No shortage of surprises at first Las Vegas banquet

LAS VEGAS, DEC. 4, 2009 -- As surprises go, it made Cale Yarborough's unannounced drop-in a year earlier seem almost inconsequential. It was one thing to know that NASCAR's first premier-series awards ceremony in Las Vegas would be full of the unexpected. It was quite another to see the Sprint Cup trophy carried into the arena on the back of a majestic white tiger, the great beast flanked by two magicians the world never thought it would see together on stage again.

Yes, the emotional reunion of iconic illusionists Siegfried and Roy was quite a way to open Friday night's banquet, which after 27 years in New York was finally brought to the Las Vegas Strip. For many, it was a difficult move. There was just something about being in Manhattan at Christmastime that seemed magical, that made the banquet seem bigger than it was, even if much of the local media ignored it. No question, the hotel room rates were downright extortionist and what little footprint NASCAR made on the city faded with each step you took away from the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. But for sheer atmosphere, Manhattan draped in holiday garland seemed very tough to beat.

Of course, in Las Vegas, NASCAR has found something it never had in New York -- a warm, robust welcome. Nobody's snickering about stock-car drivers being in town, not in a city that builds plenty of roads and schools off the $200 million Las Vegas Motor Speedway's one race injects into the community every year. In New York, they howled in protest when streets were closed off so show cars could parade around Midtown. In Las Vegas, mayor Oscar Goodman gladly shut down the Strip so the top-10 drivers could rumble up and down his city's most famous boulevard. Kyle Busch got his car up to 120 mph. Nobody minded. Hey, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, right?

Siegfried and Roy came out of retirement to deliver the Cup trophy on the back of a tiger.

But it all paled in comparison to the ceremony itself. In New York, there's no question the banquet had become a little stale, with drivers reading canned speeches off teleprompters. Not so in Vegas, baby, which pulled out all the stops. First, there was the venue itself. Instead of a hotel ballroom limited only to invited guests, the banquet was held in the 16,000-seat Garden Arena at the MGM Grand casino hotel. There was still table after table of men in tuxedos and women in elegant evening gowns, but the venue's upper level was filled with 8,000 fans who clamored to attend in person an event they'd always claimed was boring on TV. And, they paid $50 each to do it. Will wonders never cease?

No more out-of-touch comics or actors flubbing their lines. In Vegas, showmanship rules. The master of ceremonies wasn't some television personality but Strip legend Wayne Newton, Mr. Las Vegas himself, who belted out a soaring rendition of his 1963 hit Danke Schoen. Instead of the usual historical retrospective, great moments in NASCAR history were reenacted by members of Cirque de Soleil. You haven't really seen that 1979 fight between Yarborough and the Allison brothers until you've seen it acted out by three guys wearing tights and green body paint -- and hanging from a trapeze.

Of course, not everything was perfect. From a media perspective, Las Vegas is still very much a desert -- David Letterman, Regis and Kelly, the Good Morning America bunch and other staples of the post-season interview circuit were all back in New York. This time around, NASCAR had to settle for the cable-access program 3 a.m. in Las Vegas! and publications like Blackjack Times, which printed a scurrilous report claiming that Clint Bowyer once hit on 17 (the driver denies all charges). And then there was the actual dinner itself. Rather than fare from the Waldorf's kitchen, everyone in attendance was shuffled down to the Slots Buffet. Rumor has it that Carl Edwards and Kevin Harvick got into it over the last of the king crab legs.

Still, the unpredictability of the event itself made up for it. Nobody expected to see NASCAR chairman Brian France walk out dressed like Liberace, complete with white sequined tuxedo and opera cape, and perform a flawless Rachmaninoff No. 2. Nobody, most of all the television network broadcasting the ceremony, expected that burlesque revue in lieu of a musical act. Nobody expected the first nine drivers to be presented not with bonus checks, but coupon books good for discounted spa sessions and $10 worth of free chips at any MGM-Mirage casino. Hey, it is a recession, after all.

Finally, there was one last Vegas twist. After four-time champion Jimmie Johnson was presented with his $8 million winner's check, a giant roulette wheel was rolled out and the driver was given two choices: red or black. Let's hope Jimmie chooses more wisely next time. In related news, the MGM Grand has announced plans for its new 5,000-room Johnson Tower, scheduled for opening sometime next year.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer.

Also: NASCAR moving year-end awards banquet to Vegas