MTV’s The Challenge is back for Season 38, with the title Ride or Dies, as cast members enter the game paired up with a close friend, family member, or ally from the show.
A total of 34 competitors will participate in the season, including returning favorites such as seven-time champion Johnny Bananas, three-time champion Jordan Wiseley, and former champions Laurel Stucky and Turabi “Turbo” Camkiran.
Rookies will be part of the game, including Big Brother’s Tommy Bracco and Analyse Talavera, Love Island’s Olivia Kaiser, and Are You the One? star Nurys Mateo.
Each of these cast members partners with a specific teammate they’ll have to work with through daily challenges, eliminations, and the game’s politics to try to win their share of a million dollars in prize money.
Host TJ Lavin will return to preside over the competition series, fresh off his appearance as the host of CBS’ spinoff, The Challenge: USA.
Here are more details about The Challenge Season 38 partners that will be competing to try to win Ride or Dies.
MTV reveals The Challenge: Ride or Dies cast
On Thursday, The Challenge unveiled their official trailer for Season 38, with the Ride or Dies theme presented to fans. The trailer featured various cast members in action as they performed daily challenges, battled in eliminations, or engaged in drama with one another.
As mentioned, 34 individuals make up The Challenge: Ride or Dies cast, split into teams of two. Each cast member is paired up with a friend, family member, or close ally from The Challenge.
Bananas, the player with the most wins in Challenge history, will return after two seasons off. He teams up with his friend and ally from the show, Nany Gonzalez, who was amongst the Spies, Lies & Allies finalists.
So was her girlfriend, Kaycee Clark, who won Season 37. Kaycee is back to defend her championship without Chris “CT” Tamburello. Instead, she’s brought her brother Kenny Clark as her teammate. He is one of several competitors with no experience in reality TV.
Season 37 finalists Tori Deal and Devin Walker are back to try to outdo their Spies, Lies & Allies finish. They’ll be teammates for this season, something Tori mentions never expecting years ago, based on their history.
Speaking of Tori, her ex-fiance is also in the game, which Jordan and Challenge fans may have never expected. He’ll team up with Tori’s best friend, Aneesa Ferreira, for this Ride or Dies season.
Free Agents winner Laurel Stucky was last seen during the War of the Worlds 2 season, with that shocking elimination exit against “Ninja” Natalie Duran. For Season 38, Laurel is teaming up with Jakk Maddox. They appeared as castmates on MTV’s Ex on the Beach: Peak of Love.
Former War of the Worlds winner Turabi “Turbo” Camkiran is back to try to win again. Fans last saw him making a dramatic exit from that War of the Worlds 2 season due to his altercation with Jordan. For Ride or Dies, Turbo has brought his girlfriend, Tamara Alfaro.
Several other former champions are part of the season. Double Agents winner Amber Borzotra returns, teaming up with her boyfriend, personal trainer Chauncey Palmer. Fresh off their appearance in The Challenge: All Stars 3, OGs Darrell Taylor and Veronica Portillo will also team up for Ride or Dies.
Fessy and Nam return, rookies ready to make an impact
Several returning Spies, Lies & Allies stars are looking to improve upon disappointing Season 37 exits. Among them is Nam Vo, who was hoping to advance farther into the game than his rookie season on Double Agents. Unfortunately, he had a medical DQ in Season 37 after one episode.
He’s back for another try and will team up with rookie Emmy Russ from Beauty and the Beast Germany. Fans will look forward to seeing the Ultimate Beastmaster star again after he seemed a potential strong contender in Double Agents.
Big Brother star Fessy Shafaat also had an abrupt exit from Spies, Lies & Allies, thanks to that altercation with his friend Josh Martinez. After they yelled at one another for a bit, Fessy shoved Josh away by his face, resulting in Fessy’s disqualification from Season 37.
For Ride or Dies, Fessy teams up with rookie Moriah Jodea, a social media influencer and model. Fessy’s shown confidence and swagger each season, but will this finally be his season to win?
Two Survivor stars will also join forces after unsuccessful tries in previous seasons. Michele Fitzgerald is the only rookie to return from Spies, Lies & Allies. This time, she teams up with two-time Challenger Jay Starrett, who has shown promise in his two seasons.
Nelson Thomas is yet another returning finalist from Season 37. Fans saw him lose to Kyle Christie in a Day 2 elimination purge, ending his chances at any prize money. For Ride or Dies, Nelson partners with Nurys from AYTO and Ex on the Beach.
Viewers saw veteran Kailah Casillas return after several seasons away from The Challenge as part of the stacked cast of All Stars 3. She’s back with her husband Sam Bird to compete in Ride or Dies, with her All Stars Treehouse ally Veronica also part of this cast.
In terms of rookies, several will join this cast as teammates. Big Brother stars Tommy and Analyse will team up to compete, as will Olivia and Horacio Gutierrez. Love Island’s Johnny Middlebrooks will team up with his friend Ravyn Rochelle.
Prince Charming’s Kim Traenka and The Mole Germany’s Colleen Schneider are the final rookies partnering up for The Challenge: Ride or Dies.
These newcomers will give fans a new group of competitors to root for or against, along with their MTV favorites, as they watch the competition show unfold in a battle for that big prize money!
The Challenge: Ride or Dies premieres Wednesday, October 12, at 8/7c on MTV.