Max Alexander (14-1, 2 KOs)

BoxRec Page

http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=265756&cat=boxer

birth date 05-11-1981
age 26
division light heavyweight
rating 74 / 645
nationality United States
residence Camden, New Jersey

Interesting Info

He was a sparring partner for Kassim Ouma for the Taylor fight.

Myspace Page

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=111608803

Interview/Bio

Here is some personal info I was able to find.

Max Alexander Jr. is a light heavy weight boxer that has a 44-3 amateur record. His professional debut was in March 2004. At 6'3" he is a gifted boxer that uses his ability to out think his opponents. His goals for this year are to continue improving his craft and work his way into contention.

He is trained by Danny Davis and Mr. Mayfield and, having been in and around boxing for over 50 years, they see a young man that will one day be a World Champion. He trains out of the Northern Liberty Recreational Center and his boxing coordinator is Eric Johnson. He is managed by Robert Bryant. He is a graduate of Montclair State College in New Jersey with a degree in Criminal Justice.


Here is a Press Release just from the other day saying that he is going to fight in September?

http://www.boxingtalk.com/pag/article13064.html

Fight Recaps

Here is a tidbit on what happened during a fight he had last October.

On October 14th, Max Alexander was rolling along with a record of 12-0-1 and on that night he was set to face Marty Lindquist in what was supposed to be nothing more then a showcase for the Camden, New Jersey native.

Lindquist, of Blaine, Minnesota had other ideas. Lindquist landed one of the most devastating punches in recent memory and knocked Alexander out cold for ten minutes. For a brief moment the crowd held their collective breath as Alexander lay motionless on the canvas.

For a few days it was thought that Lindquist had scored a shocking upset with that ten second destruction of Alexander.

It was revealed a few days later that Lindquist (12-4, 1 NC, 9 KO’s) had failed the post fight drug test and thus Alexander kept his perfect (12-0-1, 1 NC, 2 KO’s) record intact.

Here is an article from his fight against Moses Matovu on 2-10-06. Pics are included.

http://sports.phillykeith.com/2006/02/blue-horizon-02-10-06.html

Here is an article from his fight against Randy Pogue on 1-13-06. They talk about the whole fight card, so you will have to scroll down a bit to find info on his fight. Pics are included.

http://www.saddoboxing.com/2663-boxing-ringside-report-william-gill-terrance-johnson.html

David Banks (14-2-1, 2 KOs)

BoxRec Page

http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=294190&cat=boxer

birth date 04-02-1983
age 24
division super middleweight
rating 53 / 774
nationality United States
residence Portland, Oregon, United States
stance orthodox
height 5′ 10″
reach 27½“

MySpace Page

http://www.myspace.com/4rmnegative2positive

Video’s

Interview just before Manfredo fight (his son is adorable) I won’t post any fight news on the Manfredo fight, we all seen the fight, plus you all read what I had previously posted, so there is no need.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCDYpg3lqMU

Interview/Bio

Here’s a good article regarding him and his personal life that was just done this past February. It is 3 pages long.

http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/portland_news/117046774079200.xml&coll=7

Fight Recaps

Here are recaps from his two fights against Elvin Ayala

http://www.fightwriter.com/?q=node/545

http://www.fightwriter.com/?q=node/719

Sakio Bika (22-3-2, 14 KOs)

BoxRec Page

http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=42088&cat=boxer

birth date 04-18-1979
age 28
division super middleweight
rating 31 / 774
nationality Cameroon
alias The Scorpion
residence Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
birth place Douala, Cameroon
stance orthodox
height 6′ 0½″
reach 71“

Website

http://sakiobika.com/

MySpace Page

http://www.myspace.com/sakiobika

Wikpedia Page

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sakio_Bika

Video’s

Sakio Bika sparring with Jamie Pittman 1st part

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTZJNNKuAe0

Sakio Bika sparring with Jamie Pittman 2nd part

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VL9GWKQOpM

Video of Bika vs. Joe Calzaghe

http://stage6.divx.com/user/Philhaj/video/1276598/Joe-Calzaghe-vs-Sakio-Bika

Fight Recaps

Here is a recap of his fight against Calzaghe

http://www.fightwriter.com/?q=node/461

Here is a recap of his last fight against Lucian Bute

http://www.boxingtimes.com/analyses/2007/070615bute_bika.html

Henry "Sugar Poo" Buchanan (14-1, 11 KOs)

BoxRec Page

http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=243892&cat=boxer

birth date 08-05-1978
age 28
division super middleweight
rating 88 / 774
nationality United States
alias Sugar Poo
residence Capitol Heights, MD, USA
birth name Henry Kanonta Buchanan

Interesting Info

He was a semi-finalist in last years “ShoBox’’ Super Middleweight Tournament on Showtime, but lost to Jean-Paul Mendy

Danny this is for you - His nephew is Shawne Merriman of the San Diego Chargers

MySpace Page

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=103856116

Video’s

Interview from a year ago

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wq4XcQX6Gb4

Here is a video of his 4 round fight against Brian Norman

http://video.aol.com/video-detail/id/3835657338

Interview/Bio

Here is a good article that talks a little bit about his background.

http://www.gazette.net/stories/072706/largspo181457_31941.shtml

Fight Recaps

Here a pre-fight analysis of his last fight against Jean-Paul Mendy

http://www.fightwriter.com/?q=node/432

Here is an article recapping his fight against Lucas Green-Arias last year.

http://www.fightwriter.com/?q=node/327

Here is an article recapping his fight against Lloyd Bryan last year.

http://www.fightnews.com/price26.htm

Lafarrell Bunteng (16-3-1, 16 KOs)

BoxRec Page

http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=70037&cat=boxer

birth date 01-10-1980
age 27
division super middleweight
rating 99 / 774
nationality United States
alias Fabulous Fairway
residence Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
birth place Memphis, TN, USA
birth name Lafarrell Deshun Bunting

Interesting Info

He was also a semi-finalist in the “ShoBox’’ Super Middleweight Tournament on Showtime, but lost to Anthony Hanshaw.

Fight Recaps

Here is a recap of his last fight against Jean Pascal

http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Boxing/2007/02/14/3617644-cp.html

Here is an article that recaps both Bunting’s & Buchanan’s fight in the ShoBox Tournament

http://www.boxingtimes.com/analyses/2006/061006mendy_buchanan.html

Jaidon Codrington (16-1, 12 KOs)

BoxRec Page

http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=260445&cat=boxer

birth date 06-05-1984
age 23
division light heavyweight
rating 22 / 646
nationality United States
alias The Don
residence Queens, New York, United States
birth place Bridgeport, CT, USA
stance orthodox
height 6′ 2″
reach 28½“

MySpace Page

http://www.myspace.com/jaidonthedon

Video’s

Jaidon Codrington Q & A from March 2007

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDAXBb0XU7k

Jaidon Codrington vs Allen Green

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-K6dvTmqZs

Jaidon's Big Left Hook

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSB5k3F7aIc

Jaidon Interview 7/20/06

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YtbR15_xqo

Interview/Bio

Here is an article that was written about him on MaxBoxing.com

http://www.maxboxing.com/kolb/kolb061907.asp

Fight Recaps

Here is a recap of his last fight with Carl Cockerham

http://www.newsday.com/sports/custom/boxing/ny-boxing0621,0,3964536.story?coll=ny-mma-boxing-headlines

Here is a photo gallery from his last fight against Carl Cockerham - 06.20.07

http://www.photoshelter.com/gallery-show/G0000L0nTQUcRYRU

Here is a recap of what happened with his fight with Alan Green.

http://www.thesweetscience.com/boxing-article/3118/exactly-happened-jaidon-codrington/

Miguel Hernandez (20-5, 10 KOs)

BoxRec page

http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=187263&cat=boxer

birth date 09-21-1974
age 32
division super middleweight
rating 174 / 774
nationality United States
alias Macho
residence Chicago, Illinois, United States
stance orthodox
height 5′ 7″
reach 71“

Interesting Info

He was supposed to fight Sergio on the Latin Warriors card, but ESPN wouldn’t approve him supposedly, here is the article talking about it.

