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Who Emerged Victorious in the Finale?Tuesday, August 05 2008 |
Did you make sure you got your pads and helmets on for the Grand Finale of American Gladiators last night? Season 2 closed with one male contender and one female battler emerging as our new champions!
Monday night, all mayhem of Season 2 finally came to an end as American Gladiators aired its two-hour finale. Two competitors — one man and one woman — fought their way through to the very end, and won the money - $100,000, a brand new Toyota Sequoia, and the title of Grand Champion! This last show of the season featured the third semi-finals round in the first hour, and determined who among the remaining 4 finalists would actually compete in the second hour's finale.
The show began with hosts Hulk Hogan and Laila Ali explaining how each hour of the 2 part finale show would commence. This was it! In the first hour, it was one more wild semi-finals round, and one last chance for our remaining 4 semi-finalists to make their mark against the Gladiators, and try and secure a spot in the Final Four Grand Finale!
The last 4 semi-finalists included Randee Haynes, a 25-year-old carpenter and family man from Chicago, Illinois. In the preliminaries, Randy showed he could really take a hit as he was bounced around the Gauntlet, but it was his speed in the Eliminator Challenge, that vaulted him into last night's competition! And that will be no easy task against his competition Mike Gamble, a 29-year-old dance choreographer from Connecticut. Mike made his presence known early and often in the preliminaries. He started hot scoring a dozen points in Hit & Run and talked a big game throughout the competition. He definitely backed it up as he came from behind in the Eliminator Challenge finishing in under 2 minutes. Let's see if he can go all the way this time around!
The first event for the guys is Pyramid! Randee was matched against Beast - this will not be easy! Mike even laughed at the match up. Beast was a bit slow jumping down the pyramid but he threw Randee down with intense force. After a few more hits, Randee managed to run to the 5-point zone. Beast made sure he didn’t get any further. Mike tried to make his way around Justice, ran to the side and broke away from him, only to be tossed down and then his helmet came off. Justice blocked him a few more times and with one second left on the clock, Mike actually broke away and reached the top for 10 points!
Now it's time for the ladies to take their turn. First up is 28-year-old Colorado cop Abbe Dorn. She took on her best friend and fellow cop in the preliminaries and had a hard battle with the awesome Crush! But Abbe proved she's one of the toughest women, racking up points throughout the competition. Last night she took on Little Boston's Annie Castellano, college student and 4'11" firecracker who really showed her stuff and proved to be fearless against the Gladiators. Their first even of the night was Rocketball. Abbe scored almost every time she went for a shot. Crush and Panther did their best to block her, but Abbe really dominated this event. All four ladies - contestants and Gladiators - crashed into each other several times. Annie went for a shot, and got a knee to the stomach by Panther - unintentional of course. She had to take a minute to compose herself after that shot and said it really hurt! She was also hit by Crush yet she was able to score 2 in the top & 1 in the bottom basket. Abbe got a total of 7 points, while Annie scored 5.
Next the guys go into Hang Tough against Wolf. Randee did great in the preliminaries against Wolf and hung tough the first time around just long enough. Hulk Hogan asked Randee to help introduce Wolf for this event and he made a funny crack about how Wolf just celebrated his 67th birthday. Randee went down the middle & swatted Wolf away when he came too close. They both ended up on one ring and Randee couldn’t make it to a blue ring in time to score. Mike is up next and is really no match for Wolf. This is one of Wolf's strongest events. Wolf taunted Mike by asking "Can you swim Gambler" and "Where ya going Gambler" as Mike tried swing around in a circle. But Wolf managed to come into his path. Mike was hanging by one ring and Wolf went in for the kill pulling Mike off in 26 secs.
The ladies try their strength at Atlasphere next. They have to battle Venom and Phoenix in this event. Initially the two contestants crash into one another and lose their momentum. Abbe manages to break away from the collision and score her first 2 points. Then Abbe is slammed by Phoenix but was still able to score again in the same pod. Annie slowly made her way to a scoring pod. Phoenix and Venom teamed up to block her, but she finally broke away & was able to score once right before her time was up.
