TMZ Sports - Page 50

Blood. Everywhere.

CM Punk was oozing from the forehead and hanging from the ropes during AEW Dynamite on Wednesday ... and it was all at the hands of his fan-turned-nemesis MJF!!

The two wrestling superstars met ahead of their big dog collar match at Revolution on Sunday ... and it was anything but civil.

For those who haven't been keeping up with the epic feud, MJF recently handed his former idol his first-ever loss in AEW ... and they've traded insults back and forth ever since.

MJF had previously opened up about how he worshiped Punk as a kid and was so hurt when he quit wrestling ... even shedding a tear as he talked.

Fast forward to Wednesday, when Punk tried to extend an olive branch over the situation -- which was met with a kick in the nuts and a piledriver.

Real soap opera stuff.

But, MJF didn't stop there -- he then punched Punk in the head with his Dynamite Diamond Ring ... causing him to gush blood everywhere.

"You stupid, stupid old man," MJF said in Punk's face. "I'm a snake. The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he doesn't exist."

"And this Sunday at Revolution, I'm going to show you and all these mindless sheep that I am the devil himself."

Punk was then pulled up on the rope by the chain and collar attached to his neck ... visibly struggling as Shawn Spears continued to yank.

Russian billionaire Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich has announced he's selling his beloved soccer team ... and, in a surprising move, he said he'll donate all of the proceeds to victims of the war in Ukraine.

The soccer club's boss explained his decision in a statement Wednesday ... saying he believes unloading the team is in "the best interest of the Club, the fans, the employees, as well as the Club's sponsors and partners."

In his statement, Abramovich said the net dollars from the sale will go to Ukrainian relief efforts ... adding he hopes the funds will help war victims as well as "the long-term work of recovery."

The news comes on the heels of Abramovich -- an oligarch --  reportedly being pressured to sell the team due to his rumored ties to Vladimir Putin.

The oligarch has been friendly with the Russian leader for years ... and with many pushing for sanctions for those who might have the ear of Putin, some believed Abramovich's soccer club was on the verge of being seized.

Experts expect Chelsea FC to sell for around $3 billion ... and given that Abramovich bought the team in 2003 for around $200 million, hundreds of millions of dollars could soon be on the way to Ukraine.

Legendary college hoops coach Jim Boeheim says his wife, Juli Boeheim, is still "shook up" days after she was robbed at gunpoint in New York.

Boeheim joined Syracuse commentator Brent Axe's radio show on ESPN on Wednesday, where Axe asked Jim how his wife was doing following her traumatic ordeal.

"She's definitely shook up," Boeheim said. "I mean, this isn't television. It's not movies. It's real life."

The Syracuse men's basketball coach told the ESPN host that Juli is handling the situation better than most people would, but it's still not easy for her.

"She's a little shook," Jim said, "but I think she's doing much better than could be expected."

As we reported, law enforcement said Juli was sitting in her car in the Destiny USA parking lot in New York around 2 PM on Monday, when a "juvenile looking male" approached her, pointed a gun at her, and then grabbed her purse before running away.

The Syracuse Police Department confirmed that officers responded to the parking lot a short time later for a report of a 55-year-old woman who was robbed.

Fortunately, Juli did not sustain any injuries in the incident, and Jim says she was actually more concerned about the kid's well-being than her own.

"Her main thought was, 'Let's help this kid,'" the hoops coach said. "That's what she does and what we do with our foundation is try to help these kids."

"Keep fighting boys! Never surrender!"

That's heavyweight champion Tyson Fury addressing Vladimir Putin's Russian invasion of Ukraine ... voicing support for star boxers like Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko, Wladimir Klitschko, Vasyl Lomachenko and Oleksandr Usyk.

TMZ Sports talked to the 33-year-old boxing superstar about the unprovoked war ... and the "Gypsy King" even said if the fight came to the US or UK, he'd be right there, gun in hand.

"Two laws, love your woman and fight for your country. So they should be fighting for their country. Why not? If the war comes to the United States or United Kingdom, then I'll be joining. Don't worry about that. We all will! Why ain't we gonna defend our own land? C'mon, behave yourself."

Some people have been surprised the boxers -- who are all famous and wealthy -- have put themselves at great risk of harm or death by fighting Putin's forces.

But, Tyson makes a great point to rebut the notion the boxers are risking too much by fighting alongside the military.

"What's money got to do with it? You got no homeland to go back to, all the money in the world's no good to you. You can't spend it."

We also talked about more optimistic topics ... like Fury's return to the ring!

