TJ: Previously on The Challenge: USA...
Staying loyal to an alliance...
Bruh, you know we got you.
...and winning challenges have been the key
to surviving the game
as the final showdown for $500,000
gets closer than ever.
But for players like Chris and Cassidy,
they have had to rely on only themselves,
competing in multiple eliminations to stay alive.
Cassidy wins!
At the Brain Squeeze challenge,
Chris left the men stunned when he secured his safety
and a seat at the nomination table.
Josh hasn't earned it. Payback's a bitch.
- (cheering) - TJ: But it was Cassidy
who found herself in her third elimination
and took away Michele's shot at the grand prize.
- Great season, Michele! - (cheering)
TJ: And now, with ten players remaining,
two will be sent home...
Winning today is more important than ever,
'cause it is a double elimination.
...losing their chance to compete in the final.
(crying)
- TJ: Nice! - Yeah, boy!
TJ: Alliances will be tested,
resulting in betrayal...
- ...tears... - It's like, "Fuck, what am I gonna do?"
...and one of the biggest blindsides of the game.
♪ ♪
(whooping)
- (cheering) - Whatever.
I am undefeated
in the Arena.
I have three elimination wins.
I told y'all not to put me against her.
But it's just
such an isolating feeling to be on the bottom
like this so close to the end.
As much as I want to hate all of y'all's guts right now
for voting me in again, I can't be mad,
- 'cause I'm still here and I'm fighting, baby! - (cheering)
Cheers to the top ten!
Cassidy has won three eliminations.
When her back's against the wall, she performs.
She's definitely had the hardest path, and...
out of 24 people to come in here, only ten are left,
and we are getting dangerously close to that final.
- (groans) - Cheers, guys.
It's tough carrying this game on my back, man.
We get through this one and we're in.
That's where I'm at.
So I just need to get through this one.
FAYSAL: Josh and I have a real relationship on the outside.
I'm proud of him. This is the best he's ever looked.
Josh is coming hard, and, you know, that's my number one.
You not being safe
and still only catching three balls,
- that's way more impressive than what I've done. - Yeah.
On a social aspect.
JOSH: I owe everything to Tori, Bananas, Fessy and Cory.
They helped me to get this far in the game.
Winning this game
has become such a personal goal and a dream of mine.
I am a first-generation,
and my parents literally haven't stopped working
since the day I think they had me.
I think that my drive and my focus just comes
from wanting to give them their dream life,
and I haven't had
the opportunity financially to do that.
So when I say I want to win this game,
while the title's for me,
uh, the money's for my parents.
I'm just putting myself in a state.
It's like, "Finish the job, dude."
- Yeah. Yeah. - Finish the job.
♪ ♪
That is the cutest thing ever.
Chanelle, why do you want to become a Challenge champion?
Definitely my family, number one. Like,
you know, I want to be able to take care of my family.
You know, when I did Survivor, I lost bad.
- CORY: Mm-hmm. - Like, I was, you know, middle of the game, and...
I lost a lot of my confidence.
I have for so long suffered from impostor syndrome
because I wasn't a star in Survivor.
I was kind of mid.
You know? The girlies on Reddit might've called me a flop.
Do I deserve to be here? Am I good enough to play this game?
Am I
deserving of it?
- There's little girls... - Mm-hmm.
- ...little kids, little boys... - Yeah. Yeah.
- ...that look like me, that look like you... - Yeah.
- ...that watch this, and... - Yeah.
- ...you're gonna be able to relate to them... - Yeah.
- ...and they're gonna be able to relate to you. - Yeah.
I've needed a win so bad this game.
I have not gotten one yet.
One man and one woman
will be walking away with $250,000 each.
I need
a confidence booster. I need to win something,
especially ahead of a final.
♪ ♪
- Whoo! - Yikes.
(cheering)
- I'm scared! - This is awesome!
I see hot-air balloons.
I see a balance beam.
I see a ladder going up to Jesus.
I'm petrified of heights.
