(Photo: Yahoo's The Contender Page)

Due to travelling this weekend, I didn't get home in time to watch The Contender last night.  Therefore, I will only sum up what went down prior to the fight and my analysis of the fight itself, which an extended version of is online at their Yahoo website.

Last week, we saw a great fight end in a surprising ref stoppage.  Anthony Bosante was winning the fight handily, but two big uppercuts from Jesse Brinkley floored him.  He made it to his feet, but it was obvious that he never recovered and couldn't defend himself.

There were only four fighters left:  Jesse, Alfonso, Sergio, and Peter.  After having a cookout on a California beach with their families, the boxers were informed by Stallone that the semifinal fights would be seven rounds instead of five, and the boxers would decide for themselves who was fighting who, and when.  After talking it over, Peter vs. Alfonso would be first, and the next round would be Sergio vs. Jesse.

If you don't remember, Peter and Alfonso faced off in the first Contender fight, with Alfonso pulling it out in the last rounds for a victory.  However, Peter returned after Jeff Fraza was disqualified due to having chicken pox.  Peter defeated Miguel Espino and Joey Gilbert to get to the semifinals, so he had recovered from his only loss to get back to this spot.  Now the bout has been extended, which should work for Peter's favor, since he is more experienced and probably the better athlete of the two.  It will be interesting to see how all four fighters change their styles in order to keep pace.

The first round started out at a pretty fast pace.  As Stallone noted, they didn't seem to change their plans at all and worked at a five round pace.  That six extra minutes can be a difference maker.  Both guys threw good punches, but Peter got some of the better shots and was able to get some good counters.  Alfonso kept busy and hit Peter with a couple of shots.  I give it a 10-10 round, with the edge going to Peter.

For some reason, Jeremy, trainer extrodinaire that his is, told Alfonso to get busier.  Well we know what his advice did last week.  In this round, it was Alfonso landing the cleaner shots, but neither had been hurt yet.  The ref ruled Peter taking a knee a slip, but I couldn't tell from the camera angle if it really was.  The fathers of both guys, who were former boxers as well, are barking more orders than the trainers are.  Alfonso's mother is getting into it as well.  Alfonso barely wins this round.

We finally saw a clear cut round in the third.  Peter hit Alfonso with some jarring shots, and Alfonso didn't do a good job of covering up as his hands were too far apart and was leaving him open to uppercuts.  Although he never had Alfonso in trouble, Peter landed some mean punches that rocked Alfonso's dome.  Peter won that round for sure.

Alfonso wasn't done yet.  In the fourth, they made some decent exchanges, and Alfonso hits him with this uppercut that Peter never really saw coming.  He was hurt a bit, as Alfonso threw in some good shots and loaded up on the combinations to finish the round.  Round goes to Alfonso.

Alfonso carried that energy into Round 5, and it paid dividends.  Peter looked a bit off in this round, as he was missing some good shots to the body, yet Alfonso was on contact.  He was working those same combinations that were giving Peter fits in the first fight.  Alfonso pretty much won Round 5 in the same fashion he did in the first fight.  I don't know what it is with Peter.  Alfonso won this round.

There's just one little problem:  this fight goes seven rounds instead of five.  And after a decent exchange that Alfonso saw the better of, Peter hit him with a beautiful uppercut that looked like Alfonso's head would twist like Polterguiest.  Peter unloaded on him, throwing some good combinations and forcing Alfonso to cover up at the end.  This is probably the first time that we've seen Alfonso truly hurt in this competition.  Peter by a mile.

The final round was simply a toe-to-toe exchange with Peter consistently getting the better of it.  Alfonso was on his last legs, his face had swollen up, and he looked really tired.  Alfonso worked hard though, and never stopped throwing punches.  However, he got tagged at will by that reaching jab of Peter's which connected right in the middle of the face.  What happened in the first fight didn't happen for Peter in the second one.

Peter won, which is the right decision.  All I can say is that Peter should be thanking his lucky stars that it was a seven round fight instead of the original five round fight we've been seeing.  Alfonso had enough gas for five rounds.  On that sixth round, he became unglued by some wicked hands and the pace they were going.

Next week it's Jesse vs. Sergio, with the winner to face Peter at Caesar's Palace for the million dollars.  See ya next week. 

Enough with the waiting.  Enough with the threatening.  Enough with the talking.

It's time to put up or shut up.

Bill Frist has served notice that he will bring the judicial nominees to the floor of the Senate for debate on Wednesday and plans to have the showdown vote anytime between Friday and the following Wednesday, May 25th.