Of course, Tyson is just a few months removed from his trilogy fight with Deontay Wilder. The first fight was a draw ... and TF won the last 2 bouts by knockout.

Now, Fury is set to take on fellow UK star, Dillian Whyte on April 23 at Wembley Stadium in London.

Just hours after Cain Velasquez was hit with 10 criminal charges on Wednesday stemming from his alleged role in a Monday shooting ... he appeared in a courtroom in shackles.

Velasquez was flanked by an officer and wore a COVID mask ... and looked stern as he faced the judge.

According to sources close to the UFC legend, he was not granted bail at the hearing ... and instead will now be forced to remain in custody until his next court date next week.

As we reported, prosecutors hit Velasquez with one count of felony attempted murder and several other charges after they alleged he tried to a kill man who has been accused of molesting one of his close relatives.

In court docs, officials say Velasquez opened fire on the man and his family members as they were driving in San Jose on Monday afternoon.

Velasquez has yet to publicly issue any comment on the situation -- and he did not enter a plea at Wednesday's hearing.

Many of Velasquez's peers in the fighting world have thrown their support behind the UFC legend following his arrest, with Derek Brunson even making T-shirts to try to raise money for Cain's legal fees.

This is amazing.

The college hoops community is stepping up and helping Tennessee Volunteers guard Zakai Zeigler's family in a big way ... by raising more than $200,000 after his family home was destroyed in a fire.

The unfortunate incident happened last month -- Zeigler's family apartment home, in Queens NY, was left dismantled after a fire started on the second floor of the 3-story building.

Thankfully, his family escaped safely ... but Zeigler's mother, Charmane, and his special-needs 4-year-old nephew, Nori, lost all of their belongings -- including his nephew's wheelchair, splints and other equipment.

The Vols sprang into action to help out -- starting a GoFundMe with a goal of $50k for "relief and recovery" for the freshman guard's family and Nori's care.

"Our administration did a terrific job. Once they got the news they jumped on it and got after it," Vols head coach Rick Barnes said of the gesture.

"Been doing what they have to do to get things in order so that we can help."

But, what's even better?? Within just a few hours after the fund went up, thousands of people donated -- raising over $200k!!

"The outpouring of support has been unbelievable!" Zeigler said Wednesday on Twitter, "We’ll get through this. All love, #VolNation!!"

Fighters across the UFC are throwing their support behind Cain Velasquez following his arrest on Monday ... with Derek Brunson even making "Free Cain Velasquez" shirts to try to help pay for the MMA legend's legal fees.

Brunson announced the creation of the tees and the sale on his social media page on Wednesday ... explaining 50% of the profits would go toward helping Velasquez foot his legal bills.

The shirts -- which come in white, blue, red, grey and green -- have a $27.99 price tag.

Brunson actually modeled the shirt when announcing the sale -- posting a photo of him in the tee with the caption, "We support you @cainmma."

As we reported, Cain has been hit with 10 charges -- including felony attempted murder -- after officials say he tried to shoot a man in San Jose who was accused of molesting one of Velasquez's close family members.

Velasquez has been in a jail cell since Monday evening ... though he's slated to appear in front of a judge on Wednesday afternoon and could be released following the hearing.

Mike Trout -- arguably the best player in Major League Baseball -- is fed up with the lockout ... blasting the league for refusing to come to an agreement with the players and canceling games instead.

"I want to play," Trout said Wednesday. "I love this game. But I know we need to get this (collective bargaining agreement) right."

"Instead of negotiating a deal, Rob canceled games."

Trout went on ... "Players stand together. For our game, for our fans, and for every player who comes after us."

"We owe it to the next generation."

Of course, Mike is referring to Rob Manfred's decision to cancel the first two series of the MLB season ... after the league and MLBPA failed to ratify the CBA.

The commissioner's decision to cancel games at the beginning of the season comes after the league and the players couldn't reach a resolution after a week of negotiations.

Some of the game's biggest names weighed in on the lockout, with newly acquired Cubs pitcher Marcus Stroman calling the commish "Manclown."

Anthony Rizzo -- who spent 8 seasons with the Cubs, but is now a free agent -- said, "To the fans we will miss you most. To the younger generation of baseball players, this is for you."

Stanford women's soccer star Katie Meyer -- a Cardinal goalkeeper and a team captain -- has tragically died, the school announced Tuesday.

She was only 22 years old. No cause of death was revealed.

"Please join us in offering our deepest condolences to her parents and sisters," university officials said of Meyer in a statement. "We would also like to extend our heartfelt condolences to Katie's friends, hallmates, classmates, teammates, faculty and coaches."