And now the guys take on Atlasphere as well facing Hurricane and Militia. Both Randee & Mike went for the same pod & neither scored. Randee went to another pod for points, while Militia started chasing after Mike. Hurricane slams Randee into the wall, but he ends up scoring again for a total of 4 pts. Mike tries to avoid Hurricane, while Militia taunts Mike, blocking him from scoring on the pods. He was able to break free and score once before time ran out.
The ladies move onto The Gauntlet. They face 4 Gladiator ladies in this competition - Phoenix, Venom, Siren, and Hellga - and each of them seems more pumped up and ready to destroy our contenders. Abbe tried to run around and through Phoenix, but was delivered some harsh blows. Venom also knocked her around a bit, and then onto Siren who really slammed into her. After a short beat down by Siren, Abbe tried to run past Hellga, but took some more hits. She finally managed to get past her in 26.8 seconds for 5 points. Now it's Annie's turn. She's roughed up and pushed by Phoenix, and then pounded into the wall by Venom - OUCH!. She then had a shoving match with Siren and was just barely able to crawl over her. Annie then faced the wrath of Hellga who held her against the wall until the time ran out. Wow these Gladiator ladies are really bringing it!!!!
The guys tried their hand at Skytrack and Joust next. First in Skytrack, Randee pulled out ahead using one arm at a time, while Wolf took a little while to catch up. Randee got pretty close to the finish, but Wolf was able to pull him down after 35 secs. Mike used both his arms at once and started to lose steam. Zen caught up to Mike quickly and pulled his cord after 24 seconds. In Joust, Randee landed quite a few good hits on Titan, but the gladiator struck back just as strong. Randee lunged forward onto Titan’s platform and fell into the water after 10 seconds. Mike held his Joust stick upright on the platform. Titan hit him once and Mike jumped off after 2 seconds. He claims he took that fall; he has another event to focus on.
Now the guys go into the Powerball competition against Titan, Beast, and Toa! Titan says the Gladiators are "out for blood", so the guys needed to really watch out! Randee did a great job faking out Beast and scored. He did the same to both Titan and Toa to land a ball in the center pod. Beast shoved him into the wall but he was able to score 2 more times for 5 total pts. Titan and Toa both shoved Mike into the wall several times. Mike scored 2 balls in the outside pods as Beast kept chasing after Randee. Toa ran with Mike across the field & quickly brought him down before time ran out. So both the guys have 14 points going into the Eliminator! It's anybody's game at this point.
The ladies also took on Tilt and Joust. In Tilt, Abbe fell on her back and pulled against Crush. They both showed immense strength and determination, holding firm in their grip. Abbe yanked back on the rope until time ran out earning her 5 points. Annie first fell on one knee, but then decided to put both feet in front of her. Crush wrapped her leg around the rope and pulled hard but Annie managed to stay on the platform for 5 pts. In Joust, Abbe hit Steel first, but then lost her balance. She fell forward and grabbed Steel’s platform after 6 seconds and got disqualified. Annie tried swinging Steel, but took many hits in the head. After 10 secs, she dropped her Joust stick and Steel made her pay for it!
Now onto Powerball for the ladies. They had to face the power of Crush, Siren, and Panther. Abbe got slammed into the wall by Siren but was able to score past Crush a couple times. Panther defended the center as Abbe made a slamdunk and knocked over a pod, and got 4 points. As for Annie, she quickly ran past Siren and scored. After being chased by Crush, she slipped around Panther and Siren to score in the center pod. She earned 6 points and seemed to have a lot of confidence going into the Eliminator challenge.
And now - It's Eliminator Time! The guys go first and they both seem confident they will be able to win to go onto the Finale. Randee and Mike start at the same time, and stay neck and neck for majority of the competition. Randee made it to the cargo net first but fell slightly behind on the other obstacles. He stayed up on the hand bike and crashed off the log. He caught up slightly on the seesaw and was seconds behind Mike who finished first. Randee's time was 1:39. Mike pulled slightly ahead of Randee on the cargo net but he slipped on the platform after the rope swing. He stayed up on the hand bike and got across the log and down the zip line first. He made it up the travelator on his first try and earned a spot in the finals with a time of 1:36. He's moving onto face Tim Oliphant. Now for the ladies - Abbe had a 3.5 second head start but was neck and neck with Annie on the cargo net. She stayed one second ahead of Annie on the rope, bike and log. She flew down the zip line first but forgot to run up the seesaw. Abbe went back and fell off the seesaw then grabbed the rope on her first try and finished the race. Her time of 2:16 was unfortunately not fast enough for the final round. Annie swam freestyle underwater and caught up to Abbe on the base of the cargo net. They were tied at the top and Annie followed closely behind Abbe the rest of the race. She stayed up on the hand bike and passed Abbe on the seesaw. Annie missed the rope on her first try which cost her the race. She grabbed it later and fell on the top of the travelator. Her final time was 2:58. Annie stated this was the best experience of her life. So the two ladies in the grand finale are Ally Davidson and Tiffaney Florentine!
