Andy Samuelson
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Recent Articles
Sports
Meet the (future) Mets
Las Vegas 51s announce new affiliation deal with the New York Mets
September 17th, 2012
The Las Vegas 51s announced a two-year Player Development Contract with the New York Mets today, which will extend until the 2014 season.
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Gabby Douglas
The Olympic gold medalist on her first visit to Las Vegas, taking a phone call from the president and how she’s able to land on that balance beam
September 13th, 2012
When Gabby Douglas is not winning gold medals in London, taking phone calls from the president, doing The Tonight Show With Jay Leno, chatting with Oprah or flipping around onstage to assist newest pal Alicia Keys during an MTV performance, Douglas comes across like any another teenager eager to talk about her favorite meal at McDonald’s.
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Dream On …
He was so close to the payday of a lifetime ... and then he fumbled
August 30th, 2012
I went to bed on Dec. 3 with $10,500 in my pocket … and it was literally the saddest fucking moment of my life. Because only a small fraction of the cash was really mine. It’s not that I robbed anyone. Instead, I felt like I’d been robbed. By the gambling gods. Again. Before I get into the specifics of how $43,800 slipped through my fingers, here’s a little backstory: I’m a square, a betting sucker, a casino’s best friend … or as I like to think of myself, a dreamer.
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Bad Blood and Celebration
July 5th, 2012
If you like your fight weeks supersized, UFC’s got you covered. For one thing, you’ve got bitter rivals Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen battling at UFC 148 on July 7 at the MGM Grand Garden. For another, you’ve got what UFC promises will be its biggest ever fan expo July 7-8 at Mandalay Bay. And now there’s more: This is the first International Fight Week, the fruit of a recent partnership between UFC and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.
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Frank Mir
The former UFC champ on his upcoming title bout, his gruesome motorcycle accident and his passion for guns
May 24th, 2012
Fighting has always been in Frank Mir’s blood. The Las Vegas native and two-time UFC heavyweight champ—who faces current champ Junior dos Santos in the main event of UFC 146 on May 26 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena—received his introduction to martial arts via his father, Frank Sr., at his dad’s Kenpo Karate studio in the 1980s. His combat learning curve accelerated at Bonanza High School, and things came almost as easy to Mir after he joined the homegrown UFC.
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From Cage to Page
UFC star Urijah Faber writes a memoir/manifesto revealing his ‘Laws of Power’
May 17th, 2012
What began as a freelance assignment for Fight! magazine has manifested into a full-fledged book for popular UFC fighter Urijah Faber.
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The Cornerman
May 3rd, 2012
If you’ve watched a championship fight in the last 50 years, you’ve seen Las Vegas’ Rafael Garcia in the corner. In his trademark Kangol cap, adorned with pins symbolizing the many countries to which the sport has taken him, the diminutive 83-year-old stands out in any entourage. But it’s the unsung work of the cut man that has made Garcia invaluable to such champions as Roberto Duran, Alexis Arguello, Wilfredo Gomez, Edwin Rosario, James Toney, Iran Barkley, and his current famous client, Floyd Mayweather Jr.
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Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Las Vegas’ boxing champ on his legacy, his impending jail sentence and why he doesn’t need to fight Manny Pacquiao
May 3rd, 2012
Lurking in the shadows of his boisterous persona is a different Floyd Mayweather, one few outside his tight inner circle ever see. Someone who generously donates to charities (he recently made a commitment to the national Golden Gloves, a junior boxing organization), who offers to pay for boxers’ funerals, who helps the homeless. During multiple interviews leading up to the Cotto bout, “Money May” provided a glimpse of this alter ego—though the familiar arrogance was always close by.
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Jon Anik
The voice of the UFC on why he left ESPN, his Hollywood moment and how mixed martial arts stacks up against the NFL
April 19th, 2012
Jon Anik, who started his sports career as a print journalist, left his role as host of ESPN’s MMA Live last fall to take over hosting duties of the UFC’s revamped The Ultimate Fighter reality show. In addition, he was handed the reins of the weekly magazine-style show UFC Ultimate Insider and has provided commentary for several of the fight cards that air on free TV.
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Fight on: UFC, boxing cards provide hard-hitting opportunities to cash in
April 19th, 2012
Miguel Cotto is quite capable of making this an interesting fight, but I don’t see him handing Floyd Mayweather his first loss. And the oddsmakers agree, as the seven-time world champ is a minus-650 to minus-750 favorite (probably the only person with a bankroll thick enough to get rich betting on Pretty Boy Floyd would be his pal, 50 Cent). That said, this is only the second time that the 35-year-old Mayweather—normally a welterweight (140-147 pounds)—will fight at 154 pounds.
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