School officials added that counseling has been made available all over campus to students and others who are grieving the loss.

Meyer -- described by the school as "a bright shining light for so many" -- was one of the Cardinal's best players ... and had helped the team win the NCAA women's soccer championship in 2019.

During that title game against North Carolina, she made two massive saves to help secure the victory. Her celebration afterward went viral.

Meyer was slated to be a redshirt senior on Stanford's team this season.

Whaddaya do when you win the Super Bowl??

You get all your friends together on a yacht and head to Cabo, of course!!

L.A. Rams head coach Sean McVay did just that this week -- boarding a $15k-a-night boat and having the time of his life ... and TMZ Sports has the pics.

36-year-old McVay, his fiancée, Veronika Khomyn, and their closest friends made the trip down to Mexico and partied it up on a 75-foot Sunseeker called Sea La Vie.

McVay quickly ditched his shirt for the occasion ... showing off his impressive build as he soaked in the rays before riding around on a jet ski.

Sean has a lot to celebrate -- he is fresh off leading the Rams to a Super Bowl win over Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals ... becoming the youngest head coach to win it all.

On top of that, pretty much every major network wants him to leave his coaching gig to start a career in the broadcast booth ... reportedly being offered insane checks in the process.

Cain Velasquez allegedly rammed his truck into the car of a man accused of molesting the UFC legend's family member, before allegedly firing multiple shots into the man's vehicle, striking the alleged molester's stepfather.

TMZ Sports has obtained court docs that spell out the allegations against 39-year-old Velasquez.

In the docs, officials say Velasquez followed a 43-year-old man named Harry Goularte -- who was recently charged with 1 felony count of a lewd and lascivious act for allegedly molesting Velasquez's "close relative" -- along with his mom and stepdad from their San Martin, CA home on Monday afternoon.

Velasquez, who was driving a black Ford F-250, then allegedly began shooting into the Chevy Silverado driven by Goularte's stepdad.

Authorities say Cain caught up to the car and rammed it, before eventually firing off more shots.

Cops were called, and Velasquez allegedly left the scene. Soon after, cops located Cain on the road, pulled him over and took him into custody without issue.

According to the docs, police found a 40-caliber semi-automatic handgun in Cain's truck. They also noted they found two 10-bullet magazines in the vehicle, noting that 8 total bullets were missing from the mags.

Cain has been hit with 10 charges, including 1st degree attempted murder, multiple counts of assault with a deadly weapon, and shooting an occupied motor vehicle, among others.

If he's ultimately convicted, Cain is facing decades in prison.

But, it's the circumstances surrounding the case that makes this situation unique.

From the pit to ... one of the biggest stages in music?!

Antonio Brown announced that is his next move ... revealing Tuesday night he's set to perform at this year's Rolling Loud festival.

The NFL star broke the news on his social media page ... posting Rolling Loud's flyer, which shows he'll be rapping on the festival's first day in Miami just before Kanye West takes the stage.

Brown will rap as "AB" ... and it's a big deal, considering his name is up there on the flyer with top musicians like Kendrick Lamar and Lil Baby.

The 3-day weekend festival starts on July 22 at Hard Rock Stadium .. and, given his newfound friendship with Ye, it's no surprise Brown's performance will come minutes before the "Donda" artist.

Remember, AB and Ye have been best buds since his infamous exit from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers earlier this year -- with the two dining out, partying and even hittin' the studio constantly.

Brown did say he was collaborating with Ye on a song ... so seems there's a good chance the two will perform together at the festival.

Even if they don't, though ... Brown still has his two hit singles -- "Whole Lotta Money" and "Pit Not The Palace" -- to rile up the crowd with.

The 33-year-old wideout has been involved in music even when he was at the top of his football game ... launching his own label in 2020 and releasing several songs, mixtapes and music videos through the years.

There's a new team owner in the Fan Controlled Football league ... and it's none other than comedian and internet superstar Druski!!

TMZ Sports has learned ... Drew Desbordes and Altered State Machine are joining NFL star Austin Ekeler and the Bachelorette franchise's Rachel Lindsay as owners of the Wild Aces -- the reigning champs from FCF's inaugural season.

Of course, the FCF is an indoor football league completely controlled by fans ... with teams owned by names like Marshawn Lynch, Quavo and more.

We spoke with Druski about the major business move ... and while he's known for being a funny guy, he makes it clear he's taking his new position seriously.

"With ownership comes a lot of equity," he says. "I'm bringing some special talent to this year's league."

