Breakups
9 Messiest ‘Challenge’ Breakups: From Divorces to Showmances Gone Wrong
Although many players try to abide by the rule of “never fall in love on The Challenge,” the hit MTV show has still produced plenty of romances over the years. While many pairs simply have flings that don’t last past one season, some relationships have gone on to continue in the real world.
But many of those romances have come to an end, and some of the splits have gotten pretty messy. Scroll down to relive some of the worst Challenge breakups of all-time.
The Challenge: All Stars, Wednesdays, 8/7c, MTV
9. Johnny Reilly and Averey Tressler
Johnny Reilly and Averey Tressler started dating after meeting on The Real World: Portland in 2012. She even moved to Boston to be with him after the show.
However, by the time Reilly appeared on The Challenge: Free Agents in 2014, their relationship was in a fragile place. He claimed that Tressler had cheated on him, which she denied. Then, Reilly hooked up with Nany Gonzalez on the show, which hurt Tressler. When they both returned for Battle of the Exes II and were partnered up, they were not on good terms and had a hard time working together.
8. Laurel Stucky and Nicole Zanatta
Laurel Stucky and Nicole Zanatta met on The Challenge: Invasion of the Champions in 2016. Things got off to a rocky start when Zanatta expressed interest in Sorbello first, but eventually began pursuing Stucky when the Massachusetts native made it clear she wasn’t interested.
Stucky and Zanatta split in 2017 and then appeared on Ex on the Peak the following year. Stucky revealed that she wanted answers about what happened, as she suspected Zanatta had cheated on her. Zanatta admitted that she was caught “chatting” with other people before the breakup.
The exes rekindled their relationship while filming The Challenge: All Stars in 2023. However, by the beginning of 2024, they had split again, and were not shy about calling each other out on social media. Zanatta even rubbed her new relationship in Stucky’s face by posting a photo with her girlfriend captioned, “This is what a healthy relationship looks like.” Stucky accused Zanatta of cheating when they were together, commenting, “Hope you’re not secretly cheating on her too.”
Zanatta fired back with her own claims against Stucky, writing, “She doesn’t have a tendency to get UNHINGED, or a THIEF (a person who steals another person’s property, especially by stealth and without using force or violence) than [sic] proceeds to play phone tag.” The back-and-forth continued and does not seem to have been resolved.
7. Johnny Bananas and Morgan Willett
Johnny Bananas and Morgan Willett met on The Challenge: War of the Worldsin 2018. After being eliminated from the show early, they did a lot of traveling together, which sparked romance rumors. The two eventually went public with their relationship but called it quits in 2021.
Willett accused her ex of cheating. “The person I truly loved more than anything else cheated on me and I found out and I had to leave. I don’t know what else to say but I physically hurt,” she wrote on Instagram at the time.
The Big Brother alum has since spoken publicly about the cheating claims, which Bananas has never denied, and their breakup in general. She also re-upped the drama with her ex by recalling being in a “narcissistic relationship” in a 2024 TikTok video. While she didn’t reference Bananas specifically, she told a story about an ex allegedly burning her balloons with a flamethrower at one of her birthday parties, which the seven-time champ reposted and responded with clown emojis.
6. Zach Nichols and Jonna Mannion
Zach Nichols and Jonna Mannion started dating after meeting on Battle of the Seasons in 2012. After Nichols moved to Los Angeles to be with Mannion, they had a messy breakup. She described the situation as him literally waking up and walking out on her one morning without an explanation.
The exes were partnered on Battle of the Exes in 2014. “I’ve wanted nothing to do with her since we broke up,” he said at the time. “She’s got some animosity towards me, so we’ve got to settle that right away if we plan on doing anything in this Challenge.”
Things were extremely tense between them during filming, and Nichols faced backlash for his poor treatment of Mannion on the show. However, he finally publicly apologized to her when she appeared on his podcast in August 2024.
5. Danny Jamieson and Melinda Stolp
Danny Jamieson and Melinda Stolp made it all the way to the altar after meeting on The Real World: Austin. They got married in 2008, but on The Challenge: Cutthroatin 2010, Stolp confirmed that they were in the midst of a divorce.
Although things never got too out of hand (at least publicly) with these two, they were one of the few couples to actually make it down the aisle before the relationship imploded. Both stars returned to compete on The Challenge: Battle of the Seasons in 2012, where they were forced to work together on the same team. “I think we worked pretty well together, considering everything,” Stolp admitted.
4. Ryan Knight and Jemmye Carroll
Things were volatile from the get-go between Ryan Knight and Jemmye Carroll when they met on The Real World: New Orleans in 2010. They dated for two years, but eventually split after he cheated on her. The two had a big fight on Rivals II when Knight famously threw ketchup at Carroll to get a rise out of her.
The exes were forced to come together as teammates on The Challenge: Battle of the Exes II in 2014. “When we first got the call about the show we were on horrible terms,” Carroll admitted. “Like, we couldn’t even have a phone call conversation without yelling at each other.” They were able to leave the show as friends and were on OK terms when Knight died in November 2014.
“I just hope that, despite all the s*** we went through – because God knows we did go through a lot of s*** – that he knew how much I truly love him,” Carroll said after Knight’s death.
3. Cara Maria Sorbello and Abram Boise
Cara Maria Sorbello and Abram Boise met on The Challenge: Cutthroat and began an on-and-off five-year relationship. The romance was often described as “volatile,” and it ended when she cheated on him with Thomas Buell during The Challenge: Bloodlines. Boise wound up joining the cast of Bloodlines as a late competitor, so she was forced to come face-to-face with him after the indiscretion.
While Sorbello has not publicly spoken specifically about what happened between her and Boise before the incident, fans have speculated that the pair’s relationship was extremely toxic, especially since they were known to have ups and downs over the years.
2. Wes Bergmann and Johanna Botta
Wes Bergmann and Johanna Botta met on their season of The Real World: Austin in 2005. They continued dating after the show ended, and eventually got engaged and bought a home together.
However, by 2008, the couple had ended things. Botta confirmed the split at the reunion show for The Challenge: Gauntlet III. The following season, she hooked up with Kenny Santucci on The Island. All three reality stars then appeared on The Ruins, which led to a lot of tension. Although the majority of the drama was between Bergmann and Santucci, Botta was clearly stuck in the middle.
1. Brad Fiorenza and Tori Hall
Tori Hall and Brad Fiorenza met on The Challenge: Gauntlet III in 2008. Despite being on opposing teams, they began a relationship and eventually tied the knot in April 2010. They welcomed sons in August 2011 and January 2015. After winning The Challenge: Cutthroat on the same team, the pair separated in 2015 and finalized their divorce the following year.
“When we grew up and realized the things that we wanted in life … we realized we agreed on nothing. The only thing we agree on is our two kids,” Hall told Us Weekly in 2018.
Things turned messy between the exes the following year when Fiorenza accused Hall of keeping their sons from him. He posted many lengthy messages against her on social media, which she responded to by saying, “When I hear of Brad saying something or tweeting irrational, I try to go to the mindset that he is hurting, and hurt people hurt people. I will always encourage the boys to have a relationship with their dad. Always. To say otherwise is simply untrue.”
There were also reportedly child support issues between the exes, although the case was sealed from the public.
Hall has gone on to remarry, tying the knot with Dusty Gwinn in 2020. They welcomed a child together in September 2021. Fiorenza briefly dated Britni Nicol after The Challenge: Vendettas in 2018, and then was in a private relationship before ending things in 2023.
