The Challenge: Ride or Dies winner Devin Walker should have given some of the prize money to Sarah Rice following Johnny Bananas’ betrayal.
After winning The Challenge: Ride or Dies, Devin Walker should have split some of the prize money with fellow alum Sarah Rice. Devin managed to pull off an impressive win with his partner, Tori Deal, securing both of them the title of Challenge champion for the first time. After winning, Devin and Tori continued the trend started a season prior by winners Chris “CT” Tamburello and Kaycee Clark, where the two winners evenly split the prize money with every other finalist. However, this time around, there was one other person who should’ve gotten a portion of the prize despite her absence from the season.
Sarah was a fan-favorite throughout the several seasons she competed in, but now Sarah won’t return to The Challenge due to the tragic end of her second winning season, The Challenge: Rivals III. On Rivals III, Sarah competed alongside her partner, Johnny Bananas, and mended their broken relationship by rebuilding trust and communicating well throughout challenges. At the end of the season, Bananas and Sarah were the winning team. However, a twist allowed Bananas the option to take the entirety of the $275,000 prize to himself. Without hesitation, Bananas took the money, leaving Sarah with nothing.
The Challenge’s Devin Claims He Would’ve Given Sarah Money
Speaking to Hollywood Life, Devin revealed that he intended to partially share the money with one other person. Devin claimed, “I also want to add that I asked TJ if I could give Johnny’s $38,000 to Sarah [Rice] and he said no!“ Although it’s unclear whether Devin was joking considering the fact that he and Bananas have mended their friendship, either way, Sarah really should have received Bananas’ share of the prize money out of fairness.
The Challenge’s Bananas Has Won 7 Seasons
In total, Bananas has won seven seasons of The Challenge, making him the record-holder for the most number of overall wins. The combined total of all the prize money throughout those seven seasons, as well as the 2nd or 3rd place finishes where he also received a smaller cash prize, is over $1.1 million. Although Devin and Tori sharing the money was a kind gesture, Bananas really doesn’t need more money from The Challenge. Sarah, however, was never given the prize money that she fairly earned due to Bananas’ selfish actions on The Challenge: Rivals III.
The Challenge Needed An Exciting Ending
Another major advantage to allowing Devin to give Sarah a portion of the money is potential drama for the show, which it’s been severely lacking as of late. When Bananas took the money from Sarah in Rivals III, the moment instantly became iconic for how shocking it was. More recent seasons of The Challenge could use a jaw-dropping moment, and Devin giving Bananas’ designated portion of the money to Sarah would have been very unexpected, not to mention satisfying for those who feel Bananas was wrong.
Although it will likely remain a mystery whether Devin was serious about giving Sarah a portion of the money, it would have been amazing to see. Considering how much The Challenge: Ride or Dies lacked excitement, one final moment to catch viewers off guard could have changed the reputation of the season. Likewise, it would have been a conclusion to a season-long storyline that lacked closure due to Sarah never returning to The Challenge. Either way, Devin and Tori’s gesture to give their prize money away was incredibly touching.
The Challenge: Ride or Dies airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. EST on MTV.
Source: Hollywood Life