‘Ancient beef’ between ‘The Challenge’ legends flares up heading into episode 2

The Era Invitational continues this week on The Challenge: Battle of the Eras, where the first eliminations of Season 40 will send eight player packing before the end of Episode 2, including at least one “Challenge” legend. “The Era Invitational, Part 2″ airs on Wednesday, August 21 (8/21/2024) at 8 p.m. ET.

STREAM: The Challenge 40: Battle of the Eras on Philo (free trial).

In Part II of the season 40 premiere of “The Challenge,” a.k.a. “The Challenge: Battle of the Eras,” the challengers arrive at the Arena after pleading their cases for survival. Sixteen players will enter, only eight will return, but the losers will get to give a karmic “parting gift” to the remaining players, according to the episode description.

Already, Challenge All-Star Cara Maria Sorbello finds herself in the hot seat after finishing just seconds behind arch rival Laurel Stucky in the first challenge. On social media this week, Cara called out Laurel directly for her treatment over the years, saying her fellow Challenger only wants to “beat me down and make sure the world knows I’m beneath her.”

How can I watch “The Challenge” for free?

Cord cutters can sign up for Philo (free trial), DirecTV Stream (free trial) or fuboTV (free trial) to stream “The Challenge” premiere episode live for free.

Cable subscribers can login on MTV.com with their cable credentials to stream the new episode for free.

What channel is “The Challenge” on?

MTV.

Channel finder: Verizon Fios, Xfinity, Spectrum, Optimum/Altice, Cox, DirecTV

What happened last week on “The Challenge”?

Fans can watch all previous episodes of “The Challenge: Battle of the Eras,” Season 40, on Philo.

In the season premiere, fans met the 40 players who are competing on Season 40 of the Challenge, which is a collection of most of the show’s most beloved and high-profile contestants over the past three decades of The Challenge, Real World and Road Rules. That list includes storied seven-time winner Johnny Bananas, recent All-Stars 4 winner Laurel Stucky, and reigning champion of The Challenge: World Championship Jordan Wisely.

Players were divided into teams, by era, and tasked with completing a multi-part challenge, the Eras Invitational, involving a block puzzle, boat race and retrieval objective, with the losing man and woman from each era automatically headed towards elimination, and the winning male/female pair tasked with nominating their competition from the other six players in each era.

That left CT Tamburello & Rachel Robinson (Era I), Stucky & Bananas (Era II), Cory Wharton & Tori Deal (Era III) and Horacio Gutiérrez & Michele Fitzgerald (Era IV) in the power position. The losers were Mark Long & Katie Cooley (Era I), KellyAnne Judd & Ryan Kehoe (Era II), Nia Moore & Leroy Garrett (Era III) and Nurys Mateo & Theo Campbell (Era IV).

In the deliberations, everything old was new again, as ancient beef between Cara Maria and Laurel Stucky resurfaced despite Cara’s plea for a reset, Nurys fretted about her betrayal by Olivia (and Michele) on Battle for a New Champion, and fans were reminded for the trillionth time that Jordan and Tori used to date (and were even engaged). Oh, and who can forget Paulie and Theo’s extremely adult past behavior that seems like a lock for the arena in Part II?

But fans were left on a cliffhanger, which Episode 2 will gleefully resolve for us when it heads for the Arena, and the first eliminations of the season. After that, it will feel like a proper start to the season, which is set to air episodes all the way into December this year. Buckle up.

Who is on The Challenge Season 40?

Era I: Seasons 1-10

• Tina Barta
• Katie Cooley
• Aneesa Fereira
• Brad Fiorenza
• Derrick Kosinski
• Mark Long
• Rachel Robinson
• CT Tamburello
• Darrell Taylor
• Jodi Weatherton

Era II: Seasons 11-20

• Derek Chavez
• Nehemiah Clark
• Johnny “Bananas” Devenanzio
• KellyAnne Judd
• Ryan Kehoe
• Aviv Melmed
• Brandon Nelson
• Emily Schromm
• Cara Maria Sorbello
• Laurel Stucky

Era III: Seasons 21-30

• Tori Deal
• Amanda Garcia
• Leroy Garrett
• Jonna Mannion
• Nia Moore
• Tony Raines
• Averey Tressler
• Devin Walker
• Cory Wharton
• Jordan Wiseley

Era IV: Seasons 31-39

• Paulie Calafiore
• Theo Campbell
• Kaycee Clark
• Michele Fitzgerald
• Horacio Gutiérrez Jr.
• Olivia Kaiser
• Josh Martinez
• Nurys Mateo
• Jenny West
• Kyland Young

What is “The Challenge: Battle of the Eras” about?

According to MTV, “The Challenge is a reality competition battle across a series of contests for the chance to win money. Contestants endure brutal challenges, devastating elimination rounds, steamy hookups and bitter rivalries.”

But “The Challenge” Season 40 is about so much more than that. It’s a giant love letter to more than three decades of MTV’s “Real World,” “Road Rules” and, of course, “The Challenge,” that brings together the biggest icons from the show’s many eras for one titanic clash.

What are the differences between the streaming services?

Philo is a live TV streaming service focused on entertainment channels like MTV, Paramount Network, Discovery and more. It offers 70+ channels for the budget-friendly price of $28 per month. It has unlimited DVR, and can be streamed on all your favorite app-enabled devices. Right now, you can try Philo free for 7 days.

FuboTV is a live TV streaming service focused on live sports, including U.S. and international soccer, the NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL and more. It also includes its own fubo Sports Networks with exclusive programming. It offers 190 channels starting at $79.99, includes unlimited DVR, and streams on most devices. Right now you can try fuboTV free for 7 days.

DirecTV Stream is comparable to FuboTV, as it provides similar channels and functionalities. Their basic package, priced at $79.99 per month with a free trial, includes just over 90 live TV channels. You can explore all of DirecTV Stream’s channel packages on their website. Right now, new subscribers can get DTV Stream for $49.99 for three months for a limited time.

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