DAILY DIRT: So, exactly what size of a car are we talking about for CarJitsu?

I would definitely need more room than my Kia could offer … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 989 of The Daily Dirt.

1. The next big thing?

You might want to get acquainted with something called “CarJitsu”. It’s when two combatants grapple jujitsu style — but inside a car, utilizing seat belts and anything else available to them to get an opponent to tap out.

Opponents begin buckled in their seats, and when the bell sounds they immediately remove their belts and start going at it. The game started in Russia, but has made its way to America, and there are now actual championships to be won.

A guy named Vik Mikheev, who has a PhD in mathematics and black belts in both Brazilian jiu-jitsu and judo, created the sport in 2020.

“I came up with the idea of doing competitive grappling in vehicles,” Mikheev told borninspace.com. “Since October in 2020, I and my friends have run small tournaments of CarJitsu to study the aspects of jiu-jitsu application in such a confined space.”

I could see the WWE taking over operation of this in the United States. All kidding aside, this could have a huge future on pay per view.

2. Did you know (Part 50)

• That the salary for an NBA waterboy generally ranges between $53,000 and $58,000 per season, and as high as $100,000.
• That if you had gone to the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago, among the personalities you would have seen would have included Harry Houdini, plus products such as Juicy Fruit gum, Pabst Blue Ribbon beer and Cracker Jack snacks that were making their debuts. You could have also ridden on a 264-foot high wheel designed by a guy named George Ferris. 
• That Elvis Presley, Sean Connery, James Cameron, Liam Neeson and Jason Aldean were all truck drivers before striking it rich in another profession.
• That the top five songs from 1981 — that’s 43 years ago — were all among the most-honored tunes of the decade: “Bette Davis Eyes” by Kim Carnes, “Endless Love” by Diana Ross and Lionel Richie, “Lady” by Kenny Rogers, “Starting Over” by John Lennon and “Jessie’s Girl” by Rick Springfield.
• That Michael Jackson was more than $500 million in debt at the time of his 2009 death.

3. Best MLB managing jobs at roughly the halfway point of the season:

National League

Gold medal: Pat Murphy, Milwaukee. Despite the pitching injuries and ownership reducing payroll, Murphy has the Brewers comfortably ahead in the NL Central — for now.

Silver medal: Rob Thomson, Philadelphia. Every string he has pulled has been the right one.

Bronze medal: Oli Marmol, St. Louis. You have to give credit where its due. A month ago, the Cardinals looked dead in the water. But the Cards still need help with that starting rotation.

American League

Gold medal: Stephen Vogt, Cleveland. No one else is even close.

Silver medal: Matt Quatraro, Kansas City. If not for Vogt, this guy would likely be your runaway choice.

Bronze medal: Brandon Hyde, Baltimore. If any team has a chance of pulling away from the field in the AL East, I think it’s the Orioles. 

Steve Thought O’ The Day — Chew on this for awhile. Vince Vaughn nearly got the “Friends” role of Joey Tribbiani, which went to Matt LeBlanc. I think the powers-to-be made the right choice.

Steve Eighinger writes daily for Muddy River News. As our waterboy, he gets paid almost as much as the ones in the NBA.