The Challenge 40: Battle of the Eras

Battle of the Eras is the 40th season of The Challenge. This season features 40 of the biggest names in the game, each representing one of four "eras" of The Challenge, as they compete for a share of $1 million. Production took place between March and May 2024.

A launch special titled, The Challenge 40 Battle of the Eras: Eras Only, aired on August 7.

Description[]

The longest-running reality competition series MTV's The Challenge will embark on its monumental 40th season beginning Wednesday, August 14 at 8PM ET/PT. The Challenge 40: Battle of the Eras will feature 40 legendary competitors from the series' 26-year history representing their "Challenge Era" in an epic battle for the ages where legends will collide as they strive to immortalize their names as Challenge 40 Champions and earn their share of the one million dollar prize.

Format[]

The game will initially be played in four teams. Each team will compete in several challenges, followed by elimination rounds in the Arena. Each challenge, one man and one woman from each team are "targeted" for the Arena by the previous elimination winners. They will be their team's captains for the challenge. The winning team's captains are safe from the elimination, while the losing team's captains are automatically sent to the Arena. The winning captains will then deliberate with the remaining Targets, and they will then choose who will compete against the losers in the Arena. In the Arena, the players will compete as individuals. The winners will target one man and one woman from each team for the next challenge.

The game turns into an individual format after seven team challenges. Eliminations are split by gender, and the order was decided by a coin toss prior to the first individual challenge. The winner of the designated gender is safe, while the winner of the opposite gender has the power to send one of the Targets against the last-place finisher. The losing player of the non-designated gender earns a penalty for the next challenge. The winners of the elimination will then select three Targets for the next challenge.

Twists[]

Era Invitational: Before the game officially begins, players will compete within their own Eras to determine which eight will move on as a team. During the "Light It Up" challenge, the top man and woman from each team are safe, and they will choose who will compete against the last-place finishers of their Era.
Karma Vote: Eliminated players will rank the remaining players from one to five. These points could affect who becomes the Champions of the season.
Targets: The previous elimination winners will choose who from each team will be targeted for the elimination. The Targets will become the team captains of the next challenge. The men choose the women and vice versa.
Every Person for Themselves: After the first eight challenges, the game turns into an individual competition.
Purge Challenge: The last-place man and woman were eliminated during the "Duned" challenge.

Contestants[]

Era I
Contestant		Finish
	Rachel Robinson Road Rules: Campus Crawl	In the Game
	Derrick Kosinski Road Rules: X-Treme	Eliminated in The Era of the Gladiator
	Darrell Taylor Road Rules: Campus Crawl	Eliminated in Trust in Your Era
	Tina Barta Road Rules: South Pacific	Eliminated in Trust in Your Era
	Brad Fiorenza The Real World: San Diego (2004)	Eliminated in My Real Friends Era
	CT Tamburello The Real World: Paris	Eliminated in An Era Tradition
	Aneesa Ferreira The Real World: Chicago	Eliminated in My Trivia Era
	Jodi Weatherton Road Rules: X-Treme	Eliminated in A Fatal Era
	Katie Cooley Road Rules: The Quest	Eliminated in The Era Invitational, Part 2
	Mark Long Road Rules: USA – The First Adventure	Eliminated in The Era Invitational, Part 2

Era II
Contestant		Finish
	Cara Maria Sorbello Fresh Meat II	In the Game
	Derek Chavez The Real World: Cancun	In the Game
	Johnny Bananas The Real World: Key West	In the Game
	Aviv Melmed Fresh Meat	Eliminated in Thinking Thin Era
	Nehemiah Clark The Real World: Austin	Eliminated in The Era of the Purge
	Laurel Stucky Fresh Meat II	Eliminated in The Era of the Purge
	Ryan Kehoe Fresh Meat	Eliminated in A New Era
	Emily Schromm The Real World: D.C.	Eliminated in An Era Tradition
	Brandon Nelson Fresh Meat II	Eliminated in The Era Invitational, Part 2
	KellyAnne Judd The Real World: Sydney	Eliminated in The Era Invitational, Part 2

Era III
Contestant		Finish
	Jordan Wiseley The Real World: Portland	In the Game
	Tori Deal Are You the One? 4	In the Game
	Cory Wharton Real World: Ex-Plosion	Eliminated in Must Win Era
	Nia Moore The Real World: Portland	Eliminated in Payback Era
	Devin Walker Are You the One? 3	Eliminated in An Era of One
	Averey Tressler The Real World: Portland	Eliminated in The Era of the Gladiator
	Jonna Mannion The Real World: Cancun	Eliminated in My Real Friends Era
	Tony Raines Real World: Skeletons	Eliminated in A Fatal Era
	Leroy Garrett The Real World: Las Vegas (2011)	Eliminated in The Era Invitational, Part 2
	Amanda Garcia Are You the One? 3	Eliminated in The Era Invitational, Part 2

