOT know the identity of his birth mother -- and Ronaldo says he feels no obligation to tell him for at least another 5 or 6 years.

The soccer superstar appeared on "The Jonathan Ross Show" in the U.K. and was asked about his mysterious baby mama ... who he's kept secret since Cristiano Jr. was born.

FYI -- Ronaldo's kid was born in the U.S. in 2010. He was given full custody.

"For me it is not a problem," Ronaldo said ... "In the world, many kids don’t have mum, don’t have dads or dads die or mums die."

"Cristiano has a dad, an unbelievable dad, a grandmother. I have the support of my family, great of course."

"When Cristiano is going to grow up, I am always going to say the truth to him because he deserves, because he is my son but I am not going to say because people want me to say."

As for when he'll reveal the mommy mystery to his son, Ronaldo says ... "I’m going to say the time when I feel that is the right time. I don’t know 10, 11, 12? I don’t know let’s see."

Bryant McKinnie says he's CHANGED HIS MIND -- and refuses to pay off a guy who claims the ex-NFL star beat him up in 2013 ... even though he already signed a settlement agreement.

It's a crazy story ... McKinnie admits he went to mediation with Alexis Bernier last year and initially agreed to fork over $15k after Alexis accused him of roughing him up at Club Play in 2013.

But Bryant says he did NOTHING WRONG -- and only signed the settlement agreement because his lawyers told him it would be the easiest way to make the whole thing go away.

So, instead of cutting a check, McKinnie has refused to pay Alexis jack squat -- and Alexis has now sued to collect, claiming Bryant has reneged on a legally binding deal.

How does Bryant feel about the lawsuit?

"I don't care."

He adds, "They've been threatening to go to the media with it for over a year. I can't let him just take advantage of me when I know I did nothing wrong."

It's a risky gamble for Bryant -- because if Alexis wins the lawsuit, a judge can make moves to seize Bryant's assets to satisfy the judgment ... including cars, houses, you name it.

Bryant says he's not scared.

Ronda Rousey says Justin Bieber has made NO EFFORT to squash their beef after dissing her little sister ... but she's still open for peace.

Rousey appeared on "TMZ Sports" on FS1 on Thursday (airing 9PM PT) when she told us she's down to let bygones be bygones ... but there's one thing Bieber has to do to redeem himself.

As we previously reported, Rousey says Bieber shot her sister down hard when she asked for a pic with him at the Cannes Film Festival.

There's more ... Rousey also told us she's confident her fight with Holly Holm this weekend won't be a 30 second obliteration ... telling us she plans to be patient this time around.

Yeah right.

We'll see if she keeps her word during UFC Fight 193 -- Rousey v. Holm -- live on PPV on Saturday, Nov. 14.

Marshawn Lynch's generosity is spreading ... because the kid who got $500 from Beast Mode just got free $2,000 shoes from a company that also wants to help him become successful.

The kid at the center of the action is 17-year-old Terrance Downs -- who was mopping up at a Dallas McDonald's when Lynch walked in and they struck up a conversation about Lynch's Buscemi shoes.

Downs told Lynch about his plans to start a fashion store -- so Lynch gave him $500 so he could buy a pair of his own Buscemis to help get him on his way.

Now, we've learned Rob Heppler -- the co-founder of Buscemi -- found out about the story and was so moved, he reached out to the kid to help him on his journey.

In fact, he's hookin' the kid up with a pair of the multi-color 100mm kicks -- which retail at $1,950 (they're hand painted with gold plated hardware and real snakeskin leather).

"Marshawn's goal was to help Terrance grow," Heppler said ... "We felt that having him put his money toward starting his business would help that."

"Now, he'll look really sharp when he opens his boutique."

Ohio State quarterback J.T. Barrett revealed he suffered a hamstring injury in the days before his arrest -- telling cops he had seen a doctor after hurting himself on the football field.

