To all the finals I’ve loved before. Here are all the old school moments new school fans would need to know. If you want to know everything that happened, just stream the show on Paramount+.
- Gold #5
Darrell brags that this is his fifth final and he has never lost before. He won The Gauntlet, The Inferno, The Inferno 2, and Fresh Meat. He omitted Champs vs. Pros, likely because it was a spin-off. But this season is a spin-off, so I think it’s fair to include.
2. Gold #2
Mark has also been in four finals, but he’s only won two: Real World/ Road Rules Challenge and Battle of the Sexes. If he wins this season, it will be his third victory.
3. Rotation Celebration
The final will rotate partners like Free Agents. Every guy will get to work with every girl, which Alton is happy about. This means he’ll never have to work with Big Easy, alluding to his incident on The Gauntlet 3.
4. Destroy and Continue
After the checkpoints, cast members tend to destroy their puzzles. This is a reference to Battle of the Sexes when the men copied the women’s puzzle.
5. Canoe Trouble
Alton and Aneesa’s canoe flips over. It’s not uncommon for people to have a hard time with kayaks and canoes. This might be most similar to the Inferno 2 final when Tonya and Derrick fell out of their team boat and filled it with water.
6. Last Finished, First Gone
The person who reaches checkpoint #2 last is kicked out of the final. Jisela and Derrick lose ground and come in last. This purging first happened on Rivals 2, a scenario Jemmye is familiar with.
7. Bicycle Built For Two
The final forces teams to build a bike and be tethered together. Two scenarios that have been seem in the past. Darrell is very familiar, riding rickety bikes was part of the Inferno 2 final and being tether to your partner was part of Fresh Meat.
8. Deja Duel
Mark claims he’s worked with Aneesa in the past and they’re a great team. Uh…. what? They were paired on The Duel 2, but Aneesa was an anchor and Mark came in third because of her.
9. Two Legs, Two Partners
Darrell resorts to carrying Ruthie on his back like Kenny carried Wes on Rivals. However, Ruthie was just slow. Darrell took advantage of her size and was able to power past a team in the hike. It was a mutually beneficial move.
10. Throw Up Throw Down
Throwing up has become a staple of the final. This season is no different, but it’s due to the level of spice from the Carolina reaper peppers. Jemmye is throwing up, and Darrell is starting to feel woozy too. Perhaps Sarah Rice gets credit for being the throw up queen, but Kellyanne also has some very animated pukes.
Stop Being Polite 