TJ: Welcome
to your next challenge
on this season of The Challenge: USA.
Whoo! Let's do it!
We started with 24 players,
and now we are down to ten.
You've won challenges,
eliminations,
and some of you
have even won multiple eliminations.
And that has all led you here.
If you make it through today
with a win...
...then you've made it to my final.
(cheering)
CHANELLE: If you win this challenge, you are going
to the final, and no one can take it from you.
If you don't win, there is a chance
that you will be fighting for your life.
Let's get to it. All right,
today's challenge is called Burst Your Bubble.
This is a timed event.
As you can see, we have two massive hot-air balloons.
You're gonna start on the ground, and when I say go,
you will race up a rope ladder 40 feet.
When you get to the top of the ladder, get ready,
because, one at a time,
you're gonna race across a very narrow beam
to the opposite hot-air balloon.
Once you tag that basket,
your time has stopped.
The fastest man
and fastest woman to get it done today
is going straight to the final.
Oh, and one more thing-- winning today
is more important than ever,
'cause it is a double elimination.
(Cassidy groans)
A double elimination is
a dagger to the chest, because if your name gets nominated,
you're going in no matter what.
It is crucial for me
to either get this win
or somebody that I trust to get this win.
Good luck.
♪ ♪
Faysal, Cassidy, you ready?!
- Go! - (air horn blows)
- So big. Covering ground. - He's so fast.
FAYSAL: This challenge is gonna come down to who can climb
a rope ladder the fastest
and walk across
a tight beam the fastest.
I have the ladder sideways.
I'm skipping two pegs at a time,
and I'm at a good pace.
TJ: Yeah, Faysal. Nice.
You got it, Cassidy!
Cassidy struggles up the ladder.
So, to me, this looks like it's really hard.
I'm shaking in my boots, to be quite honest.
- (air horn blows) - Good job, Fess! Great work! - Oh, my God.
Beat that one!
(Cassidy breathing heavily)
CHRIS: You'll be fine, Cass. You'll be fine.
CASSIDY: Here I am, fighting for my life.
It's wobbling.
There's wind blowing.
This is
the craziest moment of my life, I think.
- You got it. Lean, lean, lean. - There you go. Good job, Cass.
(air horn blows)
- Cory, Desi, you ready?! Go! - (air horn blows)
CORY: There couldn't be a more important challenge
than the one we're doing now.
If you win this,
you punch your ticket to the final.
Whoo!
- TORI: Yeah...! - (air horn blows)
Nice!
Get it done, baby!
Got to go. Got to go.
You got this, Des.
- Oh. Hold it together. - Ooh!
- Hold it together. - Oh!
Here we go!
(air horn blows)
Whoo!
TJ: Josh, Chanelle, you ready?!
- Go! - (air horn blows)
CHANELLE: This is for my life
in this game, and I have to win it.
And it would just be devastating
to fall short this close to a final.
Bring it home. Bring it home.
- Yeah! - (air horn blows)
JOSH: All I'm thinking is,
get across this beam as fast as possible,
because every single guy got across that beam pretty quick.
If I slip, I'm out, and then I basically lose today.
(gasping)
Oh!
Oh, my God, dude.
- (air horn blows) - Yes.
Well done, Josh!
TJ: Chris and Tori, you ready?!
- Go! - (air horn blows)
CORY: I feel like Fessy might have the fastest time
climbing the ladder, but Chris
is doing good, too.
(groaning)
You go, Chris!
CORY: If Chris wins, that is
the worst-case scenario for the guys.
'Cause we know one of us is gonna be nominated,
and the other ones are gonna have
to politick against each other.
(coughs)
CHRIS: This is a $250,000 traverse.
I've been on balance beams before.
I just have to not look down.
TJ: Nice, Chris!
Nice! Yeah, Chris!
- That is fast! - Good job, Chris!
Let's go!
TJ: Well done!
FAYSAL: Even though Chris
might've been a second or two faster than me on this beam,
I saw him slip on that ladder.
