TMZ Sports - Page 50

Michael Sam is adamant ... his decision to join "Dancing with the Stars" does NOT mean he's giving up his NFL dreams ... saying, "Football remains my unquestioned number 1 priority."

TMZ Sports broke the story ... Sam signed on to join Season 20 ... which begins next month.

Some people have said the move is proof that Sam is throwing in the towel on his football career and wants to focus on exploiting his off-the-field fame.

But moments ago, Sam fired back at the critics ... saying, "Football remains my unquestioned number 1 priority, however, while I continue to train and stay ready, I am ecstatic to participate in a fun, athletic competition like so many players before me have done."

"Filming this off-season is very flexible and allows me to be part of the veterans combine 3/22 if accepted or any other workouts."

MMA fighter Josh Neer -- who's competed for UFC and Bellator -- obliterated a local heckler at an Iowa gym ... dishing out ferocious head strikes ... and recorded the whole thing on video.

According to the 31-year-old fighter ... a heckler named Patrick Martin had been "talking s**t about MMA fighters for a month" via text messages ... so Neer called him out on it.

"I usually ignore him ... but this time I said, 'If you really want to fight come to the gym Monday at 5:30.'"

Among the harassing texts ... Martin wrote, "Lol you are a f**king joke! You will respect me though! And I hope we can be friends afterwards!"

The heckler -- who Josh says is 6'6" and 270 lbs -- accepted the offer to fight on Monday ... and as you can see on the video ... he proceeded to get his ass kicked.

An L.A. mansion owned by former NBA player Earl Watson was robbed Monday night by at least 4 men in ski masks -- who handcuffed the occupants and ransacked the place.

While 35-year-old Watson owns the $4 million Encino home, he currently rents it out to a local elderly couple.

Officials say the men -- at least one of whom had a gun -- broke in through a back door and once inside, they handcuffed the couple and stole various items ... including cash.

Law enforcement sources tell us a maid was in the house -- who hid and called 911.

If you're still intercourse'n ... there's no divorce'n -- so says ex-NBA star Stephen Jackson ... who's asking a judge to throw out his wife's divorce petition because they're still knockin' boots like a married couple.

It's one of the strangest legal docs we've ever seen ... Jackson says the judge should NOT grant his wife Renata a divorce because he believes she's just trying to score a prenup payout ... when in actuality, they're still very much a couple.

FYI -- Jackson says Renata's payout under the prenup is based on his net worth at the time she filed for divorce in 2013 ... and since he was still playing in the NBA at the time, the payout would be significantly larger.

But in new docs filed in state court in Georgia, Jackson says he can prove his marriage wasn't dead then ... and it isn't dead now ... because he's still banging his wife on the regular.

In fact, Stephen says he often still takes her on fancy vacations to places like the Bahamas, Cancun and Jamaica ... and presumably bangs her there too.

Which leads to this explanation Stephen included in new court docs -- "Despite filing for divorce, [Renata] continued her relationship with [Stephen] in an effort to 'have her cake and eat it, too.'"

We can't imagine this case is going to have a happy ending for Jackson -- because if he gets his wish, he's still gonna have a pissed off wife on his hands. And if he loses, he's gonna have to cut a big, fat check.

Michael Sam just dominated a TMZ photog at LAX like he was The Mountain ... and we were Oberyn Martell ... and it's pretty damn hilarious.

Here's how it went down ... One of our crack camera guys got the newly engaged Sam to not only tell us when and where he's getting married ... but who he's inviting and where he's registered.

Awesome, right?

Now for the twist ... He's getting married in Westeros with Tyrion and Tywin Lannister -- AND Daenerys Targaryen (good luck with those three) -- and he's registered at King's Landing.

Yeah, it's Red Wedding-level deception.

Here's the thing ... most of you probably got the fact that those are all references to the HBO show "Game Of Thrones" -- but the one dude who didn't was our camera guy.

Auburn wide receiver Sammie Coates -- a projected 1st round NFL Draft pick -- customized his cleats at the NFL Combine to honor a 12-year-old girl with leukemia ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Coates became friends with Kenzie Ray after she attended a game back in 2013 -- and they've maintained a strong friendship ever since.

And get this ... Coates recently signed a deal with Under Armour -- and the shoe giant flew out famous cleats customizer David Zambrana (aka DezCustomz) to pimp out some shoes for UA's top guys.

We're told Coates knew exactly what he wanted -- and worked with Dez (along with Kreative Custom Kicks) to pay tribute to his friend Kenzie.

Dez obliged with a VERY cool set of cleats which features Kenzie's name right across the toe.

And that's not all ... Dez says there were other guys who also asked for heartwarming tributes to the people they care about the most. For example:

-- South Carolina RB Mike Davis requested shoes in honor of his mother, who's his best friend and biggest inspiration.

-- Auburn RB Cameron Artis-Payne dedicated his cleats to his late grandmother -- who was very special to him.

Makes you wanna root even harder for these guys, right!?