Unclear when Barrett suffered the injury, but during his drunk driving arrest on Oct. 31st, he told the officers that he had a "strained hamstring" and had been to a doctor on October 27th.

Barrett was suspended by the team for the Nov. 7th game against Minnesota because of the arrest -- but the new info makes you wonder if he would've missed the game due to injury anyway.

There's more ... 20-year-old Barrett also admits that he HAD been drinking before he got behind the wheel -- fessing up to having Crown Royal.

When asked how much he had, Barrett said, "two cups ... two shots."

The son of a former NFL defensive back is suing the NFL -- claiming his father died from brain injuries he suffered during his 10 year career ... and the league did NOTHING to prevent it.

The person behind the suit is the son of Art DeCarlo -- who was drafted by the Chicago Bears in 1953 after a stellar career at the University of Georgia.

DeCarlo's family claims Art suffered numerous concussions on the field -- including documented cases where he lost consciousness but returned to the game.

Art's family claims he suffered from several devastating neurocognitive issues during the last several decades of his life -- including extreme headaches, memory loss and confusion.

Art's family claims the NFL had evidence about the dangers of repeated blows to the head since back in the '20s yet did nothing to educate the players about the real medical dangers.

The family is suing for fraudulent concealment, negligence, civil conspiracy and more ... they're seeking unspecified damages.

Geno Smith's claim that IK Enemkpali's jaw punch WASN'T about money is a LIE ... that's according to a NY Jets player who witnessed the attack ... and says he heard IK talk about the cash.

Smith recently spoke out about the incident ... saying the idea the fight was about $600 he owed IK after flaking on a football camp appearance is "the biggest misconception in America."

TMZ Sports talked with a respected Jets veteran on the condition of anonymity ... and he says Geno's statement simply doesn't jive with what he saw and heard that day.

"Geno just saying that sh*t 'cause he don't wanna look bad."

Our source says IK was fuming about Geno's no-show even before the fight ... and personally heard him mention the money as the two men were being separated.

"IK was clearly upset about him not showing up to the camp. IK was talking it up to everyone at the camp that Geno was gonna be there."

Here's the blow-by-blow:

"So IK approached Geno about it in the locker room. he was clearly frustrated, and they were yelling at each other. And Geno said he didn't wanna talk about it, and kinda turned around, and that's when IK sucker punched him. Then we were pulling them apart, and then IK was like, 'You owe me money!'"

Good news for Jerry Jones ... there's at least one guy who supports how he's handling the Greg Hardy situation ... former Cowboys superstar Greg Ellis, who says it's Jones' job to put winning first.

"I don't think Jerry made a mistake by putting him on the team. Jerry's job is to help the Cowboys win," Ellis told us in L.A. Wednesday night at a screening of his movie "Carter High."

"When [Jerry] sees a talent that can help his team, he goes after that talent."

We also asked if Jones should have reconsidered and FIRED Hardy after pictures surfaced last week showing the damage Hardy allegedly inflicted on his ex-GF in 2014 ... and once again, Ellis had Jerry's back.

"[The pictures are] not 100% evidence of what really took place."

There's more ... Ellis also says he strongly believes Ray Rice deserves a 2nd chance in the NFL.

Floyd Mayweather hit the same Hollywood club as T.I. and Tiny Wednesday night -- but it doesn't seem the hatchet is buried all the way.

The three have a pretty nasty past -- which culminated in a BRAWL in Vegas last year when Floyd publicly claimed to be banging T.I.'s wife.

They seemed to have squashed the beef earlier this year ... but last night, it was pretty obvious there's still tension.

Mayweather arrived at Warwick first ... followed by T.I.

Tiny arrived a short time later by herself ... but only stayed for 3 MINUTES before she and T.I. bolted from the club.

Ohio State QB J.T. Barrett tried to go the Reese Witherspoon route during his drunk driving arrest -- asking the officer for special treatment because, "I'm the quarterback of Ohio State!"