Challenge Dirty 30 Player Preview: Derrick Kosinski
After months of campaigning, the Diesel himself has returned to the Challenge, Mr. Derrick Kosinski. Where has America’s favorite pitbull been? He was out in the Coal Mines, working an honest living, providing for his wife and kids. The relationship was never best, and she kept him from doing the Challenges, which was tough for someone like Derrick.
Derrick is 5'7 and in great shape, but until you see him compete, it’s hard to grasp how much of a badass that he truly is.
What’s so likable about Derrick is that he is a normal dude. Hard-working, loyal, and honest; he loves to party and have sex with hot girls, and is one of the bros. He watches Game of Thrones, he support his Chicago Bulls, and has an affinity for Deadpool, Derrick is a superhero posing as anevery-man.
Derrick is a real life David, taking down 1 Goliath at a time. In his day to day life, he’s not able to wrestle 230 lb men in the sand, he’s not able to get in a 1 on 3 riot shield fight, and he’s not able to hold a giant check up in the air after a glorious win. This man is one of America’s great athletes and has not been able to prove it the last few years. He’s gotten super into CrossFit since leaving the Challenge, here’s his profile:
From his cast photo, Derrick looks like he is in better shape now than when he was winning Challenges, his chest is bigger, and body looks all around more muscular. He did not want to come into this show without making a bang. Being older actually helps on this (especially if you’re a male). If you keep yourself in shape, the edge of age is huge, the ability to not get caught up in the bullshit of 20 year olds and Camila, allows you play a better, smarter game. The Challenge is a sport that benefits having experience over everything. It’s not normal to be 50 feet in the air, those that are more used it can adjust easily. When Bananas sees a Challenge versus when a rookie sees it, the strategies are way different. After doing so many oddball stuff, everything looks the same or builds off of each other.
Since his divorce, Derrick has dove right back into the MTV and Challenge universe. He wants to be a good father (which he is), wants to be a man again, and wants to have fun. If you follow his Twitter, he cares about this game so much as a fan of the show and MTV. Derrick has done Q & A’s for the Challenge Facebook Group, always interacts with fans on Twitter, and done various podcasts. Derrick lives for this, and it makes me so happy as a fan that he gets his chance to come back and wreak havoc on the game.
Now here’s a review of Derrick as a competitor, as well as his social media handles:
Skills & Physical Strength: Around 5'7 at a 165 lbs, Derrick is no heavyweight. However, he is strong like a bull, a person who can push twice his weight, carry his whole body weight, and lift himself up easily. Not the build you want if you’re going to play Hall Brawl, the build you want if you’re going to succeed in daily missions and agility games.
One of Derrick’s strengths is his balance and footwork. He’s almost like a monkey when it comes to climbing and sprinting, he has great hops, and good grip strength which comes in handy in multiple missions. His swimming should be fine, and he’s never even gassed out in a final. He carried either Tonya or Tina during the Inferno 2 final, pretty impressive for a guy of his stature. This one of the people you want to run a final with from a physical standpoint.
Social & Political Game: One would assume that he will be playing the game with Johnny. He was a major part of the JEK Dynasty, really it was more or less the DEK dynasty feat Bananas. If you remember from the Island and the Ruins, Derrick has gotten annoyed in the past with Bananas antics. Evan and Kenny were always the ones who made sure that Derrick didn’t beat Johnny’s ass. In this new environment, it will be interesting to see how it all plays out. Since they haven’t been doing Challenges together, it has been easier for them get along. Derrick is not a book smart person, he has street smarts and is able to sniff out bullshit, while Johnny is a world class bullshit artist. The dynamic of the two will be interesting to watch.
Being a veteran, he will be looking to be the chill guy early on, and from there he will key in on winning. The positive is that despite not being on a Challenge since Cutthroat is that he has been so active on social media that everyone has been pulling for him to come back on the show. Many of the people on the show are either friends with Derrick or fans of him, they’re probably pushing to keep him around.
Derrick and puzzles do not get along. He can figure out how to do tangrams, but problems solving puzzles and riddles he may suffer from without a partner. It’s easy to make fun of Cory and Nicole, Derrick’s had the same struggles.
Eliminations: With an elimination record of 7–4, Derrick holds the second most elimination wins in Challenge history by a male competitor (tied with LeRoy). The two of them are also in an elite group to have ever won 4 eliminations in a season. Derrick has good wins under his resume too: Brad, Adam Larsen, Syrus, and Tyler. Most of his losses are to bigger guys in size based eliminations.
Derrick is not the classic model for someone who is good at eliminations. Not big, not a puzzle person, and not a rat, yet he has an edge to him. Almost like Allen Iverson, Derrick attacks his opponent head on with the thought that he is going to get the win any way he can. It’s not an edge of being an old school player, it’s a Derrick thing.
Final Potential & Endurance: 9 seasons in, Derrick is a 3 time Champion, back to win his fourth title, and join elite company with Darrell and Bananas as the only competitors to win more than 3 Challenges. Before Derrick went on a 3 peat from the Inferno 3 to the Island to the Ruins, he had a famed history of never being able to win a Challenge, and always losing at the end.
On the Inferno 2, after Bad Asses kicked butt all season, Tonya flopped in the final after a night of drinking (Tina also did poorly), while the Good Guys had cut all their fat. For the Gauntlet 2, he famously lost the last elimination to Timmy after coming so far all season. When he made it to the final four of Fresh Meat 1, he had to see the final elimination against Darrell/Aviv, where they were completely outmatched. In the Duel, he faced Wes and had the most epic Pole Wrestle that we have ever seen, ending in another loss for Derrick.
Derrick must love CT, as CT getting thrown out on the Inferno 3, got him added as a replacement. From there, he couldn’t stop losing. Then his last appearance on Cutthroat, he lost the final elimination to Tyler, classic.
He’s back again, and he always kills the physical portions of finals. Derrick getting to the final is key for him to win — something he hasn’t done in a pair/individual season.
Final Score: 94/100
