TMZ Sports - Page 50

Houston PD says they've made an arrest in the shooting death of Takeoff.

The department's chief addressed the media Friday, announcing they arrested 33-year-old Patrick Xavier Clark and charged him with the murder of Takeoff.

As we reported, Takeoff was killed early morning November 1 after he and Quavo were partying at a local bowling alley. At some point, the celebration turned into an argument, which led to a physical altercation and a shooting.

Cops say Takeoff was not part of the argument and he was not armed, he was an innocent bystander who was hit by gunfire. What's more, investigators say nearly 30 people were at the scene when the shooting happened -- and almost everyone left without giving a statement to police. They still ask those who were in attendance come in and talk.

Takeoff was shot in the head and torso according to the coroner's report -- and was pronounced dead at the scene. Two others suffered non-life-threatening injuries.

TMZ obtained video of the incident from 2:30 AM -- you can see and hear Quavo arguing with someone, and Takeoff is a few feet behind him. There's some sort of a discussion about basketball before shots start to ring out.

Another angle -- also obtained by TMZ -- showed a man dressed in black with a handgun in his right pocket just seconds before the gunfire, showing multiple people were armed at the event.

Two grown-ass men beat the hell out of each other for nearly two minutes during a wild brawl at a gym earlier this week ... and the insane fight was all captured on video.

The scrap went down at a Fitness Connection facility on Tuesday -- when an apparent disagreement in the weight room turned incredibly violent.

Footage shows a man in a white t-shirt and another guy in an all-red 'fit squared up -- and then traded blows ... all while astonished gymgoers looked on.

The two both socked each other in the face repeatedly ... before the man in the white shirt was staggered by a huge right hand. A woman then attempted to intervene -- but all that did was give the man in the white shirt a chance to get up and continue the melee.

The two eventually locked arms -- and threw knees at each other. Finally, however, after pummeling each other for around 100 seconds, the tilt was broken up.

No word on if police were called ... or if anyone suffered significant injuries.

Jalen Kitna will not play at the Univ. of Florida again following his child porn arrest this week ... the school just dismissed the quarterback from the team.

The Gators made the decision on Friday morning -- two days after authorities said the 19-year-old sent child exploitation material over Discord, a popular social media messaging platform, in June.

After initially suspending the signal-caller following his arrest, the school called the allegations against Kitna "extremely serious charges" and behavior that it has "zero tolerance for."

UF officials have yet to make a public comment on the dismissal.

Kitna was in custody for roughly 24 hours following his arrest on Wednesday afternoon, but was released from jail on $80,000 bond on Thursday evening.

His famous father, ex-NFL star Jon Kitna, promised during testimony at Jalen's court hearing Thursday morning that he would take his son back to live with him in Texas during the pre-trial process. Jalen must not use the Internet and must not have unsupervised contact with minors as part of the conditions of his release.

The United States just got some GREAT news ahead of Saturday's match against the Netherlands -- Christian Pulisic has been cleared to play after suffering an injury against Iran.

Captain America's been recovering from getting hit in the balls a pelvic contusion this week ... which came after making contact with Iran's goalkeeper after scoring the game-winning goal.

CP said Thursday he was taking it one day at a time ... but was doing "everything in my power" to make it out on the pitch on Saturday.

Pulisic also clarified his injury was, in fact, a pelvic contusion ... saying, "I didn't get hit in the balls."

"I'm alright. It was very painful. That bone is there for a reason to protect you and I hit it well. I was sore."

He posted a Snapchat from his hospital bed after the 1-0 win on Tuesday ... promising he'd be back for their next match -- but admitted the pain was pretty tough to fight through.

The 24-year-old is holding up on his promise ... 'cause Pulisic is now good enough to go as the Red, White and Blue head into the round of 16.

Liver King -- the viral "ancestral lifestyle" influencer -- is fessing up to using steroids ... apologizing to his followers for misleading them into believing he was completely natural.

45-year-old Brian Johnson gained a ton of followers through his primal living routine ... which includes eating raw animal organs, 9 ancestral tenets, and barbarian challenges.

The dude is undeniably buff as hell ... and despite numerous accusations of using steroids in the past, he continued to claim he earned his physique without any additional help.

But, LK was forced to face the music after YouTuber More Plates More Dates released a video exposing the influencer's steroid cycle earlier this week ... which alleged he was injecting $ 12,000 worth of stuff into his body.

MPMD even came with email receipts ... which appear to show what exactly the Internet star was taking.

Now, Liver King is coming clean about his steroid use ... releasing a 6-minute long video to his millions of followers to try to explain himself.