(groaning)
I'm just praying
that my rope ladder climb made up for the time
he beat me on the beam.
TORI: I don't really know who I can trust.
And when this is the last elimination,
all bets are off.
- Run to it, run to it. run to it! - TJ: Nice! Nice!
- (air horn blows) - MICHAELA: Tori goes
really fast.
I want myself to win.
This is the day to do or die.
All right, Bananas, Michaela,
you ready?!
- Go! - (air horn blows)
BANANAS: The pressure on me
is probably greater than
just about everyone in the house whose name isn't Chris.
I am an unstoppable force
in a final. So if I don't win safety,
chances are I'm gonna
be seeing myself in the final elimination.
So today's a must-win.
Bananas and Michaela are neck and neck going up the ladder.
Like, Michaela should be a firefighter.
I've never seen somebody climb a ladder that fast.
She's afraid of heights, so I'm really hoping
that, you know, she decides maybe she doesn't
want to walk on the beam.
TJ: Oh! (laughing)
TORI: Good job, Bananas.
Well done.
(exhales, sniffles)
Once I reach the top, I can't help but to look down.
I freak out.
It's just breathe to calm myself down.
And pray for some courage, 'cause this is not something
that I'm finding any joy in at all.
(crying)
No more heights!
(Michaela crying)
MICHAELA: I have to find a way
to get myself focused, but I'm freaking out.
(crying)
Yeah!
CHRIS: Go! There you go, baby! Come on!
BANANAS: Michaela is an anomaly.
Generally, when people are afraid to do something,
their fear overwhelms their ability to perform.
Michaela is wired the exact opposite.
The more terrified Michaela is, the better she performs.
CHRIS: You got this, Michaela! You got it!
- Get there! - (air horn blows)
(cheering, clamoring)
TJ: Nice.
Nice job, Michaela. Well done!
(Michaela crying)
TJ: What a challenge, huh?
- Yeah. Good job, guys. - Awesome.
Good job, guys.
Congratulations to all of you. That was awesome.
Now, 14 seconds
separated the top two women.
The top two women
were Michaela and Tori.
But the one woman that is moving on to my final right now...
...is Michaela.
(cheering, clamoring)
- Good job. - Good job, girl.
MICHAELA: I'm just very proud of myself.
My goal was to go from being first out
on my first season to getting into this final.
So I guess now it's time
to 10X this goal and go for the win.
TJ: For the men,
two men were separated
by three seconds.
Those two men were Faysal...
...and Chris.
But the one man who just punched their ticket
to my final...
...is Chris.
(cheering, clamoring)
(laughing)
What a ride this has been.
The adversity, what I had to go through,
the house turning on me, like,
being in the elimination arena again and again
and again has just made
this so much more special for me.
I've had to earn every minute in here and...
I'm ready to win this whole thing.
TJ: Congratulations to you two.
You are now safe from elimination.
You are now in the final.
But you still have a job to do.
Because we have a double elimination to get to.
I need Chris and Michaela
as the winners to select one man and one woman
to send into the Arena
where they will be competing
in the double elimination.
JOSH: Chris, I really don't know
what he's gonna do.
He can obviously target me again and put me
down in the sand, or he can make a bigger move.
The rest of you will then go back to the house.
When that signal lights up, one at a time, you will place
two votes into the Hopper.
One man and one woman to take on the two nominated players.
- Got it? - Got it.
Get out of here.
♪ ♪
(shouting, clamoring)
(shouting in Spanish)
Good job, Michaela.
We'll see.
Bananas.
You're like the gift that keeps on giving, man.
If this dude lets a seven-time champ slide.
I know he's your friend,
but we're all friends, you feel me?
So I'm just speaking facts here.
It'd be nice going into a final
where no one has won.
JOSH: I'm just, like, mentally putting myself in this space.
FAYSAL: I want Josh to be there in the final with me.
I think he would excel in a final. I truly do.
And for elimination tonight what haven't we seen yet?
A Challenge staple, Hall Brawl.
Hall Brawl is the most intense game I've ever played.
