The Next Great Champ, Episode 4: Making 'em Sick

I like how they slash through the losing boxers' names in the opening. It would be pretty funny if they slashed through Oscar's name too.

Rene Armijo says everyone's watching him, and he sent shockwaves through the Winner's Circle. David Pareja thinks Rene thinks he's big stuff. David's wife PJ says she couldn't believe Rene's behavior, that he's acting like a child. David and PJ shouldn't be throwing stones here.

Otis Griffin always talks to God. Ask him why you didn't make the NFL. He's there to fight in honor, not to beat people up. He wakes up at 5:30, runs seven miles, takes his kid to preschool, trains for three hours, then goes to his job as a Corrections Officer. No one's picked him because they want to make it to the end, and he would naturally win a fight against any of them.

Mike Vallejo sees a lot of openings in Otis. Fred Bachmann says he's really green. A trainer says he hits hard and had a temper, he needs to control his temper. Fred says if he fights in the ring like he dies at the gym, everyone in the house can beat him.

Jimmy Mince isn't feeling good. He's really weak, and gets out of breath just showering. He doesn't think he should compete, he thinks he should get checked out. With that, it's time for the competition! Gil Zaragoza says he has to come in first because he knows he will be ranked last by the Winner's Circle and he wants to fight for the money.

This week's challenge will test body conditioning. They have two bags and shovel, they fill the bags with sand and carry as much sand as possible to the bucket, which sits on a seesaw. The first person to fill the bucket enough so that it tips the scales wins.

Gil says they all fear facing him, they want to eliminate him without facing him. The Winner's Circle says they have an idea of who they want to rank last. They all go at once this time, since there are only five competing (Elmahmoud, Corps, Zaragoza, Vallejo, and Griffin. Mince is sitting out). Gilbert is neck and neck with Otis until Gil starts shoveling like there's no tomorrow, and wins the contest, $10,000, and is ranked #1 for the week.

Oscar, Lou Duva, and Tommy Brooks figure out the rankings in the super secret meeting room. They're disappointed that Otis didn't win, but he's got the will to win the whole contest. Duva again compares him to Holyfield. They think Vallejo wants to fight, he's trying hard but they don't know if he can do it. Mince won the competition last week, but now he's sick. Is he a fraud? Does he have the fire?

This week, since there are so few left, they only rank the top two:

1. Zaragoza
2. Griffin (big shock)

Like last week, the Winner's Circle picks who will fight for survival. I'll be shocked if it isn't Mince, since he's been ranked near the bottom every week except when he won the competition, and it's just good strategy to go after someone when they're weak.

Rene says there's incredible tension. Gil says Jimmy was drenched in sweat this morning, so he believes that he's sick. Mince says it's a bacterial virus, the doctor told him to rest until the weekend. Gil says Rene and Jimmy have a feud going. Jimmy says he was ranked #1 last week, so he'd rather not be picked this week. Dave and Fred tell Rene they don't think Mince is acting sick. Rene wants to kick Mince's ass because he talks all the time.

In the gym, it's time for the decision. They tell Mince to step up. He's been last in two of three competitions, and forfeited a fourth. If he's half as good as he thinks he is, he would have stepped up. They choose Mince to fight for survival. Bachmann says that strategically it was the best move. I agree. Mince says if they were men, they wouldn't pick him while he was sick. Mince says he's not intimidated by either Gil or Otis. He chooses to fight Griffin. Oh, he is SO toast.