Can Nany Finally Win a Challenge?

Ride or Dies has been a tough season for Nany. Not just because of the competition, but she’s also been through a lot in her personal life. But, she’s also been on her A-game this time around. She won two eliminations, won two daily Challenges, and will be competing in her third consecutive final.

Despite these successes, she hasn’t won a season yet. But going into the final, it’s hard to deny that she has the odds stacked in her favor. After all, her partner is seven-time winner Johnny Bananas.

So, could this be her time to finally get the title and the money?

Well, it depends on the final, but we know it’s going to be a grueling 100 hours long. This will test the cast like it never has before, and prior appearances may not give us a full understanding of cast members’ capabilities. But in the past, Nany has shown she can endure a final. She got through Free Agents all by herself and narrowly lost the silver medal on Double Agents.

Spies, Lies and Allies wasn’t her best showing because she basically threw the game to Kaycee, but endurance is where Nany excels. She might complain, but she’ll keep running, rowing, or biking until her limbs fall off.

However, she will need a good partner to win. She’ll stumble at the predictable puzzles and math that pop up. This is where someone like Aneesa will outperform her, but she definitely the real question is whether or not Bananas can help Nany get through these mental hurdles. And he’s ok, but he’s not much of a puzzle master.

In terms of puzzles and math, Aneesa and Devin will be her biggest threats. But despite her abilities and her partner, Aneesa’s lack of speed and endurance is likely to be a bigger detriment than Nany’s inability to do puzzles. This shifts eyes to Devin & Tori as threats against Nany’s victory. Devin has seen two finals and Tori has seen three. Neither have won, but Tori was moments away last season.

Based on what we’ve seen in the past, Devin & Tori are probably Bananas & Nany’s biggest threat. They may not be the fastest or strongest, but the team is the most well-rounded. Devin is pretty great with puzzles, but he’s not the fastest runner (though he won’t quit). Meanwhile, Tori’s not awful at puzzles (probably on par with Nany), but she has strength and pretty good speed. Her performance on the War of the Worlds 2 final was a good showing, but a puzzle purged her out of the game.

As a team, Devin & Tori compliment each other quite well. Bananas & Nany have some weak spots, but it feels like Devin & Tori have all of their bases covered. If anything slows them down, it’ll be eating — and I’m not confident Bananas & Nany will do any better.

Then there’s the wild card: the rookies. As a duo, they haven’t won a challenge together yet. They’ve come close, but it would be quite noteworthy if they manage to pull out the victory in the end. They would be the first pair in Challenge history to win the final without a single daily win, not to mention that this is their first Challenge season. But, if the mini-final is any indication, Olivia may struggle, and Horacio gets stressed. That may be their downfall, but Horacio has shown resiliency in later challenges. While their victory is unlikely, it’s not completely impossible.

In terms of Nany, she’s never had a better shot at winning. If this isn’t the season she gets her victory, it will make me wonder if it’s ever going to happen. I think she is capable of winning in the right scenario, and in her 12 seasons on the show, the scenario has never been more right for her.