"I'm making this video to apologize because I f***ed up, because I'm embarrassed and ashamed, because I lied and I misled a lot of people." Liver King said.

LK -- who had a successful supplement company prior to becoming a viral personality -- says he struggled to handle being in the public eye once he blew up ... and he decided to cut corners in order to keep up with his audience's expectations.

"It's been tricky as f*** to navigate," he added. "Well, clearly, I did it wrong and I'm here now to set the record straight -- yes, I've done steroids and yes, I'm on steroids monitored and managed by a trained hormone clinician."

LK says he continued to run with the façade for those dealing with mental health issues who look up to him ... hoping ancestral living would provide a solution to their problems.

"While spreading the message, I've been on several podcasts, and when asked if I've ever taken steroids, I've always said, 'no. I don't touch the stuff. Not going to touch the stuff. Never touched the stuff.' That was a lie. I've convinced myself this had nothing to do with the ancestral message."

FYI -- Liver King has previously said he makes millions of dollars a month -- including his supplement brand.

He says he trained clean for decades ... but in 2021, he wasn't feeling 100% physically, so he made the decision to use steroids. LK says he kept it private, because he didn't want to spread the wrong message or have his previous fitness success overshadowed.

Kanye West is doing everything he can to deflect attention away from his praising of Hitler, even throwing out false allegations about his ex-wife Kim Kardashian and an affair with NBA superstar Chris Paul ... according to sources with direct knowledge.

Before he was kicked off Twitter Thursday night for posting a swastika, the disgraced rapper made a wild allegation claiming he "caught" Kim Kardashian cheating with NBA star Chris Paul.

A source close to the situation tells us the allegation is absolutely false, and just another example of a desperate man trying to shift the focus away from his own wrongdoings.

The source says, "This is not true and sadly it’s an ongoing pattern with Kanye — attacking Kim to redirect everyone’s attention after a day of crazy antics where he has said every hateful and offensive thing he can possibly dream of."

They continue, "He has a history of falsely accusing her of also having affairs with Meek Mill, Drake and countless others. Kanye has for years deflected his own awful behavior, infidelities and obsession with porn and sex addiction to abuse and slut shame Kim. She wants to be left alone so she can focus on the well-being of their children.”

It was Thursday when Kanye was on Alex Jones' "Infowars" spewing hate, claiming he liked Hitler, questioning the Holocaust and giving the Nazis props. Jones, a controversial figure himself, made several attempts to reel Kanye in, but the rapper only doubled down.

Of course, it was earlier this week when Kim and Kanye finally settled their nearly two-year divorce ... he's agreed to pay her $200k a month in child support, and they'll have "equal access" to their kids.

Brian Robinson knows the perils of gun violence better than almost anyone, and he wants to put a spotlight on the senseless killing ... the Commanders star will rock a sweet pair of custom cleats, with a very important message, this week against the Giants.

The 23-year-old running back, who was shot multiple times in August, copped his new spikes for the NFL's "My Cause, My Cleats" -- an initiative where players bring awareness to organizations and nonprofits during Week 13.

TMZ Sports has learned Robinson reached out to artist Joe Castro to shine a light on the incident where he was shot twice during an attempted robbery.

A 17-year-old boy was arrested for his alleged role in the shooting.

Castro -- whose client list includes NFL stars like Jaire Alexander and DeSean Jackson -- tells us he and Robinson decided to go with a gun control theme.

The tan and orange Nike spikes feature two guns held up in the air with text reading "End Gun Violence".

Castro says it took 2 hours to design ... and he actually made two pairs. One for filming and one for the Commanders-Giants game.

Jerry Jones took a unique path to respond to LeBron James' very public criticism of the Dallas Cowboys owner's controversial 1957 photo ... choosing to do nothing but shower the NBA star with praise.

Jones was asked Friday about Bron's Wednesday comments during his weekly radio hit on the K&C Masterpiece show on Audacy's 105.3 The Fan ... and instead of revealing his thoughts on it all, he opted to simply compliment the Lakers forward.

For roughly two minutes, Jones called James an amazing person ... saying the basketball player is "an absolute great ambassador for sport" who he respects more than possibly anybody else in the world.

Jones added that it "made buttons pop off my vest" when James previously identified as a huge Cowboys fan.

But, when it came time to address James' comments, the 80-year-old sidestepped.

"I'm just giving him due," Jones said. "I'm just giving him due there. Certainly, he has influence, and just because of all of the above. His accomplishments, how he's utilized his sport and how he's utilized his platform. How we have done it. He has enhanced basketball, he's made a lot of people a lot of money. But, I hope I have too."

