Who Will Win America's Next Top Model Cycle 10?

America's Next Top Model Cycle 10 is coming to a close, but it does not present a clear winner at this point. There's Anya, the perky model who the camera loves. Then there's Fatima, the model with the intriguing bone structure who does not take direction easily. Finally there's Whitney, the underdog in the fight as a plus size model. It's hard even for me to predict a winner, but my expectation is for Anya to win because of her performance consistency and willingness to learn and grow.

As MTV's blog entry reflects, some people expect this cycle to crown the plus size model Whitney the winner; but her past performance does not guarantee that she is stronger than her underdog status. She does start to be strong in Episode 4, where she finishes second behind Anya. In Episode 5, though, Whitney falters in the Drag queen challenge, not seeming to be connected. She does seem to pull it back together in Episode 6 where her face draws compliments in the music posing challenge. In Episode 7 Whitney is reminded that plus size models are not really in demand when they visit Pamela Rolland. She also doesn't leave me impressed after the water photo shoot. Now she is strong enough to go to Rome, but this is where her star seems to fade. She struggles with being genuine, beginning with the Cover Girl commercial in episode 10. She ends up in the final two because of this and barely survives. With renewed fight, she wins the gladiator challenge in Episode 11, and she seems to pull herself together. However, she falters in the next photo shoot and again ends up in the final two. If not for her gladiator win, she would have been sent home I believe. She still struggles in Episode 12 with being disingenuous, and survives by her ability to give direction. With so many near misses for Whitney, it's hard to think that she will win it all.