10:38 AM EST on Monday, March 28, 2005

BY ANDY SMITH
Journal Television Writer

Providence boxer Peter Manfredo Jr. took advantage of his second chance on last night's episode of The Contender, NBC's boxing reality show.

Manfredo won a close fight with Miguel Espino and remains in the running for the $1 million prize that goes to the winner of the show's competition.

Episodes of The Contender were filmed last August and September in California, with the exception of the show's finale, which will be aired live from Las Vegas in May.

Manfredo appeared to be out of the running when he lost his fight in the very first episode, which aired March 7, and was apparently eliminated from the show.

But Jeff Fraza of Haverill, Mass., developed chicken pox and had to be taken out of the competition. The remaining fighters were ordered to vote someone back in. They picked Manfredo.

Coming back, Manfredo did not look sharp. The other boxers noticed.

"To me, psychologically, Peter's already beaten," said Anthony Bonsante. The boxers are divided into two teams, East and West. When the West team won a competition, they were allowed to choose the next opponent, and Espino picked Manfredo.

"The best champions have been the ones who get themselves off the ground and come back . . . not many people get a second chance in life, and I'm going to make the best of it," Manfredo said.

In a hard-fought slugfest, Manfredo won a narrow victory.

Manfredo was elated. The other competitors wondered if they hadn't made a mistake by voting Manfredo back on the show.

"We let a lion back in, dude, didn't we?" one fighter glumly remarked to another.