The Challenge: Ride or Dies premiere episode arrived in full force on MTV with a cast featuring former finalists and champions, as well as rookies trying to make moves in the game.
Those rookies include Love Island’s Johnny Middlebrooks with his teammate Ravyn Rochelle and international stars such as Colleen Schneider from The Mole and Nurys Mateo from Ex on the Beach.
Newcomers on the show tend to make their share of mistakes, though, and it’s no secret that they also become targets for the vets to send into elimination early and often.
As of right now, it’s uncertain if any rookies might’ve made mistakes, but Kailah Casillas and Sam Bird are questioning two in particular for one of their decisions.
The husband-wife duo took to Kailah’s Instagram Story following the premiere episode, where they suggested fans need to ask those rookies what they were thinking.
This report will contain spoilers from The Challenge Season 38 premiere episode.
The Challenge 38 spoilers: Rookies wanted to make bold move early
In Ride or Dies Episode 1, two rookies may have set the tone for the season based on their performance and strategic gameplay. The team of Johnny and Ravyn picked up a win for an all-rookie pair in the daily challenge, giving them power in the game.
Host TJ Lavin revealed they could choose four other teams to interrogate, and later, they’d choose one team to send into elimination at The Zone.
Johnny and Ravyn decided to make a big move early, as they targeted strong veteran competitors. They choose the teams of Kailah with Sam, Laurel Stucky with rookie Jakk Maddox, Colleen with her teammate Kim Tranka, and Devin Walker with Tori Deal.
At The Zone, Johnny and Ravyn made their big decision, saying they wanted to take out a strong team. They chose Kailah and Sam for elimination, shocking many people.
Based on a twist in the game called The Draw, the other three teams had to draw daggers with visible black handles from a rock at the arena venue.
Upon drawing daggers to reveal their blades, one was marked “Safe,” and that team was safe from elimination. That team also got to choose one of the other teams to save from going into elimination.
Rookies Colleen and Kim drew the “Safe” dagger and elected to save fellow rookie Jakk with his vet teammate Laurel. That meant Tori and Devin went into elimination.
The veteran duo competed against Kailah and Sam in a giant battle featuring maze puzzles with five balls trapped in them. Devin and Tori picked up the win due to the husband-wife duo having some communication issues.
With that, Kailah and Sam were done for the season. Kailah mentioned in her exit interview with Sam that she didn’t feel great about being the first team eliminated from Ride or Dies.
Kailah and Sam react to rookies’ decision
Following the Ride or Dies premiere airing, Kailah got on her Instagram Story with Sam by her side. In a video clip (seen below), she calls out the rookies, Johnny and Ravyn, for their decision.
“Johnny and Ravyn pick me and Sam, who’s never been on The Challenge because they want to make a point,” Kailah said.
“If you want to make a point, you pick Devin and Tori,” Sam added, mentioning several times he’s not a vet and has never been on MTV’s The Challenge.
“We love Devin and Tori, by the way,” Kailah threw into the discussion, adding, “[Ravyn and Johnny] wanted Challenge vets, and I haven’t been on for two years, and Sam has never been on before. For some reason, they choose us. Why is that reason? Please ask them. I would love to know.”
Kailah last appeared on MTV’s The Challenge during the Total Madness season, which featured her aligning with friends Jenna Compono and Nany Gonzalez. She eventually got eliminated by castmate Kaycee Clark.
However, she returned for the spinoff show, The Challenge: All Stars 3, and reached the final after forming a strong alliance with several other cast members. Kailah finished as a runner-up to winner Jonna Mannion among the women competing in the final.
So it’s possible Johnny and Ravyn did their homework ahead of the season or were aware of Kailah being a strong player and targeted her early due to All Stars 3.
However, Tori and Devin were part of a huge veteran alliance in MTV’s Spies, Lies & Allies season, with the alliance getting rid of most rookies one by one. Ultimately Tori and Devin were among seven vets who reached the final with one rookie.
With Ride or Dies, Devin, Tori, and other vets will likely start going after Johnny and Ravyn, along with other rookies. Now that they’ve finished the season and know of the dagger twist, one has to wonder if the rookies may have done things differently or would’ve repeated the move.
The Challenge: Ride or Dies airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on MTV.