Florida Sentinel Bulletin

Race car driver Nicole Lyons gives a whole new meaning to what it means to be driven. Talented as she is beautiful, she’s carving a name for herself as one of the rarest entities in drag racing: an African-American woman. Madame Noire caught up with her as she opened up about drag racing, her pro football husband’s injuries, and her undying love for her parents.

Madame Noire: Describe what a pro race car driver does.

Nicole Lyons: There are several different [race car competitions], NASCAR, NHRA, Indy. You have to be licensed in a particular field of racing. You definitely have to be making money…Danica Patrick, for example, makes upwards of $20 to $30 million a year…Ways to make money [include] winning races, getting sponsors, getting paid as a driver. The money [you can make] is endless when it comes to winnings, sponsorships…

MN: How much do you make?

NL: I probably pocket upwards of $500,000 to one million a year.

DALLAS — Hall of Fame receiver Michael Irvin says his womanizing may have stemmed from seeing an older brother whom he idolized dressed as a woman and learning the brother was gay.

In the latest issue of Out Magazine, Irvin said he was 12 when he discovered his older brother Vaughn’s secret life. He said his father told him: “Yes, that’s your brother. And you love your brother.”

The former Dallas Cowboys star now appears on the NFL Network and on his own radio show in Miami. He has supported same-sex marriage on his radio show and has said he’s waiting for an active player in the NFL, MLB, NBA or NHL to declare publicly that he is gay.

“Until we do that, we’re going to be stuck in the Dark Ages about a lot of things,” Irvin told the magazine. “When a guy steps up and says, ‘This is who I am,’ I guarantee you I’ll give him 100 percent support.”

Irvin said carrying the burden of Vaughn’s secret gives him a hint of how tough it must be for a homosexual athlete to hide his orientation in a locker room.

“If I’m not gay and I am afraid to mention it, I can only imagine what an athlete must be going through if he is gay,” Irvin said. “I would like to see players come forward and be happy with who they are. Hopefully, as we move forward, we’ll get to a place where there’s no way it’s even considered; it just is what it is and everybody can do what they do. That’s the ultimate goal.”

Irvin said he believes the fast life he’s led was to accentuate his heterosexuality. He said he wanted everyone in the locker room to see him have the most women and the nicest car “so that everybody says, ‘Michael’s the man.’”

A week after inflaming the LGBT community with his choice of words on a satellite radio show, Eagles receiver DeSean Jackson issued an online apology.

In three tweets, Jackson wrote:
“I am sorry for using words that I know to be hurtful and unacceptable in a recent radio interview.

“I have made a mistake and would like to make it clear that words I used meant no disrespect to the Gay and Lesbian community. Intolerance is unacceptable and I apologize to anyone I have offended.”

On June 30, Jackson appeared on the All Out Show with Rude Jude and Lord Sear on Sirius XM radio. On the uncensored show, Jackson uses several derogatory anti-gay phrases towards a caller asking him a question.

BAKERSFIELD, CA — The son and daughter of a former NFL player who was killed in a confrontation with California deputies now face criminal charges of their own.

The charges stem from an incident at the hospital where David Turner was taken after he was shot outside a Bakersfield convenience store Sunday. According to hospital security, family members yelled at and threatened employees.

The Bakersfield Californian reports that 25-year-old Ahmod Turner and 24-year-old Whittney Turner pleaded not guilty Tuesday to threat and gang charges. The shooting of Turner, who played for the Cincinnati Bengals from 1978 to 1980, remains under investigation.

Kern County sheriff’s deputies were questioning Turner about reports of teens asking adults to buy them alcohol when a scuffle broke out. Turner allegedly struck a deputy with a bag carrying two beers, prompting another deputy to shoot.

HOBOKEN, NJ — Tennessee Titans receiver Kenny Britt has pleaded not guilty to three disorderly person charges stemming from a June arrest in New Jersey. Hoboken police had suspected Britt was carrying a marijuana cigar.

Britt entered his plea Tuesday in Hoboken Municipal Court. He declined comment.

A judge set a Sept. 20 trial date.

The former Rutgers star has had a series of recent legal difficulties. Britt pleaded guilty last month to violations related to a speeding arrest in his hometown of Bayonne.

He surrendered June 29 to Tennessee authorities on warrants alleging he provided inaccurate information on driver’s license applications.

A man filed a civil lawsuit against Britt on June 27 seeking damages from a Nashville bar fight.

SALT LAKE CITY — Former Philadelphia Eagles running back Reno Mahe surrendered to authorities this week to face a criminal theft charge in Utah.

Mahe and four others are charged in Utah’s 3rd District Court with stealing more than $15,000 in gasoline in 2010 from a construction company in a Salt Lake City suburb, according to court documents.

Court records indicate that Mahe, a former BYU standout, was booked into a Salt Lake County jail Thursday and released pending his next hearing. A scheduling conference in Mahe’s case is set for Aug. 5.

Another former BYU football player, Tevita Ofahengaue, also is charged with a single count of theft, as are Michael Andrus, Mark Evers and Fred Prescott.

An affidavit of probable cause signed by Murray City Police Detective Tyler Evans said A-Core Concrete Cutting officials discovered one of their employees, Evers, was using a gas code to steal gasoline from the company for the last four years. The firm conducted an audit and calculated a loss of more than $55,000 between June 18, 2006, and Oct. 17, 2010.

“It wasn’t like I needed (A-Core)’s gas,” he said last year, according to the Deseret News. “I’ll pay, if that’s the deal. I’ll pay my portion back if he wasn’t allowed to give it to me. I’m not worried about that part. As a man, you pay back your debts.”

BAKERSFIELD, CA — Life in Bakersfield after a brief NFL stint had not been kind to running back David Lee “Deacon” Turner.

After at least two dozen run-ins with the law, Turner, 56, was shot and killed in front of a convenience store Sunday by a Kern County deputy after he allegedly hit an officer with a bag holding two cans of beer.

As a student-athlete, Turner thrived, shredding defenses at Shafter High School, Bakersfield College and San Diego State University. But as an adult, after playing in the NFL from 1978 to 1980, he had trouble finding his place in civilian life.

The deputies detained Turner while they investigated adults buying alcohol for teens. According to reports from the sheriff’s office, Turner initially complied with deputies, but then decided to leave.

Deputies said a scuffle occurred when they tried to stop Turner. Deputy Aaron Nadal was hit on the back of the head with a bag holding two, 24-ounce cans of beer before Deputy Wesley Kraft drew his handgun and fired twice at Turner, authorities said.

Retired NBA star Shaquille O’Neal is reportedly taking his talents to TNT sports.

Reports state that the recently retired O’Neal will join Ernie Johnson, Kenny “The Jet” Smith and Charles Barkley as the newest member of TNT’s show Inside The NBA.

No one should expect to see O’Neal’s broadcasting debut anytime soon.

Much like the National Football League, in late June, the NBA began a lockout of it’s players, and many insiders believe the 2011-2012 NBA season could be in jeopardy.

A trial date has been set for the mother of Heat star LeBron James, who faces battery and disorderly intoxication charges related to an alleged argument with a valet at a South Beach hotel.

Gloria James will head to trial on August 8 for the alleged altercation outside the Fontainebleau hotel on April 7, the Miami State Attorney’s Office said Monday.

The 43-year-old is accused of slapping around valet Rock Feller Sorel after she allegedly became upset over the time it took to retrieve her car.