This is my all-time favorite game.
Go!
(cheering, clamoring)
Ooh!
(grunts)
(shouting, clamoring)
The last thing I want to do is go against
my boy Josh or my boy Cory in a Hall Brawl.
If it is a Hall Brawl,
the hall is so skinny
that you're gonna be wearing shoulder pads,
and you can't even go in there without--
- Bending your shoulder? - Yeah.
Because your shoulder pads will hit.
That's how skinny it is, so...
It's, it's about as wide as your shoulders are.
So you better get low or take a leap.
Yeah.
♪ ♪
- Welcome to the final nomination of the season. - The final!
CHRIS: Michaela and I, two Survivors,
we secure our spot in the final.
We have proven that Survivors,
they can come into The Challenge House
and they can kick some ass.
MICHAELA: Let's get into it.
CHRIS: Who is your first pick
- for a female nomination? - For first pick for me is Cassidy.
To guard myself against the potential of me and Tori
going against each other in the final elimination,
I made a pact with her.
No matter who comes back next week for girls,
- that person's main vote. - 100%.
- Shake on that? - And then-- Okay, cool.
Everybody feels the same.
- Yeah, yeah. - On that one.
I'm not really inclined to...
go back on my word.
For the guys.
At this point, for me, Bananas.
- He's still probably gonna get votes anyways. - Yeah.
- 100%. (laughs) - So...
then it's down to Cory
- and Fess, uh, and Josh. - Yeah.
Faysal's, you know, we've been
rooming together, but he told me he wasn't gonna vote for me,
then nominated me twice.
I don't know, I kind of want to see
- the big boys go at it. - (Michaela laughs)
By nominating Fess,
it's going to put
all of the vets in a very tough place.
This is payback. After getting ganged up on,
if there's a time to strike, now is the time.
And I'm gonna definitely hit where it hurts.
- It is time. - (sighs) All right.
Glad I'm safe on this one.
MICHAELA: Yeah, it's not a matchup you want to see.
(exhales)
TORI: Damn. I was not expecting that.
- Oh, shit. - Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.
It's official. Chris and Michaela nominated me.
My first nomination all season long. Rut-roh.
Now I just got to get my mind ready for tonight
because I'm 100% going into elimination.
What the fuck?
JOSH: I did not expect that.
I really thought it was me or you.
- Dude, I can't vote for you. - I'm not voting for you.
You know 100% I'm not voting for you.
I don't know what Fessy's gonna want.
BANANAS: He's gonna ask for me.
I won't do it, dude.
(stammers) I'll vote on myself before I vote for you.
No, why would you vote on yourself?
Vote Cory, what do you owe him?
JOSH: Now that Fessy has been nominated and targeted,
I know the best move is that I should just say
Cory because I owe Cory nothing and while we are friends,
I have a stronger bond with Bananas.
But Cory is a really strong guy
and Fessy doesn't want to go against him in something
physical because Cory might be able to beat him.
I know Fessy's not gonna want me to say Cory.
Well, too bad. He knows
that you and I are friends outside of this.
He can't expect you to do that.
I'm 100% going to be the odds-on favorite to be catching balls.
However, myself, Tori, and Josh have been
working side by side this entire game.
Cory's kind of like the odd man out here.
So where's the difficulty in making this decision?
JOSH: I'm not gonna,
I don't care what he says, though. Trust me.
I put that on my grandfather in heaven
that I... I will never, ever vote for you.
I don't care what he says.
FAYSAL: They must want some fireworks tonight, man.
- It's tonight? - CORY: Yeah.
TORI: Fessy comes up to me and lets me know
I had a deal with him and Cory.
Fessy's won and didn't throw me in.
Cory's won and didn't throw me in and I told them
that when the time came, I would repay them.
I'm really stuck in-between voting for Bananas
or Josh at this point and...
throwing Josh against Faysal?
Like, dude, I almost feel like I'm sending
my friend home in a stretcher if it's something physical.
I'm gonna need your help on this too, you know?