http://www.cyberboxingzone.com/news/archives/00001806.htm

He sparred with Season 2 Contender Rudy Cisneros for his fight against Yory Boy Campas

Video’s

Here is video footage of him fighting and getting knocked out by Raul Marquez.

http://www.houstonboxingscene.com/knockout1.html

Interview/Bio

Here is an interview from 2005, but I posting it because it provides a little info about his boxing background.

http://www.talkingboxing.com/interviews/2005/hernandezinterview.html

Fight Recap

Here is a recap of fight against Ryan Davis last year were he won the WBC United States Middleweight Championship, and it also talks about an undercard bout that featured Danny Santiage, who is also on Season 3.

http://www.hardcoreboxing.net/Izada2162006.htm

Wayne Johnsen (16-1, 9 KOs)

BoxRec Page

http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=196686&cat=boxer

birth date 09-07-1977
age 29
division super middleweight
rating 70 / 774
nationality United States
alias Lights Out
residence Lyndhurst, New Jersey, United States
birth place Newark, NJ, USA
stance orthodox
height 6′ 0″

Interesting Info

Tried out for the 1st season of The Contender and The Next Great Champ

He just fought on the Cotto/Judah undercard where he won

Website (currently under construction)

http://www.waynejohnsen.com/

Wikipedia Page

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_Johnsen

Video

Here is video of his fight and KO of Josh Hammock last year.

http://www.fightbeat.com/johnsen-hammock.php

Interview/Bio

Here is a good interview that talks about how he got into boxing, and about his career.

http://www.roundcardmodels.com/articles040505.php

Fight Recap

Here is a recap of his fight against Josh Hammock last year.

http://www.brickcityboxing.com/index.php/a/2006/11/11/wayne_johnsen_turns_out_the_lights_at_ke

Donnie McCrary (23-5-2, 13 KOs)

BoxRec Page

http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=196732&cat=boxer

birth date 10-15-1982
age 24
division super middleweight
rating 46 / 774
nationality United States
alias The Savage
residence Saint Joseph, Missouri, United States
birth place St. Joseph, MO, USA
stance orthodox
height 5′ 10″

Interesting Info

In his last fight he knocked out Sergio’s last opponent, Eric Regan, in the first round.

Video’s

Getting knocked out by Lucien Bute (in French)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CF3LwxucVG0

Him putting Allan Green on queer street (he used to be Green’s sparring partner)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=biC5o-zCpBk

Fight Recaps

Here is a recap of his fight with Allan Green

http://www.boxingtimes.com/analyses/2006/060426green_mccrary.html

Here is a page that recaps 5 of his fights

http://kcboxingnews.com/Boxers/donnie_mccrary.htm

Les Ralston (16-2, 9 KOs)

BoxRec Page

http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=097165&cat=boxer

birth date 11-13-1980
age 26
division super middleweight
rating 162 / 774
nationality United States
alias Lightning
residence Buffalo, New York
birth place Buffalo, New York
birth name Leslie John Ralston
stance orthodox

Interesting Info

Lost to Sergio in Sergio’s last fight before he started on The Contender.

He has only 1 fight in the last 2 years.

Well since he hasn’t fought much, I really couldn’t find any recent info, and he has no MySpace page or any YouTube video’s out there. I will keep looking though.

Danny Santiago (29-3-1, 19 KOs)

BoxRec Page

http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=015394&cat=boxer

birth date 02-21-1973
age 34
division light heavyweight
rating 42 / 646
nationality United States
alias The Bronx Bomber
residence Ocala, Florida, United States
stance orthodox
height 5′ 9½″

Not much good recent news on Santiago.

Interview/Bio

Here is an interview that was Boxingtalk.com last year.

http://www.boxingtalk.com/pag/article6767.html

Fight Recap

Here is a recap of his last fight again Zsolt Erdei

http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/boxing/news/story?id=2746679

Paul Smith (20-0, 12 KOs)

BoxRec Page

http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=182945&cat=boxer

birth date 10-06-1982
age 24
division middleweight
rating 37 / 948
nationality United Kingdom
alias Real Gone Kid
residence Liverpool, England
birth place Liverpool, England
birth name Paul Smith
height 5′ 11″

Interesting Info

Paul Smith is also a club DJ and a model

MySpace Page

http://www.myspace.com/paulsmithboxing

Video

This is an interview he did for The Contender Challenge

http://youtube.com/watch?v=PnKEsBAJvlI

Interview/Bio

Here is a profile that was done on him this past April.

http://www.saddoboxing.com/5086-paul-smith.html#more-5086

Here is a bit of a bio that was listed for The Contender Challenge

http://www.frankwarren.tv/drill/indexboxers.php?page=boxers&id=29

Fight Recap

Here is a recap of his fight against Alexander Polizzi which took place just 20 days before he fought Jonathan Reid.

http://icliverpool.icnetwork.co.uk/0200sport/0610boxing/tm_headline=looking-for-ko-was-stupid-says-smith%26method=full%26objectid=18739139%26siteid=5 0061-name_page.html

Sam Soliman (33-9, 13 KOs)

BoxRec Page

http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=14452&cat=boxer

birth date 11-13-1973
age 33
division middleweight
rating 14 / 948
nationality Australia
alias King
residence Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
birth place Melbourne-Egyptian extraction
stance orthodox
height 5′ 8½″
reach 70“

Interesting Info

Soliman is bit like Kassim Ouma where he averages 100 punches per round.

He beat Sakio Bika.

MySpace Page

http://www.myspace.com/samsoliman

Wikipedia Page

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Soliman

Video’s

Here is a 2 part interview with Sam
Part 1
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Muf52CmB7Xc
Part 2
http://youtube.com/watch?v=NG5Vk70Lu7Y

Mundine-Soliman II Round 2

http://youtube.com/watch?v=L7aG8nCYaR4

Mundine-Soliman II Round 9

http://youtube.com/watch?v=fzcrhCQxb_A

Interview/Bio

Here is a good bio page provided by Goosen Tutor.

http://www.goossentutor.com/pages/athelets/soliman.htm

Fight Recaps

Here is a recap of his fight against Enrique Ornelas last year.

http://www.boxingtimes.com/analyses/2006/061117soliman_ornelas.html

Here is a page that was set up a little over 2 years ago, but it has a lot of info and articles, good stuff.

http://www.aussiebox.com.au/samking.html

Brian Vera (14-0, 9 KOs)

BoxRec Page

http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=269624&cat=boxer

birth date 12-28-1981
age 25
division super middleweight
rating 57 / 773
nationality United States
residence Austin, Texas, United States
birth place Fort Worth, TX, USA
stance orthodox
height 5′ 10″

Interesting Info

His father was a Texas Golden Gloves Heavyweight Champion, Gilbert Sr., and his brother Gilbert Jr. is also a boxer.

MySpace Page

http://www.myspace.com/boxvera7

Fight Recap

Here is a recap of his fight against Antonio Garcia last year (pics included)

http://www.fightnews.com/hughes05.htm

Rhoshii Wells (18-2-2, 10 KOs)

BoxRec Page

http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=15623&cat=boxer

birth date 12-30-1976
division light middleweight
nationality United States
alias The Great One
residence Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
birth place Austin, TX, USA
stance orthodox

Interesting Info

Won the bronze medal in the Middleweight Division at the 1996 Summer Olympics.

Fought Anthony Bonsante to a draw.

Hasn’t fought in over 2 years.

Wikipedia Page

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhoshii_Wells

Interview/Bio

Here is an article that provides some good info.

http://www.braggingrightscorner.com/robinsontopicwells051005.html

Rubin Williams (29-2-1, 16 KOs)

BoxRec Page

http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=58878&cat=boxer

birth date 04-09-1976
age 31
division super middleweight
rating 60 / 773
nationality United States
alias Mr. Hollywood
residence Detroit, Michigan, United States
stance orthodox
height 6′ 0½″
reach 75“

MySpace Page

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=163085855

Interview/Bio

Here is an interview that was done with him last November.

http://www.doghouseboxing.com/dannys/dannys_112906.htm

Here is a letter that he wrote to Jeff Lacy and Allan Green last year.

http://www.boxingtribune.com/index.php?go=article&id=117

Fight Recap

Here is a recap of his fight against Jeff Lacy in 2005

http://www.boxingtimes.com/analyses/2005/050305lacy_williams.html

MEET THE 2007 CONTENDER SHOW’S CAST
www.ringtalk.com
13 August, 2007 by Lou Ciaccia

REALITY SHOW MOVES TO SUPER MIDDLE

New York, NY- ESPN has announced the participants for the third season of The Contender, the boxing reality show that has found a bit of a home in the national consciousness. This year, there are more names that should be recognizable to fight fans than in the first two seasons. This year’s version features fighters in the 168-lb division, and premiers September 10th.

