Challenge War of the Worlds 1; What if the Vets picked their partners?

If you have ever wondered how the Challenge War of the Worlds 1 had been if the Veterans had gotten to pick their rookie partners similar to other Fresh Meat seasons, then lucky for you, I spent way too much time trying to project and breakdown how it would go down.

We start by figuring out who the Veterans would have picked as partners. Most selections get based on performance in the first challenge.

Men’s Draft of Female Rookies

Paulie selects Natalie first overall. It’s a natural choice as she did the best in the first challenge and was a Ninja Warrior. Johnny picks Morgan second because they immediately clicked while in the house. With the third pick, CT takes Mattie, he sees her size and makes a savvy move by going for her despite her suboptimal performance in the first challenge. Zach takes Georgia because he is impressed by how she did in the first challenge. Leroy takes Julia fifth overall based on her performance in the challenge and her fit look. Wes picks Dee sixth; it’s who he always wanted. Hunter selects Shaleen seventh, and Kyle gets Zahida.

Women’s Draft of Male Rookies

Da’Vonne picks Bear first overall as she is aware that he won the UK version of Celebrity Big Brother and the fact that he would have good connections with the rest of the UK group. Kam takes Ash second as he’s an impressive physical specimen, killed the first challenge, and has a UK connection via Kayleigh. Nany chooses Theo third as he excelled in the first challenge and is a pro sprinter. Ashley picks Turbo fourth. Natalie takes Chase fifth; I think his overall size would have made him look like the right choice. Amanda’s taste for Latin men draws her to JP at sixth. Jenna takes Gus as he’s the last male left at seventh. Cara gets saved by a returning Josh.

Daily Challenge 1: Arms-a-geddon Tired

TJ allowed the teams to pick their opponents based on how the Vets did in the first challenge. Since we did the opposite for selecting teammates, we will be doing the opposite for this, and the rookies’ performance will decide the order.

Ash and Kam pick JP and Amanda because they are small; unfortunately, it’s a suboptimal choice as Amanda has good upper body strength (she and Josh won this challenge the first time). Paulie and Ninja pick Kyle and Zahida because Paulie feels the need to beat Kyle. The difference between Ninja and Zahida in this challenge is massive. Bear and DaVonne face Gus and Jenna, a repeat of the actual events. Another repeat in Bananas and Morgan facing Dee and Wes, where if you remember, Bananas won. Theo and Nany take on Josh and Cara, and this one is tough to figure out who will win because Theo and Cara won this challenge together the first time, but they’re now facing each other. Likewise, Josh is facing Theo now. Zach and Georgia take on Chase and Natalie, and I think Zach/Georgia are both quite a bit stronger. Turbo and Ashley take on Hunter and Shaleen, where a stalemate likely occurs. CT and Mattie versus Leroy and Julia; I don’t see either CT or Leroy trying too hard on the first challenge.

Winners: Paulie/Ninja, Bananas/Morgan, Zach/Georgia

Paulie/Ninja nominate Kyle and Zahida, Bananas/Morgan nominate Hunter and Shaleen, and Zach/Georgia nominate Amanda and JP.

Nominees: Kyle/Zahida, Hunter/Shaleen, JP/Amanda

While Zach would like to vote in Amanda, he agrees with Bananas that Hunter is the bigger target in the immediate future. Hunter picks Ashley as his opponent as retribution for her taking a million dollars from him. Considering it came down to the women when it was Hunter/Georgia vs. Ashley/Chase, I am going to say that Ashley very likely beats Shaleen without even considering how Turbo would do against Hunter (probably a coin flip).

Hunter goes from making the final to eliminated first by the person who took a million dollars from him.

Tribunal Pick: Hunter/Shaleen
Called Out: Turbo/Ashley
Eliminated: Hunter/Shaleen

Daily Challenge 2: Search & Destroy

The daily challenge had players running to find a ball hidden in barracks and then bring it back to their teammates who must run the ball through the mud pit and to the finish line. I had to rewatch this episode to see which of the males/females got balls for their teammates first.

HEAT 1

Turbo and Gus get balls for their teammates first again, and they pass the finish line with nobody attacking them. The same goes for Zach with Georgia (instead of Zahida). Josh got a ball very quickly for Amanda, but she ended up wrestling with Georgia for a long time. Cara is not getting wrestled down as fast. JP gets a ball to Amanda, and without Georgia to fight her, she gets to the finish line.

In the end, Natalie cannot out wrestle the other girls; neither can Zahida, and Dee only was able to get a ball the first time around by stealing it from Shaleen.

