FEATURES

Undefeated boxers

ready for intense unification fight

By Matt Kelemen

Óscar Valdez and Shakur Stevenson have a few things in common when it comes to professional boxing. Both fighters seek to unify their respective 130-pound-limit championships at their April 30 matchup at MGM Grand Garden Arena. Both are professionally undefeated, plan to remain so at the conclusion of their clash, and after Saturday night expect to be considered among the best pound-forpound fighters in professional boxing.

Aside from those shared goals, each fighter marches to very different drums. World Boxing Organization junior lightweight champion Stevenson, 25, considers himself on the fast track to superstardom, which would make him seem narcissistic if he didn’t express that in such casually sincere fashion— and if so many people didn’t agree with him. The Newark-born natural fell under the spell of boxing at age 5 and trained under his grandfather’s guidance. He won 200 amateur fights and a silver medal at the 2016 Olympics. In October, he defeated Jamal Herring for the WBO belt.

Now he’s under the spell of promoter J. Prince, who advised the careers of hip-hop acts The Geto Boys and Drake before becoming involved in boxing via Andre Ward. Ward, Pernell Whitaker and Sugar Ray Leonard are several of Stevenson’s main ring inspirations, and Floyd Mayweather’s name comes

Óscar Valdez

Shakur Stevenson up a lot in part due to expectations that Stevenson will become the sport’s next big thing. World Boxing Council super featherweight champ Valdez doesn’t plan to make that easy for him. The 2012 Olympian from Nogales, Mexico, won the WBC title after dominating Miguel Berchelt for 10 rounds at MGM Grand Conference Center last year, knocking him out with a vicious left hook. He tested positive for a banned substance before his previous fight and has weathered a constant barrage of accusations from Stevenson about avoiding their matchup. Valdez (30-0, 23 KOs) remains resolute that he’ll throw his punches at MGM Grand, not on social media. He has reach and height advantage over Stevenson, and a left hook that can finish off stunned opponents. Stevenson (17-0, 9 KOs) is a supremely skilled defensive fighter with speed and technique that can cause mayhem if he gets in close, especially if he can land a blow on the jaw Valdez once needed to have wired after a bout. Olympic silver medalist Keyshawn Davis will face off in an eight-round lightweight co-feature against veteran Esteban Sánchez that precedes the unification showdown between Valdez and Stevenson. The winner of the latter will hold two titles in the same weight class, will remain undefeated and can claim bragging rights to being included on a pound-for-pound list currently topped by Canelo Álvarez.

MGM Grand Valdez and Álvarez share a trainer 3:30 p.m. April 30, prices vary. axs.com in Eddy Reynoso, and a win against Stevenson would be redemptive for the Reynoso stable after Valdez’s scandal. Stevenson is looking at the fight as the beginning of a new chapter that puts him on top of the boxing world, expressing predictions about his destiny with unshakable confidence. There is much more at stake than two belts.

Watch this year’s NFL Draft in style all over the Strip

Hundreds of thousands of football fans will be bustling through town this week for the NFL draft, a massive event that will not only feature the Fountains of Bellagio but a Main Stage over by the Caesars Forum and the Linq Promenade. Obviously, space is limited at events like this, meaning many fans will choose to watch their favorite teams’ picks at venues around the Strip. And we’ve rounded up some of the best options—not only how to view the fun in complete comfort, but where to get some great drink and food specials.

For some stadium-style comfort food, combined with the excitement of far too many TV screens at once, you’ve gotta head to Public House at Luxor. Finger foods like tuna poke nachos and pepperoni pizza bites pair perfectly with a large beer selection.

For fans of football and former New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, it doesn’t get better than Walk-On’s Sports Bistreaux at Harrah’s, a chain co-owned by Brees that focuses on Cajun and Creole cuisine like gumbo, crawfish etouffee, deep-fried catfish strips and Krispy Kreme bread pudding, not to mention an extensive beer and cocktail list. It also has more than 80 TVs and a large bar area, ensuring an ideal viewing experience no matter where you and your group choose to sit.

