MTV Johnny Bananas, Ashley Mitchell and Jenny West
Episode three of Total Madness, the latest season of MTV’s The Challenge, had many explosive highlights, including a clash between two Challenge champions. The rivalry between Johnny Bananas and Ashley Mitchell was on full display during April 15’s episode.
Both Total Madness competitors conspired against each other, with Bananas calling Ashley a “shapeshifter” and saying that she jumps alliances every season. In return, Ashley almost successfully flipped the house to vote Bananas into Purgatory.
Nany mentioned that Bananas’ issue with Ashley stems from their altercation during War of the Worlds 2. But could it run deeper than that? During the episode, Ashley said that she’s made more money in her Challenge career than Bananas, and that he’s scared of her.
So the question is: who has a more successful Challenge career between Ashley and Johnny Bananas?
Ashley Has Won the Most Prize Money in ‘Challenge’ History
There’s one thing that separates Ashley from every Challenge competitor this season, as well as any competitor to ever appear on the show. Ashley has won the most prize money in Challenge history.
Prior to Total Madness, Ashley has competed on six seasons of the show: Rivals III, Invasion of the Champions, XXX: Dirty 30, Final Reckoning, War of the Worlds and War of the Worlds 2.
She has won two seasons, Invasion of the Champions and Final Reckoning and she has won a total of $1,121,250. When she won Invasion of the Champions in 2017, Ashley took home $100,000 for first place, as well as her share of her team bank account, $21,500.
Ashley won the biggest prize in Challenge history after she won Final Reckoning with her partner Hunter Barfield. Because she finished with a quicker time than Hunter, Ashley had the choice between sharing the $1 million with her teammate or keeping it all for herself. In one of the most shocking and dramatic moments of the entire series, Ashley chose the latter.
Ashley has also taken part in three Challenge spinoffs: Champs vs. Pros, Champs vs. Stars 2017 and Champs vs. Stars 2018. All prize earnings from those shows went to charity.
Bananas Has Won the Most ‘Challenge’ Seasons in History
Johnny Bananas has his own record as well. He hasn’t earned the most money on The Challenge, but he’s won the most championships. Prior to Total Madness, Bananas was a part of 19 Challenge seasons, and he has crossed the finish line first on six different occasions.
He won The Island, The Ruins, Rivals, Battle of the Exes, Free Agents and Rivals III. Bananas has won just over $680,000 during his Challenge tenure.
The Challenge icon has a tight grasp on the record, with the next closest competitor being Darrell Taylor with four Challenge championships. Bananas also won the Challenge spinoff show, Champs vs. Stars 2017, whereas Darrell won Champs vs. Pros.
Who Has Had a More Successful ‘Challenge’ Career, Ashley or Bananas?
The answer to the question of who has had a more successful Challenge career, Ashley or Bananas, comes down to the individual asking it and their definition of success. On one side, a fan can say that Ashley is more successful because, at the end of the day, the ultimate goal of the show is win as much money as possible.
On the other end, a fan could say that Bananas is more successful because he has been victorious more than her, and there wasn’t as much money up for grabs when he won.
Ashley made it further than Bananas in Final Reckoning, so one could say that he had the chance to earn more money but lost.
It is a hot debate in the Challenge community, and it could go back and forth. The debate will likely continue unless one competitor clearly bests the other.
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