Recent Challenge seasons have gotten bigger in many ways. We’ve seen 90-minute episodes, 19-episode seasons, and a huge influx of rookies. But the drama? That’s been lacking compared to earlier seasons.
That doesn’t mean no rivalries have emerged. If we look at modern Challenge seasons, some conflicts have had lasting impressions and would make solid partnerships on a future Rivals season. Specifically, we’re looking at coed rivals here, because I’ve already made a very similar post about same-sex pairs.
When I say “modern Challenge era” I am talking about seasons 36-40 (Double Agents through Battle of the Eras). I will not include All Stars, but I will not exclude a real rivalry if they’ve already been paired on All Stars Rivals. However, I will not be listing exes, so don’t expect to see Bananas and Moriah on this list.
10. Jenny & Cory
Cory fears that he’s developing a reputation as the best Challenger to never win, and Jenny did a good job helping him build that resume. She sent him into two eliminations on Battle of the Eras, and the second time, he made it clear he would take the vote as a personal attack. In reality, this was an extension of Jenny’s willingness to make move against Cory, which happened when she betrayed him on Total Madness by not taking him to the tribunal with her on episode 14.
9. Devin & Amber M.
On Double Agents, Devin seemingly took issue with Amber M. out of the blue. In the middle of a group discussion, he tried to get Amber to leave the room, and she refused. Allegedly, this was because Amber M. voted Devin into the Crater and lied to him about the vote, but Amber’s private vote was addressed publicly and uncomfortably in front of other confused Challengers.
8. Tony & Averey
We had one stalemate on Battle of the Eras, and it was because Tony refused to let Averey save her close friends on Era 2. While it’s unclear whether Tony was trying (and failing) to make a bold move or was trying to get sent home, one thing is clear: He didn’t care about Averey’s game. Ultimately, Averey won her Arena and Tony lost, but at the reunion, she didn’t seem like she’d fully put this stalemate in the past.
7. Melissa & Corey
We saw Big T get paired with Corey on All Stars Rivals, but he could have just as easily been partnered with Melissa. During Battle for a New Champion Corey befriended Big T and Melissa only to publicly betray them. While this move may have felt more personal to Big T, it seemed like Melissa scrambled a bit more to pick up the pieces and she had a harder road when reestablishing her position in the game.
6. Kyland & Berna
These two competitors found themselves on opposing alliances during Battle for a New Champion, which was fine until Berna tried to be empathetic after Kyland won an elimination. At that point, Kyland confronted her because she was part of the reason he was sent into the elimination, and this sparked an argument. This would be reason enough for production to pair them together, but the two had a lot of social media drama while season 39 was airing.
5. Bananas & Tori
If you watched Ride or Dies, you’ll remember when Tori and Bananas were friends. This carried over to the World Championship and The Challenge USA 2 (mostly). They planned to keep working together on Battle of the Eras, but Tori stuck with Devin while Bananas assembled his own group of “angels.” This caused the two champions to butt heads in the second half of the season and take constant shots at each other. There were vocal confrontations, target trades, and an odd incident of toenail clipping. While Bananas claimed that he’s still friends with Tori at the reunion, there is more than enough rationale to call them “rivals” at this point.
4. Amber B. & Faysal
Production nailed this partnership on All Stars Rivals, because there was some very real animosity between these two before the season. On Double Agents, it felt like Amber was an outsider in the Big Brother Alliance. Faysal may have said he attributed this to the fact that this was her debut season, but he confirmed his real motives on Spies, Lies and Allies. Then, Faysal took an early shot at Amber and sent her in an early elimination because he deemed her untrustworthy. This resulted in tension that sparked a major house fight and Faysal found himself ejected from the game for “violence.”
3. Laurel & Ryan
The Era 2 team on Battle of the Eras was a bit of a mess, and there was unavoidable history that caused a lot of tension. While Laurel and Cara Maria’s feud divided the group, Ryan stood firmly in Cara Maria’s corner even though he was friends with both girls on All Stars 4. This resulted in Laurel dismissing him, and there was a lot of online social media drama. By the time they were at the reunion, Ryan was openly insulting Laurel and she wasn’t shy about mocking him back.
2. Nurys & Jay
These two were close friends coming into Battle for a New Champion, and they had a strong alliance at the start of the season. As the game progressed, Nurys started working more closely with Horacio, and this meant her game overlapped with Jay’s less as the season progressed. By the end of the season, Nurys had been narrowly avoiding saying Jay’s name at deliberations, but Jay eventually betrayed his friend by sending her into the final elimination to save Colleen, and their friendship seemed to remain strained at the season 39 reunion.
1. CT & Big T
There was something endearing about this partnership, and CT helped Big T establish her confidence on The Challenge… only to shatter it by gleefully exchanging Big T for a new partner, Kam. This devastated Big T, and she confronted CT, but the damage was done. The two even reunited as partners toward the end of Double Agents, but the trust was broken, and the sense of distrust lingered onto Spies, Lies and Allies.
Stop Being Polite 