To give a bit of a background, judiciary nomineee Henry Saad has been blocked from a Senate vote by Michigan senators Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow.  As National Review's Bryan York explains, they opposed Saad not because of ideological differences, but for revenge against the Republicans for not confirming a handful of judicial nominees from Michigan during Clinton's second term.  One of those was the spouse of Carl Levin's cousin, Helen White.

Harry Reid brought Saad up while speaking on the Senate floor last night:

"Henry Saad would have been filibustered anyway," Mr. Reid said on the floor yesterday, about the Michigan Appeals Court judge who is nominated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit.

"All you need to do is have a member go upstairs and look at his confidential report from the FBI, and I think we would all agree that there is a problem there," Mr. Reid continued.

It was a dirty trick, no doubt.  First, Reid knows every judicial nominee has an FBI file on them; that's one of the requirements.  Second, that FBI file is confidential; the public can't gain access to it and see if there is something in his file that would be troubling.  Hence, even if Reid was telling the truth, it's doubtful that anyone could confirm it.

But as Captain's Quarters points out, only a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee or the two Michigan senators have access to those files.  Harry Reid is neither of those, so he has no business looking in that file.  If he did, he broke a very important Senate rule, and should be brought up on charges.  But once again, that's hard to prove, because then you'd have to find evidence that Reid knows something that is in that file.  So once the outrage dies down, Reid will more than likely get away with this stunt.

Thus, Reid continues his sickening character assassinations of his political opponents, and more than likely doing the dirty work of Levin and Stabenow.  Democrats may rue the day they made this guy their Senate leader.

Last night the Senate Foreign Relations Committee passed Bolton's nomination from committee with a 10-8 party line vote.

Democrats initially said they were going to influence the lukewarmers to vote the nomination down, but hey...when's the last time Democrats ever relied on democracy to get something done?  That's funny.

So what was the next logical step?  Block Bolton's nomination:

Democratic Senator Barbara Boxer "put a hold on the nomination" of Bolton as US ambassador to the United Nations, her spokeswoman Natalie Ravitz said without indicating how the process could be delayed.

The move is intended to either force further negotiations or ultimately to prevent his nomination from reaching the Senate floor.

I slacked off of the playoffs for a while simply because I was tired of discussing blowouts.  For a while there, it looked like Round 2 was going to be full of sweeps.

Well, now only one sweep is certain.  The Washington Wizards tonight faced a Miami Heat team that was without Shaq at the MCI Center down 2-0.  Instead up stepping up and making this a real series, they alllowed Dwayne "Mighty Mouse" Wade to go buckwild.  And I'm tired of Alonzo Mourning flexing his bicep every time he makes a play.  We know he's got muscles.  We know he thinks he's a beast.  But the whole schtick gets tired the first 100 times you do it.

Tomorrow the Wizards should go to the local bait and tackle store, because they're about to go fishin.  I suggest some nightcrawlers, a few boxes of crickets, and maybe some rubber fish.

In the other game of the night, it seems as if San Antonio took a game off.  That's alright.  Every good team is allowed one of those.  It simply means they'll close out the series in San Antonio, rather than at Seattle.

However, the AP's Tim Korte and the Sonics's Antonio Daniels must have been smoking something tonight:

Allen had an impact despite shooting 0-for-6 in the final period and Vitaly Potapenko forced Tim Duncan into a missed 4-footer at the horn, lifting the Sonics to a 92-91 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Thursday night.

``In the playoffs, a lot of times it comes down to one stop,'' said Antonio Daniels, who had 18 points and eight rebounds. ``Vitaly did a great job of defending with his body. He forced him into a tough shot.''

Cmon.  Duncan got the ball just inside the perimeter where he DROVE to the basket for the four foot baby hook.  There wasn't anything complicated about that shot; Duncan has hit that bucket so many times he could hit it in his sleep.  If Potapenko was playing great defense Duncan would have never gotten that close to the basket.  Duncan simply missed the shot, that's all.

Seattle should be happy about that win, because there was no way they could win the series if they fell 3-0.  But guys, you're still down by a game to what is probably the second best team in the league.  Jerome James should have taken a hint when Antoine Walker pulled that stunt after Game 6 of the Pacers/Celtics series, just to get blown out by 40 in Game 7.  I'm sure the Wizards wish they weren't so cocky after they talked smack to the Heat after beating the Bulls, too.

As for the other two series, Indiana/Detroit and Phoenix/Dallas, they're both tied at 1 a piece and are shaping up to be pretty decent. 

Right now I've ignored the consensus that Indiana simply doesn't have enough gas to beat the Pistons, as they are now gearing up for two games at home.  But if they can get another game out of Jeff Foster like he had on Wednesday night, Detroit will be in trouble.