If you and your group really want to stretch out, how about 15,000 square feet of space at Money, Baby! at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas? Add in more than 200 TVs and noshes from Food Network star Beau MacMillan like 18-inch, all-beef hot dogs in four different recipes, black truffle pizza, miso-glazed salmon, 16-ounce New York Strip, Beyond burger, Southern fried chicken sandwich

Dawg House Saloon & Sports Book

By Ken Miller

Stadium Swim

Public House and you may never want to leave. Don’t forget cocktails like the Aces High, Hendrick’s gin and a Japanese butterfly tea reduction, the Apricot Smash, a sweet apricot syrup mixed with Old Forester bourbon, or the Pitt Boss, Bulleit bourbon mixed with a strawberry and carrot juice reduction and chocolate and walnut bitters.

You may want to enjoy this event outdoors. If so, book your chaise lounge, daybed or cabana at Stadium Swim at Circa Resort & Casino, host to a 40-foot-tall, high-def, 14-million-pixel screen. When not enjoying six pools on three different levels, enjoy bites like lobster corn dogs, Impossible burger sliders, nachos, tacos, salads, breakfast burritos and vegetable crudites. Wash them down with cocktails like strawberry, tropical, coconut, banana or pineapple mojitos, Strawberry Fields Forever, blending Cruzan strawberry run, sugar and lime, and Kentucky Tea, with Old Forester bourbon, white peach syrup and black tea and lemon.

Maybe you like live music as part of your experience. Dawg

House Saloon & Sports Book

at Resorts World Las Vegas combines live entertainment with bites like smoked chicken wings, smoked tuna dip and tater tot nachos and cocktails like the Southern Belle Smash and Drunken Arnie. There are also TVs practically everywhere you look. It’s like being in a huge, comfy living room!

Courtesy photo

Las Vegas makes a perfect base camp for an excursion to the Grand Canyon

By Nina King

The Grand Canyon is one of the most impressive sights in the entire U.S. (it’s even visible from space!), and for many people, visiting here is a high point in their travels. And while you are vacationing in Las Vegas, you can also check it off your bucket list, no matter what your timing restrictions or transportation might be.

Maverick Helicopters

702.261.0007

There are plenty of ways to experience the canyon, but one of the quickest is with a helicopter tour. There are several in Las Vegas, including Maverick Helicopters, which features several options to a variety of spots around the Grand Canyon.

To get from your hotel to the canyon and back to Las Vegas in half a day, you’ll be traveling to the West Rim, which is Hualapai land, and departing from Maverick’s Las Vegas Strip terminal. The Wind Dancer tour features 45-minute flights to and from the canyon over a variety of land formations and 30 minutes on the ground at the canyon itself, where you can take in amazing views and get incredible photos. Plus, you’ll get tons of interesting facts about the various sights from your pilot.

If you have another hour or so, you can take the Maverick’s Grand Canyon West tours. Grand Canyon West is owned by the Hualapai tribe and features several areas to enjoy not only natural scenery, but also historic points of interest. The West Rim is also home to the Skywalk, an enormous glass horseshoe-shaped

Gray Line

702.739.7777

Grand Canyon West grandcanyonwest.com

pedestrian bridge that juts out over the floor of the canyon, allowing you the pleasure of looking down hundreds of feet with seemingly nothing between you and that floor. Maverick’s excursions to Grand Canyon West include the Skywalk Odyssey, where you’ll receive expedited entry onto the Skywalk.

Some of you are just not cut out for helicopters, and in that case, Gray Line has your back. The well-known tour company offers a variety of excursions from Vegas, on both buses and luxury vans, and the price point is excellent. It does take a full day (12 or 14 hours, depending on whether you go to the West Rim or the South Rim).

Tours include shuttle transportation to Gray Line’s terminal from your hotel, where you will depart from Las Vegas. If you choose the West Rim, you’ll have about a little under three hours of drive time to Grand Canyon West, where a shuttle runs from point to point; you also have the option to add on a Skywalk experience. You’ll have four hours here, so there’s plenty of time to check out everything.

It takes longer to reach the South Rim on Gray Line, but entry into the Grand Canyon National Park is included. On the way, your tour driver will point out various facts about the Southwest and the history of the Grand Canyon. Once you are there, you’ll make stops at three areas with three distinct feels where you get an idea of the history of the canyon and the park in about three hours.

South Rim

The Grand Canyon has a long and twisting history stretching back thousands of years, and at the South Rim it has also encompassed a tourism aspect, as rail and road options brought travelers in (Route 66, the national highway that stretched from Chicago to the West Coast beginning in the 1920s).