In fact, Druski says he's hearing legends like Terrell Owens and Michael Vick could suit up for the FCF next season ... and he's had talks with league owners about the possibility.

"This is a real possible thing."

Druski says he's met with players on the Wild Aces -- which will be going through a rebrand, BTW -- and their reaction to his appearance was overwhelmingly positive.

But don't get it twisted -- Druski says he's getting involved to WIN ... and will stop at nothing to prevent his team from losing.

"Before I joined the team, they already won the championship last year," he says. "Not to bandwagon, but we all about Ws, we're all about wins, baby."

Yevhen Malyshev -- a former Ukrainian biathlete -- lost his life while defending his country in the war with Russia ... officials announced Wednesday. He was only 19 years old.

The International Biathlon Union's executive board released a statement confirming the tragic news earlier this week ... saying Malyshev died following Russia's invasion.

"The EB expresses its deepest condolences on the loss," officials said.

Specific details surrounding the circumstances of his passing are unclear ... though officials added he died "serving in the Ukrainian military."

Malyshev raced for Ukraine's biathlon junior team in 2018 and ended his career when the pandemic started in 2020.

"The EB once again condemns the Russian attacks on Ukraine and the support provided by Belarus and reiterates its hope for an immediate end to the war," officials said.

It's been common for Ukrainian athletes to take up arms in the country since Russia's attack ... with star boxers Oleksandr Usyk, Vasyl Lomachenko, Vitali Klitschko and Wladimir Klitschko already in the country fighting off invaders.

Ukrainian tennis star Sergiy Stakhovsky also left his family in Hungary to fight ... saying on "Good Morning Britain," "The world needs to unite and stop this mess."

Tragically, several other Ukrainian athletes have been killed during the war ... with the FIFPRO World Players Union saying earlier this week "young Ukrainian footballers Vitalii Sapylo (21) and Dmytro Martynenko (25)" also passed away.

Nate Diaz isn't shooting down a third fight with Conor McGregor, nor exactly is it a lock ... the UFC superstar says "The Notorious" needs to rack up a few Ws and show he isn't soft before they step in the Octagon again.

"Conor’s gonna have to get him some wins and prove he’s not so fragile first .." the UFC superstar from Stockton tweeted.

Nate's reacting to a recent TMZ Sports interview with Dana White ... where the UFC president was asked if the curtain had closed on a trilogy fight between two of the biggest UFC stars who have ever lived.

We asked the question after Diaz recently told us he had one fight left on his UFC deal ... and he intended to fight Dustin Poirier and then lay down his gloves and retire.

So, third fight? Here's Dana.

"We're still working on [the Diaz-Poirier] fight. That fight's not done yet. I wouldn't count out a Conor-Nate 3," White told Babcock on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weekdays on FS1).

The UFC prez added ... "Listen, I'd be shocked if that fight didn't happen again."

Of course, the guys previously fought twice -- two of the top-selling fights in UFC history -- each winning one. Diaz submitted McGregor in March 2016. Then, the Irish superstar beat the Stockton superstar by majority decision when they rematched in August 2016.

As for the third fight ... Dana's in. Nate's in (with some conditions). What's Conor say?

You could say LeBron James had a crappy night.

The Lakers superstar described exactly how he was feeling after losing to the Dallas Mavericks at home on Tuesday ... saying bluntly, "I feel like poop right now."

The Lakers suffered a 109-104 loss at Crypto.com Arena ... their 7th L in 10 games.

After the disappointing outing, LeBron was asked about his confidence level as L.A. plummets to the bottom of the Western Conference ... and despite the lack of success and a clear feeling of sadness, he's still holding out hope for a turnaround.

"Until you stomp me out, cut my head off, bury me 12 feet under, then I got a chance," James said. "So, that's my confidence."

"At the end of the day, we gotta come in and win ball games and play better."

James then detailed how he's feeling during the slump ... saying, "I hate losing. I feel like poop right now, but tomorrow's a new day and I'mma be prepared and ready for the Clippers on Thursday."

James and Co. found themselves down big early against Luka Doncic and the Mavs ... a theme that's become all too familiar to Lakers fans this season.

The Lakers have been so awful this year -- their own fans booed them off the court on Sunday during an embarrassing loss to the Pelicans.

Tensions got so high during that game, James clapped back at a fan ... which he also addressed after Tuesday's game.

"If you follow my career, I will get into it with a fan. So, that wasn't nothing out of the ordinary for me," James said.

The 37-year-old said he doesn't mind fans booing or cheering him ... but he won't tolerate someone trying to tell him how to do his craft.

"Can't tell me how to play basketball. Not him. Not that guy."