JUST WHO ARE THE 2007 CONTENDERS ANYWAY?

Max Alexander (14-0-1, 2 KOs) is a N.J. light heavyweight who has fought 14 of his fights in Philadelphia, many at the famed Blue Horizon. While he technically carries a 0 in the loss column, he was iced in 10 seconds by journeyman Marty Lindquist last year, but the fight was later ruled a no contest when Lindquist failed a post-fight drug test. Alexander won a lopsided decision in a February rematch.

LIKE ALEXANDER, BANKS CAN’T PUNCH!

David Banks (14-2-1, 2 KOs) faced season one Contender star Peter Manfredo on an ESPN 2 main event in June, losing a competitive decision. He has two wins over previously unbeaten prospect Elvin Ayala, and his only loss is to hot prospect Eromosele Albert. The Contender series has been kind to light-punching fighters, and Banks has to be considered a dark horse in a loaded field.

AUSSIE PUG BEST KNOWN CONTENDER

Sakio Bika (22-3, 14 KOs) of Australia is a definite favorite, and probably the most well-known name in the field. Twice a challenger for a super middleweight title, he had both a technical draw with then-titlist Markus Beyer and a decision loss to Joe Calzaghe last year. His other two losses are also to world class fighters, fellow Season Three Contender Sam Soliman and top-10 super middleweight Lucian Bute. Bika is ranked tenth by Ring Magazine among super middleweights.

”SUGAR POO” IS OF SHO BOX FAME

Henry “Sugar Poo” Buchanan (14-1, 11 KO) is most notable to fight fans as a participant in last year’s Sho Box super middleweight tournament on Showtime. Buchanan didn’t make many fans in two dull appearances, eventually losing a lopsided decision to tournament finalist Jean Paul Mendy. Buchanan does have the element of showmanship and cockiness that will set him apart from his fellow Contenders outside the ring.

LA FARRELL CAN FIGHT A LITTLE BIT

La Farrell Bunting (16-3-1, 16 KO) was also a Sho Box tournament participant, although he didn’t face Buchanan. Bunting got into the tournament as a late replacement for fellow Contender Bika, and picked up a big knockout win before being stopped in three by eventual finalist Anthony Hanshaw. He also has a decision loss to top prospect Jean Pascal.

SHO BOX “WELL REPRESENTED THIS YEAR

Jaidon Codrington (16-1, 12 KOs) became a household name on Showtime when he was viciously and frighteningly demolished in a mere 18 seconds by contender Allen Green. It was one of 2005’s knockouts of the year. Condrington has won seven straight since, but against miserable competition.

YORY BOY & RAUL BEAT HERNANDEZ

Miguel Hernandez (20-5, 10 KOs) has no victories over notable opponents, but stoppage losses to aging former champs “Yory Boy Campas and Raul Marquez. It’s hard to imagine the 32-year old middleweight contending in this year’s field.

THIS WAYNE JOHNSON “NOT” THE WWE ROCK

Wayne Johnson (16-1, 9 KOs) is a 29-year old former college football player who turned pro late after just six amateur fights. He has no notable wins on his resume, but has knocked out four of his last six opponents.

DOONY LOOKS SORTA’ ORDINARY

Donny McCrary (23-5-2, 13 KOs), like Codrington, also made his name in a loss to Allen Green. The Missouri native was a lightly regarded journeyman when he faced the highly rated Green on ESPN 2 last year, but came within a whisker of pulling a tremendous upset. In one of the more memorable ESPN 2 fights of 2006, McCrary nearly knocked Green out in the third round before succumbing to Green in the sixth. A live underdog in this field, McCrary’s five losses include solid guys like Green, Kofe Jantuah, Lucian Bute and Yuri Foreman. His last fight was a first round knockout over the respected Eric Regan.

BUFFALO PUG BEATEN BY SEASON ONE CHAMP

Les Ralston (16-2, 9 KOs) of Buffalo, NY has been on television twice. He was soundly outpointed by the then-unknown Sergio Mora on the short-lived NBC boxing series back in 2004, and was knocked out by Leonard Pierre on ESPN 2 in 2005. With no notable wins and only one fight in the last two years, Ralston seems unlikely to make any noise in this field.

THIS GUY RUMBLED WITH ZSOLT

Danny Santiago (29-3-1, 19 KOs) challenged WBO light heavyweight (175) titleholder Zsolt Erdei in his last bout, and was stopped in eight. The 34-year old also holds a TKO win over recent Antonio Tarver opponent Elvir Muriqi. All three of his losses are by stoppage.

BRITISH LAD GETS CONTENDER SLOT

Paul Smith (20-0, 12 KOs) is a British prospect who knocked out the badly fading Jonathan Reid, a Season One Contender, in his last outing. He’s never fought outside the U.K., but was a decorated amateur and is considered one of Britain’s top prospects.

DON’T COUNT “DOUBLE S” OUT YET!

Sam Soliman (33-9, 13 KOs) of Australia is another familiar face to boxing fans, who burst on the American scene with a competitive loss to Winky Wright on HBO in 2005. He holds wins over contender Raymond Joval and prospect Enrique Ornelas, as well as fellow Contender Sakio Bika. Soliman was knocked out by Anthony Mundine in a title bid his last time out, but has a wild, difficult style that should make him a favorite to win The Contender. He’s currently in Ring Magazine’s top ten among middleweights.

TOUGH TEXAN TAKES WALK ON WILD SIDE!

Brian Vera (14-0, 9 KOs) is 25-year old Texan who is largely untested. He did pin the second loss on the once-bright prospect Samuel Miller for his biggest win to date, in a fight that appeared on ESPN 2 in May.

WELLS WAS “SUPPOSED” TO BE THE GUY

Rhoshii Wells (18-2-2, 10 KOs) is undefeated against anyone not named Alex “Terra” Garcia, coming up short in two title bids against the former junior middleweight titlist. Wells moves up two weight classes (from 154 to 168) for The Contender.

JEFF LACY VICTIM ROUNDS OUT FIELD

Rubin Williams (29-2-1, 16 KOs) is another former title challenger who gave former champ Jeff Lacy a pretty good fight on Showtime in 2005 before being stopped in the seventh. He is 3-0-1 since, and in his last fight drew with former contender Antwun Echols in a fight that was considered a “fight of the year” type affair.

Lou DiBella, 'Contender' Guru Jeff Wald Express Support, Sympathy For Jaidon Codrington!
www.boxingconfidential.com
Michael Marley
8/17/2007

As boxing promoters engaged in the rough-and-tumble business, promoters Jeff Wald and Lou DiBella rarely agree on anything. But the two made similar comments concerning the suicide, at age 47, of super middleweight Jaidon Codrington's father.

Jamesy Calvin Codrigton Sr. died in Bridgeport, Ct., last weekend.

"Jaidon is a good kid but this is a heavy blow for any son," DiBella said. "Jaidon will bounce back just like has with seven straight victories since the KO loss to Allan Green. Boxing seems trivial right now. I only want to express my sympathies to Jaidon and his entire family in their time of sorrow. We at DiBella Entertainment are here to support Jaidon and his family."

Wald, who runs 'The Contender,' said that the viewing public won't find out until the Season Three premiere on Sept. 4 on ESPN whether Codrigton made the cut for this year's program. Sixteen 168-pounders were invited to try out for the program and the 10 who have been chosen will be seen on the first episode.

"It is a terrible tragedy for Jaidon and his entire family," Wald said from his Hollywood office. "I know he has not pulled out of the competition. He's been a complete gentleman around us. I see him as a very good kid and a very good fighter. Everyone at our show likes Jaidson very much.

