A recent trip to Maury revealed a surprising fact about Bananas’s relationship with Wes: they don’t actually hate each other. In fact, they’re basically just using each other to advance their careers on The Challenge. I can’t say I’m surprised, though I do think they have had moments of legitimate frustration with one another.
While this “rivalry” may be a made-for-TV story, I do think there are some legitimate rivalries on this show. People who actually dislike or even hate each other. While some of these rivalries exist only in the constraints of the game, others have spilled into real life.
For purposes of this list, I am not going to be talking about exes, so don’t expect to see Brad and Tori here. I’m also focusing on people more relevant to the current state of the show, so when David and Puck aren’t on the list, you know why.
Ashley and Hunter
While these two hooked up at one point, that’s not the reason their relationship strained. For Hunter, the real hatred is due to Ashley taking his half of the prize money on Final Reckoning. For Ashley, her hatred comes from earlier in the season when Hunter slut-shamed her and brought her family into the equation. Ashley’s father had recently passed away, so any mention of family was going hit her hard.
Laurel and Cara Maria
While their rivalry on Cutthroat really wasn’t that deep, their relationship appeared to be turned into a genuine friendship after Rivals. Laurel has traveled to visit Cara Maria, and they actually got along. This was until Invasion. During this time Laurel started dating Nicole and she started to see Cara’s jealousy and interference in the relationship. The two have not been on speaking terms since, and I don’t think this is for show. I think there’s legitimate betrayal extending beyond MTV.
Devin and Bananas
On Rivals 3 and Vendettas I would have labeled this rivalry as fake. I do believe Devin targeted Bananas mostly because he was a big name in the franchise and he wanted the recognition. On Final Reckoning when Bananas questioned Devin after his father’s death, that’s when the game became personal. I think the two have competed without making things too personal, but by this point lines have been crossed.
Jenna and Amanda
I think this is more of a one way street than anything else. Amanda, while annoyed by Jenna and Zach’s relationship, doesn’t care that much about Jenna. For this reason, she has no problem making her a casualty of her aggressive game play. On the other hand, Jenna’s hatred for Amanda is real. We saw this on War of the Worlds when Amanda revealed Zach’s secret Bumble account. Jenna was legitimately hurt and frustrated that Amanda was able to interfere with her relationships once again.
Sarah and Bananas
If you’ve listened to Sarah talk about Bananas at any point during the past three years you’d know she really does not like him. Sarah has never fully supported the guy, but stealing her money in Rivals 3 solidified their hatred. To be fair, I do think Sarah downplays the relationship she once had with Bananas. During her mid-Challenge career (Rivals, Exes, beginning for Exes 2), Bananas really did put some faith in Sarah and Sarah did take the first strike against him. Though I agree that Sarah shouldn’t apologize for playing the game, this relationship will likely never be repaired.
Abram and Bananas
While Cara Maria seems to have mended her relationship with Bananas, Abram has always held resentment toward Bananas. The origin isn’t exactly clear, but Abe comes from a different generation than Bananas. For Abe, Road Rules and The Challenge was about the experience and the competition. Contrast that with Bananas who built a career off of the show and stages incidents for screen time. There’s one thing we do know for sure: if Bananas and Abe are on the same show, they will not be friendly.
CT and Adam
One of the oldest rivalries in the book, CT and Adam has a lot of back and fourth. Their fights in Paris or on Gauntlet 3 demonstrate this, but we all know the boiling point was on The Duel 2 when CT clobbered Adam after Adam exposed CT’s hook up with Shauvon to Diem. The two later competed as rivals and CT tried to bury the hatchet. Adam never fully supported CT, and I doubt the two would actually worth together unless they were forced.
Stop Being Polite 