HERE’S ONE WEEKEND IN MARCH 48 HOURS IN AMERICA’S NEWEST SPORTS TOWN
Vegas brings in the teams and fans, Dave Pottinger writes.
Las Vegas is always reinventing itself and today the entertainment capital is becoming known as Sportstown, USA — the go-to for live sports action.
The landscape shifted when MGM Resorts built T-Mobile Arena in 2016, and now with construction underway for the future home of the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders — it has become a magnet for sports teams and athletes.
The NHL’s Golden Knights, the Ultimate Fighting Championship the WNBA, NASCAR, USA Sevens Rugby, college basketball, NBA Summer League, the WWE all are here or regularly host events.
And fans are flocking to the city to watch the action, proving the maxim — build it and they will come, for a weekend. 3 p.m. RAIDER NATION
Get ready for the Las Vegas Raiders. They won’t be kicking off until the NFL’s 2020 season but the Las Vegas Raiders Visitor Centre is open at the Town Square outdoor mall.
Designed to educate everyone about all things Silver and Black and to sell season tickets the centre is a hall of fame, history tribute and a peek into the future. There are interactive display walls, Raider’s Super Bowl rings, and their three Super Bowl trophies. You can even put yourself in the action and get a picture of yourself taking a handoff.
To help you choose your seat there’s a model of the stadium which will have a capacity of 65,000, an opaque roof, grass field and tailgating area.
Or you can try out the view from one of the box seats in the near fullsize replica.
5 p.m. PRE-GAME
There’s no better place than the Beerhaus at the Park for eats and drinks before an event at T-Mobile Arena. Located in the walkway between Monte Carlo and New York New York, the bar is less than 200 metres from the arena.
A Vegas Golden Knights game starts in 2 hours and Beerhaus is the gathering place for fans of the home team and the visitors, in this case the Ottawa Senators. And there’s lots of Senator jerseys in the ’haus and on the outdoor patio.
Patrons are playing Jenga and board games on the tables and it’s a happy atmosphere.
I’m struggling to keep on a keto diet — and restrict myself to eating three salads, but I’m eyeing the bratwurst, fries and the pork dinner on the table beside me.
I order a Golden Knight Ale — delicious.
Before I can consider another there’s a commotion outside; a live band, cheerleaders and fans chanting Go Knights Go, are forming a procession to the arena.
7 p.m. T-MOBILE ARENA
T-Mobile Arena is one of the newest sports and entertainment venues in the world having opened just two years ago.
It has hosted: concerts, the Harlem Globetrotters, The Billboard Music Awards, the Miss USA concert, Cirque du Soleil, the NHL Expansion Draft, The Ultimate Fighter Final, the Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Conor McGregor boxing match and Professional Bull Riders World Finals.
But it’s best known as the home of the Vegas Golden Knights. There doesn’t seem to be a bad seat in the house.
The fans are engaged, dancing and cheering for everything, including the opportunity for a penalty kill. It’s a happy crowd. The Knights have 41 home games a season and it may be the building with the most away team fans.
On this night the Senators win, but most nights the home fans have left happy — and now the Knights are in the second round of the playoffs.
SATURDAY
Bacchanal inside Caesars Palace is what all buffets aim to be. Gourmet meals and an unmatched variety; they prepare 500 dishes every day. It wasn’t until my third plate that I discovered another half to an already long buffet.
If you are craving something you can get your fill of it here.
The Saturday Brunch is $50 well spent. You might have to loosen your belt before you are finished.
11 a.m. WORLD RUGBY SEVENS
This is the second day of the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series at Sam Boyd Stadium.
The games are quick: two sevenminute halves played by big men possessing bonecrushing power and little-man speed.
When a game finishes the players for the next match are already on the field before the previous teams have departed.
A kid’s remote-control truck drives the ball out to the field and the next game starts.
In the stands it’s a costume party. The Americans are draped in their red, white and blue pyjamas and wigs, there are Vikings, nuns, the pope, and a gaggle of Waldos supporting Canada.
In 2017, 80,000 tickets were sold over the three days of the tournament, with 35,000 attending on the Saturday.
It’s an annual event in Las Vegas with next year being the 10th year.
5 p.m. CAVIAR FRIED EGG
The name is a misnomer as the eggs aren’t fried, but they are a must-try appetizer at Libertine Social inside Mandalay Bay.
Corn pudding layered with sous-vide egg yolks and fried egg white foam, topped with caviar and served in an eggshell — it’s a acquired taste — as in 2 tastes. By the time I scoop the last of the filling out I’m craving 4 or 5 more.
Save room for the skirt steak, the pan-roasted skate, and the roasted asparagus.
And if you like rum try the Bermuda Swizzle stirred tableside.
7 p.m. — ULTIMATE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIPS
There’s an electricity in the air that the anticipation of a fight brings, that can’t be duplicated by the TV experience. The kicks are more powerful, the fighters bigger. On this night we’re treated to UFC 222 dual-main events including women’s mixed martial artists Cris Cyborg vs. Yana Kunitskaya, and Frankie Edgar vs. Brian Ortega in the men’s featherweight bout.
But it’s a fighter named Sean O’Malley who steals the show, after winning his match, he delivers one of the best octagon interviews ever, from his back. “I love everything about this sport and I (expletive) love you, Joe Rogan.” And the fans loved him back.
Other UFC events planned for TMobile Arena in 2018 include: The Ultimate Fighter 27 Finale (July 6), UFC 226 (July 7), UFC 229 (October 6), and UFC 232 (December 29).
SUNDAY
9 a.m. AS SEEN FROM ABOVE
Despite there being a lot of people, some with the same idea, others going to see the Grand Canyon — there is almost no wait at Maverick Helicopters for a flight to Las Vegas Motor Speedway. There’s a passenger weigh-in to ensure the helicopter is balanced and then out to the waiting copter in less than 5 minutes.
This is the way to see Vegas. And I make a mental note to come back and try their night tours of the strip.
9:30 a.m. A NEED FOR SPEED
Arriving early for NASCAR’s Pennzoil 400 race is a good plan for race enthusiasts who are given access at the Vegas Motor Speedway to watch mechanics working on the cars pre-race and sit in on the pre-race instructions.
In a few short hours 80,000 people fill the stands around the 1.5 mile oval track to cheer on their favourite drivers as they hit speeds of more than 300 km per hour.
There are lots of families in the stands — but maybe that’s to be expected from the amount of RVs parked on the hilltop.
The race is held at the same grounds as Dream Cars. Which means on non-race days you can take the car of your dreams out for a spin. Or just try one of the racecar simulators which lets you select from real race tracks including the Vegas Motor Speedway oval.
Check out www.lvms.com for this year’s scheduled races.
7 p.m. HELL’S KITCHEN
What’s Vegas without dining at a celebrity chef’s restaurant? And this one comes with a Gordon Ramsey hologram at the door chirping his brand of insults.
The restaurant is divided into two major areas; looking out on the strip or having a view of the open kitchen. Both are impressive.
I had the lamb, but most at the table had the signature beef wellington, perfectly tender meat and a delicious pastry on the outside, which they all raved about.
The sticky toffee pudding — think British: sponge cake, salted caramel and toffee — my companion orders is so tempting it could only have been conceived of in the underworld. I swear I’m only going to have a taste, but I can’t stop until the plate is empty. My keto diet ends in Hell’s Kitchen.
The writer was a guest of The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. No one from the LVCVA read or approved of this article before publication.