- CORY: Yeah. - Like, I don't--
- I can repay it, I can repay it. - Yeah, for sure.
I don't know what I'm gonna do.
- Yeah. Yeah, of course. - Appreciate you.
JOSH: You want to talk real quick?
Well, there's nothing really to talk about.
It's either you fuck me or you don't really.
You know what I mean?
I have to basically choose between
what Fessy wants, which is nominating Bananas
for him to go up against or to nominate Cory.
I can't, I can't do Johnny.
FAYSAL: If you vote Cory, you're fucking both of us.
I don't want to vote, either, dude.
Then what...?
- What are you... - I can't vote Johnny.
Dude, he's a good friend of mine.
He's helped me so much, personally, in this game.
I can't-- that's like how close you and Cory have gotten.
- He's like-- I can't vote him. - Do what you got to do, bro.
FAYSAL: If he says Cory because he's closer
with Bananas, that's like taking a shot at me,
because you're pinning
one of my boys-- who's really good at eliminations--
against me in something
we all know is most likely gonna be something physical.
Giving me Bananas is my best chance at returning
because he's ten years older than me.
Me and Cory both weigh about 220.
Bananas is probably 185.
So this decision is gonna dictate
our friendship moving forward.
TORI: Are you okay? Come here.
(crying): I got Fessy asking me one thing,
but then I don't want to cross Bananas.
- You know? And I just feel bad. - Yeah.
- (inhales sharply)
I'm happy because, you know, God willingly,
- I don't have to go up against him... - Yeah.
JOSH: ...'cause he's one of my best friends
and I don't want to have to do that,
but it's like, fuck, what am I gonna do?
The thing is, is I love Josh.
I don't think he would ever say my name,
but I might have to vote for him.
(alarm ringing)
Oh!
♪ ♪
BANANAS: Today is a double elimination, which means that
we're gonna have to put up both a male and female name
to go against Fessy and Cassidy.
It's gonna be a bloodbath.
Cory? Fuck off.
Desi, goodbye.
CORY: Bananas is a seven-time champ.
You got to go, man.
I need to get that championship belt.
There is one girl who has not been in the Arena yet.
I'm voting for Chanelle.
Chanelle is the most evenly matched person to me,
so I am hoping to see Chanelle's ball.
But I-- at this point, I will literally take on
any of these girls. I don't care.
For girls, I'm gonna do Chanelle,
'cause she hasn't been in yet.
For guys...
(exhales): Oh, my God.
(exhales)
Coming into this secret vote,
this is the hardest one that I've had to do
the whole entire game.
No matter what, I'm going to hurt
one of my relationships
or lose one of my friendships with these guys.
(exhales sharply)
(sniffles)
I am struggling really bad.
I literally have a pit in my stomach.
(crying)
JOSH: (exhales) I hate this game.
(sniffles)
- (exhales) - What, Josh?
What the fuck is wrong with you?
I am absolutely mind-blown.
You've literally sworn on the life of family members
that you're not gonna say my name.
I put that on my grandfather in heaven
that I w-- I will never, ever vote for you.
I literally looked at this man,
whom I've looked out for in this game,
outside of this game,
someone who has made every promise
in every single way under the book
to never say my name, knowing
that this final elimination
is potentially gonna be something
that I am basically gonna be outmanned and outgunned in.
By him saying my name is literally sending me
directly to the wolves.
Bananas is somebody that has
helped me so much on a personal level.
So to look at him and to not even be able
to say... anything, just, I feel so bad.
But I, for once, need to put myself first
and realize, what is the best decision for me
and how do I give myself the best shot at winning this game?
You're not a sellout. You needed to do this, Josh.
Come here. Come here. You're not a sellout, dude.
Don't let, don't let anybody make you feel that way, dude.
I voted for you. You know what I mean?
Like, think about that. You could be, you...
Like, I don't even know with this game.
It's fucking turned me into somebody that I'm not.
Stop. Josh, this is not the energy.
- This is not it, right... - I know, man.
