TMZ Sports - Page 50

Things just went NUCLEAR between heavyweight boxing champ Deontay Wilder and former champ Shannon Briggs -- with the two TEARING INTO EACH OTHER in the middle of NYC.

The boxers were at the weigh in for the Wladimir Klitschko vs. Bryant Jennings fight when they started talkin' smack to each other.

Shannon called Deontay a phony champion ... "they GAVE you that belt." And Deontay essentially called Shannon a pathetic has-been.

The whole exchange was captured on video by ANOTHER boxing champ, Lennox Lewis -- who posted the footage on Twitter.

Briggs has been trying to lock up a fight with Klitschko ... but now, his focus may be changing.

Embattled NHL star Jarret Stoll is looking to get his chakra back in order after his Las Vegas drug arrest ... hitting a yoga studio today for a full mind and body workout.

Stoll returned to L.A. after being charged with possession of cocaine and molly last Friday -- after he was busted trying to bring the drugs into a Vegas pool party (allegedly).

On his way out of the yoga studio, Stoll told us he was doing well ... but didn't feel like talking about the fallout from the arrest ... or the current status of his relationship with Erin Andrews.

George Foreman says Floyd Mayweather is RIGHT ... telling TMZ Sports, "Pound for pound, Floyd is better than me and Muhammad Ali ever were."

Mayweather received tons of criticism this week after saying HE should be considered the greatest fighter of all time ... and now, it seems Foreman's backing him up in a major way.

"This is a better generation BY FAR," Foreman tells us ... "They're smarter, they're stronger, they're overall just better fighters."

Of course, Foreman is extremely qualified to weigh in on the subject, having fought Muhammad Ali in the famous, "Rumble in the Jungle" in 1974 ... in addition to his 80 other pro fights.

"We were good and we liked the attention that we got. But boxing is on a different level. This is an amazing generation."

As for the fight, Foreman says he's rooting for Mayweather -- and believes he's the better fighter -- but says he thinks Manny will ultimately win the fight.

WNBA superstar Brittney Griner won ANOTHER big award Thursday ... "Mugshot of the Day" ... a title bestowed upon her by the people at the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office.

As we previously reported, Griner and her fiancee Glory Johnson were each arrested on Wednesday for domestic violence after an argument at their Arizona home turned violent.

The M.C.S.O. posted their mugshots on their official website -- as it does with EVERY mugshot -- where they ask users to vote for their favorite mugshot of the day.

On Thursday, Brittney won by a landslide.

More progress in what was one of the most bitter breakups EVER -- with ex-NBA star Daniel "Booby" Gibson saying he still loves his estranged R&B star wife Keyshia Cole.

Don't forget, these two went to WAR with each other -- trading nasty insults in public ... until they hashed out a truce in the last few weeks.

And good news -- seems like things are still POSITIVE ... with Gibson telling TMZ Sports he'll ALWAYS love Keyshia ... and is dedicated to being a good father to their son.

There's more ... Gibson also praises Cole's parenting skills, which again, is huge progress.

Former NFL superstar Brian Urlacher clearly believes Roger Goodell treats the New England Patriots like they're above the law ... and Deflategate is the definitive proof.

Urlacher was hanging with Jay Glazer at their Unbreakable Performance Center in West Hollywood ... when we asked how he felt about President Obama joking about the scandal yesterday.

That's when the former Chicago Bears star attacked the issue with biting sarcasm.

"That didn't happen right? I thought it went away. No one ever got fined for it right? I haven't heard anything since the Super Bowl."

Urlacher proceeded to explain how the Falcons and the Browns got in trouble for far less serious infractions ... yet the Patriots have yet to face ANY consequences for the alleged cheating scheme.

Sorry ladies, Rob Gronkowski is officially taken ... dating a super hot former New England Patriots cheerleader ... multiple sources close to Gronk confirm to TMZ Sports.

The object of Gronk's affection is Camille Kostek -- who was on the cheerleading squad in 2013 and 2014 ... before switching careers and becoming a TV reporter.

There have been multiple sightings of the couple out and about recently -- but now, our Gronk sources say it's official ... they're dating and they're not trying to hide anything.

Congrats!!

MTV star Charlamagne Tha God has a message for Cavs star Iman Shumpert ... back away from the mic slowly ... telling TMZ Sports he's heard Shumpert's new rap song, and it's totally garbage.

You might remember ... the last time Iman stepped in the studio it was to record a diss track aimed at the radio host, who Shumpert labeled as a hater for blasting his rap skills on "The Breakfast Club."

Shumpert's latest track -- a motivational song dedicated to the Cavaliers' playoff run called "The Offs" -- dropped yesterday and Charlamagne says although Shumpert's changed teams, his rap skills haven't changed at all.

"It's garbage. He needs to focus on his defense and not his rapping."

It gets worse ... Charlamagne says he questions Shumpert's focus -- and wants to know why he's making terrible rap songs when Cleveland is still 10 wins away from a championship.

"LeBron doesn't even tweet in the playoffs, and he's making rap songs!? The best motivation he could provide for his team is getting in the gym."

Ouch.

Mark Wahlberg always has time to help a brother out -- whether it's Tom Brady, or the homeless guy who gets caught in a swarm of photogs -- and his generosity was on full display in Bev Hills.

