The Challenge: Rivals III

The Challenge: Rivals III
Genre	Reality game show
Created by	Mary-Ellis Bunim Jonathan Murray
Presented by	T. J. Lavin
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of series	28
Production
Location(s)	Huatulco, Mexico, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Running time	Episode 1: 90 minutes (including commercials); All other episodes: 60 minutes (including commercials)
Release
Original network	MTV
Original release	May 4, 2016[1]
Chronology
Preceded by	Battle of the Bloodlines
External links
Website

The Challenge: Rivals III is the 28th season of the MTV reality game show, The Challenge. Being the third in the Rivals series, Rivals III marks the show's third trilogy (following the Inferno and Gauntlet series), continuing on from the original Rivals and Rivals II. It was filmed in Huatulco, Mexico and Buenos Aires, Argentina, with former cast members from MTV's Real World, Spring Break Challenge, Are You the One?, and Battle of the Bloodlines competing. This season marks the first since season 11 to not feature any original cast members from the Fresh Meat or Fresh Meat II challenges.

Unlike the previous two installments of the Rivals series, which featured same-gender pairs, this season will see a change in the format, with male/female pairs that had bitter feuds, fights or strained relationships in previous seasons of Real World, The Challenge and Are You the One? (similar to the Battle of the Exes series). Unlike the other Rivals seasons, only the winning team from each week's challenge will decide who will face the last-place team in the elimination round. The season premiered on May 4, 2016.^[1]

Cast

Host: T. J. Lavin, BMX rider

Male contestants[2] Original season Finish Brandon Tindel AYTO: Season 2 Cory Wharton RW: Ex-Plosion Dario Medrano AYTO: Season 2 Devin Walker-Molaghan AYTO: Season 3 Jamie Banks Battle of the Bloodlines Johnny "Bananas" Devenanzio RW: Key West Johnny Reilly RW: Portland TBD in Episode 2 Leroy Garrett RW: Las Vegas (2011) Nathan Siebenmark AYTO: Season 2 Thomas Buell RW: Ex-Plosion Tony Raines RW: Skeletons Vince Gliatta Battle of the Bloodlines Wes Bergmann RW: Austin

Female contestants[2] Original season Finish Ashley Mitchell RW: Ex-Plosion Averey Tressler RW: Portland Briana LaCuesta AYTO: Season 2 Camila Nakagawa Spring Break Challenge Cheyenne Floyd AYTO: Season 3 Christina LeBlanc AYTO: Season 2 Jenna Compono RW: Ex-Plosion Jessica McCain RW: Portland TBD in Episode 2 KellyAnne Judd RW: Sydney Nany González RW: Las Vegas (2011) Nicole Ramos Battle of the Bloodlines Sarah Patterson[3] RW: Brooklyn Simone Kelly AYTO: Season 1

Note: There are two "Johnny" castmembers — Johnny Devenanzio & Johnny Reilly. Johnny Devenanzio is appointed by his nickname "Bananas."

Teams

Male Partner	Female Partner	Team[2]	Finish
Johnny "Bananas" Devenanzio	Sarah Patterson	Bananas & Sarah
Brandon Tindel	Briana LaCuesta	Brandon & Briana
Cory Wharton	Ashley Mitchell	Cory & Ashley
Dario Medrano	Nicole Ramos	Dario & Nicole
Devin Walker	Cheyenne Floyd	Devin & Cheyenne
Jamie Banks	KellyAnne Judd	Jamie & KellyAnne
Johnny Reilly	Jessica McCain	Johnny & Jessica	TBD in Episode 2
Leroy Garrett	Averey Tressler	Leroy & Averey
Nathan Siebenmark	Christina LeBlanc	Nate & Christina
Thomas Buell	Simone Kelly	Thomas & Simone
Tony Raines	Camila Nakagawa	Tony & Camila
Vince Gliatta	Jenna Compono	Vince & Jenna
Wes Bergmann	Nany González	Wes & Nany

Format

Rivals III follows the same format at the Rivals and Rivals II seasons (click on each individual link for further information), with the following differences:

• Unlike the previous two Rivals seasons, no money is awarded to a first-place finisher after each team mission.
• At the end of the season, three teams will compete in the final challenge for a share of a $350,000 prize. The first-place team wins $275,000, second-place wins $50,000 and third-place wins $25,000.

