With so many bright personalities in one place, showmances and hookups tend to happen on MTV’s competition series The Challenge. That was the case early on with the Ride or Dies premiere episode.
Not only was there an early hookup and budding showmance, but a teammate that felt discarded by her partner in the game. That created the potential for a love triangle during Season 38 and some drama along the way between castmates.
Rookie competitor Ravyn Rochelle gained an early spotlight as she arrived to the show with Love Island’s Johnny Middlebrooks as her teammate, and things got interesting quickly.
Despite Ravyn believing she and Johnny might work on their relationship or at least their friendship during the season, Johnny had a different idea for his time on the show.
He became attracted to castmate Nurys Mateo, with other cast members witnessing them making out before filming started. That ended up causing some frustration from his teammate.
Ravyn recently took to social media to share her thoughts about the situation as she reflected on that and her “proud moment” from the first episode.
This report will contain some spoilers from the premiere episode of The Challenge: Ride or Dies.
Ravyn and Johnny were star Ride or Dies rookies
In The Challenge Season 38, Episode 1, there was a selection of returning veterans and eager rookies, with many looking to set the tone for the season ahead. Fans were introduced to Johnny and Ravyn Rochelle, who were labeled friends, although Ravyn seemed to want something more.
During the premiere episode, veteran cast member Nelson Thomas commented about how the cast saw his teammate, Nurys, making out with Johnny before filming started. They continued their flirting beyond that. That development led to Ravyn getting some hurt feelings.
During a scene when the cast had been partying at the house, Nurys and Johnny were seen flirting and making out in front of castmates. A confessional interview arrived, with Ravyn commenting about the situation.
“I feel very upset, and I’m feeling very alone. I had intentions on coming in here and building our friendship/relationship with him, and now that he’s putting his energy elsewhere, I just don’t know how this is going to affect our game,” Ravyn shared.
As footage continued to show highlights of Johnny and Nurys flirting, Ravyn spoke to Nurys’ teammate, Nelson, about the situation. He asked her if they’d “crossed that path before.”
“It ran across my mind, but now that’s dead and gone. Like, now I can just keep my head in the game,” she told him.
Somehow, the rookies managed to get past that, as Johnny and Ravyn went on to win the season’s opening daily challenge. That gave them some early power in the game and the ability to make a power move when it came to alliances and elimination.
Ravyn reacts to Johnny’s hookup/showmance
Taking to her Instagram and Twitter, Ravyn shared several thoughts about the Ride or Dies premiere episode. She spoke of the “proud moment” with her partner as the rookie duo won the daily challenge to set the tone for the season.
However, she clearly wasn’t happy with what else happened involving her and her teammate in the premiere episode.
“Who saw last night’s first episode of @thechallenge?!?! ROOKIES WINNING OUR FIRST EVER DAILY CHALLENGE. regardless of the other bulls*** it was a proud moment with my partner @johnny_lee & it wasn’t a rookie bloodbath. thanks for all the support and loveee,” she wrote.
Ravyn also tweeted a reply to a fan on Twitter (shown in the IG post below), where the fan questioned how Johnny could brush off a gorgeous woman like Ravyn.
“Thank you. some men are just stupid tho,” she wrote in her tweet reply.
In addition, Ravyn answered fan questions via her Instagram Story, with one fan asking if she was getting feelings for her Challenge teammate.
“I was…not anymore,” Ravyn said in a video clip answer in the second slide below.
Ravyn also suggested that she probably should’ve made a move for veteran castmate Nelly T, based on another tweet reply.
She retweeted a clip from @thechallenge, which highlighted Johnny and Nurys’ showmance and spoke of a “love triangle” early in the Ride or Dies season.
“Should’ve snagged Nelson but I don’t move outta spite & Olivia started feeling him.. respected it,” Ravyn said in her retweet.
Fans of The Challenge have seen Nelson in his share of showmance and love triangle situations, including early in Season 37. The multi-time competitor initially was hooking up with veteran castmate Ashley Mitchell until he started vibing with rookie Berna Canbeldek. That caused early drama, with Ashley getting upset over the situation.
Nelson and Berna ultimately didn’t work out, and Nelly T came into Ride or Dies single. In the premiere episode, yet another Challenge rookie, Olivia Kaiser, caught Nelson’s attention quickly.
Based on Season 38 trailers, Nelson’s teammate Nurys may develop something with another castmate, so it should be interesting to see what happens with Johnny and Ravyn.
The Challenge: Ride or Dies airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on MTV.
Episodes of The Challenge are now streaming on Paramount+. Try it FREE!
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