"His family should be very proud of Jaidon. He can really fight. The (KO loss to) Allan Green fight was really a fluke," Wald said. "Jaidon is a real talent and he should not have been in that fight at that time."

Winner=$1 MIL? + Special guest(s) ODLH on Contender?

NEW YORK -- ESPN is returning to the ring Sept. 4 to begin a third season of "The Contender," the first to feature the full, uncut fights that will air on ESPN2.

It will be the second season on ESPN, which took over the DreamWorks Television-Mark Burnett Prods. series after it debuted in 2005 on NBC.

Sugar Ray Leonard will continue as the host, with appearances by Oscar De La Hoya and Adam Corolla plus trainers James "Buddy" McGirt and Jose "Pepe" Correa.

This season, 16 more boxers will vie for the $1 million purse, up from last season's $500,000. It also will have the super-middleweight class. The entire fight will appear each week on ESPN2, the network said Monday.

The third season premieres at 10 p.m. Sept. 4 on ESPN. Executive producers are ESPN Content Development, Mark Burnett and Jeffrey Katzenberg; co-executive producers are Jeff Wald, Eric Van Wagenen, Page Feldman, Darryl Frank, Justin Falvey and Brian Edwards.

Link:
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/television/news/e3i9b8177db0f6e72ce2c2300a971054d64

Personally, I always wondered where ODLH stood with Contender since they had that feud of accusing each other of stealing the idea from one another. I am not sure I believe all of this news but it will be great if the $1Mil dollar purse comes back into play and it will very interesting to see ODLH on/at Contender in any form or fashion.

Buddy McGirt to train boxers for ESPN’s ‘The Contender’
By Lisa Riddle
Saturday, August 4, 2007
www.tcpalm.com

Trainer and former world champion boxer Buddy McGirt left his Vero Beach gym last week and headed for Los Angeles.

There, he began training fighters for the next edition of ESPN's boxing reality show, "The Contender."

"They called me a couple months ago to do it this season," McGirt said. "They had called me the first season it came out, and I couldn't do it. I had too many fighters in training camp, and now, it just works out for me."

McGirt spent last week working with the five boxers on his "team" who will compete against another trainer's team of five boxers. This coming week, McGirt will work with his pupils for three more days before they have their first fights starting Thursday. An ESPN spokesperson said the show will air this fall at a date to be determined.

The boxers have been training for two months. McGirt has entered the show as the boxers near their dates in the ring.

"They give you great facilities out there. It feels the same as what I'm doing here," said McGirt, who owns McGirt's Boxing. "I'm just doing things the same out there as I do with my boxers here. They said they don't want me to change anything, just be me."

That means fans can expect to see McGirt smoking his trademark cigars on the steps of the gym while watching fighters pound the bags. The only change is that his smoking perch won't be from a seat in his office, because the camera crews don't allow smoke in the gym for the shoot.

McGirt expects some disciplined boxing.

"None of them want to start messing up next week and make me clip my cigar to come talk to them," he said. "That's when I get mad."

As part of the shoot, McGirt is having to wear makeup for the first time in his career.

"I'm not sure they like putting me in that stuff. They say I sweat too much," he said. "We had to do a lot of retakes last week. We're hoping to just do straight filming this week now that we're used to it."

Soliman & Bika Make the Cut for "The Contender" series
www.eastsideboxing.com

04.08.07 - By Tony Nobbs: World title challengers Sam Soliman and Sakio Bika are the two Australian boxing fighters who made the final cut for the third series of “The Contender." Sixteen super middleweights , a crop of young pro's and seasoned vets will battle it out with a cool US $750,000 grand prize at the end of the rainbow.

As well as the two “men from Down Under”, Santiago, Williams and Wells (an Olympic bronze medalist from '96, but inactive since '05) have fought for world titles.

Coaches for this series are ex two division world champion and trainer of the year Buddy McGirt and veteran Pepe Correa, who trained Sugar Ray Leonard (the series' host and boxers mentor), Lennox Lewis, Maurice Blocker and Simon Brown.

Dave Hedgecock trained Soliman, who was stopped in nine brutal rounds by Anthony Mundine for the vacant WBA “regular” 168 lb belt in March, has some rated scalps such as Bika, Raymond Joval, Fulgencio Zuniga, Nader Hamden and Nevile Brown, as well as a close loss to Winky Wright as well as Anthony Mundine and Howard Eastman (back in '01) and is a former IBF number one, a four division Australian champ from middle to cruiser and a Commonwealth title holder at 160 lb.

Sam's manager Stuart Duncan said “There were other offers available. I could have put Sam in a world title bout with IBF middleweight champion Arthur Abraham in Germany. I knocked that back for this chance. From a managerial point of view this makes more sense. He goes to Germany, loses a controversial decision, he doesn't get the big money and he's on the out, coming off a loss to Anthony Mundine. The short rounds will suit Sammy to the ground, with his constant punching, working off angles, it will take a few rounds for these guys to catch up with him. He he will be an excellent chance of taking out the series.”

Mark Pitts trained 2000 Olympian Bika fought Marcus Beyer and Joe Calzaghe for 168 lb belts and recently lost to Lucien Bute in an IBF eliminator in Canada.

His manager Angelo Hyder, one of the hardest workin' behind the scenes men in the business, reckons Bika and Soliman are the “ones to beat."

“It's destiny!” said Hyder. “Sakio wasn't right before that last fight. He almost drowned in the pool the day before that last fight (Bute). Mark Pitts had to pull him out. They tell us drowning is one of the greatest forms of exhaustion - the stress involved. Plus he got the flu. We didn't carry on over there , we copped it on the chin.

“He's had them hard fights, he's had good sparring, I know he can beat Sammy. That's the biggest threat. Who else is going to beat him?”

“Everything happens for a reason. If he'd won that last fight, we wouldn't have got this shot. He's ready to go."

Nader Hamden, Jamie Pittman and Les Sherrington were other Aussies that put their names forward to be part.

The series begins on September 4 with the live finale set to be aired in the USA on November 6.

Q&A: Buddy McGirt!
www.fightnews.com
August 6, 2007
By Lisa Scott

‘The Contender,' the boxing reality show broadcast by ESPN (which features 16 super middleweight contenders and prospects challenging for a grand prize of $750,000), went into production 2 weeks ago in Los Angeles for their third season. The 10 episode series will be televised on Tuesdays beginning September 4th with the finale being aired live on November 6th at the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston.

Producers of The Contender (which include reality show maven Mark Burnett), have axed coaches Tommy Gallagher and Jeremy Williams (also a heavyweight fighter), and enlisted two of boxing's most respected trainers - Buddy McGirt and Pepe Correa (former trainer of Sugar Ray Leonard and Lennox Lewis). With the addition of McGirt and Correa, the third season of The Contender looks to be very enticing. The knowledge both trainers can bring to the show, mixed with McGirt's charisma and hair-trigger humor, could be The Contender's best season to date.

Fightnews spoke to McGirt and this is what he had to say:

Which fighter's will be on your ‘team' for this season's show?

Unfortunately, I can't talk about that. I signed a confidentiality agreement and if I say anything, I can't get paid.

Understood. Did you follow the first 2 seasons of the show? What did you think of it?

Actually, like I told them once before, I really didn't think much of it. But now that I've been a part of the show and have seen how things are behind the scenes, I've definitely changed my mind. To see young hungry fighters get the chance of a lifetime - a chance that most fighters work their whole career for - is really an experience in itself. And to be honest with you, they asked me to be the trainer for Season 1. But I couldn't do it because I had Antonio (Tarver), Arturo (Gatti) and Laila Ali in camp.

Two weeks ago, you were in L.A. filming the show - just days before your fighter Vernon Forrest fought Carlos Baldomir. How were you able to manage that?

Before I went out to L.A., I spoke to Vernon about it and he gave me his blessing. A lot of fighters would have said, ‘No. I need you here with me.' But Vernon said: ‘As long as you're there Saturday for the fight, I don't care. Good luck.' So I really have to thank Vernon for that.

In previous shows, they had the fighters competing in challenges such as ‘dodge ball.' What will some of the challenges be for this season?