Era IV
Contestant		Finish
	Jenny West Survival of the Fittest	In the Game
	Kyland Young Big Brother 23	In the Game
	Michele Fitzgerald Survivor: Kaôh Rōng	In the Game
	Josh Martinez Big Brother 19	Eliminated in Swinging Era
	Olivia Kaiser Love Island USA 3	Eliminated in Best Friends 4Era
	Theo Campbell Love Island UK 3	Eliminated in The Era of the Purge
	Kaycee Clark Big Brother 20	Eliminated in An Era of One
	Horacio Gutiérrez Jr. Exatlón Estados Unidos 5	Eliminated in My Trivia Era
	Nurys Mateo Are You the One? 6	Eliminated in The Era Invitational, Part 2
	Paulie Calafiore Big Brother 18	Eliminated in The Era Invitational, Part 2

Game Summary[]

Episode		Winners		Arena matchup			Arena game	Arena outcome
#	Challenge	Winners		Last-place		Winners' pick	Arena game	Winner	Eliminated
1/2	Light It Up	Tori		Nia		Amanda	Balls In	Nia	Amanda
		Cory		Leroy		Tony	Balls In	Tony	Leroy
		CT		Mark		Derrick	Pole Wrestle	Derrick	Mark
		Rachel		Katie		Aneesa	Pole Wrestle	Aneesa	Katie
		Horacio		Theo		Paulie	Hall Brawl	Theo	Paulie
		Michele		Nurys		Olivia	Hall Brawl	Olivia	Nurys
		Laurel		KellyAnne		Cara Maria	Take Shelter	Cara Maria	KellyAnne
		Bananas		Ryan		Brandon	Take Shelter	Ryan	Brandon
#	Challenge	Team	Saved	Last-place		Winners' pick	Arena game	Winner	Eliminated
3	Gladieater	Era III	Tony	Darrell		N/A^[1]	One Step at a Time	Darrell	Tony
3	Gladieater	Era III	Averey	Jodi		N/A^[1]	One Step at a Time	Averey	Jodi
4	Cradled Cranium	Era II	Laurel	Jenny		Aneesa	Pick It Up	Jenny	Aneesa
4	Cradled Cranium	Era II	Bananas	Horacio		Derrick	Pick It Up	Derrick	Horacio
5	Fast Pass	Era IV	Olivia	Tina		Emily	Getting Hammered	Tina	Emily
5	Fast Pass	Era IV	Kyland	CT		Nehemiah	Getting Hammered	Nehemiah	CT
6	Cloud Catcher	Era IV	Josh	Brad		Cory	To the Point	Cory	Brad
6	Cloud Catcher	Era IV	Jenny	Rachel		Jonna	To the Point	Rachel	Jonna
7	Leap of Faith	Era III	Nia	Michele		Tina	Boxster-phobia	Michele	Tina
7	Leap of Faith	Era III	Jordan	Kyland		Darrell	Boxster-phobia	Kyland	Darrell
8	Battle for Honor	Era IV	Jenny	Rachel		Averey	Fate of the Gladiators	Rachel	Averey
8	Battle for Honor	Era IV	Theo	Derrick		Cory	Fate of the Gladiators	Cory	Derrick
9	Bottoms Out	Era I	Rachel	Devin		Kyland	Cable Connection Showdown	Kyland	Devin
9	Bottoms Out	Era I	Rachel	Tori		Kaycee	Cable Connection Showdown	Tori	Kaycee
#	Challenge	Winners		Last-place		Winners' pick	Arena game	Winner	Eliminated
10	Fire Away	Jordan	Tori	Michele	Ryan	Bananas	Killer Quads	Bananas	Ryan
11	Building Bridges	Jenny	Kyland	Nia	Theo	Michele	Forty-fication	Michele	Nia
12	Duned	Kyland	Tori						Laurel
									Nehemiah
				Michele	Theo	Bananas	Cramping Out	Bananas	Theo
13	40 Yard Dash	Cara Maria	Jordan	Cory	Michele	Olivia^[2]	Stranded	Michele	Olivia
14	'Nother Trucker	Derek	Rachel	Aviv	Josh	Cory	Coming from Behind	Cory	Josh
15	Tight Quarters	Kyland	Tori	Aviv^[3]	Bananas	Jenny	Iron Triangle	Jenny	Aviv
16	Fire Plunge	Jordan	Tori	Cara Maria	Derek	Cory^[4]	Closing Time	Derek	Cory
17

Note: Players listed in bold earned a penalty at the next challenge.

Episode Progress[]

