
Stars Show Up and Show Out for Mayweather-De La Hoya
By Quibian Salazar-Moreno,
Posted: 2007-05-10 06:07:36
Seth Browarnik, WireImage.com
Everyone from Diddy to Jay-Z to Usher to Lennox Lewis to Dwyane Wade and Jerome Bettis came out to celebrate after last weekend's mega-bout between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Oscar De La Hoya.
After a heck of a weekend, 50 Cent is at least $1 million richer. The rapper bet a mil that his boy, "Pretty Boy" Floyd Mayweather Jr. would defeat the "Golden Boy" Oscar De La Hoya at the MGM Grand on Saturday and Mayweather did just that. The Mayweather-De La Hoya bout last weekend brought a host of celebrities to Sin City not only to enjoy the fight but also to enjoy each other.
Diddy himself threw a huge fight after-party at the Empire Ballroom that's next to the MGM Grand. But did he even show up to his own party? It seems that the hottest spot in town was Tao, the nightclub at the Venetian. Everyone from Diddy to Jay-Z to Usher to Lennox Lewis to Dwyane Wade and Jerome Bettis were at Tao for the grand opening of Tao Beach, a pool venue at the club.
The other hot spot was Pure, the club inside Caesar's Palace, where folks like Antonio Tarver, Peerless Price, Dennis Rodman, Dre Bly and Torry Holt were kicking it.
And according to Norm Clarke of the 'Las Vegas Review Journal,' while Tony Parker was in San Antonio Saturday night gearing up for Sunday’s bloody defeat of the Phoenix Suns, his lady Eva Langoria was creeping around Vegas with Mario Lopez. They were seen together at the fight and even had dinner together at N9ne Steakhouse at the Palms. Hmmm. …
Oscar Scores a New Endorsement Deal
Shortly before the fight on Saturday, Oscar announced that he was rolling with Subway in a new campaign that promotes staying fit and eating healthy. The campaign had De la Hoya writing a blog on Subway’s Web site about how he prepares mentally and physically for a fight and even offered his post-fight thoughts on the blog.
“What can I say?” Oscar wrote. “I fought my hardest, fought like a champion. I went into the ring prepared for Floyd’s speed and agility and I thought I did more than enough to counter it and beat him. I’m really surprised by the decision.”
The Web site also features pictures from previous fights as well as video of him training for the fight. To view the blog and read Oscar’s complete thoughts on the outcome of the fight, visit http://www.subwayfreshbuzz.com/de_la_hoya/journal.asp.
LeBron’s Neighbors Are Not Feeling Him
Everyone knows that LeBron James is building a new house in Bath Township, Ohio. The 33,000-square-foot crib is going to have a recording studio, a bowling alley, a movie theater and a sports bar. It's supposed to be finished sometime in 2008. The problem is that tourists and basketball fans keep coming through the 'hood to watch the construction, and the neighbors aren’t feeling it.
"If you stand here 15 or 20 minutes, you see them," Jack Bonsky, a neighbor, told the Associated Press. "Why? It's just a building."
"We just want it to stop," said another neighbor.
The traffic in the neighborhood, which only has two routes in and out, has increased with visitors using the neighbors’ driveways to turn around. They are even parking in front of people’s houses to get out and take a closer look at LeBron’s crib. On warm days, neighbors say there can be up to 10 cars an hour checking out the house. Is there a possible moneymaker here?
Jerry Rice Isn’t Too Old for Video Games
If anyone has been keeping up with the video-game industry, you would know that in 2004 EA Sports bought exclusive rights to the NFL until 2009. That means that they are the only video game company allowed to use NFL teams and players in their games (they also hold the license rights to NASCAR, Arena Football and NCAA college football).
To battle that, video game company 2K Sports got creative and is launching ‘All Pro Football 2008’ in August, which features fictitious teams and arenas but has individual licenses from real players. Folks like John Elway, Jerry Rice, Thurman Thomas, Reggie White, Ronnie Lott, Mike Singletary and 240 other legendary football players will be playable in the game .
“It’s great to be back not only ‘playing’ the game I’ve loved my entire life, but now I get to compete with and against the best players of all time,” said Jerry Rice, who will also be the game’s cover boy. “2K Sports has a proud legacy of making the best football games and this one is no exception. I’m proud to be part of the ‘All-Pro Football 2K8’ team.”
Since retiring Rice has been dancing on TV, competing against average fans on ‘Pros vs. Joes,’ doing endorsement deals with a host of companies and it looks like there’s no slowing down for Mr. Rice.
“To be in this video game is a lot of fun for me and to be compared to the different legends in the game, it's almost like one of those things where you have to pinch yourself,” Rice recently told IGN.com. “The things that are happening to me are unbelievable. I'm actually busier right now than when I played football. This is almost like I'm coming back out of retirement. It will be fun to see myself in the game."
Albert Pujols Cover Athlete for Bigs
Sticking with the video game stuff, 2K Sports (which owns the exclusive license to Major League Baseball) is also dropping a new game called ‘The Bigs.’ The game is an arcade baseball game targeted toward the casual gamer who enjoys the spectacular baseball plays like diving catches and crazy hits more than the technicalities of specific pitches and hits.
"I'm honored to represent this revolutionary new baseball title from 2K Sports," said Albert Pujols. "I've been blessed to have played in some monumental baseball games in my career and it's amazing to see how ‘The Bigs’ captures the most dramatic plays and brings them to life in a baseball video game."
Look for the game to hits shelves this summer for all new generation game consoles.
2005-12-29 10:40:00