Dozens of people named Josh armed with pool noodles gathered in Lincoln, Neb., to fight for the title of #1 Josh. The Josh Fight started as a viral Internet meme.
AILSA CHANG, HOST:
Have you ever heard of a Josh Fight? Well, last weekend, dozens of people named Josh gathered in a park in Lincoln, Neb., to compete in Josh Fight 2022. Now, you may be asking, what exactly is a Josh Fight?
JOSH SRERY: Anyone with the name Josh with a pool noodle can come in and fight.
SACHA PFEIFFER, HOST:
That Josh is Josh Srery. He decided to join this year’s competition after seeing last year’s battle go viral. The Josh Fight rules are simple. Anyone named Josh grabs a pool noodle and has an all-out brawl. If someone hits you with a noodle, you’re out. The last Josh standing is crowned the No. 1 Josh.
CHANG: Now, most of the Joshes had their eye on one competitor – last year’s returning champion, 5-year-old Josh Vinson Jr., aka Little Josh. Srery says he was anxious to face off against Little Josh.
SRERY: I was somewhat nervous because I kind of knew of his potential, especially having that confidence that he won last year.
CHANG: But Little Josh mostly kept his cool before the match.
JOSH VINSON JR: I was a little nervous, but not that nervous.
PFEIFFER: And he had his family to help him prepare.
JOSH: I’ve been training with my brother.
PFEIFFER: As the start time neared, a crowd formed around the Joshes, and they assumed their battle stances.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
UNIDENTIFIED GROUP: (Shouting) Three, two, one…
PFEIFFER: When the fight began, Little Josh sprung into action – bolting around the arena, weaving between his competitors, dodging noodles from all directions.
CHANG: (Laughter).
PFEIFFER: Little Josh’s father, Josh Vinson Sr., said his agility was just insurmountable.
JOSH VINSON SR: It also helps that he’s, like, less than three feet…
CHANG: (Laughter).
VINSON: …So he can run through people’s legs and, you know, he can’t get hit as well because he’s just, like, this little, fast, Speedy Gonzales guy running around with a big red pool noodle.
CHANG: As the battle raged on, the arena thinned as Little Josh took down everyone in his path until there were only two.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: Come this way. Come this way. We’re going to have a final duel between Captain Josh Sparrow and Little Josh.
PFEIFFER: The battle was tense, like two Jedi facing off for the fate of the galaxy. But in the end…
VINSON: He went out there and crushed the competition, just like we knew he would. His skills are undeniable.
PFEIFFER: And not only did little Josh Vinson Jr. retain his title as the No. 1 Josh in the world. The event had raised more than $20,000 in donations for Children’s Hospital and Medical Center in Omaha, Neb.
(SOUNDBITE OF KAYTRANADA’S “TRACK UNO”)
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