Contestants	Episodes
Contestants	1/2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17
Bananas	WIN	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	ELIM	SAFE	ELIM	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE
Cara Maria	ELIM	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE
Derek	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	ELIM
Jenny	SAFE	SAFE	ELIM	WIN	WIN	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	ELIM	SAFE
Jordan	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	WIN
Kyland	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	WIN	ELIM	WIN	ELIM	SAFE	WIN	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	SAFE
Michele	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	WIN	ELIM	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	ELIM	SAFE	ELIM	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE
Rachel	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	ELIM	SAFE	ELIM	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE
Tori	WIN	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	ELIM	WIN	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	WIN
Cory	WIN	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	ELIM	WIN	ELIM	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	ELIM	SAFE	OUT
Aviv	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	OUT
Josh	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	WIN	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	OUT
Olivia	ELIM	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	WIN	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	OUT
Theo	ELIM	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	WIN	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	OUT
Nehemiah	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	ELIM	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	OUT
Laurel	WIN	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	OUT
Nia	ELIM	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	OUT
Ryan	ELIM	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	OUT
Kaycee	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	WIN	SAFE	WIN	OUT
Devin	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	OUT
Derrick	ELIM	SAFE	ELIM	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	OUT
Averey	SAFE	ELIM	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	OUT
Darrell	SAFE	ELIM	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	OUT
Tina	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	ELIM	SAFE	OUT
Jonna	SAFE	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	OUT
Brad	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	SAFE	OUT
CT	WIN	SAFE	SAFE	OUT
Emily	SAFE	SAFE	WIN	OUT
Horacio	WIN	SAFE	OUT
Aneesa	ELIM	SAFE	OUT
Jodi	SAFE	OUT
Tony	ELIM	OUT
Brandon	OUT
KellyAnne	OUT
Nurys	OUT
Paulie	OUT
Katie	OUT
Mark	OUT
Leroy	OUT
Amanda	OUT

Competition: The contestant won the Final Challenge.; The contestant lost the Final Challenge.; The contestant won the challenge, was safe, and selected the elimination nominees.; The contestant's team won the challenge.; The contestant was not selected for the Arena.; The contestant was targeted for the Arena.; The contestant was targeted but was exempt from elimination.; The contestant placed last and earned a penalty for the next challenge.; The contestant won in the Arena.; The contestant won the challenge but was sent into the Arena and won.; The contestant lost in the Arena.; The contestant won the challenge but was sent into the Arena and lost.; The contestant was eliminated at the challenge.

Notes[]

↑ Averey & Tony were unable to come to a decision and were sent into the Arena as a result.
↑ Because Cara Maria won and Michele placed last, no deliberation was necessary and Olivia was automatically sent to the Arena.
↑ Aviv was disqualified from the "Tight Quarters" challenge for breaking through one of the barriers in the tunnel and going in the wrong direction. She did not find and solve the first puzzle.
↑ Because Jordan won and Derek placed last, no deliberation was necessary and Cory was automatically sent to the Arena.

Episodes[]

Episode		Original Air Date	Viewers (in millions)
1	"The Era Invitational, Part 1"	August 14, 2024	0.43
2	"The Era Invitational, Part 2"	August 21, 2024	0.47
3	"A Fatal Era"	August 28, 2024	0.41
4	"My Trivia Era"	September 4, 2024	0.48
5	"An Era Tradition"	September 18, 2024	0.41
6	"My Real Friends Era"	September 25, 2024	0.38
7	"Trust in Your Era"	October 2, 2024	0.52
8	"The Era of the Gladiator"	October 9, 2024	0.38
9	"An Era of One"	October 16, 2024	0.38
10	"A New Era"	October 23, 2024	0.40
11	"Payback Era"	October 30, 2024	0.40
12	"The Era of the Purge"	November 6, 2024	0.42
13	"Best Friends 4Era"	November 13, 2024	0.42
14	"Swinging Era"	November 20, 2024	0.34
15	"Thinking Thin Era"	December 4, 2024	0.48
16	"Must Win Era"	December 11, 2024	TBD
17	"Location Change Era"	December 18, 2024	TBD

Trivia[]

This season features the largest cast ever, with 40 contestants competing.
Nearly every flagship season of The Challenge is represented with this cast, with the only exceptions being Road Rules: All Stars, Challenge 2000, Extreme Challenge, and Battle of the Seasons (2002).
- Additionally, every spin-off season is represented except for the three international seasons: The Challenge: Australia, The Challenge: Argentina, and The Challenge: UK.
Da'Vonne Rogers and Devyn Simone made a surprise appearance as co-hosts of the "Eras Only" launch special with TJ Lavin.

The Challenge Seasons

Road Rules: All Stars • Real World/Road Rules Challenge • Challenge 2000 • Extreme Challenge • Battle of the Seasons (2002) • Battle of the Sexes • The Gauntlet • The Inferno • Battle of the Sexes 2 • The Inferno II • The Gauntlet 2 • Fresh Meat • The Duel • The Inferno 3 • The Gauntlet III • The Island • The Duel II • The Ruins • Fresh Meat II • Cutthroat • Rivals • Battle of the Exes • Battle of the Seasons (2012) • Rivals II • Free Agents • Battle of the Exes II • Battle of the Bloodlines • Rivals III • Invasion of the Champions • Dirty 30 • Vendettas • Final Reckoning • War of the Worlds • War of the Worlds 2 • Total Madness • Double Agents • Spies, Lies & Allies • Ride or Dies • Battle for a New Champion • Battle of the Eras

[1] Averey & Tony were unable to come to a decision and were sent into the Arena as a result.

[2] Because Cara Maria won and Michele placed last, no deliberation was necessary and Olivia was automatically sent to the Arena.

[3] Aviv was disqualified from the "Tight Quarters" challenge for breaking through one of the barriers in the tunnel and going in the wrong direction. She did not find and solve the first puzzle.

[4] Because Jordan won and Derek placed last, no deliberation was necessary and Cory was automatically sent to the Arena.

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