TJ Lavin Reveals Who He Would Want as Partner for Finals on ‘The Challenge’

Getty TJ Lavin

The Challenge: Double Agents‘ final started, with the first part airing last Wednesday and the second part coming up this week. After the episode on April 14, TJ Lavin appeared on MTV’s Official Challenge Podcast to discuss the final challenge and the show in general, and he was asked by hosts Aneesa Ferreira and Tori Deal which competitor he’d want to have as a partner for a final challenge out of the remaining eight competitors

TJ answered that his choice would be Chris “CT” Tamburello, the three-time Challenge champion because he has a lot of experience and is extremely intelligent. He also said CT is extremely strong at puzzles, likely due to doing them frequently with his son. He said, “CT, hands down.” He said he has the ability to look at every challenge and analyze it, pick it apart and find the best way to win it. “He never stops,” TJ said.

TJ also mentioned that Leroy Garrett is one of his “all-time favorites” and said if he had to have a female partner he would be happy to choose any of the four women left in the Double Agents final because they’re all “bada**.”

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He Also Said That He Wouldn’t Be Very Good at Eating Challenges But Would Have to Practice

During the same appearance on MTV’s Official Challenge Podcast, TJ said he would probably struggle the most with the eating checkpoints. While discussing Fessy Shafaat not eating during the second checkpoint, TJ said, “I don’t blame him, I’m not here saying he’s soft cause of it, I don’t know how that would be for me.”

He said eating would definitely be his “weak link” but he’s also not competing. TJ explained that if he was to compete on the show, he would train for the eating challenges. “I would go out back and eat some dog s***, I’d do something stupid and gnarly and disgusting.” He later joked, “I’d want Tony [Raines] on my team for eating.” He said, “I would ask him to train me on the eating.”

TJ Said He Sometimes Runs the Final Challenge or Portions of It & Ran the Entire ‘All Stars’ Final

Although fans will likely never see TJ running the challenge or its final, he did reveal to Tori and Aneesa that he sometimes runs the whole final before the contestants do. He said, “Sometimes you don’t even know where I’m at and what I’m doing but one time I ran the whole entire final before all of you guys.” He said, “I would run everything before you.”

The longtime host said that he ran the whole final on the All Stars season, which is currently airing on Paramount Plus, including any swimming and running. “The whole thing, everything,” he said. TJ also gives the producers some of his input on the finals although he’s not in charge of deciding what will make the final cut.

He said during the Final Reckoning final challenge in South Africa, he tested the checkpoint that required contestants to walk across hot coals and got third-degree burns on the bottom of his feet.

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