Michael Sam will be competing in March, not on the football field, but on the "Dancing with the Stars" hardwood ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Michael -- the first openly gay player drafted in the NFL -- will be part of Season 20, which fires up next month.

Here's the problem. Sam -- who insinuated he was cut from the NFL because he is gay -- has vowed to get back in the league and said he'd take part in the first-ever veteran's combine on March 22.

But Sam needs to prove he has what it takes, and we're thinkin' some of the owners might question his commitment if he's focusing on the rumba rather than rumbling.

WWE superstar Mark Henry wants to enter the ring like a BOSS -- which is why he's calling on his doppleganger Rick Ross to remix his famous theme music so he can kick ass with a brand new beat.

FYI -- Henry is well aware of the fact he and Ross look EXACTLY alike -- and says that's exactly why his big bearded brother from another mother is the perfect guy to put a new twist on "Somebody's Gonna Get Their Ass Kicked."

And Henry's convinced there's a real shot it could happen ... thanks to a mutual famous friend -- who happens to be a hardcore wrestling fan.

Philadelphia Eagles player Nate Allen was wrongly accused of driving around while pleasuring himself, and FL prosecutors have cleared his name -- partly due to a well-timed Red Lobster dinner.

Allen was detained last week in Fort Myers after a 16-year-old girl called 911 to report seeing a man driving a black truck with the windows down and masturbating. An officer responded to the area, saw Allen in a black Ford pick-up, and arrested him.

But the State Attorney's Office announced today that further investigation revealed Allen's truck was NOT the one the girl reported seeing.

Also, Allen was having dinner at a Red Lobster at the time the girl called 911. Prosecutors confirmed this from the time stamp on his bill ... and a photo he took with an employee. Great time for some cheddar biscuits!

State Attorney's Office spokesperson Samantha Syoen tells TMZ ... prosecutors thanked Nate for his patience and for cooperating with investigators.

Here's Floyd Mayweather chowing down on a hot dog at the Lakers game Sunday night.

More insane highlights from 10-year-old LeBron James Jr. -- who led his All-Star youth basketball team to victory this weekend in one of the most prestigious tournaments in the country.

Bronny and his Gulf Coast Blue Chips squad ran the table at the John Lucas All Star Weekend invitation-only tournament in New Orleans ... going undefeated in five games against really tough teams.

But once again, all eyes were on Bronny ... who was just KILLIN' IT ... working an insane crossover, dribbling behind the back and hitting some deep 3s.

"We haven't lost a game yet since Bronny joined the team in mid-December," coach Adrian Sparks tells TMZ Sports.

"He's awesome. He played amazing. He averaged double digits. Bronny's just an all around good kid."

File Under: "Yeah, right ..."

Smokin' hot swimsuit model Irina Shayk says she ate THREE burgers at the Vanity Fair post-Oscars party last year -- and this year, she was gunning for FOUR.

So ... you buyin' that?

BTW -- directly after making the statements, Irina went on the red carpet in her half-naked outfit and showed off the body that gorging on burgers built.

You don't let just anyone hold your Oscar ... which is why it was very interesting when Common let his ex-GF Serena Williams carry his statue around last night ... fueling rumors they could be back on.

The two were spotted together at the Vanity Fair post-Oscars bash -- and even took a photo together (which Serena curiously posted and then removed from her Instagram page).

It's especially interesting ... considering that Common has been very open about how much he cared for Serena when they were together -- and even said he thought about marrying her.

Mike Tyson could be the next Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson -- at least in Algeria anyway -- where the boxing legend just scored himself a role punching a TON of people in a big Algerian action flick.

Tyson's one of the stars of "Gates of the Sun" ... where it appears he plays a goon for hire who beats the crap out of people on behalf of his employers.

The flick, which hits theaters in March, also stars former Kung Fu champ Lorie Pester and Algerian actor Smaïn (who may or may not be a big deal in Algeria, we're not really sure).

So, what's the plot? The mob moves to Algeria ... and it's up to a "a super secret agent, martial arts specialist, who will do anything to defend Algeria and destroy that organization."

Unclear which side Tyson's on ... but one thing's for sure -- he's gonna punch so many people.

To quote the Grail Knight at the end of "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" ... Harrison Ford chose wisely.

Instead of suffering through the nearly 4 hours of whatever that was on TV last night, Harrison grabbed his wife Calista Flockhart and hit up the Staples Center to watch the crappy Lakers.

But unlike the Academy Awards, Harrison Ford got a surprise ending ... the last place Lake Show actually pulled out a victory over the almost equally bad Boston Celtics.

Think Cristiano Ronaldo's kicking himself yet??

Here's recently single Sports Illustrated: Swimsuit Edition supermodel Irina Shayk ... showing off everything from her underboob to her side ass at the Vanity Fair party Sunday night in Hollywood.

The 29-year-old gave Ronaldo the boot last month after rumors began circulating that he was bangin' other chicks ... so she's very single and by the looks of things, very ready to mingle.

For the record, there were a ton of hot single dudes at the VF party -- including Orlando Bloom, Jared Leto and Common.