In the second hour, the grand finale starts! The first event for the men is The Gauntlet. They face Toa, Justice, Titan and Beast. Mike Gamble is up first and he was pushed into the wall by Toa for quite a while. Titan then hit him several times and pushed him back into Toa who playfully patted him on the head. Time ran out before Justice and Beast even got to do any damage. Speedy Tim is up second and says he's American Gladiators is what he was made for! At first, Tim was pushed into the wall by Toa but dove down to get past him. He quickly ran around Titan and Justice then received a severe beat down from Beast. He's finally able to crawl past past him to finish in 20.37 seconds for 5 points.
The ladies first event is Sideswipe. Facing Jet, Siren, and Phoenix will not be a simple task. Our runaway bride Ally Davidson was up first. She waited for the Gladiators to swing before she made her initial move. Siren came close to knocking her off and Jet swung at Ally on the safety platform. Phoenix kicked Ally off the platform after 28 seconds, but she still earned 2 points. Ally's competition, Tiffaney Florentine is a fearless lady who currently holds the fastest time for the ladies in the Eliminator competition. She started off cautious and kept her eyes on Jet, Siren, and Phoenix as they swung across trying to take her out. She made several trips before Siren kicked a ball out of her hands. After 49 seconds, Phoenix was able to kick her off the platform, but she did score 4 points.
Now it's back to the men for Sideswipe. Gamble competes first against Militia, Zen, and Wolf. Mike jumps fast to avoid all of them and makes it across for his first point. Militia tries to attack him several times but Mike is so fast and keeps his balance. He was almost knocked off by Wolf before crashing into the target. Mike was able to stay dry and earned 5 points. Now onto to Tim - he barely missed being hit by Militia and ducks to to avoid the acrobatic Zen. While running past Wolf, he crashed into the target & almost fell off. Tim was able to make many trips for a total 7 points. After 51 secs Militia knocks Tim off and leaves a hefty gash in his arm. This finale is so intense already!!!
It's back to the ladies again and they're going against the Awesome, Beautiful Phoenix in Hang Tough. She is tough and stepping up her game tonight against our contenders! Ally began her swing right towards Phoenix. She makes it to the blue rings before Phoenix wrapped her legs around her. Ally held on and tried to stay strong while Phoenix pulled on her arms. They both fell off after 54 seconds. Tiffaney does better in this event. She swings toward Phoenix & started to pass her. Phoenix turned & kicked her legs around Tiffaney. She broke free & Phoenix was lost on 1 ring. Tiffaney reached the platform in 26 seconds for 10 pts.
The guys now face Titan and Toa in Pyramid. This is Tim's third time against Titan. Titan dives toward Tim and tosses him down the pyramid. Then Titan crashes into Toa and Tim sees the opportunity to make his move. All 4 players try to scramble their way to the top. Tim however is able to score 10 points. Mike on the other hand was pulled down by Toa several times. When Titan accidentally fell on Toa, Mike tried to get to the top. But Toa was able to grab Mike’s legs and pull him down earning Mike just 5 points this time around.
The ladies move onto the Joust competition facing the undefeated Crush! Tiffaney never stood a chance against Crush. She hit Crush right off, but then began to lose her balance. She ended up leaning forward and was hit a few times. Tiffaney fell backwards into the water in under 5 seconds earning her no points. And now onto Ally - this was her first time ever competing in Joust. She tried crouching low as Crush hit her repeatedly. Ally fell on one knee and tried to block the shots. Crush whacked Ally in the head and knocked her off after a mere 8 seconds.