Turbo — Ashley, Gus — Jenna, Zach — Georgia, Josh — Cara, JP — Amanda, Paulie/Ninja, Ash — Kam, Bear — Day, CT — Mattie, Theo — Nany, Leroy — Julia, Bananas — Morgan

Out: Kyle/Zahida, Wes/Dee, Chase/Natalie

HEAT 2

Bananas/Morgan, Josh, and Amanda did not make it to the second round initially. This time around, I am projecting them to do poorly only because they didn’t make it to this point originally, and it’s difficult to project them as they’re not exceedingly better than those we’ve seen succeed or those who might be better.

Kam — Ash, Ninja — Paulie, Bear — Day, Julia — Leroy, Jenna — Gus, Zach — Georgia, Mattie — CT, Nany — Theo, Ashley — Turbo

Out: Cara/Josh, Amanda/JP, Bananas/Morgan

HEAT 3

Gus finds a ball quickly in this one. CT gives his extra ball to Wes, but because Wes is out, he donates the extra ball to Zach. Julia got her ball stolen from her, but with Mattie as CT’s new partner, she passes the finish line with the ball.

Gus — Jenna, Zach — Georgia, CT — Mattie, Paulie — Ninja, Kam — Ash, Turbo — Ashley

Out: Nany/Theo, Julia/Leroy, Day/Bear

HEAT 4

Ash muscles the ball away from Gus, and Paulie takes advantage like in the actual daily challenge. In the end, I project Mattie and Kam as the two most physically imposing women to be able to pass the finish line with the ball.

Winners: Paulie/Ninja, CT/Mattie, Kam/Ash

Paulie nominates Kyle per usual, Kam nominates Amanda/Josh as a path of least resistance and CT votes in Bear/Day as they are the closest to being a rookie team.

Nominees: Kyle/Zahida, Amanda/JP, Bear/Day

Paulie is the only person who truly cares about his nominee going into elimination, Kam and CT follow as it only puts blood on Paulie’s hands. Kyle and Zahida call out Chase and Natalie as they are allies with Paulie and an easy target.

In this geography-based elimination, Kyle can traverse the rock climbing easier with his slimmer frame. Zahida won this elimination with Zach when they were supposed to throw it, so I assume they’ll be able to beat Chase and Natalie.

Tribunal Pick: Kyle/Zahida
Called Out: Chase/Natalie
Eliminated: Chase/Natalie

Daily Challenge 3: Fallout

In this daily challenge, players would jump onto a giant bag and then hurl themselves off the bag and attempt to tag a buoy on the other side. I am going to say, Ninja, Turbo, and Georgia win this challenge again as their partners are either the same, similar or even better.

Winners: Paulie/Ninja, Ashley/Turbo, Zach/Georgia

Paulie nominates Jenna as she gets included in the Kyle/Zach camp. Zach nominates Josh and Cara as Paulie nominated his girlfriend, and Ashley puts Theo in the tribunal as their fight from the first episode continues into the season now that Ashley did not get eliminated immediately.

Nominees: Jenna/Gus, Theo/Nany, Josh/Cara

Paulie and Ninja use their votes on Jenna and Gus, while Ashley and Zach get on the same page to throw in mutual enemy Cara Maria. By a vote of 3–2–1 (Turbo stray vote), Josh and Cara go into elimination. They call out Jenna and Gus. Since it is a triple elimination, Jenna and Gus call out Amanda and JP, as she and Amanda do not have a great history.

In the male elimination, it comes down to JP, Josh, and Gus. I did a wheelspin since they seem all kinda even-ish, and Gus ended up the victor. (Note: I wrote this before Josh’s elimination on Wednesday). For the female elimination, pole wrestle is Cara’s game, and Amanda/Jenna definitely would not work together. Cara wins and continues in the game with her new partner, Gus.

Tribunal Pick: Josh/Cara
Called Out: Jenna/Gus
Called Out: JP/Amanda
Eliminated: JP/Amanda, Josh, Jenna

Newly Formed Team: Gus and Cara

Daily Challenge 4: Tired Out

This daily challenge is all about endurance, with players running laps and stacking tires in the desert in order or size. What made this challenge especially tough when projecting is that there were four solid teams during this challenge. Paulie and Ninja win outright again, as that is a lock. Gus finished 4th in this challenge with Jenna, so you can assume he’d do better with Cara. Theo and Nany won this challenge with their respective partners. While Ashley is a strong player with good endurance, she and Turbo are going to be put out in 4th place, only since Ashley did not participate in this challenge in the actual season.

