Miami Dolphins: orange carpet extravaganza
Miami Dolphins owner Steve Ross' limited partners weren't the only Latin celebrities to walk the orange carpet Monday to help the NFL celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month. Sure Gloria and Emilio Estefan were there, as were Marc Anthony and his wife Jennifer Lopez. Anthony sang the national anthem; the Estefans helped out with the halftime show.
But there were lots of others: IndyCar driver Rafael Matos, who lives in Miami and competed in Saturday's IndyCar Series finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, attended his first football game. “I’m here to see Ronnie Brown and the Wildcat,” Matos said.
Puerto Rican singer Luis Fonsi and soap opera star wife Adamari Lopez wore matching No. 1 jerseys. Also on hand were: Lili Estefan (Emilio Estefan’s niece) and Raul de Molina of TV’s El Gordo y La Flaca; Mexican pop duo Jesse and Joy; Texas Rangers and former Marlins catcher Pudge Rodriguez; and artist Romero Britto.
Ross and ESPN President George Bodenheimer arrived together. Also walking the orange carpet were model Naomi Campbell; IndyCar driver and Boca Raton resident Ryan Hunter-Reay; Daymond John of TV’s The Shark Tank; and the Heat’s DJ Irie.
"It's an absolute spectacle," Irie said of the atmosphere. "This is the definition of Miami."
Legendary coach Don Shula, who served as honorary captain Monday night, arrived with his wife Mary Anne, to chants of "Shula! Shula! Shula!" As he was walking the carpet, so were some Victoria's Secret Angel wannabes. Shula posed for photos with the women.
The orange carpet has been evolving since it was unveiled at the team's home opener on Sept. 21. On Monday night, Lexus was sponsoring the orange carpet experience, so two Lexus cars -- an IS 250 and an IS 350 -- were displayed on either side of the carpet. At one point, the alarm on one of the cars went off...
CRAIG DAVIS In more than 33 years at the Sun Sentinel, Craig Davis has written about a wide variety of sports topics from baseball to yachting, fishing to triathlons, and also worked as a copy editor and page designer. Recently he reported on local sports, including running, swimming, cycling, equestrian and beach volleyball. He enjoys sports as a participant as well as a spectator, is active in the South Florida running scene plays in the curling club at Saveology Iceplex. This blog offers a glimpse at the business side of sports in the interest of enhancing enjoyment of the games and sporting options as a spectator as well as a participant.
