By Joe Scalzo

February 14, 2008

“Live from Las Vegas,” incidentally, is much more fun to type than “Live from Tucson.” This will be a quick blog, as I just got back from interviews with Kelly Pavlik’s trainer, Jack Loew, and Jermain Taylor’s trainer, Ozell Nelson.

I also joined a couple reporters for a few minutes in Pavlik’s penthouse suite on the 29th floor of the MGM Grand. The MGM is roughly the size of a shopping mall and it’s quite difficult to find the exits. It’s almost as if they don’t want you to leave.

Couple things to note:

The Austintown Quaker Steak and Lube is showing Saturday’s fight with no admission charge. (I’m sure they’d be willing to take your money for other things.) So if you’re looking to watch the fight, that’s an option. If you know of other places to watch the fight -- or if you’re a restaurant manager showing the fight -- e-mail me at scalzo@vindy.com and I’d be happy to pass on the info.

Also, if you’re a fan writing me an e-mail, be sure to include your name. I’ll sometimes read anonymous e-mails, but I rarely respond to them.

If you want to watch the weigh-in live on Friday, visit www.hbo.com for live streaming video at 5:30 p.m. (EST) They won’t show the same courtesy for Saturday’s fight, but I’m sure they’d be happy to charge $49.95 to your credit card for the pleasure of watching it live.

Finally, ESPN2’s Howie Schwab will be wearing Pavlik gear on “First Take” Friday morning, which airs around 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.

Quick travel note. The Las Vegas airport shut down for four hours on Wednesday night due to 50 mph winds and “flying debris” on the runway. Apparently some small planes tipped over and there were waste baskets hurtling down the runway, which is frowned upon by federal aviation officials. (My flight was diverted to Tucson, Ariz., where we were stuck for about two hours before flying to Vegas.)

A shuttle driver, who took Vindicator photographer Bill Lewis and I from the airport to the MGM Grand, said she’s lived in the city for 47 years and “they don’t shut the airport down too often.”

“It was bad,” she said. “There was dust flying around everywhere and you couldn’t see.”

Our flight left Cleveland at 2 p.m. Wednesday and we arrived in our room in Las Vegas at 5 a.m. (EST) Thursday morning. Bleary-eyed would be a good way to describe how I felt.

I’ll send a much better blog later this evening.