Winners: Gus/Cara, Theo/Nany, Paulie/Ninja

Gus and Cara nominate Zach and Georgia as revenge. Theo and Nany chose Turbo and Ashley for the same reason. And then Paulie and Ninja nominate Kyle and Zahida because Paulie loves Kyle.

Nominees: Zach/Georgia, Turbo/Ashley, Kyle/Zahida

In the voting, Cara and Paulie choose to vote Kyle in again. Ashley and Theo continue to be annoyed that they can’t throw each other into the nomination floor. Kyle calls Wes and Dee into elimination. Despite liking Wes, Kyle has more connections to different teams from past seasons, and the rest connect via the big British alliance.

It is the same elimination in which Wes and Dee defeated Zach and Zahida in, and Zach is much better with puzzles than Kyle. It is an easy win for Wes and Dee as they pick up the relic.

Tribunal Pick: Kyle/Zahida
Called Out: Wes/Dee
Eliminated: Kyle/Zahida

Daily Challenge 5: Doom Buggy

For this challenge, players had to race across tires and detach them while the tires get pulled by a monster truck. It was one of the hardest challenges to project as a decent amount of people left in the game did not participate in this challenge. Because so many competitors failed on this challenge, I can only project those who did it and reward them. It’s flawed, but I feel weirder and more biased, giving the win to someone who didn’t make it to this point. For example, Wes, Hunter, and Paulie excelled in this challenge. They are in the 5'7–5'9 frame, and they proved not to get hampered by being too short or too tall in this challenge. One would expect Johnny Bananas to excel in this with his frame, then again, I don’t even know how to project Morgan either.

Wes won this challenge initially with Dee, Paulie finished in 4th, and Nany’s five tire finish pushes her and Theo into the winner’s circle.

Winners: Wes/Dee, Theo/Nany, Paulie/Ninja

Wes nominates Bananas and Morgan to pour more fuel onto the fire between them. Theo and Nany choose Turbo and Ashley again. Paulie and Ninja put Zach and Cara up now that Zach remained in the game.

Nominees: Bananas/Morgan, Turbo/Ash, Zach/Georgia

The most challenging tribunal as all three teams want to put in their nomination. Wes makes a deal with Paulie to get Bananas into elimination, much to the chagrin of Cara (who is still friends with Bananas).

Infuriated by Paulie caving to Wes’ play, Bananas calls out Gus and Cara for elimination. It is the elimination DaVonne beat Shaleen in where they had to reel in weighted bags. Since this elimination came down to the women, Cara and her upper body strength completely take out Team Borgan.

Tribunal Pick: Bananas/Morgan
Called Out: Gus/Cara
Eliminated: Bananas/Morgan

Daily Challenge 6: Eye in the Sky

Another daily challenge where we reward the original winners. Players did a small heights obstacle with one player blindfolded, and the other having goggles with a video of the blindfolded players front. Ironically, Bear cheated in this challenge and got away with it (his blindfold was not covering at all). Wes and Dee kill it a second time, along with Paulie and Ninja. A rare challenge where Gus would rather have Jenna, as Jenna is historically good with heights challenges. Regardless, they have the relic. Paulie and Ninja pick up the third-place spot.

Winners: Day/Bear, Wes/Dee, Paulie/Ninja

DaVonne nominates Ashley and Turbo for elimination as she and Ashley did not have a great relationship on social media up to this point. Wes puts Leroy up as a burn nomination, and Paulie once again nominates Zach.

Nominees: Ashley/Turbo, Leroy/Julia, Zach/Georgia

Wes comes through for Paulie and their deal the previous week by putting Zach into elimination. A massive move as Wes and Zach historically are always quietly aligned with one another.

Zach calls out Turbo and Ashley as he did not care for Ashley during Final Reckoning. This one is incredibly tough, but I am going to say Turbo and Ashley win as they have to support less weight and size. I think Zach would struggle the most, lifting himself up the salmon ladder over and over again.

Tribunal Pick: Zach/Georgia
Called Out: Turbo/Ashley
Eliminated: Zach/Georgia

Daily Challenge 7: Brain Freeze

In this swimming challenge, Wes and Dee finish first again, because even though Dee is not a great swimmer, she is excellent with puzzles. Turbo won this challenge with Nany, and since Ashley is a better swimmer and puzzle person than Nany, I expect them to win. The third winner for this is CT and Mattie. Kyle and Mattie did well in this challenge but could not solve the puzzle. Meanwhile, CT is a formidable puzzle master.