If I knew, I couldn't tell you because of the confidentiality agreement. But I really don't know because we haven't gotten to that part yet. This was only my first week. And it consisted of weeding out the fighters who were ready for the show and those who weren't. I couldn't believe that some guys came in out of shape! My thing is if you can't get in shape, that tells The Contender people that you don't want it that bad. So we had to weed those fighters out. Believe me, it wasn't easy. There were a lot of guys, but we could only pick 16. This week, I'll be training my team of fighters to compete in bouts for Thursday. It'll be about who is ready to rumble and who ain't.

Can you tell me which fighters were rejected?

(Laughs) Sorry. I cant talk about that either.

What's an average day like on the set?

Well for one thing, I have to wear make up. I've never had to do that before. They say I sweat too much for the cameras, so they have to put make up all over my face and head so I won't be so shiny. I got the make up lady following me all over the place! (Laughs) But really, the whole thing is no different than what I do here in Vero. They have a great set up there and nothing is ‘staged' because they want the reality of it all. So I'm basically out there doing what I normally do when I work with my fighters. But one thing I can't do, that I always do, is smoke my cigars in the gym while they film. (Laughs)

Do you have to live with the fighters?

No. No, no, no. If I had to live with them, I wouldn't have done the show. Living with fighters and training them just doesn't work. It could literally drive you crazy.

Are you contracted for this season only, or for next season as well?

I believe I'll be doing next season too.

If needed, can you bring your son and some of your other fighters like Dat Nyguen to the Contender camp?

If I have to, yeah. The Contender people have been very good with me and my schedule.

Super middleweight contenders gear up for Season 3
By Dan Rafael
ESPN.com
AROUND THE RING"Contender" returns for third season

http://aycu01.webshots.com/image/22920/2004320994719417027_rs.jpg

Who will be the Season 3 champion of "The Contender"?"The Contender," the popular ESPN reality series, is getting back in the ring for a third season with a mix of experienced contenders and youthful prospects among the 16 super middleweights who will vie for the tournament title and $750,000 grand prize.

The series, which stars Hall of Famer Sugar Ray Leonard as host and mentor to the boxers and counts reality TV hit maker Mark Burnett as an executive producer, began production last week in Los Angeles with the fighters going through interviews, background checks, and physical fitness and psychological tests. The tournament's five-round bouts begin filming next week.

The new 10-episode season debuts Sept. 4 (10 p.m. ET) and will air Tuesdays through the live finale on Nov. 6 at the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston.

"I think what we've got this year is a combination of experienced guys who have fought for world championships and very good prospects who will wind up fighting for world championships," said "Contender" promoter Jeff Wald, one of the executive producers.

Said Ron Wechsler, ESPN vice president of scripted content: "'The Contender' has grown into a global brand that has come to represent world-class action inside of the ring and compelling human interest outside of it. This season, we look toward the stacked super middleweight division to continue to bring the most entertaining fights and dedicated fighters to our audience."

Here's the rundown of the 16 fighters in the field, which will be trimmed to 10 by the end of the first episode (in order with age, hometown and pro record):

• Jaidon Codrington (23, New York, 16-1, 12 KOs).
http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=260445&cat=boxer
Jaidon Codrington's only loss came at the hands of Allan Green. Jaidon was knocked the puck out in the first round on Nov 2005. Jaidon has fought in several different weight classes from MW thru CW. Is currently listed as a LHW

• David Banks (24, Portland, Ore., 14-2-1, 2 KOs).
http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=294190&cat=boxer
Very little power but gave Peter Manfredo Jr., a run for his money on June 2007

• Donny McCrary (24, St. Joseph, Mo., 23-5-2, 13 KOs).
http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=196732&cat=boxer
In June 2007, Donny knocked Erik Reagan out in the first round. Donny himself has been KO'd several times by fighters such as Lucian Bute and Allan Green.

• Paul Smith (24, Liverpool, England, 20-0, 12 KOs).
http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=182945&cat=boxer
From across the pond comes the British hopeful. Some are already picking him to win. Paul defeated Jonathan Reid by TKO in the 7th. on March of 2007. (Contraversial stoppage BTW)

• Les Ralston (25, Buffalo, N.Y., 16-2, 9 KOs).
http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=097165&cat=boxer
Has not been very active for reasons unknown. Has lost twice and once at the hands of Sergio Mora on May 2004.

• Max Alexander (26, Camden, N.J., 14-1, 2 KOs).
http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=265756&cat=boxer
Another fighter with no power but comes in undefeated however there is a twist..
originally a KO 1 for Lindquist - declared a no contest because Lindquist failed a drug test

• Brian Vera (26, Austin, Texas, 14-0, 9 KOs).
http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=269624&cat=boxer
Undefeated. Held the Texas State Middleweight Title and the IBA Intercontinental Super Middleweight Title.

• Lafarrell Bunteng (27, Las Vegas, 16-3-1, 16 KOs).
http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=70037&cat=boxer
Recently fought Jean Pascal for the WBO NABO super middleweight title and lost on points and a UD for Pascal.

• Sakio Bika (28, Sydney, Australia, via Cameroon, 22-3-2, 14 KOs).
http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=042088&cat=boxer
Has won some meaningless trinkets. Has lost three times in his career. Noticeable fights include Lucian Bute, Joe Calzaghe, Markus Beyer and Sam Soliman <----Also on this season. Bika has never been knocked out.

• Henry "Sugar Poo" Buchanan (28, Capital Heights, Md., 14-1, 11 KOs).
http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=243892&cat=boxer
Has one defeat at the hands of Jean Paul Mendy back in Oct 2006
referee: David Mendoza | 90-99 | 89-100 | 89-100
Buchanan lost a point in the 8th rd for low blows.

• Wayne Johnsen (29, Lyndhurst, N.J., 16-1, 9 KOs).
http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=196686&cat=boxer
Was defeated by Joseph Hill on Nov 2005

• Rhoshii Wells (30, Las Vegas, 18-2-2, 10 KOs).
http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=015623&cat=boxer
Has been knocked out twice by Alejandro Garcia. I guess Garcia is his huckleberry.

• Rubin Williams (31, Detroit, 29-2-1, 16 KOs).
http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=058878&cat=boxer
Not to be confused with Robin Williams (NaNoo-NaNoo). Was knocked out by Jeff Lacy in March 2005. Williams currently won the Vacant IBA Super Middleweight Title and the NBA Super Middleweight Title.

• Miguel Hernandez (32, Chicago, 20-5, 10 KOs).
http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=187263&cat=boxer
In 2006 he fought Yory Boy Campas. Miguel lost in the 5th due to a Referee Technical Decision. RTD.

• Sam Soliman (33, Melbourne, Australia, 33-9, 13 KOs).
http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=014452&cat=boxer
Smiling Sam Soliman has held some meaningless trinkets. Was knocked out by Anthony Mundine just recently in March of 2007. (3 Knockdown Rule Soliman down once in round 2. And down 3 times in the 9th. Soliman is currently listed as a Middleweight. Significant fights include a loss to Winky Wright. Sam does not have a lot of power and I am guessing he will have even less power since he is moving up in weight. Has great stamina and throws about 100 punches per round. Very busy and entertaining fighter.

• Danny Santiago (34, Ocala, Fla., 29-3-1, 19 KOs).
http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=015394&cat=boxer
The elder of the group. Was recently knocked out by Zsolt Erdei in the 8th. (Santiago down once in 2nd and 8th round)

The fighters this season are, as a whole, more accomplished than they were in the first two seasons. Bika, Soliman, Santiago, Williams and Wells have all fought for world titles. Bika was also a 2000 Olympian for Cameroon and Wells a 1996 U.S. Olympian. Codrington and Smith are notable prospects.

In addition to beefing up the level of fighters, producers have also vastly improved the training staff. Gone are Tommy Gallagher and Jeremy Williams, who have been replaced by Buddy McGirt, one of the best trainers in the sport, and Pepe Correa, who worked with Leonard and former heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis, among others, during his 40-year career.

"We've upgraded the trainers. Buddy is as good as they can possibly get and a good guy and great television, and Pepe is a guy who is collaborative, calm and experienced," Wald said. "The balance of personalities between Buddy and Pepe is incredible. It's a real upgrade."

