The Challenge OG Trishelle Cannatella Trashes CT Tamburello

Jemmye Carroll Trishelle Cannatella

YouTube Jemmye Carroll and Trishelle Cannatella

One of the original stars of The Challenge, Trishelle Cannatella, spoke out against longtime competitor Chris “CT” Tamburello and said he was one of the reasons she ultimately decided to quit the reality show. In an appearance on fellow Challenger Jemmye Carroll’s YouTube show Drinks With Jemm earlier this year, Cannatella said Tamburello was disrespectful and made her feel “unsafe.”

During the interview, Cannatella dove into all the incidents that occurred on Rivals II that caused her to feel unsafe around CT and she slammed the veteran Challenger as “horrible” and “horrific” and said she “doesn’t see him changing.” Carroll, who also appeared on that season of the show, confirmed the events described by Cannatella.

The second part of the interview, where the two women discuss Cannatella’s experience on Rivals II, is available below:


Cannatella’s Last Appearance on ‘The Challenge’ Was in ‘Rivals II’, When She Left After 3 Episodes

Cannatella’s final Challenge appearance was during Rivals II, which was cut short when she quit the show in the third episode. At the time, it was reported that she left after having an altercation with Aneesa Ferreira, but Cannatella told Carroll in their interview that Tamburello’s behavior in the house was a factor in her decision to leave the show early.

In the first part of the interview, Cannatella told Carroll she hates “Johnny Bananas, CT, like all those b****es, I hate all of them.” In the second part of the interview, Cannatella opened up about getting a foot infection on the first night of the show and having to remain sober for ten days due to the antibiotics she was taking. Carroll added that Cannatella’s foot infection was caused by her stepping on broken glass that Tamburello broke during a fight with Marlon Williams.

Cannatella then said, “I have never felt so unsafe on a Challenge than I did that Challenge when CT, I remember he wanted to punch someone and I was in the kitchen making eggs and I had grease burns on me cause he pushed me into the fire.” She added, “CT has no respect for women, I don’t care if he has a kid, I don’t care if he’s married, come at me, he has no respect for women.”

Cannatella also added, “He’s horrible, he’s horrific and I don’t see him changing at all. I hated him and then I was just like, I don’t wanna be in the house with these people, him really. And then he broke the glass, I cut my foot,” and she eventually decided to leave the house. Cannatella added that she felt bad that her partner, Sarah Rice, was also sent home since she didn’t have a teammate to compete with.

Later in the interview, Cannatella summarized, “I thought it was unsafe, I didn’t like the guys in the house, I didn’t like how they were bullying the women, I didn’t like a lot of the stuff they had no respect for us and it was just too much.”


Cannatella Participated in 4 Seasons of ‘The Challenge’, Appeared in Several Other Reality Shows & Participated in Poker Tournaments

Canatella made her reality TV debut on The Real World: Las Vegas, which was the 12th Real World series and was filmed in 2002. Following that, she appeared on The Gauntlet when the show was titled Real World/Road Rules Challenge: The Gauntlet and was eliminated in the ninth episode. She then appeared on The Inferno but was eliminated in the fourth episode.

Cannatella returned to The Challenge after a long absence, competing on The Challenge: Battle of the Seasons in 2012. She made it to the final challenge with her teammate Dustin Zito and they finished in second place. Cannatella then returned to the show for Rivals II, where she left during the third episode. In addition to her Challenge appearances, Cannatella also participated in various reality shows including Punk’d, Fear Factor and Dr. Steve-O, as her IMDB shows. She also posed for Playboy and participated in several celebrity poker tournaments.

READ NEXT: The Challenge’s Tori Deal & Jordan Wiseley Break Up