Now the men take on their last 3 events before the Eliminator Challenge. Hang Tough, Rocketball, and The Wall. In Hang Tough, Tim tried to make his way past Wolf but missed a few rings close to the platform. Wolf caught up and pulled him down after 42 seconds – taking Tim’s helmet as a trophy. Then Mike swung down the middle of the rings. Wolf got spun around a bit but managed to grab Mike from behind. Mike held on for a few seconds as Wolf said "Bye Gambler!" They both fell off after 39 seconds. In Rocketball, Tim attempted many shots, but most were blocked by Titan. They had a hard mid-air crash Titan blocked Tim and Hurricane tried to block Mike. Tim bounced back and scored 4 points but did suffer a nice gash above his left eye. Mike did well at faking out Hurricane and launched solo. They ended up colliding in the air and tangling up often. He got one ball in the lower basket as Titan focused on mangling Tim. Now for The Wall! Tim got an excellent start on the wall and was halfway up by the second whistle. Rocket gained on him but never was able to make contact. Tim reached the top after 26 seconds and scored 10 points. Mike said he had to give props to Tim who is a great competitor. Mike seemed to be taking his time on the wall and Militia soon caught up. Militia climbed up right beside him and pulled him off the wall by his leg after 42 seconds. He will start the eliminator 12.5 seconds after Tim but he says he is the comeback kid and can do it!
Now onto the ladies final events. They scaled the Pyramid, soared in Rocketball, and The Wall. In Pyramid, Ally tried dancing around Crush but was thrown down. She ran to the side but Crush kept diving at her. Ally scored no points and said “Her name is Crush for a reason.” Tiffaney went against Steel once again on pyramid. She tried to run straight up but was quickly rolled off. Everywhere Tiffaney ran, Steel was there to bring her down. She got no points but said she had a great time. In Rocketball, former basketball star Ally landed a ball in the top basket almost every time she launched against both Panther and Hellga. She did a victory dance for the 10 points she earned as her family cheered. Tiffaney aimed for the top basket & missed many shots. She tangled with both Panther and Hellga for quite a while but landed a ball in the top right before the buzzer earning a total of 3 points. Now for the Wall - Ally was neck and neck with Tiffaney most of the way up. She started to lose her footing while Jet was closing in on her. She finally managed to make it to the top after 46 seconds – 1 second after Tiffaney for 5 points. Tiffaney did great on the wall and Venom was close on her heels the entire time. She was able to pull ahead though and earned 10 points for herself. So Tiffaney will have a 5 second head start in the Eliminator Challenge!
And now people - it's the Grand Finale! 2 will win it all and become our new Gladiator Champions! The men go first and Tim has a 12.5 second head start. And of he course, ran another phenomenal Eliminator. He was climbing the cargo net by the second whistle. He kept his massive lead and flew across all obstacles on the course. He ran up the travelator on his first try and did a back flip into the water. His time was 1:21. Yay - Tim won! He thanked the gladiators for beating him into shape. With Mike's delayed start, he had a little bit of trouble early on at the top of the cargo net but was able to stay up on the hand bike. Mike barely reached the top of the pyramid as Tim was finishing the race. Mike slipped off the seesaw but made it up the travelator on his first try. His time was 1:46 - very fast for 2nd place.
In the ladies Eliminator Challenge, Tiffaney had a 5 second head start but had a bit of trouble on the cargo net. She made it to the top second and fell behind Ally on the rest of the course. Tiffaney almost made it across the hand bike but fell right before the end. She made it to the seesaw as Ally was finishing the race. She then struggled with the travelator for quite some time. Tiffaney swung into the pool without breaking the finish line paper. Her time was 4:07. And our winner Ally, overcame Tiffaney’s head start and passed her on the cargo net. She fell off the hand bike but ran through all other obstacles with ease. She made it up the travelator on her first try and swung into the water. Her husband and other family members followed her into the pool to celebrate. Her time was 1:46. This was the fastest female time for this season - Yay for Ally.
So there you have it America. Ally Davidson and Tim Oliphant are our new American Gladiator Champions! A big congratulations to them both for winning. And I have to say thank you to such a great show for keeping me entirely entertained all season long! Long Live American Gladiators!