One of the chief complaints from boxing fans about the series in seasons past is that the bouts that end each episode were heavily edited down to just a couple of minutes of action. That has been addressed for this season.

While episodes will be structured similarly to previous seasons, more of the bouts will be seen each week. In addition, every bout will air in its entirety, most likely on ESPN2.

"The good news for the hard-core boxing fan is that the fights will be available on one of our network platforms," Wechsler said. "We want to continue providing 'Contender' fans with the show that they love and we also want to give hard-core fans what they want."

A fourth season is being discussed with heavyweight as the target division.

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“Fighting Words” – The Contender: Could It Be?
by David P. Greisman

Primetime television, May 24, 2005: On a night when Sylvester Stallone performed as well at color commentary as he once did with enunciating “Yo, Adrian,” middleweight prospect Sergio Mora won a seven-round decision and was named champion of boxing television series “The Contender.”

Two years later, Mora was still neither a champion nor a contender, having long ago exited Mark Burnett’s reality show, only to land smack dab in the middle of reality.

Mora’s questionable rankings with the International Boxing Federation, World Boxing Association and World Boxing Council, combined with the marketability gained through his brief period of celebrity, had made the Los Angeles native the frontrunner for Jermain Taylor’s voluntary defense of the middleweight championship. For an undefeated prospect whose best and only showings since coming off of “The Contender” were victories over Archak Ter-Meliksetian and Eric Regan, facing Taylor meant a perhaps undeserved opportunity to appear on the grandest stage and under the brightest lights, to receive a major paycheck and, if he could pull off the upset, to become the top name at 160 pounds.

Mora wanted more.

Taylor’s people hoped to stage the match in Memphis, Tenn. Mora, who perhaps didn’t realize that the most his 15 minutes of fame had done was land him within three sanctioning bodies’ top 15, didn’t want to appear in a city that borders Taylor’s native Arkansas.

“We’re not going to fight Jermain in May. We don’t want to fight in Memphis,” Contender promotional chief Jeff Wald told ESPN.com scribe Dan Rafael in March. “For a big championship fight like Taylor-Mora, we didn’t want to be in a place like Memphis, no offense to Memphis. We would rather do something more interesting.”

In response, Lou DiBella, Taylor’s promoter, absolutely nailed it.

“Too bad for Mora,” DiBella said to Rafael. “Sergio Mora thinks he has this kind of leverage to dictate where the fight is? Let him go pound sand.”

Instead of defending against a somewhat untested prospect, Taylor fought May 19 against Cory Spinks, a veteran who had been champion at welterweight and a titlist at junior middleweight. Mora, meanwhile, had gone from a sizeable payday to a fractional fee for a July 20 main event against Raymond Joval on ESPN2’s “Friday Night Fights.” That bout got canceled, however, in favor of Mora fighting Kassim Ouma on the undercard of this month’s Juan Manuel Marquez-Rocky Juarez pay-per-view.

Mora, when he finally steps into the ring against Ouma, will be coming off of a nearly 13-month layoff, inactivity indicative of the various issues facing “The Contender” as the reality series enters its third season.

Of the 16 season-one contestants, only Alfonso Gomez, Peter Manfredo Jr. and Mora remain in the spotlight. Manfredo’s career peaked in April, when he challenged Joe Calzaghe for the super middleweight championship and lost via a controversial early stoppage. Gomez had his own crowning achievement in July, when he ended Arturo Gatti’s long and glorious career.

Season two’s favored personalities were Norberto Bravo and Cornelius Bundrage, finalist Steve Forbes and champion Grady Brewer. Bravo has since shown his limits, getting drubbed by welterweight prospect Andre Berto and outpointed by a long-past-his-prime “Yori Boy” Campas. Bundrage was starched in July by Joel Julio. Forbes dropped a controversial decision in March to Demetrius Hopkins and will face Francisco “Panchito” Bojado under Marquez-Juarez. And Brewer, who hasn’t appeared since last year’s season finale, is sidelined by injuries.

When the premise of a reality series is to sequester 16 boxers for an extended period of time, controlling their movements and limiting their manner of making money, it’s of little surprise that “The Contender” has tended to attract and focus on the lesser-known prospects and the lifetime sparring partners, the designated opponents and the aging veterans seeking one last shot. It can make for compelling television – but then what?

Beginning with Forrest Griffin and Diego Sanchez and continuing through Michael Bisping and Kendall Grove, “The Ultimate Fighter” has done for mixed martial arts what “The Contender” has failed to do for boxing, providing prospects that are both marketable commodities and potential (if eventual) contenders. Perhaps “The Ultimate Fighter” had an advantage in that Ultimate Fighting Championship has virtually cornered the mixed martial arts business while the Sweet Science is controlled by many. But “The Ultimate Fighter” can also chalk up much of its success to finding a formula in which the show is dramatic, interesting and pertinent, while also, by airing the two-round matches in their entirety, satisfying the desire of its demographic to see some action.

Not that “The Contender” isn’t trying.

Starting with last year’s second season, “The Contender” no longer had the standard Mark Burnett reality series challenges, and it wisely kept executive producer Sylvester Stallone off-screen. In addition, the switch from NBC to the ESPN family of networks allowed the opportunity for repeat showings. There were still shameless product placements and edited boxing matches, but the overall product was an improvement.

This year’s season, which begins Sept. 4 on ESPN, could be even better.

The 16 contestants, who will compete in the super middleweight division, include former title challengers in Sakio Bika and Sam Soliman, and prospects such as Henry “Sugar Poo” Buchanan and Jaidon Codrington. Gone are trainers Tommy Gallagher and Jeremy Williams, who have been replaced by Pepe Correa and Buddy McGirt. And though the fights will still be edited, full versions will be shown each week on ESPN2. The season finale is scheduled a mere two months after the first episode, a condensed format that just might give the winner some momentum.

And perhaps he can use it.

Of season one’s Gomez, Manfredo and Mora, only Mora stuck around at middleweight, while Gomez returned to his natural welterweight and Manfredo jumped up to 168. Season two’s finalists, Brewer and Forbes, were both coming to welterweight from other weight classes. Forbes has since returned to 140, a smart move for a smaller man.

Super middleweight, however, is a division that can benefit from the arrival of new faces or the resurgence of old challengers, especially as Joe Calzaghe and Mikkel Kessler are tied up with their November unification bout. Those coming out of this new season of “The Contender” will find themselves in an exciting weight class that is home to, among many, Librado Andrade, Alejandro Berrio, Allan Green, Jeff Lacy, Yusef Mack, Peter Manfredo Jr. and Edison Miranda.

Two years ago, “The Contender” played in primetime despite its not-yet-ready-for-primetime players. This time, perhaps, there will be some reality behind the reality series’ title.

Great post. I am glad they went with a heavier weight class and scouted better talent then the previous seasons.

nice post bro

At least its better this time. The finalists will be Bika and Soliman. The are the two legits and have both fought some good comp. Amongst them - each other.

At least its better this time. The finalists will be Bika and Soliman. The are the two legits and have both fought some good comp. Amongst them - each other.

fuck yeah warr Aussies!

i was shocked to see sam there i hope he can win this, but in his fight with mundine he looked nothing like sam im used to seeing. lets hope he can bounce back and go all the way

WAR SOLIMAN

Has The Contender Run Its Course?
By Eric Raskin (Oct 22, 2007)
www.maxboxing.com

On the surface, the decision to air the Sergio Mora-Elvin Ayala fight on ESPN Classic last Tuesday night was an odd one. This is a network devoted to showing sporting events from the past (theoretically, historically significant sporting events from the past), and here it was showing a live fight. Of course, MTV—a.k.a. Music Television—stopped broadcasting anything relating to music about a decade ago, so we know there are limits to how much we should infer from a network’s name. But a live sporting event on ESPN Classic? That seemed kind of weird.

Until Mora scraped by on a draw and likely blew any chance of fighting Kelly Pavlik for the middleweight title next year. Then it all made sense. The fight did belong on ESPN Classic. Because The Contender is well on its way to becoming a relic from the past.