Jones -- who did admit to hearing James' remarks -- would not say if he had any interest in meeting with James over it all. He was not pressed further about the issue.

As we reported, LeBron sounded off on reporters earlier this week following a win over the Trail Blazers ... chastising them for not asking him about the 65-year-old photo showing Jones as a teenager standing with a group of white classmates who were trying to prevent six Black students from entering an Arkansas school.

James wondered why they had asked him so much about the Kyrie Irving drama earlier this year -- but were silent about Jones.

Michael Jai White has several black belts in various martial arts, but it's even better that he's mastered the practice of restraint, at least for Kanye West's sake!!!

When asked by DJ Vlad about some of Ye's wild and erroneous comments -- like claiming George Floyd died from a drug overdose -- MJW admitted he's been detached from Ye's antics for years, and avoids running into him because it could get violent ... and end badly for the embattled rapper.

MJW says his personal Kanye breaking point came way back in 2009 after the infamous Taylor Swift mic-snatching incident -- and he feels Ye's arrogance is fueled by the fact he has money.

The "Black Dynamite" actor compared consuming Ye's social media posts to eating junk food while trying to stay in karate shape -- an act in futility -- but he says he's not pushing his anti-Ye beliefs on friends.

Kim Kardashian had a very noticeable sidekick missing as she hit her first night of Art Basel celebrations ... she stepped out without Balenciaga.

Kim was among a slew of celebs -- including Madonna, James Blake, Travis Scott, Rande Gerber, Serena Williams, Khloe Kardashian and Leonardo DiCaprio -- to hit Miami for the annual art show which brings out huge collectors, stars and billionaires alike.

Of course, Kim's almost always decked out in the most recent Balenciaga gear at major events like this, but it was very clearly missing from her look. Instead, she wore a Vex latex top and vintage pants with Dior sunglasses ... and still looked hot as ever as she left dinner at Gekko with owner David Grutman and Jonathan “Foodgod” Cheban.

TMZ broke the story ... Kim cut any plans to work with Balenciaga in the future after the brand launched a controversial BDSM-inspired ad campaign with kids. Our sources said Balenciaga had offered Kim a campaign for 2023, but she turned it down.

No, Drew Brees was not struck by lightning despite a scary video that appeared to show he was ... the NFL legend said Friday a bolt never touched him, and he's doing fine.

Brees relayed the message in a text to ESPN Saints reporter Katherine Terrell ... just hours after footage surfaced seemingly showing the ex-New Orleans quarterback in danger.

In the clip, which was apparently shot while Brees was filming a commercial for the sports gambling platform PointsBet in Catatumbo -- an area in Venezuela known for its consistent thunderstorm activity -- you can see a lightning bolt making a beeline for Brees' back.

The footage shows the bolt cracked onto the ground, sending the 43-year-old former football player and others scurrying away from the scene in a hurry.

It's unclear if it was all fake, staged or edited ... PointsBet refused to confirm or deny the situation in a statement released Friday morning.

"We are aware of the media coverage regarding PointsBet brand ambassador Drew Brees," the org. said.

"We are in communication with Brees' team and will continue to monitor events throughout the coming hours. At this stage we will not be making any further comment."

Brees, meanwhile, had tweeted earlier this week that he was "excited to be flying to a top-secret location later this week to shoot the new promotional video for @PointsBetUSA."

We've reached out to reps for Brees for comment, but so far, no word back yet.

Cynthia Bailey and Mike Hill are signed, sealed and divorced -- less than 2 months after announcing their split, they've hammered out a settlement ... TMZ has learned.

"The Real Housewives of Atlanta" alum and the Fox Sports anchor wasted no time putting together the divorce agreement -- a Fulton County court judge signed off on it Thursday ... so they're both officially single.

The exes hit their 2nd anniversary back in October -- without celebration, we should say -- and then a few days later announced they were breaking up. In the divorce docs, obtained by TMZ, Cynthia says the marriage is irretrievably broken with no shot of reconciliation, and she accuses Mike of "inappropriate adulterous relations."

As for Mike's side -- he's choosing to remain silent, saying he will not file any response to the allegations. He actually signed the divorce agreement first, on October 20, and Cynthia signed on November 1.

The now-exes made it easy to go their own ways because they never intermingled their finances, taxes or property during their 2 years together.

They had 2 separate homes, which each will keep. They didn't have kids together, and they've agreed neither will pay spousal support. Mike didn't even retain a lawyer!