Today you can find hotel accommodations both in the South Rim and in Williams, Ariz., south of the rim on Interstate 40. And although driving to the South Rim itself can take four to five hours from Las Vegas, the drive to Williams, Ariz., takes only about three and a half hours. Once there, you’ll find several hotels, including the Grand Canyon Railway & Hotel, where the interior reflects the lodging that railway passengers might have experienced way back when (but with all the

modern amenities, of course, including a pub). It’s right next to the historic Williams Depot and the railway itself, which offers daily trips to the South Rim and back.

The depot was constructed more than a century ago, as was the Grand Canyon Depot and El Tovar Hotel. Now, all are operated by Xanterra Travel Collection. Although you could get up at o’ dark hundred in Vegas and book to Williams to catch the 9:30 a.m. train, staying overnight in Williams is recommended so that you can grab dinner and a drink and rest up.

Train buffs will love the restored historic cars, from Pullman and coach cars to first class and observation dome cars. Even the diesel engines are restored (the railway has a huge yard where cars are brought back to their previous glory). Although the train pulls out for the Grand Canyon at 9:30, a half hour earlier, you’ll witness a ruckus in the faux western town constructed at one end of the railway (better hope those outlaws give up their wild ways). Each car is equipped with a restroom and attendants and, depending on your class, food and drink. The trip to the canyon takes about two hours and 15 minutes, and along the way you’ll enjoy singers and musicians in Western garb entertaining, your attendant will give you fun facts about the railroad and park, and you’ll get great views from the large windows. It is utterly charming, and you’ll feel decades slipping away the closer you get to the park.

Once in the park, you’ll spend a few hours at the rim where El Tovar is located (and buses here let you check out other parts of the park). If you have reservations at El Tovar or one of the few other hotels here, you can head to check in; otherwise hop back on the train, where you will enjoy a quiet trip back to Williams (unless train robbers appear!).

Regardless of how you experience the natural wonder of Grand Canyon, we think you will agree that it’s an excellent side trip to make while enjoying your bustling vacation in Las Vegas (which is also a wonder in itself).

Grand Canyon Railway & Hotel

Grand Canyon Railway & Hotel

thetrain.com

FEATURED PROPERTY

Study Up! Staging home offices are important in selling a home

You’ve made the decision to sell your home. But are you confident that it will sell quickly once prospective buyers get a look at the interior? If not, that’s where Stately Home Staging comes in. The Las Vegas-based company specializes in making areas of your home pop, and this week’s installment focuses on one you might overlook: The home office.

Las Vegas Magazine’s Ken Miller interviewed Heidi Carlsen, lead interior designer with Stately Home Staging, to get some answers that will hopefully help you make a more informed decision when you are selling your property.

Why is the home office so important to stage when selling a home?

With so many people working from home these days, it’s good to paint a picture of how a worklife balance could unfold in the home buyer’s potential home. Many homes have a designated den or office with built-in shelving. Open shelving can feel a little intimidating. Instead of having shelves stacked with books, it’s good to be able to show people from a design aspect how to arrange books, picture frames and home/office decor to boost motivation.

What are the most important things to remember in staging the home office?

Keeping a simplistic design that is clutter-free, light and welcoming. Your environment affects your mood, as do colors and light in any given space. Take advantage of natural light, having

the desk facing toward windows when possible. If the space doesn’t have access to natural light, bring in lamps for extra lighting. Also think of subtly colored canvas art and botanicals to brighten up the room.

What kind of design facets are important to consider in the home office apart from other areas of a house?

A home office’s furnishings should reflect the same style as the rest of the home. It’s always nice to showcase a view when possible. If the home office is adjacent to a master bedroom or shares a space with another room, it can be nice to put a small area rug down to designate the space; it helps give the area its own identity. A home office shouldn’t feel like a stuffy cubicle! Remember, this is a place that’s supposed to facilitate inspiration. Grand office chairs suggest that you are the boss of the space and can help people envision where they can be productive.

Have home offices played a more significant role since the start of the pandemic?

Yes, over the past two years people have worked from home more than ever before. It doesn’t seem like that will be changing in the near future. Staging a home office showcases the potential functionality that a property may have. You can keep the home’s design/style consistent throughout the office, avoiding the feeling of a corporate setting. For potential homebuyers, this can be very appealing!