We received a lot of positive comments regarding the old NBC reality show, The Contender, last season. Somehow the news of the show being picked up by ESPN for a second season slipped through the cracks! ESPN aired a boxing event last Saturday night, which featured former contestants from the show and receiving the highest viewer ratings for a boxing event for ESPN in eight years. Fans of the show are no doubt thrilled to see the series return.The Contender returns
We received a lot of positive comments regarding the old NBC reality show, The Contender, last season. Somehow the news of the show being picked up by ESPN for a second season slipped through the cracks! ESPN aired a boxing event last Saturday night, which featured former contestants from the show and receiving the highest viewer ratings for a boxing event for ESPN in eight years. Fans of the show are no doubt thrilled to see the series return.














Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
11-04-2005 @ 7:46PM
Kelly said...
Does anyone know when the new season is supposed to begin on ESPN?
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12-15-2005 @ 9:14AM
meisy said...
I don't want to see anymore rematch. what's the point for rematch? that is not the result we want to see. Jesse and the snake are not the winners. It is sick to see when they dared to raise their arms in the air.
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10-19-2005 @ 3:03PM
Ferley said...
does anybody know where i can get a copy of this event. I Tivo it but the dam football game was on an extra hour. for all i got was the first hour.
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10-19-2005 @ 3:40PM
Patrick said...
The Contender Rematch on ESPN was a huge disappointment.
Those of you who watched it know what I’m talking about.
Bonsante looked like a boxer and not a slugger, which was a big change for him. You could tell that he was scared of Brinkley’s power and never went toe to toe with him. Brinkley looked out of shape and didn’t throw that many punches. I thought that Bonsante clearly won that fight but the judges gave it to Brinkley. The crowd didn’t like that and neither did I.
In the finals rematch, the Manfredo that showed up was a much more polished boxer. Mora looked like a shell of his old self, and only went off in the fifth round. I felt that Manfredo won that fight; he out boxed, out pointed and out performed Mora. How the judges gave the win to Mora is beyond me.
I was a big fan of The Contender, I watched the 1st season and loved it. However, after seeing this, I’m disgusted with the outcome. To me, the results were fixed.
I’ll be looking for non-Contender fights that have Manfredo, Brinkley, Gomez and Mora in it, to see how these guys stand up to real fighters. I won’t be watching season 2.
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10-19-2005 @ 4:04PM
Tom said...
I agree with the previous post, what a disappointment! I don't think I'll be watching the second season after this. I also know many others who will not watch- very angry. I really would like to hear an explanation from the officials- without lies. I also want an explanation from the losing boxers as to why they did not immediately respond "as honorable men" to the decisions. I would have held Manfredo's hand to the air if I were Mora and stated out loud that Manfredo was the winner. Same thought with Brinkley. They should have taken a stance- this made them look very very bad as athletes to not give credit where credit was due.
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10-19-2005 @ 4:12PM
Andy Poon said...
Since all the fights were actually sanctioned by the California Boxing Commission, don't blame the show. The judges were the same people (same sanctioning body) that would have decided any non-Contender match in California .
However... I agree wholeheartedly that the results, especially in the Bonsane v Brinkley match were crap. Until professional boxing adopts the computer scoring system used by the amateur ranks, outcomes like this will always be possible due to the subjective nature of the judging.
With that said, I can't wait to see the second season!
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10-19-2005 @ 9:42PM
jeff strobach said...
FERLEY- ESPN IS SHOWING IT AGAIN ON WEDNESDAY AND SATURDAY.
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10-19-2005 @ 11:57PM
katy said...
hi i would really like to watch the fights to see what there actually like. Myself i dont really care about any of the fights except for Alfonso i love him!
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10-20-2005 @ 12:49AM
katy said...
please does anyone know what channel espn is??
In Kamloops B.C?? ESPN??
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10-20-2005 @ 6:42AM
TheMovieGoer said...
These boxing shows are a joke.
On the other hand, The Ultimate Fighter on Spike is riveting.
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10-21-2005 @ 1:42PM
Brent McKee said...
ESPN has a working agreement with (and part ownership in) TSN in Canada. ESPN shows make it to TSN...eventually.
For my money, putting "The Contender" on NBC was a huge mistake but it was and is a perfect fit for a network like ESPN.
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10-20-2005 @ 8:42PM
bill miller said...
The only judge i knew was ledderman,what a lousy score card she turned in..The whole world thinks these results are totally wrong.Why are we not seeing a reversal of this farse.The snake acted like a snake.I loved the first showing of contender,not sure if i will watch the second go round.What does Sugar Ray and Sly have to say about this joke deceision.
Bill Miller
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10-22-2005 @ 12:34AM
Jess Powell said...
I was a huge fan of the "Contender" till the ESPN rematch results. I will not watch the second season unless the juges are investigated and made to show how the heck they rated the fight, then forced to overturn their decissions. I have seen the fight several times now and clearly the judges are wrong.
All I hear now is that they need to rematch... lets get real, how many times do you have to fight the same person? Once is good, a rematch is fun... but a re-re-re-re match is getting stupid.
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10-29-2005 @ 12:37AM
bill miller said...
Are we going to hear from Sly and Ray.What does the boxing commision say. What do the HBO guys think,Sugarman .Can the decision be reversed. At most the winners money should go to the guys who were cheated.Did anyone ask Brinkly and the SNAKE their thoughts. thanks
Bill Miller
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11-02-2005 @ 9:28PM
joe said...
I loved the first season of The Contender. Me and my brother would call each other during commercials! But the rematch decisions really really put a bad taste in my mouth. I could not believe it! Total crap! If those decisions don't at least get reviewed I will not be watching season 2!
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