Review: Contender Episode 5

In the fifth installment of "The Contender", Miguel Espino made a strategic blunder in selecting Peter Manfredo Jr. as his opponent. Manfredo suffered his first professional defeat in episode one, only to be brought back to replace an ill fighter in edisode four. Espino obviously felt Manferedo would still be in a funk about losing his undefeated status and that certainly seemed to be the case based on the pre-fight footage shared with the viewing audience. Manfredo, however, was able to shake off the effects of his recent loss and earn a hardfought five round decision to advance to the second round. The preview for next week's episode informs viewers that the upcoming bout will be the first one that doesn't go the distance. This can only help "The Contender" as each episode is becoming a little too formulaic with the actual fight itself (what little is shown) being the highlight and the ridiculous East-West Challenges the glaring lowlight.