MTV The Challenge's Devin Walker
One of the more heated rivalries in the history of “The Challenge” is the one between Johnny “Bananas” Devenanzio and Devin Walker, who were last seen together on “Final Reckoning” when the feud came to a head and was followed by Devin’s dismissal from the game. The two haven’t been on a show together since but Devin spoke about the rivalry and where it stands today after returning to the show a few seasons later, for “Double Agents.”
Devin and Bananas first appeared together on “Rivals III” and Devin made it to the final, where he had a front-row seat to winner Bananas stealing all of Sarah Rice’s money. Their rivalry likely stemmed from that season as they were on opposing alliances for most of the game and Bananas and his cousin Vince Gliatta were less than kind toward Devin’s partner Cheyenne Floyd.
The bad blood between Devin and Bananas continued to grow in the next seasons as Devin ended up eliminating Bananas on “Vendettas.” The situation reached a boiling point on “Final Reckoning,” where Devin was actually supposed to be paired up with Bananas as rivals but due to his father’s death was unable to fly to South Africa. Bananas was instead paired up with Tony Raines while Devin joined the game later in the season alongside Cory Wharton as mercenaries.
After a night out, Cory ended up body-slamming Tony and in the fallout, Devin followed Bananas around the house trash-talking him and calling him out until Bananas retaliated and fired a jab at Devin about his father’s death. Devin and Cory were ultimately sent home but at the reunion in 2018, tensions rose again between the two reality stars.
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Devin Said He Hates Being Asked About Bananas & Wants to Put It All in the Past
In an appearance on the “Challenge Mania” podcast during the “Double Agents” season, Devin was asked about his rivalry with Bananas and he said he was happy not to see him at the airport when the cast flew to Iceland for the 36th season of the show. “I wanna be really clear about this,” he told the hosts. “One of my biggest regrets is having this kind of storyline… be forever a part of my ‘Challenge’ experience. And I did it to myself, I got no one else to blame.”
He acknowledged that Bananas brings a lot to the show and whether fans like him or not, “he’s entertaining.” He said, “I got caught up a little bit in this whole rivalry when it never really needed to go that route, and I’m typically smarter than that. And I’m a little disappointed in myself because I let it get to the extent that it got to.”
In regards to where the two stand today, Devin clarified, “I don’t know where he stands, we don’t obviously talk but I don’t hate Johnny, I don’t wanna see anything bad happen to him.” Devin revealed that as he’s matured and reflected over time, he acknowledged they both did “dumb s***” and Devin accepted his part of what happened.
He said before he was even cast for “Double Agents,” he released a video recognizing his mistakes during the situation with Bananas and saying what happened was “embarrassing” for him. His goal in making the video, he explained to the podcast hosts, was to take ownership of the situation on his own terms so that it wouldn’t be brought up or twisted on the show.
It’s Unclear If the 2 Will Appear on a Season Together Again Since Bananas Is on a Break From the Show
It’s hard to know if the rivalry is all in the past as Devin hasn’t appeared on a season of “The Challenge” with Johnny Bananas since “Final Reckoning,” and the two may not meet on screen again, at least for some time, since Bananas has taken a step back from the show.
The seven-time champion said he was on the fence about returning after his last win on “Total Madness” due to how intense and grueling the season and final challenge were and since then he said he’s been focusing on pursuing other avenues in entertainment and developing himself off the show.
He has continued hosting NBC’s “1st Look,” a travel show in which Bananas explores different areas, food and nightlife around the U.S. and also hosted a four-episode first season of “Celebrity Sleepover,” where he spoke with various personalities and took part in activities and games via video link. The show was recently renewed for a second season with Bananas returning as the host.
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