By no means was The Contender ever the smash hit some expected it to be, and never did it alter the landscape of the boxing business the way the creative forces behind it suggested it would, but it did open boxing up to a new audience, some of which has retained an interest in the sport, and for that, the brains behind the boxing-based reality program must be commended. Just getting a show centered around boxing on NBC was a major victory for the fight game, and while the first season of the program drew modest ratings by network standards (in part because NBC scheduled the air dates and times by throwing darts), it still made Mora, Peter Manfredo, and Alfonso Gomez household names in several million households, all capable of packing arenas full of paying customers. The Contender didn’t elevate boxing’s popularity the way the original Rocky did—not even close—but in 2005, when the first season aired, it clearly had an impact.

Now, two years after Mora and Manfredo lit up the Staples Center with their rematch (the first post-Season-One live card and a clear winner both entertainment-wise and at the box office), that impact has been all but erased.

Last Tuesday’s Mora-Ayala/Gomez-Ben Tackie card was sad for Contender backers on a couple of fronts. First, there was Mora picking up the first blemish on his record, a reminder of the fact that nearly every standout competitor from the show’s first two seasons has come back to earth since their reality-TV tournaments ended. Mora now has a draw against someone he was supposed to handle (and the controversial rematch win over Manfredo), Gomez has a draw against Jesse Feliciano, Manfredo flopped against Joe Calzaghe, Anthony Bonsante has three post-show losses, Jesse Brinkley has two, Ahmed Kaddour has a draw against a journeyman, Ishe Smith has an ugly loss, Joey Gilbert got an “F-” on a drug test, Season Two champ Grady Brewer hasn’t fought since the show due to injury, Cornelius Bundrage got battered by Joel Julio, Mike Stewart and Nito Bravo have turned into punching bags, and Walter Wright lost a tough split decision when the Contender crew went to the U.K. earlier this year. Obviously, some blemishes have been worse than others, but the bottom line is this: Very few of these guys are living up to the show’s name, and none of them have the look of future champions. That significantly dampens the reality show’s appeal going forward, when it’s been established that you’re watching boxers who don’t rate to amount to much in the real world.

But there was a second aspect to Tuesday’s ESPN-televised event that was unsettling to fans of The Contender: more empty seats than you’d see at an enema convention. There are explanations, such as a distinct lack of promotion for the card and the fact that the TV fights began at 6 p.m. on a Tuesday in Carson, California. But if you had put Mora-Manfredo II in a crappy time slot with minimal promotion two years ago, it still could have packed the Home Depot Center. The passion for The Contender has simply worn off. The crowd Tuesday, as compared to the crowds drawn by Contender alums in ’05 and ’06 (remember when Manfredo fans jammed the Dunkin Donuts Center in Providence in a snowstorm?), is proof of that.

But what’s happening with the fighters from Seasons One and Two is only part of the problem. Season Three is the other part. I’ve already expressed my opinions as to why this season of The Contender doesn’t get me pumped up week in and week out the way the show used to. But don’t take my word for it; take the word of the people. And by “the people,” I mean my older brother, Fred. He hardly watched any boxing prior to the first season of The Contender, but he loved the show, has continued watching it, and now frequently watches major fights on HBO that he never would have considered watching three years ago. He’s the classic mainstream viewer at whom The Contender was aimed, and though he hasn’t become a “hardcore” fight fan, he’s an example of how the show increased the sport’s audience. And he agrees with me that the third season of The Contender is the least enjoyable so far. He says most of his friends who loved the show in Season One have stopped watching by now. He still likes the show (as do I). But he likes it unenthusiastically.

And if you don’t want to take my word for it or any other Raskin’s word for it, consider that I virtually never get e-mails about The Contender from readers anymore. Maybe as many hardcore fans are watching it in Season Three as watched it in Season One. But they don’t care enough anymore to write in about it. The people are not buzzing.

There are several reasons the show has lost steam. For starters, reality shows almost always grow stale and repetitive after two or three seasons. Typically, the first season of a reality show that someone watches ends up being that person’s favorite season. But unless the formula is exceptionally compelling to begin with and the producers find all the right ways to tweak that formula season after season, we grow tired of it. The only exception for me is Survivor, which I feel fits the description in the previous sentence, and enough other people feel the same way for it to remain a top-rated show in its 15th season. But how many times can you take hearing that an episode of The Bachelor features “the most emotional rose ceremony yet,” or how many times can you endure watching the teams on The Amazing Race bottleneck at an airport, before you grow sick of it? That’s part of what’s happening with The Contender. We’re seeing it for the third time now. Those of us who’ve been fans from the outset have reached the point where we feel like it’s all been done already.

And while the producers have made a strong effort to tweak the format this season—something that was probably necessary to keep the show fresh—their experiments have been largely unsuccessful. From the start, I wasn’t crazy about the idea of cutting the cast from 16 to 10 in an hour. Now that we’re approaching the semifinals, I flat-out hate that they did that. You know what Jaidon Codrington, Wayne Johnsen, Sakio Bika, and Sam Soliman all have in common? They’re semifinalists, and we’ve seen each of them fight ONCE. We have very little attachment to any of them. In previous seasons, we saw everyone fight twice to get to the semis—or in the case of Manfredo, we saw him fight three times to get to the final four. The difference in how well we’ve gotten to know this season’s contestants, as fighters and as people, can not be overstated.

All of that being said, word from my sources is that the ratings have been just fine this year, and The Contender is expected back not just for another season, but for two more seasons. So it does look like the show has a future, regardless of what I think of its present.

But for me, and for a lot of viewers who’ve been watching all along, the show’s best days are in the past. And the best days of most of the fighters who’ve appeared on the show are in the past too. Sure, I’ll most likely keep watching Seasons Four and Five no matter what. But I’d probably enjoy myself more watching re-runs from Season One on ESPN Classic.

• While I’m on the topic of Mora, despite his disappointing draw against Ayala, I still say he’d give Pavlik a tougher fight than John Duddy would—not because he’s better than Duddy is, but because “The Latin Snake’s” style is considerably less straight-forward than Duddy’s. Pavlik-Duddy, however, is sure to be fun for the few rounds that it lasts and it’s a great event (if not a great fight) at Madison Square Garden. If Jermain Taylor doesn’t enforce the rematch clause, Pavlik-Duddy is the kind of first defense a new champ dreams of.

Is 'The Contender' boxing's saviour?
by James Howard
Oct 22nd 2007
www.britishboxing.net

The recollection is so vivid in my mind it could have been yesterday. The excitement electric as the atmosphere would reverberate around the arena or stadium as the volume cranked up to ensure Tina Turner's 'Simply The Best' would accompany the snarling Chris Eubank to the ring.
You certainly wouldn't describe my family as massive boxing fans or fans of the sport at all, if the truth be known. Mild interest would be apparent from time to time, usually dictated by the good fortunes of a fellow country man such as Barry McGuigan. No such connection was required for the Eubank-Benn rivalry, the events screened on Saturday evenings in a prime time slot Amir Khan would be lucky to get close to, the build up to the Eubank-Benn rivalry receiving almost as much attention as the fight itself.

Millions would tune in hoping to see Eubank trip as he entered the ring, booed and abused on his way yet remaining calm, confident and arrogant with a steely fixation in his face which read, "Yes, I really am the best". Launched himself into the ring, ducking and diving with real swagger, Reg Gutteridge announced to his ITV audience that "The ego has landed". My family would be shouting raw negatives to Eubank while I would defend him resolutely; it was as if we thought he could hear us through the medium of Saturday night ITV.

It was the tense and often hateful build up to the fights between Benn, Eubank, Watson, Collins et al, which so captured the imagination of the public, which made average 2.4 families such as my own tune in to watch as the best from our middle/super-middle divisions battle each other to be named champion of the world. There was always something, the famed Eubank and Benn rivalry, the Spurs fan Eubank who was negative towards boxing, fighting passionate boxer and gooner Michael Watson at White Hart Lane; Gerald McClellan coming over to the UK to take on the Dark Destroyer Nigel Benn; Irishman Steve Collins claiming hypnosis before his dual with Eubank; it was a marvellous time for PR in boxing.