After Mark and his entourage had lunch at E. Baldi on Thursday ... he was making his way to his ride when he handed a C-note to a guy in a wheelchair without missing a beat or making a big deal about it.

It's as smooth and solid a move as we've ever seen a celeb make.

Bonus: Mark sounds off about the QB of his beloved Patriots skipping the team's White House trip. His take -- heartwarming ... and a little cocky.

Wicked awesome.

Lance Armstrong has a very powerful ally ... perhaps the GREATEST ATHLETE, ever ... Bo Jackson ... who tells TMZ Sports he still believes the disgraced cyclist is a good guy.

We spoke with Jackson ... who tells us he's been friends with Lance for years -- and despite his misdeeds, Bo is convinced he's a good person.

"Lance isn't perfect," Bo says ... "Nobody is perfect. The only perfect man was nailed to the cross."

That's why Bo says he wasn't surprised when Lance agreed to ride in his annual Bo Bikes Bama charity event on May 2nd ... telling us, "This man is doing something out of the goodness of his heart."

"Lance is the godfather of cycling in my book. If he wants to ride in my charity ride, I'm not going to say no. I'm trying to do something for my people in Alabama."

One last thing ... since Bo is an avid cyclist (and one hell of an athlete) we had to ask if he thought he could keep up with Lance on the bike. Bo's response:

WNBA superstar Brittney Griner says her engagement to Glory Johnson is STILL ON ... despite their domestic violence arrests this morning ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Griner's attorney David Michael Cantor tells us ... "The last few months have been an extremely stressful time for Brittney and Glory. They will continue to work through these hardships together."

As we previously reported, both Griner and Johnson -- who's also in the WNBA -- were arrested for assault in Arizona this week after cops say they attacked each other during a heated argument.

The couple has been engaged since last year and are scheduled to get married on May 8th.

Griner's attorney did not say if the two will be pushing back the wedding date in light of the arrests -- but says the two are determined to "handle this family matter."

Now that he's finally married (again) Marc Anthony has finally gotten rid of his bachelor pad ... selling his insane L.A. mansion to another rich single guy ... NBA star JaVale McGee.

TMZ Sports has learned ... McGee snatched up Anthony's 6,262 square foot party palace in Encino, CA -- a super private, Spanish-style estate -- for $2.25 million.

The place is perfect for summer bashes -- with a cool bar set up in the backyard, next to a huge pool ... with a cabana, fire pit and it's own private guest suite.

In total -- 6 bedrooms, 9 bathrooms, with a wine room, state of the art theater ... and super high ceiling ... perfect for its new 7-foot owner.

Anthony bought the place back in 2013 -- after he had separated from Jennifer Lopez. He has since moved on ... marrying model Shannon de Lima back in November. As we first reported, Marc and Shannon upgraded to an even MORE EXPENSIVE mansion back in February.

As for McGee, he's unemployed at the moment -- but the 27-year-old has made more than $30 MILLION during his NBA career.

President Barack Obama went in way harder on the New England Patriots than Seahawks coach Pete Carroll did in in the Super Bowl -- unloading a ton of jokes poking fun at the champs.

Obama had his A-game working as he ripped Bill Belichick, Rob Gronkowski and even attempted a Boston accent. Fittingly, the joke that fell most flat ... his Deflategate material. The Pats did not seem amused.

Darrelle Revis was also at the event ... which could've been awkward since he left the team this offseason to sign with the rival NY Jets.

Pretty funny moment on "Inside the NBA" Wednesday night ... when Charles Barkley and Shaq watched the TMZ Sports clip of NBA commish Adam Silver having to choose which star has the better bald head.

Of course, Silver picked Sir Charles ... and raved about how good looking of a man he is.

Barkley's reaction was hilarious.

And just like that ... THEY WERE GONE!!!!

Less than 60 seconds after tickets to the Mayweather vs. Pacquiao fight went on sale to the public on Ticketmaster's website, they were sold out!!

ALL OF THEM.

EVEN THE $7,500 TIX!!!

Several people in our office timed the sale, and some say they got the "No Tickets Left" graphic less than 20 SECONDS after it started. Insane!

So, if you wanna be at the fight, you have to go to the secondary market ... where seats are going for up to $80,000-a-pop!!!

Good luck!

The delay over the sale of the Mayweather vs. Pacquiao tickets was all about GOOD SEATS -- with Manny's team holding up the deal because they felt Floyd's team got the better quality tickets.

Here's the deal ... sources connected to the negotiation tell TMZ Sports ... the sides had agreed to split 9,600 tickets evenly between Team Manny and Team Floyd for the May 2nd fight.

Team Manny includes Bob Arum's Top Rank Boxing and HBO. Team Floyd includes Al Hayman's company and CBS. Each side got 4,800 tickets.

But the rift, we're told, all had to do with seat location -- with Manny's people claiming Floyd's camp got the better tickets because of Mayweather's relationship with the MGM Grand.

As one source put it ... "Floyd's camp got more seats in the first few rows, including the front row, and that's a big deal." We're told Manny's camp demanded equality.

We're told Manny's camp refused to lay down on the issue -- thus delaying the ticket release indefinitely. And Wednesday, with 10 days 'til the fight, CBS honcho Les Moonves stepped in.

Sources say there was an emergency meeting in which Les stepped in and "played Solomon" (a reference to the biblical figure's negotiating expertise) ... and fixed the situation.