The Challenge: USA Finale Recap: Who Defeated The Odds To Become The Game's Newest Champions?
It all comes down to this.
On Thursday's finale of The Challenge: USA, the eight finalists — Desi, Chanelle, Michaela, Tori, Bananas, Chris, Cory and Faysal — all have their eyes on the prize, but only one man and one woman will walk away with a check for $250,000.
TJ tells them that Day 1 will be comprised of four trials: strength, smarts, skill and a steel stomach. For each trial they win, they'll get a one-minute head start on the next part of the final, which will be a 10-mile foot race. But if they get last place, there'll be docked with a one-minute penalty. They also have the option of doubling down on each trial, essentially risking two-minute penalties to potentially receive two-minute advantages. So if they think they're going to win a particular game, they can risk it for the biscuit... but they can only do that one time each.
TRIAL 1: STRENGTH | Cory doubles up on this task, which challenges players to drag sleds up a large hill, adding four boxes of weight as they go. Chris wins for the men, while Cory takes the two-minute penalty. Michaela wins for the ladies; Tori takes the L.
TRIAL 2: SMARTS | It's a spelling bee! Spell words right, earn a point. The most points after five words wins. Desi and Chris both double down. (The five words are alliances, schmoozing, deceitful, vengeance and ascending.) At the end of the trial, Bananas and Desi win (plus two for Desi!), while Cory and Tory lose out.
TRIAL 3: SKILLS | The players must fill a puzzle board with colored tiles, but they can't have four of the same color in a row horizontally, vertically or diagonally. Tori, Bananas and Michaela all double down. Tori wins (thereby cancelling out her two-minute deficit), while Faysal wins for the men. The losers: Desi and Cory.
After the first three trials, Cory already has a four-minute penalty. All of the loss is hard for him to take. "How are my daughters going to view me now, as a loser?" he says. "I feel like I just lost the whole final."
TRIAL 4: STEEL STOMACH | Here's what's on the menu: a tofu and sauerkraut smoothie, some sort of mealworm/cricket-drizzle concoction, a wasabi cracker stack and some loaded chili truffles. Sounds appetizing — let the vomiting commence!
Thanks to Desi's "symphony of gags" comment, we get a nice little montage of puking that's accompanied by some beautiful music. Bananas and Tory, no rookies to gross eating challenges, win the time advantages. Chanelle and Cory lose. (Compared to other seasons, these players got off easy, right?)
DAY 2 | The only thing standing in their way of the money is a 10-mile race up a treacherous mountain. There are risk stations along the way. The first two are optional. Complete the task, get an advantage; fail to complete it and there will be consequences! The third risk station, however, is mandatory.
Oh, and another thing: The last man and woman to get to the second risk station will be eliminated.
Here's how all of the starting times shake out: Bananas starts first with a two-minute head start; Chris, Michaela, Tori, Faysal and Desi have a one-minute head start; Chanelle has a one-minute penalty; and Cory has a five-minute penalty.
Risk station no. 1 is an axe-throwing challenge. If they nail the target in front of them with one of five axes, they can shave 1.2 miles from the run. Bananas nails it on his first shot and off he goes, with Chris right behind him. Faysal misses all five shots, so he's taking the long way, along with Tori. Desi, Michaela, Cory and Chanelle also earn the shortcut.
Did I mention they all have to carry a 20-30 pound rock with them?
At risk station no. 2, they must balance a bunch of heavy rocks on a large scale. When they pull the lever, if everything's appropriately balanced, they can drive an ATV for the next mile. Chris earns the wheels and hops to it, but Faysal accidentally takes the shortcut he didn't earn. TJ sends him aaaaall the way back, which really opens things up for Cory.
Who else wins ATVs? Desi, Cory and Chanelle. As for Tori and Faysal, they're last to arrive to the second station, so they're both out.
Risk station no. 3 forces players to stack concrete blocks in the order that their competitors were eliminated. Once completed, they will gain access to the summit.
Everyone gets it done and begins the ascent to the top, but no one can stop Chris from winning the whole shebang. Four eliminations, two grueling days and 10 miles later, Chris is now both a Survivor and Challenge winner! Impressive, indeed.
Which woman made it to the top first? It wasn't Michaela — skipping the ATV task takes a toll on her body and she's not able to finish. But Desi maintains her lead and powers through, becoming the champ for the ladies.
So let's hear it: Did the right people win? Grade the finale and season below, then let us know your thoughts in the comments.