The Contender (NBC) Chisels Down to Its Final Five Boxers

Joey Gilbert ended up not being the Machiavellian threat he thought himself to be, losing to the tough but beatable Peter Manfredo, Jr. in the closing moments of a five-round bout. Unfortunately, the fight was stopped not due to a punch but rather an accidental head-butt that made Joey’s eye look as though it had just come face-to-face with a cross-town bus.

So Peter got the car thanks to Joey last week, and the win over Joey this week thanks to the fortuitous location of his forehead.

Such is the uncertainty of the boxer’s life.

Now let’s take a quick look at the remaining Contenders:

Jesse Brinkley and Anthony Bonsante are set to fight next week to finish up the second round and bring the competition down to its final four. Let’s look at them first.

Jesse Brinkley
He’s bald, he’s little, he’s quick and agile, and he’s kind of conniving and annoying.

And he just might have the qualities needed to pull off the whole shooting match. He certainly has the ego and the mental angle on his side, which he displayed to perfection this week in the house by psyching out a bewildered-looking Joey with “It’s just a game, fighting is” kind of talk.

Anthony Bonsante
He wears a #1 Daddy hat most of the time, and likes to talk about his kids, what it means to be a dad, the importance of being a parent to children, and the kind of dad (or father) a parent should be, particularly when one is a boxer and one is the father and/or parent of said children.

And so on.

The winner of the epic Kids v. God contest several weeks back, Bonsante has been hampered under a bad hammy which may make him an easy target next week in the ring against Jesse.

There’s something about Bonsante, though. Something kind of crazy. But not the good crazy, he’s gonna go nuts on him crazy kind of crazy.

More like the he’s looking at me through the television kind of weird and he’s talking about his kids way too much variety. So we’ll see.

Alfonso Gomez and Sergio “The Latin Snake” Mora have already fought their way into the Final Four. Both are good and tough Latin fighters. While Mora employs classical philosophy, psychological warfare, and a flair for the dramatic reminiscent of the great Sugar Ray Leonard himself, Gomez is a dogged, rugged, and determined fighter with a strong punch and determined heart.

A Gomez and Mora finale would be a fine finale to watch, featuring two of the best fighters and decent souls in the competition. The clash of styles could produce a great ending to a fine first season for this reality series that is actually really real (for once).