What makes Foster's big game impressive was that he scored 10 offensive boards against the guy that is probably the best center in the league, Ben Wallace.  Wallace is a beast, and is the defensive anchor for the defending World Champions.  But Foster has said he's been working on his game in the paint, and only time will tell if that was simply a mere fluke.

Regardless, Indiana is a dangerous team, with a dangerous player that's looking at every game as survival.  This is Reggie's last stand, and he plans to leave everything on the court.  Detroit will have to sweat a little, but I still think they'll pull it out.

Dallas/Phoenix is a virtual tossup, but I'm starting to lean towards the Suns. Amare Stoudamire is the difference maker, and he'll consistently get you 30 a game.  Finley had a great Game 2, but I don't think he can do that consistently the whole series.  Nor does he have enough gas to hold Shawn Marion the whole series either.  They're going to need Jason Terry and Josh Howard to step up in the later games.

Tomorrow night will tell whether Round 2 will be interesting, or whether we should simply look ahead to the conference finals.

FNC's Neil Cavuto has been known a time or two to give people a piece of his mind, and he did that yesterday on "Your World".

He rightfully railed against Washington legislators who complained about security and police forces only giving them a few moments notice before they had to leave Capitol Hill.  They were trying to PROTECT YOU FOOLS.  It's just a prime example of the gap between Washington aristocracy and the rest of society.

Yesterday, the New York State Athletic Commission publicly announced that James Toney had tested positive for steroids after his WBA Title victory over John Ruiz and have ruled the fight a no contest.

Toney can't fight in New York, or any state for that matter, for three months and was fined $10,000.  The WBA is guaranteed to give the championship back to Ruiz, and it's possible that Ruiz's handlers try to hold up Toney's share of the fight purse.

That punishment is pretty weak.  If Toney roided, and several people said he was acting volatile throughout the whole weekend, then he should have been fined much more.  Even though the fight wasn't highly publicized and Don King probably took a loss from it, $10,000 is barely a blip on the radar, and most boxers only fight months at a time anyway.  Instead of Toney fighting in late July, as he was currently working to secure a championship fight against IBF titlist Chris Byrd, he'll have to wait until August to fight, although it's doubtful if Byrd will take that fight now.

Another black eye has been levied against a sport who already has plenty.  It's bad enough that the heavyweight division is probably the worst it has been since the start of the Sullivan Era, but then to have a pudgy, out of shape boxer walk in and capture an alphabet title while roided won't help things either.  And although he was cheated, I'm not sure the best thing to do is give the title back to John Ruiz, who is about as entertaining to watch as sawdust.

I'm really beginning to question the sanity of my governor.

You see, in the great state of North Carolina my governor has this little stock car racing habit.  About a year and a half ago he decided to take a Hendricks NASCAR vehicle for a spin to raise money for an education program.  He crashed, but he walked away with no injuries.

I gave him a pass on that one.  Hey; it was probably a life-long dream, like most white North Carolinians.  You really can't blame him.  Besides; it was on a track, the walls were padded, and he was in a security device.  He wasn't in too much danger at the time, although tried his best to destroy the car.

But then he does this on Tuesday night:

As part of a publicity event, Easley climbed into the blue Lowe's No. 48 Monte Carlo at the governor's mansion, gave a thumbs up, then blasted out of the driveway.

Easley promptly lost control of the car, ending up askew against a curb on Lane Street. He missed striking a silver Mercedes sedan and a utility pole by mere inches.

No one was hurt, including Easley, who wasn't wearing a helmet.

Excuse me for a minute folks, but I need to holla at Mike for a second....

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Look Mike, you're an okay guy.  I mean, you're a Democrat, yet I voted for you to be reelected.  I'll give you your props; that game you ran on Ballentine?  PURE GENIUS.  You had the state believing HE was the liberal candidate in the race.  Shoot, I would have voted for you just FOR that stunt alone.

But let's get something straight.  When you get into a NASCAR vehicle, you're not some hillbilly from Lizard Lick fulfilling a life-long dream, you're the
GOVERNOR OF OUR STATE!!!

And it doesn't have anything to do with people whispering about our redneck governor; frankly I could care less about that.  The problem I have with this is, I don't want to check the Internet, or be listening to WPTF, or check N&O's website and see "'Days of Thunder' Wannabe Governor Kills Himself in Car Crash Going 200 mph".

I don't feel like reading 20 obituaries.  I don't feel like seeing CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC doing 24-hour coverage from the Governor's mansion.  I don't feel like watching a state funeral.  I'm sure a lot of people would like for our governor to live.  That's all I'm askin.  Bev Perdue can wait a few years before she ascends to the Democratic throne.

