Motley Fool co-founder and Chief Rule Breaker David Gardner presents "Battle Royale," a blood-sport investment feature in which eight stocks fight to emerge as the single best investment pick for you. Drawn at random from the top 250 most popular stocks among Fool members, and randomized again into a standard eight-team tournament bracket, the companies square off to win David's confidence as his favorite market-beater over the next 12 months. In this first-round matchup, VMware (NYSE: VMW), a successful software firm that's turning cloud-based solutions into big business here on Earth, takes on DryShips (Nasdaq: DRYS) a shipping company captained by an infamously dodgy CEO. Which stock will be left for dead on the arena floor? Which will move on to the next round? Watch the "Battle Royale" video to find out ... and along with your admission, get educated, amused, and enriched!

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