The Challenge: Ride or Dies Reunion Part 1 arrived with Maria Menounos returning as the host. There were 12 teams in the studio for the event, including winners Tori Deal and Devin Walker.
They were joined by the other finalists: Jordan Wiseley and Aneesa Ferreira, Nany Gonzalez with Johnny Bananas, and Horacio Gutierrez and Olivia Kaiser. Some of the other teams included Faysal Shafaat and Moriah Jadea, Michele Fitzgerald and Jay Starrett, Jakk Maddox with Laurel Stucky, and Nelson Thomas with Nurys Mateo.
Things started with a big reveal as Maria asked Amber Borzotra what her secret was since she was “especially glowing.” Amber revealed she was pregnant and surprised castmates went over to hug and congratulate her.
One of the first arguments arrived with the love triangle rookies: Johnny Middlebrooks, Ravyn Rochelle, and Nurys.
Nurys started going at it with Ravyn, who said she felt alone without her Ride or Dies partner. Ravyn was in tears and said she felt led on by Johnny going into the season and didn’t feel he was a true ride or die for her. Nurys told her to find new friends.
Nurys also said she went to Johnny after the season to tell him about her showmance with Jordan. She also revealed she and Johnny hooked up again. Ravyn called out Nurys for hooking up with several people as she did, but Nurys said she didn’t care what Ravyn or anyone thought.
Ride or Dies cast members discuss hookups and beefs
Faysal Shafaat got a fan question called “Hook up, Ride or Die, or Eliminate?” His options were rookie Colleen Schneider, Laurel Stucky, and Michele Fitzgerald. He said to eliminate Colleen because she wasn’t there, and he could go “either-or” with Laurel or Michele.
Veronica Portillo got into it with Bananas because she’d called out his previous relationships and his Ride or Dies showmance with Moriah. However, Johnny and Moriah were still seeing each other at the time of the reunion, which Darrell Taylor said surprised them.
Michele and Laurel’s situation came up. Michele talked about how Laurel’s energy switched up at one point. Laurel brought up how she slipped one night when walking to Fessy’s room and had a large bruise or bump on her leg.
Jay Starrett mentioned how he tried to contact Jakk after filming to hang out. Jakk said he didn’t do so because Jay wanted to bring a camera along to make Instagram content. Jay said he is a legitimate photographer and asked if Jakk was “nuts.”
Mariah asked how Fessy and Moriah became Ride or Dies. He said he’d seen Moriah on Instagram, but she didn’t reply to his messages until he had gone on Big Brother and became “verified” on Instagram. Moriah said she’d had a boyfriend for a while and was loyal.
Fessy tried to say Moriah wanted a boyfriend when she finally messaged him. However, Moriah called out Fessy, saying they used to hang out daily and were good friends, but he’s only friends when it’s “convenient” for him.
There was some heated discussion between exes Tori and Jordan about the situation where Jordan had promised not to send Fessy into elimination but did so anyways because he doesn’t “negotiate with terrorists.”
Ride or Dies finalists talk about brutal injuries and losing the final
Maria congratulated the Ride or Dies winners, Tori and Devin. Bananas said they didn’t fail due to bickering but said he and Nany lost the final on a “boneheaded mistake.” He took responsibility and said, “we let the game get away from us.”
Maria brought up how Aneesa rolled her ankle and then destroyed her knee in the elimination against Nany. A teary-eyed Aneesa said she’d been so close and was ready to “risk everything” to win a final. Knowing about Aneesa’s injuries, Nany said taking on her friend at that moment was hard.
There were also props given to Nany for displaying some serious eating skills with all that pasta and bread they had to chow down on during the final.
Olivia claimed doctors said she could’ve died from the slingshot backfiring if it had hit her face differently. She broke her face in five places. Horacio talked emotionally about how difficult it was to do so well during the season and have the final end for them as it did. He said he didn’t think that was the last time viewers would see them. Kaycee Clark talked up the rookies’ performance.
Nany and Maria discuss losing their loved ones
Maria mentioned how Nany unexpectedly lost her mother before filming Ride or Dies. Maria started to cry because she’d also lost her mother. Nany said her mom was born and raised in the Dominican Republic, came to the United States with nothing, and was so important in her life.
“No matter what you go through in life. No matter what brings you down. You always get back up,” Nany said her mom taught her.
Maria told Nany she was watching and grieving while episodes played due to also losing her mother. Nany said she felt bad that she was taking away from her girlfriend Kaycee’s experience due to what she was dealing with. They expressed their love for each other.
Nany also thanked Bananas for being there for her during the season, saying it wouldn’t go unnoticed. Maria said she knows Nany’s mother would be proud of her season.
Turbo drama with Ride or Dies castmates gets teased
Maria brought up a heated debate about how some fans feel cast members shouldn’t be able to help during eliminations by yelling advice or tips. In particular, they showed the eliminations involving Horacio and Olivia, where they defeated Turabi “Turbo” Camkiran and Tamara Alfaro, or Jay and Michele’s loss to the rookies.
Most cast members seemed to think it was perfectly fine to help castmates. Jordan said it’s been going on forever in The Challenge. Michele noted that others were making it impossible for her and Jay to communicate during her and Jay’s elimination, which was an essential part of that elimination.
Devin joked that nobody cared when everyone was helping the rookies in their elimination against Turbo. Maria said it’s always important to get both sides of the story, so they should hear from Turbo.
“Blubbing his b***h a** out,” Devin yelled as the credits rolled to end the reunion’s first part. A teaser trailer for Part 2 arrived after, showing potential altercations involving Aneesa, Nurys, and Moriah.
The Challenge: Ride or Dies Reunion Part 2 airs Wednesday, March 1 at 8/7c on MTV.
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