The 125-pound Mastiff earned the title this past weekend.
Justin Sullivan/Getty ImagesA Neapolitan Mastiff named Martha sits next to a trophy after after winning the 2017 World’s Ugliest Dog contest at the Sonoma-Marin Fair on June 23, 2017 in Petaluma, California. Martha, a Neapolitan Mastiff, became the World’s Ugliest Dog during the Sonoma-Marin Fair.
This year’s World’s Ugliest Dog Competition has just taken place, and the winner — a three-year-old Mastiff named Martha — is simply not that hideous.
With disturbingly bloodshot eyes and flappy, slobber-oozing, whisker-pocked cheeks drooping almost past her knobby knees, Martha is definitely no Boo (the Internet’s most adorable creature).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_Mmfv33LlU
Still, when you see her floppy face spread across the floor, it’s hard to deny that this giant creature is kind of adorable.
And yet, she took home the gold at the 29th annual competition held on Friday at California’s Sonoma-Marin Fair — beating 13 other ugly canines for the $1,500, a media trip to New York and dog park bragging rights.
Her victory could be contributed to her lumbering personality or her couldn’t-care-less demeanor.
Martha clearly didn’t care about the award, “often plopping down on her side on stage with her droopy face spread across the ground when she was supposed to be showing off,” the Associated Press (AP) reports.
At 125 pounds, Martha, like many of the world’s most inspiring celebrities, overcame a traumatic youth before rising to fame.
Josh Edelson/AFP/Getty ImagesTOPSHOT – Martha shakes water off her head after winning this year’s World’s Ugliest Dog Competition. The winner of the competition is awarded $1500, a trophy, and is flown to New York for media appearances.
The Sebastopol, California, native was “nearly blind from neglect” when she was rescued by the Dogwood Animal Rescue Project, the AP wrote. After several surgeries and a lot of love, she can now see again.
We get it: who doesn’t love an underdog story?
But where Martha falls into the “so ugly it’s cute” category, her competitors are just plain ugly:
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Himisaboo, a mutt with a Donald Trump inspired hairdo, is held by owner Heather Wilson during the World's Ugliest Dog Competition in Petaluma, California on June 24, 2016. Josh Edelson /AFP/Getty Images
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Kristin Maszkiewicz holds her Japanese Crested dog, Pee Wee Martini at the 2007 World's Ugliest Dog Contest. David Paul Morris/Getty Images
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Boolah waits for the competition to begin during the Worlds Ugliest Dog Contest 2015. Sam Wolson / Barcroft USA via Getty Images
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Quasi Modo, whom the owner claims has a back too short for its body, walks on the stage at The World's Ugliest Dog Competition in 2014. Peanut won the competition and was voted the world's ugliest dog. Josh Edelson/AFP/Getty Images
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Sweepie Rambo, a Chinese Crested, is held up by owner Jason Wurtz in 2016. Sweepie Rambo went on to take first prize. Josh Edelson/AFP/Getty Images
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A Neapolitan Mastiff named Martha sits next to a trophy after after winning the 2017 World's Ugliest Dog contest at the Sonoma-Marin Fair on June 23, 2017 in Petaluma, California. Martha, a Neapolitan Mastiff, became the World's Ugliest Dog during the Sonoma-Marin Fair. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
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Gus, a one-eyed, three legged Chinese Crested dog walks around the stage after he was named the winner of the 20th Annual World's Ugliest Dog Competition in 2008.Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
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A dog named Elwood is seen during the 18th annual World's Ugliest Dog competition in 2006. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
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Savannah Cox holds a Master's in International Affairs from The New School as well as a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley, and now serves as an Assistant Professor at the University of Sheffield. Her work as a writer has also appeared on DNAinfo.