Cynthia and Mike threw a big lavish wedding, back in 2020, at Governors Towne Club in Georgia -- and the party was featured in season 13 of 'RHOA.'

Formula One will NOT be making a return to China in 2023 -- the series just announced it has pulled the Chinese Grand Prix due to Covid-19 difficulties.

China recently implemented strict guidelines and lockdowns as part of a "zero-Covid" approach ... which has resulted in public protests.

China has since reportedly announced a plan to loosen its protocols by reducing mass testing in the coming days ... but F1 decided it was best to start its search for a replacement host ASAP.

"Formula 1 can confirm, following dialogue with the promoter and relevant authorities, that the 2023 Chinese Grand Prix will not take place due to the ongoing difficulties presented by the COVID-19 situation," F1 announced Friday.

"Formula 1 is assessing alternative options to replace the slot on the 2023 calendar and will provide an update on this in due course."

The April 16 event at Shanghai International Circuit was set to be F1's first return to China since 2019 ... and would have been Alfa Romeo driver Zhou Guanyu's debut home race of his career.

Jay-Z got a taste of what NFL ownership would be like on Thursday night -- sitting alongside Robert Kraft in the New England honcho's suite for the Patriots' 'TNF' game ... while rubbin' elbows with star players after the contest as well.

HOV hit Gillette Stadium for the Bills' dominant 24-10 win over the Pats from start to finish -- with cameras capturing him chillin' with Kraft for the entirety of the night.

Unclear what Bob and Jay talked about -- but seems safe to say the potential of the rapper eventually owning the Commanders came up.

As we reported, Jay-Z has been very interested in putting in a bid for Daniel Snyder's Washington team ... taking a secret dinner with billionaire Jeff Bezos in L.A. last month to talk about the logistics of it all.

It's unknown yet if Snyder has any interest in selling to the two titans ... but at least two star Buffalo players made it clear they'd welcome Jay to NFL fields with open arms.

Josh Allen and Gabe Davis were both spotted showing big love to Jay-Z in a stadium tunnel following their win. And, afterward, Allen joked with media members about being kind of starstruck over it all, saying, "I'm not sure he knew exactly who I was.''

Brad William Henke, a former NFL player who later got into acting and appeared in "Orange Is The New Black," has died ... TMZ has confirmed.

Brad died in his sleep Tuesday, according to sources connected to his family. The cause of death is unclear.

Brad's most famous for playing one of the prison guards in 'OITNB' -- and he's in the scene where one of the show's main characters, Poussey Washington, is killed off -- one of the biggest scenes in the entire series.

He also had roles in TV shows like "Justified" and "Lost" ... appearing in movies including "Pacific Rim" and "World Trade Center."

Brad started acting after retiring from the NFL in 1994, hanging up his cleats due to ankle injuries. He played his college ball at the University of Arizona before being drafted in 1989 by the New York Giants.

A defensive lineman, Brad also played for the Denver Broncos and got on the field in Super Bowl XXIV against the San Francisco 49ers.

Brad first got into Hollywood by acting in commercials, then he started landing TV guest spots on series like "ER," "Arli$$," "Nash Bridges," "Silk Stalkings" and "Chicago Hope."

With over 100 acting credits to his name, Brad also appeared in "CSI," "Judging Amy," "Crossing Jordan" and "Dexter" ... among many others.

His manager, Matt DelPiano, tells us, "Brad was an incredibly kind man of joyous energy. A very talented actor, he loved being a part of this community….and we loved him back. Our thoughts are with his wife and family.”

Brad was 56.

Scooby Wright -- the ex-NFL linebacker and former University of Arizona football star -- is now trying his hand at a different contact sport ... auditioning to become the WWE's next big superstar!!

The wrestling org. invited the former Wildcat to attend tryouts at IMG Academy in Florida this week as part of the company's new recruitment strategy ... and, Scooby sure seemed to impress while there.

One of the 30-plus athletes -- 17 of which were former college football players -- who showed up, the 28-year-old moved around the ring just like he did on the football field.

Wright learned the fundamentals from on-site coaches, including how to absorb blows when hitting the mat. He even got some wisdom imparted to him from Matthew Jason Bloom, a veteran in the industry who wrestled under various monikers during different stints with the WWE.

No word yet on how the execs felt about the former backer ... but the dude has rarely ever disappointed in his athletic life -- so we're sure things went well.

If you need a refresher, the former two-star recruit balled out during his college career at UofA ... recording a staggering 270 total tackles, 17 sacks, five forced fumbles and an interception in 30 career games.

He went on to be picked by the Cardinals in the 7th round of the 2016 NFL Draft.