If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

Good story, Not enough for a whole film

Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Well we know Mike Tyson cant fight anyone in the Heavyweight category anymore. With all the money he owes the IRS I refuse to believe he will stop fighting. Maybe Mike should challenge someone in a lower weight class. With that said do you think any of the contender's could beat an aging Mike Tyson? I don't think any of them could but it would be fun to watch.Personally I think Mike should pursue a career in boxing commentary. He could make good money and people nowadays only watch Mike Tyson to hear what comes out of his mouth. It probably wouldn't be intelligent or useful commentary but I guarantee it would be entertaining and I for one would listen to it.

Fans of boxing will love this series. Even though this is far from the tuesday night fights that our grandfathers grew up with, it is a modern day reality like tournament with a boxing setting. With an Apprentice quality to the production style, The Contender has an devoted audience of boxing fans and fans of reality television. Sylvester Stallone and Sugar Ray Leonard are the hosts of this show which they also helped to create. Although I am a fan of "Sly" and I was a big fan of Sugar Ray when he was Champ, I am far from a fan when it comes to their new careers in television. Much like Donald Trump, both Sly and Sugar Ray need hours of studio time in he editing room when it comes to adding voice over tracks to their scenes. It's one thing when there's bad audio and you need to "dub" a voice track, but when the Hosts of the Show are unable to say their lines (announce the rules) in 1 take, it's time for certain actors to go back to Acting School and brush up on their talents. Otherwise, this is a great series that needs a little "touch up" here and there.

This show is so Hollywood that it just makes me wanna puke my guts out! This is not a true reality show about boxers showing their true nature and fighting their way up, this is a superficial Hollywood story, with celebrities, dramatic movie effects and just a pile of gold for whom ever playing his cards best.I am so glad that Oscar Dela Hoya turned this project down or I would completely lose respect for him, now I respect him even more who passed on this show. I haven't seen his own reality boxing show yet, but i hear its promising since it is about real amateur boxers trying to make it and hopefully without some of the garbage we see in this show! Come on now?...whats really real about this show?...for one thing, they brought Rockey himself to this show, come on..Rocky??!!...he is an action figure, not a real champion! Its like making a show about US marines and bringing Rambo to teach them a thing or two! And then all the choreographed and faked emotions...family entering by the sound of sobbing music...child shedding tears as she sees daddy getting beat up in slow motion...paid celebrities in a small audience and obvious lines from writers instead of speaking from the heart! Oh Sugar Ray...i hope the devil paid you well for your soul :p (by the way mine is also for sale for some of that Hollywood cash :p) I love good Hollywood movies and I love real boxing, so Mr. Stallone, please keep your day-job and keep up making great action movies and please...please...stop giving advice to real boxers. Thank u very much :p

Unlike a lot of reality shows this one is brilliantly made and edited and is very classy, Stallone and Sugar Ray combine to make a truly great piece of entertainment. The show has had to face a lot of adversaries such as the awful copy-cat attempt - the next great champ, also it has been delayed and put in a very difficult time-slot and lets be honest boxing is not what it used to be, what's more one of the contestants even committed suicide a few months after filming for an unknown reason. However the final product is worth everything they have put in and the program is a visual spectacle with the fight at the end of every episode being the highlight. Luckily it doesn't just focus on boxing, even those who don't watch boxing will love it as it is concentrated on the moving stories of the boxers and their families.Great Stuff!