Source for this section:^[4]

Pre-season rivalry backgrounds

As with the first two Rivals seasons, Rivals III combines individuals who have had acrimonious or at least strained relations or interactions prior to the season. Unlike the first two Rivals seasons, which featured same-gender pairs, this season features male/female pairs. The following lists all the teams on Rivals III and explains why they've been paired and dubbed as "rivals." Each of the teams' history of animosity and/or open expressions of hostility are detailed as follows:

• Bananas & Sarah: The two entered Battle of the Exes II with a long-running friendship, and an alliance that had lasted through many of their past seasons. During that season, however, Sarah played the game to win, and along with her partner Jordan Wiseley, fought to remove her toughest competition from the game whenever the opportunity presented itself. After Bananas re-entered the game as a result of the "Battle of the Ex-iled" twist, they continued to work together until Sarah decided to send Bananas into the final Dome elimination against Leroy, which stunned Bananas and eventually sent him and his partner Nany home.^[5][6][7]

• Brandon & Briana: Briana disagreed with the way Brandon was playing the game during their appearance on Are You The One? Season 2, especially with Brandon's unwillingness to separate from Christina.^[8][4]

• Cory & Ashley: The pair met as roommates during their original season of Real World: Ex-Plosion. They got along until Ashley got drunk and disrespected Cory by telling him she could buy his family. After that night, they continued to be on bad terms. After Ashley faced disagreements with many housemates, said she would only stay if the other roommates wanted her there. Cory was one of the four housemates to vote Ashley out, leading to her voluntary departure.^[9][10]

• Dario & Nicole: The two got into a huge argument with a bunch of people on Battle of the Bloodlines where Dario tried voting in Nicole's cousin Nany into The Pit.^[11][12]

• Devin & Cheyenne: The two got into multiple fights Are You The One? Season 3, as a result of Cheyenne taking exception to the way Devin treated women in the house (especially Kiki).^[13][4]

• Jamie & KellyAnne: The two engaged in a verbal scuffle during Battle of the Bloodlines, after Anthony Cuomo, KellyAnne's cousin, purposely threw a challenge ("Too Clingy") in an unsuccessful attempt to save KellyAnne from The Pit. The two are also rumored to have gotten into many other arguments.^[14][15]

• Johnny & Jessica: Jessica never got along with Johnny and Averey during their original season on The Real World: Portland, as Jessica was called out for constantly needing attention by multiple housemates. Jessica also sided with Nia during a tense night out between Nia and Averey. They got into multiple verbal fights where Johnny made denigrating remarks regarding Jessica's weight, calling her a "defect," which made her cry multiple times, and on an aftershow, Johnny disapproved of Jessica refusal to condemn Nia's behavior in the house. Their rivalry continued on Free Agents, where Jessica voted for Johnny to go into the elimination round (which was cancelled due to Frank Sweeney's unexpected departure).^[16][17][18]

• Leroy & Averey: Leroy & Nia eliminated Averey & Johnny on Battle of the Exes II. On an episode of the aftershow, Leroy stated that he believed Johnny's side of the story regarding Johnny and Averey's breakup, mouthing off on-stage that she was a liar.^[19][4]

• Nate & Christina: The two began to grow close on their season of Are You The One? Season 2, with both feeling that they could be a perfect match. However, when it was discovered that they were not, the ease with which Christina decided to go back to Brandon infuriated Nate, causing him to belittle her and claim her feelings for him were never real. Christina, in turn, started an actual relationship with Brandon.^[20][4]

• Thomas & Simone: The pair had gotten into a verbal altercation during Battle of the Exes II, which featured Simone splashing drinks in Thomas' face. This fight had gone un-aired on the actual season, but was shown in the Battle of the Exes II trailer. The fight was revealed to be over Thomas not minding his business and Simone getting angry.^[21][4]

• Tony & Camila: The two got into a verbal argument on Battle of the Bloodlines after Camila was informed by her sister, Larissa Nakagawa, that Tony called Larissa "short, weak, and that she would be the first person eliminated from the game." Tony defended himself by calling it lies, but later he confessed that he was being sarcastic. The fight escalated when Nicole Ramos stepped in the defense of the Nakagawa sisters, and Nany González came in the defense of her bloodline Nicole. The fight was stopped with Tony walking away and Camila crying because she didn't want her sister to be bullied by anyone.^[22][23]

• Vince & Jenna: Jenna was annoyed by Vince during Battle of the Bloodlines. Vince (and his bloodline Bananas) also threw Jenna (and her bloodline Brianna Julig) into every elimination possible, and eventually, Jenna always came back and made it further in the game than Vince.^[24][4]

• Wes & Nany: The two were on rival teams on Battle of the Exes II. Wes and Nany's partner, Johnny Bananas, battled for supremacy within the game. As a result, Wes and Theresa González sent Nany and Bananas into the Dome versus their friends and allies, Leroy and Nia. Nany and Bananas were eliminated, but later re-entered the game via the "Battle of the Ex-iled" twist. Later in the game, Wes and Theresa were sent into an elimination against Leroy and Nia. During the "Hall Brawl" elimination, Wes was injured after being run into by Leroy, to which Nany laughed and taunted Wes as payback for their earlier animosity in the game.^[25][26][27]

Gameplay

Challenge games

• Give Me Some Slack: A platform is suspended 400 feet above the ocean. A series of five skulls is dangling from the platform. The girls are positioned outward at one plank, facing the dangling skulls, while their male partners are positioned on the other side of the platform, holding a rope that is attached to the backs of their female partners. The goal is for each girl to lean forward and retrieve as many skulls as possible, or in the fastest time, and deposit the skulls into their team bucket. Each successive skull becomes more difficult for each girl to reach, and a team is disqualified if the female partner falls off the plank. The team to retrieve the most skulls wins, while the last-place finisher is automatically sent to the elimination round.^[4]
  • Winners: Vince & Jenna