I'm not saying don't get into a race car at all.  You can get in one, look around, and maybe take a cruise around the block or something.  But that "cruise" shouldn't extend to no more than 60 mph, especially when you're speeding down the street from the mansion.  If you can't do that, then by all means wait three years.  North Carolina deserves a governor that's not in a full body cast. 

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UPDATE:  News & Observer readers, welcome!

Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie told the press on Tuesday that the Eagles weren't renegotiating Terrell Owens's contract.  In fact, he outright dissed the idea:

"It's not even an issue," Lurie said in an exclusive interview. "It's a nonissue. There are a lot of things I spend time thinking about, but that's not one of them."

Lurie also criticized Terrell Owens's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, for giving the wide receiver "self-destructive advice" in persuading Owens to hold out for a new contract.

On top of that, Donovan McNabb did an interview today, and he stated:

``I feel that if he plays or not, we definitely have a chance of making it to the Super Bowl and winning it,'' McNabb said Wednesday, one day after owner Jeffery Lurie said the team won't redo Owens' contract. ``That's nothing against T.O. and it's nothing against anybody else. I just feel confident in the guys that we have. With T.O., I think we can do a lot of great things. Without him, I still think we can do a lot of good things.''

The main problem is this:  wide receivers think they are worth more to the team and thus more money than they actually are.  That's not to dimish the importance of a good passing game, but the credit and the criticism goes to the quarterback, not the receivers (that is, unless you are the Eagles, then throwing three picks in an NFC Championship Game is always the fault of the receivers).  That's why Tom Brady received a six-year, $60 million dollar contract extension this week.  The quarterback leads the offense.

But for some reason, wide receivers in today's NFL are ego driven, and then you get a guy like Drew Rosenhaus that will chat them up and they think they're invincible.  Unfortuantely, this isn't the NBA.  In the NBA, not only would T.O. had gotten a new deal, but he also would have had his previous contract bought out.

You should have worked on that J in high school, T.O.

Not only does Owens face having to give back money for missing the spring mini-camp (the Eagles says he owes almost $2 million), but it will take some time to get back into the team's good graces, no matter what McNabb says.  Don't worry, because there are several other receivers that Rosenhaus has duped along with him.  When it comes down to it, Rosenhaus doesn't care, because he's going to get paid regardless.

Chris Carter wrote about this a few weeks ago:

Of course, you better be a very good football player if you decide to hold out. You're the one taking the huge risk, not Drew. He isn't playing in the NFL. He doesn't care about your reputation and he doesn't care about the fans. Once the deal is done, though, there are never any lingering effects on either side. Teams know that it's just the nature of the business.

Carter's right about Rosenhaus's style, but I think this time around there will be lingering effects, namely Rosenhaus's reputation as well as the reputation of his clients.

If you haven't heard, John McCain is now speaking up in favor of a compromise that would only put a part of President Bush's judicial nominees on the floor for a vote.  I suppose he couldn't allow Nelson and Lott get all of the spotlight, so he had to weasel his way in that deal.

This is precisely the reason the Republican Party needs reform, and specifically needs to define who and what they are as a political party.  The Democratic Party is virtually unified in their support of left-wing policies and corruption.  The Republicans most identifiable members outside of Bush, Frist, Hastert, and DeLay are a handful of senators that make their name not from what they support, but what they oppose.

These senators - McCain, Voinovich, Snowe, Chafee, Specter, and Hagel - are the Mavericks, guaranteed to support the Democrats on any topic that's deemed controversial.  This handful of senators have the power to hold up important legislation and policies at any time.  It's one thing to oppose party-supported legislation from time-to-time, but when it consistently happens on almost every issue by the same senators there's a serious problem as to who has control of Congress.

The American people gave the Republicans a clear victory in 04, retaining the White House and gaining seats in both the Senate and the House.  This was clearly a mandate for conservative policies throughout the legislature, as most of the seats the Republicans picked up were from traditionally conservative states.  Fenceriders didn't get elected; conservatives did.  Yet, we have a number of number of senators constantly blocking any sort of reasonable legislation being offered to the U.S. Senate.  It's time for the Republican Party to tell the lukewarmers to shape up, or ship out.

If they don't, I'm sure some conservative groups will be glad to show them the door.  The Club for Growth gave Arlen Specter the scare of a lifetime in his primary race against Pat Toomey (who ironically now is their president).  Chafee could be targeted this year, as well as Snowe.  Hagel and McCain have their seats virtually for life, but they'll get theirs in 08, as both of them have no chance of getting the Republican nomination.

Regardless, conservatives should continue to push forward the agenda in the Senate.  A few monkeys shouldn't stop the show.