Winners: Wes/Dee, Ashley/Turbo, CT/Mattie

Wes makes a burn vote on Leroy and Julia. Ashley and Turbo put Theo and Nany on the floor. CT and Mattie pick Bear and DaVonne as CT does not care for Bear, and DaVonne is still new.

Nominees: Leroy/Julia, Theo/Nany, Bear/DaVonne

In the end, Wes’ annoyance with Bear forces him and CT to throw their votes on the easy pick.

DaVonne and Bear pick Leroy and Julia for elimination as they view them as the team they can easily beat. In this elimination, the male went first in the best of 5 elimination, so we assumed they would have played three times, had Day and Bear not beat Gus, and Jenna 3 to 1 in the original elimination. I think Day beats Julia 2–0, and Leroy beats Bear 3–0. It’s sad to see Day go out because of Bear, then again, she did kind of carry Bear during the actual season.

Tribunal Pick: Day/Bear
Called Out: Leroy/Julia
Eliminated: Day/Bear

Daily Challenge 8: Road Warrior

A large projection here, but this challenge rewarded those who were not afraid of heights and were able to transfer the rings rapidly. They also needed the size to do so. Dee and Wes struggled as they are both small. Mattie won this with Kyle, so I assume Challenge expert CT murders it. Theo is afraid of heights, but his size makes the challenges much easier for him and Nany. Turbo is unafraid and can do this challenge rapidly. I am going to say Turbo/Ashley and Theo/Nany taking second and third.

Winners: CT/Mattie, Theo/Nany, Ashley/Turbo

Ashley and Turbo nominate Gus and Cara, CT, and Mattie nominate Ash and Kam as a lack of choices are available, and Theo/Nany nominate Paulie and Ninja.

Nominees: Gus/Cara, Paulie/Ninja, Ash/Kam

CT wants to put Ashley and Kam and can get Ashley to agree with the move as it would hurt Theo and Nany’s team. Ashley and Kam call out Paulie and Ninja

This elimination happened in real life, and Paulie/Ninja pulled out the win over Ashley and Kam.

Tribunal Pick: Ashley/Kam
Called Out: Paulie/Ninja
Eliminated: Ashley/Kam

Our Final 7 Men and Women, once it goes individual, is:

Wes
CT
Paulie
Leroy
Gus
Turbo
Theo

Dee
Mattie
Ninja
Julia
Cara
Ashley M
Nany

Daily Challenge 9: Fandemonium

The first individual challenge is a male elimination day where players run balls through a storage container with a giant fan. Turbo, Theo, and Paulie kill this challenge a second time.

Winners: Turbo, Paulie, Theo

Paulie nominates Leroy, Theo nominates Wes, and Turbo nominates Gus.

Nominees: Leroy, Ashley, Gus

Turbo and Paulie agree to vote in Leroy as it is the most straightforward vote. Leroy calls out Gus for elimination as he views Gus as an easy win.

In a game of Balls In, Leroy manhandles Gus.

Tribunal Pick: Leroy
Called Out: Gus
Eliminated: Gus

Daily Challenge 10: Highway to Hell

Mattie, Wes, and Dee killed this Mad Max slider puzzle challenge the first time, so we expect them to win the second time.

Winners: Dee, Mattie, Wes

The winners are in a tight spot as they have good relationships with a lot of the players left or their allies. Dee nominates Ashley, Wes nominates Cara, and Mattie nominates Julia.

Nominees: Cara, Julia, Ashley

With Julia being Dee’s friend and the fact he fears angering Paulie and CT, Wes agrees to put Ashley in elimination.

Ashley calls Nany into elimination as she went for her and Theo all game. In a game where each player has to pick someone from the crowd to tape them up, Ashley picks her partner Turbo, while Nany picks Wes. Wes disappoints Nany immediately, while Turbo does a bang-up job.

This elimination was idiotic.

Tribunal Pick: Ashley
Called Out: Nany
Eliminated: Nany

Daily Challenge 11: Day of Wreckoning

I randomized a draw for this. Dee had first pick and took her boy Wes. Ninja had the second pick and took her boy Paulie. Ashley had the third pick and took her boy Turbo. With the fourth pick, CT took Mattie. Leroy takes Mattie with the fifth pick, and Theo gets Julia.

Wes and Turbo won this challenge the first time by making the smartest choices when it came down to what objects to carry. I certainly believe CT does something similar, and he has a great partner in Mattie for this challenge.

