Sports Beat

The track might have been sloppy at the Kentucky Derby, but Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey weren't The pair were arguably Churchill Downs's most stylish couple, thanks to her snugly fitted pastel pink dress and wide-brimmed garden hat and his sharp black suit. (The two told anyone who approached that they wanted their privacy, as a crew from MTV's Newly-weds recorded their every move.) Also representing the pop-music industry at Churchill: LaToya Jackson, Kid Rock, Macy Gray and Rob Thomas. The least harmonious guest, no doubt, was O.J. Simpson, who mingled in the paddock and congratulated jockey Corey Nakatani after his win in the afternoon's fourth race.

?The Saint Paul Pioneer Press sparked a hot rumor with a report last week that Christina Aguilera would be at the Target Center to watch her "boyfriend" Carmelo Anthony lead the Nuggets against the Timberwolves. Word of the phenom-diva pairing spread quickly, and on ESPN's Pardon the Interruption, Tony Kornheiser and Mike Wilbon debated who was getting the better deal in the relationship. One problem: It wasn't true. Anthony, 19, said he's never even met the 23-year-old singer, adding, "It's crazy that thus rumor is going around." If he were going to date a celeb, he added, he would choose Jessica Alba. The Press, citing a bad source, retracted the item.

?What do women want? Louis Vergari of Fayetteville, N.C., took a shot at answering that question by legally changing his last name to Caniac—the nickname for fans of his bride's favorite sports team, the Carolina Hurricanes. Married on April 3, they are now Mr. and Mrs. Caniac. The former Karen Culp began dating Louis last summer and soon had him hooked on the team, which previously called Boston and Hartford home. "A few people, like my mother, were really resistant to our name change at first," Karen says. "They questioned what would happen if the team relocated [again], but we feel that because we were Hurricanes fans at the time of our wedding, that it would be enough to justify our decision for the rest of our lives, no matter what happens with the team."...

With his off-key singing and his What-me-worry smile, American Idol reject William Hung has inspired millions. Well, anyway, he's inspired the Dodgers. When the team was looking for pregame motivational music recently, Shawn Green brought in Hung's CD, Inspiration. The Dodgers promptly went out and beat the Padres. They listened to Hung before each of their next three games—and won those as well. So the front office invited Hung, a 21-year-old Cal civil engineering student, to visit Dodger Stadium and appear on the scoreboard. Hung declined when he found out he wouldn't be paid, but the players were undeterred. They captured a lizard that was loose in the locker room, named it Hung and put it in a cage near the clubhouse stereo, which often blares Hung's rendition of She Bangs. "It's a classic," said Green. "It's our victory song."...

In ESPN's movie Hustle, Pete Rose will be played by Tom Sizemore. The actor, who used to date Hollywood madam Heidi Fleiss, is no stranger to working in a helmet, having appeared in Saving Private Ryan and Black Hawk Down.