It was Tuesday at 10 p.m. ET, so where was I? As you should know by now, on the new reclining couch with my wife watching "The Contender." Thank goodness for the invention of the DVR. I was recording "The Contender" and the Yankees-Devil Rays game on the MLB Extra Innings package, flipping back and forth between the two without missing anything. I'll say this -- "The Contender" was a hell of a lot better than watching the Yanks blow a big lead and lose on a walk-off homer in the 10th. But I digress. Some thoughts on Episode 4:

• Wayne Johnsen's win, powered by his smooth jab, finally gave the Blue Team a victory after two consecutive losses to the boys in gold when he outpointed scrappy Miguel Hernandez. However, based on watching the edited version of the bout, it sure didn't look as wide as the judges scored it -- 50-45 (twice) and a more realistic-looking 48-47. Johnsen, a former college football player, is a much more athletic fighter than Hernandez, who makes up for his lack of talent with a big heart, so the result shouldn't have been much of a surprise to anyone.

• Blue Team trainer Pepe Correa comes up with a lot of great lines, especially when he's trying to motivate his guys. "The whole outcome of the Blue Team rests on you," he told Johnsen before the fight. No pressure, right?

• I thought Gold Team trainer Buddy McGirt made an error by picking Hernandez to represent at the end of the episode. Hernandez, who originally was cut in the first episode but brought back in the second episode to replace legally challenged Henry "Sugar Poo" Buchanan, has been the fighter everyone targeted as the weakest of the entire crop. Even Hernandez, not in the best shape, himself admitted he was the biggest underdog. So I have no idea why McGirt went with Hernandez instead of selecting David Banks or Donny McCrary, who could have shoved the Blue Team into an 0-3 hole.

• Seeing Sam Soliman in an ice bath at the start of the episode was almost as disturbing as seeing the recent tabloid photos of Oscar De La Hoya in slinky women's underwear and stockings.

• In case you didn't hear Sugar Ray Leonard say it for the 83rd time: Every round counts.

• So far, this episode was the most heart wrenching. My wife, Jenn Rafael, cried at least twice, once when Jaidon Codrington was dealt the news that his father had died, and also when Hernandez, surrounded by his wife and kids, spoke to his grandmother on a cell phone in order to receive her pre-fight blessing. Also poignant was Leonard's sit-down with Codrington, during which he recounted how his 1976 Olympic team had rallied behind Howard Davis when he lost his mother during the Games. Davis, of course, went on to win a gold medal. Codrington surely will take those words to heart as he tries to win "The Contender" tournament.

• Codrington's emotional response to his dad's death certainly humanized him and made him a more likeable person than he had been in the first few episodes, where he came off as extremely cocky, especially during the buildup to his fight with Brian Vera back in the second episode. One thing that "The Contender" brass didn't bother to mention was that Codrington's father's died because he committed suicide. I thought it was disingenuous not to mention that. How do you gloss over that? This is reality TV, so let's keep it real.

• It's just about time -- actually it's long overdue -- for ear-splitting ring announcer Jeff Connor himself to be eliminated one of these weeks.

• Still can't wait to see Sakio Bika fight.

And remember, it's all about the power of choice.