Game summary

Elimination chart

Episode		Challenge winners		Elimination contestants				Elimination game	Elimination outcome
#	Challenge			Last-place finisher		Winner's pick			Winning team		Losing team
1/2	Give Me Some Slack		Vince & Jenna		Johnny & Jessica		TBD in Episode 2	TBD in Episode 2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11/12

Episode progress

Teams		Episodes
		1/2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	Final
	Bananas & Sarah	SAFE
	Brandon & Briana	SAFE
	Cory & Ashley	SAFE
	Dario & Nicole	SAFE
	Devin & Cheyenne	SAFE
	Jamie & KellyAnne	SAFE
	Johnny & Jessica
	Leroy & Averey	SAFE
	Nathan & Christina	SAFE
	Thomas & Simone	SAFE
	Tony & Camila	SAFE
	Vince & Jenna	WIN
	Wes & Nany	SAFE

Competition

     The team won the final challenge.

     The team lost the final challenge.

     The team won the challenge and was safe from the elimination round.

     The team was not selected for the elimination round.

     The team was selected for the elimination round, but did not have to compete.

     The team won in the elimination round.

     The team lost in the elimination round.

     The team was disqualified from the competition due to physical violence.

     The team was removed from the competition due to illness/injury.

Episodes

No. in season	No. in series	Title	Original air date	U.S. TV first-run viewers (million)
1	343	"Mexican Standoff"	May 4, 2016	0.66[28]
2	344	"The Curse of the Black Skull"	May 11, 2016	TBD
3	345	"The Replacements"	May 18, 2016	TBD
4	346	"I'm Going Home"	May 25, 2016	TBD

Notes

References

1. "Sneak Peek: Rivals III at MTV.com".
2. "The Challenge: Rivals III cast at MTV.com". April 4, 2016. Retrieved April 4, 2016.
3. Joseph, Natalie (September 17, 2015). "MTV stars encourage students to vote at Decision 2016 event". Longwood University — The Rotunda. Retrieved September 17, 2015.
4. "The Challenge: Rivals III Episode 1 "Mexican Standoff" – Video at MTV.com".
5. "The Challenge: Rivals III Promo – Bananas & Sarah – Video at MTV.com".
6. "The Challenge: Battle of the Exes II Episode 10 "Lovers In the Dark" – Video at MTV.com".
7. "The Challenge: Battle of the Exes II Episode 11 "Bye Bye, Love" – Video at MTV.com".
8. "The Challenge: Rivals III Promo – Brandon & Briana – Video at MTV.com".
9. "The Challenge: Rivals III Promo – Cory & Ashley – Video at MTV.com".
10. "Ex-otic Encounters". Real World: Ex-Plosion. Season 29. Episode 4. January 29, 2014. MTV.
11. "The Challenge: Rivals III Promo – Dario & Nicole – Video at MTV.com".
12. "The Challenge: Battle of the Bloodlines Episode 5 "A House Divided" – Video at MTV.com".
13. "The Challenge: Rivals III Promo – Devin & Cheyenne – Video at MTV.com".
14. "The Challenge: Rivals III Promo – Jamie & KellyAnne – Video at MTV.com".
15. "The Challenge: Battle of the Bloodlines Episode 8 "Blood is Thicker Than Mud" – Video at MTV.com".
16. "The Challenge: Rivals III Promo – Johnny & Jessica – Video at MTV.com".
17. "Pantsfall". The Real World: Portland. Season 28. Episode 8. May 15, 2013. MTV.
18. "The Challenge: Free Agents Episode 3 "You Be Illin'" – Video at MTV.com".
19. "The Challenge: Rivals III Promo – Leroy & Averey – Video at MTV.com".
20. "The Challenge: Rivals III Promo – Nate & Christina – Video at MTV.com".
21. "The Challenge: Rivals III Promo – Thomas & Simone – Video at MTV.com".
22. "The Challenge: Rivals III Promo – Tony & Camila – Video at MTV.com".
23. "The Challenge: Battle of the Bloodlines Episode 1 "There Will Be Blood" – Video at MTV.com".
24. "The Challenge: Rivals III Promo – Vince & Jenna – Video at MTV.com".
25. "The Challenge: Rivals III Promo – Wes & Nany – Video at MTV.com".
26. "The Challenge: Battle of the Exes II Episode 5 "Love, Sweat, and Tears" – Video at MTV.com".
27. "The Challenge: Battle of the Exes II Episode 10 "Lovers In the Dark" – Video at MTV.com".
28. "Wednesday cable ratings: NBA Playoffs land on top". May 5, 2016. Retrieved May 5, 2016.

External links

• Official website