Winners: Wes/Dee, CT/Mattie, Ashley/Turbo

There are only three males left who didn’t win, so they are all nominated.

Nominees: Leroy, Theo, Paulie

They all agree to put Theo in elimination. Theo calls out Paulie for elimination.

In a game of Hall Brawl, Theo outruns and outsizes Paulie to send him home.

Tribunal Pick: Theo
Called Out: Paulie
Eliminated: Paulie

Daily Challenge 12: Crash Landing

The plane puzzle challenge. Turbo and Cara won this originally, so we assume they win it again. Turbo and Cara guarantee themselves spots in the final. Wes was 4th in this initially, so he takes the third spot in the tribunal now that Paulie is out of the mix.

Winners: Turbo, Cara, Wes

Cara nominates Ashley, Turbo nominates Julia, and Wes nominates Ninja.

Nominees: Ashley, Julia, Ninja

Cara does not want to face Ninja in the final, and Wes knows Ninja would never call out Dee because Dee is Ninja’s best friend. They put Ninja into elimination, Ninja calls out Julia, and Ninja eliminates Julia in the same tug of war game that Dee/DaVonne played.

Tribunal Pick: Ninja
Called Out: Julia
Eliminated: Julia

Final Purge: Judgement Day

Without Paulie in the final purge, the men’s round is a toss-up. I’m going to say Turbo, Wes, and Theo kill it to guarantee their spots in the final. It comes down to CT and Leroy, as we have no idea how they would do. In an obstacle course like this, CT’s weight could hamper him, but then again, he is CT. Leroy is capable during height-related challenges, but he often goes at a slow pace. I’m going to give it to CT based on pedigree. I feel bad for Leroy, but this is the type of way he tends to go out.

The women’s final purge comes down to Mattie, Dee, and Ashley. Mattie was not able to complete the purge and only beat DaVonne based on time. I’m not sure if Ashley and Dee would be able to complete this obstacle. I’m going to put Ashley through as she has long limbs and is generally good with heights related challenges. With Dee, I expect her to fail in the final portion, similar to how she was not able to do well in the challenge where players passed rings from one another. Her lack of length would kill her. Sadly, Dee is out right before the final.

Purged: Leroy and Dee

Finalists: CT, Theo, Wes, Turbo, Cara, Ninja, Ashley, Mattie

THE FINAL

I think CT struggles infinitely during the second half of day 1, and he could even quit. I believe CT can do a 12–15 mile final, but day 1 is 20+ miles, and once he hits that wall, that big body goes down hard. Carrying that giant frame in that final is tough. Ashley has never run a final close to this despite winning two before. The big run on Final Reckoning was a 4k run, which is roughly a bit over 2 miles, while one lap in this final is 6 miles. We saw Mattie quit during the actual final, so we assume she does the same.

Theo, Wes, and Turbo finish first, second, and third respectively in day 1, Ninja and Cara finish in the fourth and fifth, while CT comes in at sixth. Ashley gives up once she realizes she is not winning the final and would rather lavish in her past winnings. Wes, Turbo, and Theo put Ninja in elimination, and she takes CT in with her, as CT volunteers, then exit the game via elimination.

On Day Two, it is the same final five from the actual final. The same results occur. Lame.

The Final Standing:

1st Place Turbo
2nd Place Theo
3rd Place Wes
4th Place Ninja
Did Not Finish Day 2: Cara
Did Not Finish Day 1: CT, Ashley, Mattie

It’s incredible how you can change all these little things, but the result is incredibly similar to what happened.

TLDR:

16th Place Hunter & Shaleen ELIMINATED by Ashley & Turbo
15th Place Chase & Natalie ELIMINATED by Kyle & Zahida
14th/13th Place JP, Josh, Amanda, Jenna ELIMINATED by Cara & Gus
12th Place Kyle & Zahida ELIMINATED by Wes & Dee
11th Place Bananas & Morgan ELIMINATED by Cara & Gus
10th Place Zach & Georgia ELIMINATED by Ashley & Turbo
9th Place DaVonne & Bear ELIMINATED by Leroy & Julia
8th Place Kam & Ash ELIMINATED by Paulie & Ninja
7th Place Gus ELIMINATED by Leroy
7th Place Nany ELIMINATED by Ashley
6th Place Paulie ELIMINATED by Theo
6th Place Julia ELIMINATED by Ninja
5th Place Leroy & Dee PURGED