Mario covers the Indy 500, in particular Helio Castroneves, Gilles Marini, Derek Hough and Mark Ballas. All the guys look like they’re having a great time!

In the interest of keeping up with ALL of the professional dancers from DWTS, I have started a new series.  A couple times a week I will post an update of what a given dancer is up to.  I’m starting with the easiest pro for me to keep up with – Derek Hough. 

Derek is a piece of cake – he’s in the south pacific with his gorgeous girlfriend, Shannon Elizabeth, for a much deserved vacation. To be specific – Bora Bora.  Lucky dog.   We’ll catch up with Derek again later, once he’s back in the states.

This past weekend, Derek was at the Indy 500 with his band, the Ballas Hough Band.  Between the Snakepit Ball, the parade, and the Playboy Party (see picture below), Derek had a full weekend even before he took to the stage with BHB for a post-race concert.

Derek has said that he will be back for Season 9 “as long as they don’t cast all 7′ women”.

Derek Links:

http://www.purederekhough.com/

http://twitter.com/OfficialDHough

http://www.myspace.com/ballashoughband

http://www.myspace.com/30371912

According to Buddy TV, there are a few things that Shawn Johnson and Gilles Marini won’t do next.

For Johnson, who’s been offered books and movie deals, she’s determined not to sing on American Idol.

“I met Randy Jackson, and he asked me to sing on American Idol,’” she told Us magazine. “I was like, ‘Um, I’ll stick to dancing.”

And Gilles?

“It would be such an honor to come back, but I know for a fact that I’m not going to be in the next Sex and the City — or there’s a 99 percent chance I’m not going to be part of it, I should say…I don’t know if I’d say yes or no, but there’s a big chance I’m not doing it,” Marini told TV Guide.

And why would he? Plot-wise, it just wouldn’t make sense for his sexy character to make a re-appearance.

UPDATE: Check out the latest Dancing with the Stars Season 9 cast rumors here.

UPDATE 2: It’s official, check out the cast of Dancing with the Stars Season 9. Nice to see lots of the cast were on our rumor list.

The first person begging to be on Dancing with the Stars for 2010 is a woman named…Erin Andrews.  Never heard of her, but apparently Tom Bergeron has. Here’s what SportingNews.com has to say about Erin.

As her fame has boomed, Erin Andrews has declined certain requests because they would detract from her standing as a working journalist. Dancing With the Stars, though, would not be one of those requests.

“I want to do it, because I think I’d be good at it,” Andrews said yesterday, over a lunch of a hamburger and chicken noodle soup in downtown D.C. (I had iced tea. Too many freebie cookies from the Scripps National Spelling Bee.)

“I want to do it very badly,” she continued. “That’s the big push.”

She’s said this to others in recent days, but she was really, 100 percent serious. So there, that’s out there. She couldn’t do the fall season, of course, due to her work responsibilities, but she could make her schedule fit with the spring season. I can’t imagine a scenario in which ABC and sports bloggers don’t all benefit from this, so make it happen, producer people.

“I would love it love it love it,” Andrews said. “I want to be like, ‘Who do I call?’ Let’s do this.”

The latest? Danny Gokey from American Idol. Here’s what Danny says according to the Insider online:

The 29-year-old says he’d be willing to try “Dancing with the Stars” especially after the “Idol” judges criticized his dance moves, the Associated Press says.

Gokey says that his first priorities are working on his album and raising money for his charity, Sophia’s Heart Foundation named after his late wife.

According to the AP the singer says he would consider doing the show if it would help to raise awareness about his foundation.