The Contender: Season Finale
By: Patrick Vu | Category: Show Archive | 05/25/05 | 05:15 PM
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 Grade for the Season: A+ |
Genre: Reality Television
Summary: Co-Executive Producer, Sylvestor Stallone, has taken the Rocky franchise and translated it onto the small screen with the same heart and emotion that made "The Italian Stallion" so endearing. It was a knock out of a season, and we can only hope it makes it way back to NBC.
The Contender series gave 16 boxing professionals the chance to jump-start a career they've long fantasized about. All have different backgrounds but with the same desire to succeed in a sport in which they've invested so much of themselves.
What has been one of the more engaging new programs of the current television season, scripted or reality, finally came to an end last night in a show down between the East Coast's "Pride of Providence," Peter Manfredo, and the man they call the "Latin Snake," Sergio Mora, from the West. It was a fight driven by the love for their families and the will to make better and more stable lives for themselves. |
Peter Manfredo came into the competition undefeated and ranked 3rd in the world. He no doubt has the talent but oddly never really convinced us as to why or how he's such a highly rated fighter. One of the favorites to win the whole thing from the very beginning, he lost his first fight to a virtually unknown boxer with the worst record of the bunch, Alfonzo Gomez, who ironically was probably most deserving of being in the final match. It was an unbelievable fight that surprised everyone but Gomez. By a stroke of luck and ultimately to the regret of those that voted him back in (due to another fighter coming down with chicken pox), Manfredo returned to avenge his defeat by barely beating his opponents including a rematch with Gomez to reach the finals in Las Vegas.
Hailing from East L.A., Sergio Mora is a surprisingly smart and a lightning quick boxer with a confident swagger. His combo of brains and brawn carried him all the way through the competition with class and unarguable talent. By taking out three highly respected fighters including solid all-around boxer Ishe Smith and hard punching Jesse Brinkley, Mora left no doubt why he should be contending for the championship. He quickly moved up The Contender ranks and showed why he deserves to be in the final match against Peter Manfredo.
Spoiler Alert for all you Tivo viewers
Vegas Baby! The title fight between Manfredo and Mora at Caesar's Palace is/was one of the best you'll ever see. This time around, instead of the fast editing and slow-mo effects as we've seen throughout the series, the television audience was allowed to see the fight in all its glory. No camera tricks and no gimmicks...just real hard-nose boxing. The seven-round match saw a balanced combo of jabs and hooks with Mora getting the slight edge. It wasn't the easiest fight to call but in end you knew that Sergio Mora was pulling away and would be crowned the champ and awarded the million dollar prize.
This season of The Contender gave us a Reality show without the vain ego trips and trivial melodrama. It was genuine people with genuine dreams. The Contender wasn't about winning a prize to support materialistic needs but to better lives for themselves and their families. It was all heart and a show with which you easily became emotionally involved. You got to know the fighters outside of the ring and found it difficult to root against any one of them. It really didn't matter who won because you're happy whichever way it went.
Co-Executive Producer, Sylvestor Stallone, has taken the Rocky franchise and translated it onto the small screen with the same heart and emotion that made "The Italian Stallion" so endearing. It was a knock out of a season, and we can only hope The Contender makes its way back to NBC.
Also, be sure to catch 4 more Contender matches including "Battle for the Bronze" and fights featuring fan favorites.
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