As night follows day, tragedy will follow glory and the era to which I will always be thankful to for lighting my passion for the sport is now oft-remembered for the tragic incidents which changed the lives of Gerald McClellan and Watson, Benn and Eubank, and many more. Despite the tragic events of the time, I can't forget that it was the entertainment of this time that initiated my love affair with the pugilistic art.

And so the purpose of the wistful reminiscing, in an era where the younger generation are increasingly swayed to the bright lights of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), boxing has got to say, ‘Oi, get back here, don't forget us!'

To my mind, the strongest argument for the MMA distinctions such as UFC is the philosophy much lost in boxing today, the best fight the best. A world champion is respected for being the elite fighter in his weight and will not be allowed to be protected; a war can usually be expected in each fight. To consolidate this position, the status of an 'undefeated' plays less importance in MMA as opposed to boxing where a 20-fight undefeated fighter might consider retirement after a loss or two. If the best continually fight the best, they will win some and lose some, and MMA companies recognise this does not mean a fighter's career is severely tarnished.

Of course the marketing success of the UFC could be given as a lesson to boxing chiefs in terms of spreading the appeal of a sport once considered by many to be barbaric. MMA groups are stealing fans and fighters from each of its rivals (boxing, WWE, judo) and the respective sports seems helpless to respond.

I object to the idea that you can not be a fan of both boxing and UFC but I do feel you will form an allegiance to one of them, consciously or subconsciously, which dictates that if there is a massive fight in each sport at the same time, you go with your loyalty. Equally, I bear no time for the argument of would a boxer beat a mixed martial artist; I don't consider it a valuable comparison.

Incidentally, I watched boxer Julius Francis' attempt to gatecrash the MMA scene with UK-based Cage Rage. The ageing Francis arrived at a career heavy twenty plus stone and with defeats in his last 14 ring outings, not a lot could be expected from him in the cage. To be fair though, by the time he had been announced to the crowd with a cluster of credentials and nothing to suggest he wasn't in his prime, I was thinking that perhaps I had it wrong and it was a different boxer with real world title aspirations. Butterbean conqueror Gary Turner, defeated in K1 by Matt Skelton in a previous life made easy work of the faded boxers challenge.

Heavyweight boxing has been an object for ridicule domestically, but I would argue that it simply reflects the lack of quality of heavyweight boxers on the world stage. The champions in the supposedly show case division these days tend to be of Eastern European origin and adopters of the traditional less than exciting Eastern European style. Certainly no match for the Tyson, Holyfield, Bowe, Lewis era I grew up in. In fact, some of the era I grew up in are still fighting for, or fighting to position themselves in line for world titles into their 40's.

Kelly Pavlik's recent capture of the middleweight crown from Jermain Taylor is being lauded as something to be proud of for boxing. The 'Ghost' Pavlik, who apparently earned the nickname for his near non-existent elusiveness and not his colour, is a promising hope for boxing in the US. In a country where race issues play more prominently than on these shores, white superstars are hugely more marketable for guys like Bob Arum than their black counterparts. Indeed Arum hails Kelly as the man who will bring fans back to boxing in the masses.

What about the UFC? Do the same prejudices exist there? The truth is that it probably doesn't have to. The MMA divisions have a plethora of white superstars, as does wrestling which has become the metaphorical fountain for potential MMA's.

Today there are many instances of the MMA institutions diverting their attention to the Latin American audience which is traditional boxing territory. The history of boxing (and indeed Latin American boxers) coupled with the young promising fighters still emerging should be enough to ensure against the mass migration of boxing fans, but the targeting of audiences does exist. Boxing promoter Gary Shaw has a different take than many promoters by teaming up with Showtime to broadcast MMA events; he clearly sees the sports cohabiting side by side.

And what about the amount of titles in boxing today? Never before have so called 'world' champions been less known than they are today. I actually enjoy the fact that there are a variety of belts for boxers to aspire and win in preparation for stepping up the ladder to the more prominent titles, my problem is the incursion to put 'world' before everything. It dilutes the whole process and many fans just don't know where to look anymore. I thought the Ring magazines pound for pound ratings would eventually take over as the de facto rankings but following the Golden Boy Promotions' purchase of the magazine, this simply won't happen for obvious reasons.

For some reason Amateur boxing doesn't seem to have the pulling power to interest the neutral any more. Having completed a brief canvassing of opinion, I'm informed that the head guards and vests make the fighters all look the same, removing the chance to get to know the fighters and their characters better. The scoring is also a gripe for many with amateur boxers' individuality at risk in aid of scoring points exclusively with head shots.

I don't pay to much heed to the doom and gloom mongers predicting the diminishment of boxing in its current form - there's too much heritage and history for that. It is imperative though that new ideas are adopted to encourage the next generation to be a part of the sport. Plainly boxing needs a fairground attraction; some bait which will bring new blood into the sports fan base in the way Rocky did in the 70's and 80's. Ironically, I believe it might be 'Rocky' who has part of the answer.

The cage might be pushing the squared circle all the way in terms of audience share, but problems in boxing were born earlier than the likes of the UFC, which merely expose them. Television stations do not have the same inclination to show boxing as they have had in the past and the decision was made alongside a carriage train public opinion (aftermath of Watson, McClellan etc, more recently the BBC having their fingers burnt with the £1 million Audley deal, ITV fed up of the Skelton/Harrison/Sprott/Williams roundabout decided they would just take popular Olympian Amir Khan).

The trends of the current day revolve around the publics desire for 'Big Brother' style reality TV (Barry McGuigan in an apron, Mayweather waltzing in the States [now knocked out of the competition]), largely thanks to Mark Burnett, the main widely acclaimed for bringing reality to the USA. In 2005, Sylvester Stallone and Sugar Ray Leonard teamed up to head the Contender's East and West coast teams. The teams clad in blue and gold respectively consisted of five boxers each, all hungry and with stories to tell.

Stars were made from the show and the world was introduced to the likes of Gatti-conqueror Alfonso Gomez, Joey Gilbert, Joe Calzaghe victim Peter Manfredo Jr and the eventual winner Sergio “The Latin Snake” Mora, who reportedly rejected a world title fight with recently dethroned Jermain Taylor.

It was Series Two though, that showed me the potential such shows have of grabbing the attention of the public - when Cornelius "K-9" Bundrage was picked last into the teams and effectively made into a laughing stock by cocky Michael Clark who believed K9 had no defence. The typical school yard story of the underdog, the victim being cajoled into a fight your not sure he wanted to be in, before emerging victorious.

Eureka! I had finally found a method of getting my girlfriend to watch boxing on a weekly basis. From this episode onwards, once a week we would sit down in front of the television as one hope or another would describe his hard times, his hopes and fears, his losses in life and excuses for losses in the ring, his schoolyard sweetheart, the children who he wants to give a better life to...

In many ways it was a realisation to my girlfriend that boxers are normal people! She could never understand their reasons to want to step in and fight, truth told she probably never will, and it's an irrelevant argument. What is important is that it made her see boxers as 'normal' people, some brash, some loud, some cocky, some nice, some humorous, some charismatic, but all normal none the less. Additionally, to my equal surprise, she also realised that she could actually enjoy the visual pleasure of a good scrap!

Despite being obviously clichéd and at times downright cheesy, I'm willing to put up with dramatics involved to have a tool whose equivalent (Ultimate Fighter) proved very successful for the UFC.

The current season (3) is in full swing, up to semi-final stage now with British hope Paul Smith unlucky to be knocked out (not sure if the terminology is evicted?) from the competition despite winning as the four clearest victors qualify for the semis. The next round sees Jaidon Codrington take on Wayne Johnson, and a rematch between Sakio Bika and Sam Soliman.

Yes, some fights in the series are edited to appear closer than they actually are.

Yes, some punches have the over emphasised drumbeat to accompany them.

Yes, sometimes the stories are just to one way hard luck to be believable.

Yes, some people have issues with the way the fights and weigh ins are staged.

But I remain happy with the product and believe a home-based version of the programme (not a country vs. country event) would be of huge beneficial significance to the UK.

I'm fed up of boxing not being considered one of the major sports in this country (normally I find Football, Rugby, Cricket and then ‘Other Sports'). Despite the Contenders critics, it's important to remember that it has the potential to bring the mainstream back to our sport, and surely that's good for everyone.

Except, perhaps, MMA.