Last Week in Las Vegas Sports (Dec 11 - 17)
The Las Vegas Raiders get a big win, a controversial name gains traction as the next Raiders head coach, and Noah Gragson's new ride revealed! It's time for last week in Las Vegas sports (Dec 11 - 17).
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Source. Oakland Athletics[/caption]
In an interesting turn of events, Athletics officials announced that they are willing to pay to break their lease with the Coliseum. It's a move that seems to point to the relocation to Vegas being a done deal. The team made their intentions known two weeks ago in a letter to the Alameda County Supervisor, Nate Milley.
This means the Athletics might be playing their final season in the stadium in 2024 and moving to Las Vegas the following year. Or maybe they will still find a way to work out staying at the Coliseum for a few more years. Either way, the Athletics' time in Oakland is finally ending, and a new era in Las Vegas is about to begin.
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Source. YouTube[/caption]
Las Vegas native Noah Gragson officially gets his second chance after Stewart Haas Racing tapped him to drive the #10 SHR Ford. Gragson is only months removed from his suspension for liking a racially insensitive tweet and asking for his release from Legacy Motorsports. He has also completed diversity training to get reinstated by NASCAR.
Anything will be better than his ridiculously bad numbers in 2023. His final stats for that season are:
That’s a low bar to beat.
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Source. YouTube[/caption]
Las Vegas will host countless events in 2024, but not a lot of wrestling pay-per-views. The city will only see TNA’s Hard to Kill pay-per-view in January at the Palm Casino Resort on the 13th. The card includes TNA Knockouts Champion Trinity Fatu versus Jordyn Grace for the title. There is also Impact World Champion Alex Shelly versus Moose for the gold.
Finally, there is a Triple threat match for the X Division title as Chris Saban takes on Kushida and Vikingo for division control.
More: Everything happening during Super Bowl Weekend in Las Vegas
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Source. YouTube[/caption]
Jon Gruden is somehow gaining traction in the media as a likely candidate to be the next Las Vegas Raiders Head Coach in 2024. This would probably be one of the most unpopular decisions Las Vegas could make and would be dragging the team backward.
There was nothing good about the Raiders under Jon Gruden the first time, so they shouldn't try again. The man only led the Raiders to the playoffs once in his tenure as head coach and was having a disastrous season before resigning in 2021. Unfortunately, in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Vincent Bonsignore lists him as a possible choice.
According to an article by Bonsignore, “More than one league source has indicated the NFL could avoid a potential public-relations nightmare by simply letting Gruden be re-hired. All of this is contingent on Davis being interested in bringing his former coach back, of course. Even if that’s the case, fans would need to be convinced Gruden is truly sorry for his actions.”
[caption id="attachment_42247" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Source. YouTube[/caption]
The Las Vegas Raiders are back in the win column after a 63-21 smackdown of the Chargers. Aidan O’Connell led the way with 20 of 34 completions for 248 yards, four touchdowns, and zero interceptions. Zamir White and Brandon Bolden did their job on the ground, and both punched in touchdowns during the game.
Tre Tucker is the defacto MVP of the evening after grabbing four balls for 59 yards and two touchdowns. Michael Mayer is also a large reason for the victory, bringing in eight catches for 39 yards and a touchdown. And then there was the defense that the Las Vegas Raiders have been waiting to show up all year. They finally did by forcing four fumbles and one interception during the game. The Raiders also held the Chargers to only six of 12 on third down and got to the opposing quarterback three times.
Next: 5 Las Vegas sports stats fans need to see to believe
#5 Oakland Athletics agree to pay $45 million to settle lease with the Coliseum
[caption id="attachment_42457" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Source. Oakland Athletics[/caption]In an interesting turn of events, Athletics officials announced that they are willing to pay to break their lease with the Coliseum. It's a move that seems to point to the relocation to Vegas being a done deal. The team made their intentions known two weeks ago in a letter to the Alameda County Supervisor, Nate Milley.
This means the Athletics might be playing their final season in the stadium in 2024 and moving to Las Vegas the following year. Or maybe they will still find a way to work out staying at the Coliseum for a few more years. Either way, the Athletics' time in Oakland is finally ending, and a new era in Las Vegas is about to begin.
#4 Noah Gragson signs with Stewart Haas Racing for 2024 Cup Series season
[caption id="attachment_42459" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Source. YouTube[/caption]Las Vegas native Noah Gragson officially gets his second chance after Stewart Haas Racing tapped him to drive the #10 SHR Ford. Gragson is only months removed from his suspension for liking a racially insensitive tweet and asking for his release from Legacy Motorsports. He has also completed diversity training to get reinstated by NASCAR.
Anything will be better than his ridiculously bad numbers in 2023. His final stats for that season are:
- 0 poles
- 0 wins
- 0 top-5s
- 0 top-10s
- 2 top-15s
- 3 top-20s
That’s a low bar to beat.
#3 TNA Hard to Kill Remains the only pro wrestling PPV for Las Vegas in 2024
[caption id="attachment_42460" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Source. YouTube[/caption]Las Vegas will host countless events in 2024, but not a lot of wrestling pay-per-views. The city will only see TNA’s Hard to Kill pay-per-view in January at the Palm Casino Resort on the 13th. The card includes TNA Knockouts Champion Trinity Fatu versus Jordyn Grace for the title. There is also Impact World Champion Alex Shelly versus Moose for the gold.
Finally, there is a Triple threat match for the X Division title as Chris Saban takes on Kushida and Vikingo for division control.
More: Everything happening during Super Bowl Weekend in Las Vegas
#2 Speculation grows on Jon Gruden becoming new Raiders head coach
[caption id="attachment_42461" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Source. YouTube[/caption]Jon Gruden is somehow gaining traction in the media as a likely candidate to be the next Las Vegas Raiders Head Coach in 2024. This would probably be one of the most unpopular decisions Las Vegas could make and would be dragging the team backward.
There was nothing good about the Raiders under Jon Gruden the first time, so they shouldn't try again. The man only led the Raiders to the playoffs once in his tenure as head coach and was having a disastrous season before resigning in 2021. Unfortunately, in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Vincent Bonsignore lists him as a possible choice.
According to an article by Bonsignore, “More than one league source has indicated the NFL could avoid a potential public-relations nightmare by simply letting Gruden be re-hired. All of this is contingent on Davis being interested in bringing his former coach back, of course. Even if that’s the case, fans would need to be convinced Gruden is truly sorry for his actions.”
#1 Las Vegas Raiders destroy Vikings 63-21
[caption id="attachment_42247" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Source. YouTube[/caption]The Las Vegas Raiders are back in the win column after a 63-21 smackdown of the Chargers. Aidan O’Connell led the way with 20 of 34 completions for 248 yards, four touchdowns, and zero interceptions. Zamir White and Brandon Bolden did their job on the ground, and both punched in touchdowns during the game.
Tre Tucker is the defacto MVP of the evening after grabbing four balls for 59 yards and two touchdowns. Michael Mayer is also a large reason for the victory, bringing in eight catches for 39 yards and a touchdown. And then there was the defense that the Las Vegas Raiders have been waiting to show up all year. They finally did by forcing four fumbles and one interception during the game. The Raiders also held the Chargers to only six of 12 on third down and got to the opposing quarterback three times.
Next: 5 Las Vegas sports stats fans need to see to believe