- I'm gonna snap out of it. - Yeah.
That's not true.
BANANAS: Enough, Josh.
Just enough, dude.
- TORI: I'm sorry. - JOSH: It's okay.
Sorry? W-What are you sorry for him...
- TORI: I voted for him. - Why?
- Because I made a deal. - What-what is wrong with the two of you?
Why would you vote for him?
- I made a deal with Cory. - Why would you vote...
He literally fought Michaela
to make me not go in that one week,
and I said, "I'll pay you back when the time comes."
BANANAS: Dude, I don't know, man.
I just have-- I-I've just... play a different way.
Where I come from, when you say something, you mean it.
Okay, well, I'll let you guys pack.
BANANAS: Josh, your word from here on out is worth fuck-all, dude.
For real.
JOSH: Instantly, I feel this regret,
and I wish I could take it back.
This makes no sense to me.
JOSH: I think it's-- was just,
like, the desperation of wanting to get to a final.
♪ ♪
CHRIS: It feels good to be locked into the final,
and I'm just stoked that, uh, I don't have to go in
and fight for my life tonight.
Whoo! There it is.
Walking into the Arena,
you see a hallway, and I love
a good old classic Hall Brawl.
It's gonna be a banger in there, and it's gonna get ugly tonight.
TJ: All right, everyone.
Welcome to your final elimination
here in the Arena
on this season of The Challenge: USA.
(applause)
Chris and Michaela,
as the winners of the challenge,
not only did you secure your ticket to the final, but also,
you had to nominate one man and one woman
to send into the Arena and fight for their right
to stay in the game.
You chose Faysal and Cassidy. Come on out.
I've been down here before, I've done this three times already,
I've been in the stand potentially going in six times.
Um, so this is nothing new to me.
I feel like I'm at home,
and I'm ready to get my four-and-O win.
The rest of you had to come back to the house
and place a vote by putting names in the Hopper.
Let's see how that vote worked out.
We'll start it off with the women.
Tori...
...two votes.
Desi...
...one vote.
Chanelle...
...five votes.
All right.
Let's check out what it has to say for the men.
Cory...
...one vote.
Josh: two votes.
And Bananas...
...five votes.
- Whoa. - BANANAS: I'm in a very bad position right now.
For me, this has been such a turbulent season.
To make it this far into a game
and to not at least make it to a final
would be an absolutely devastating blow.
Well, Chanelle, Bananas, looks like they're coming for you.
Let's see what the Hopper has to say.
Good luck to you all.
DESI: One ball is literally
all it takes to get sent into the Arena.
You never know what the Hopper is gonna spit out.
So I'm feeling a little flustered,
I'm feeling a little nervous, I'm feeling a little scared.
CORY: Bananas is my biggest competition
because he's a seven-time champ.
I don't want to see him in the final.
I got to see him out of this game.
TJ: All right.
The Hopper has spoken.
Cassidy,
tonight you are playing...
...Chanelle.
I am a little bit nervous going against Cassidy.
She's seen an elimination three times
going on four, and I have never
touched the sand.
And it looks like it's gonna be a Hall Brawl,
but I see a puzzle board.
I am not good at puzzles.
All right, Faysal.
Tonight, you're playing...
All right, Faysal. Tonight, you're playing...
Josh.
You're coming down.
CORY: How in the hell
did Bananas beat the Hopper?
You know, I can't really believe that Josh is going down there,
and it's a Hall Brawl against his brother.
This is gonna be tough to watch.
BANANAS: I feel like I'm having, like, an out-of-body experience.
The "friend" who just betrayed me
is the one that is now gonna have to face his best friend?
Karma just bit him squarely in the ass.
And this is the absolute greatest case
of poetic justice I think I've ever seen in my entire life.
FAYSAL: It just sucks that it had to come down to this.
Both of us aren't gonna run the final together,
but, you know, hopefully, whoever goes back
into that house can-can win the money.
Faysal, Josh,
Chanelle, Cassidy,
tonight, you are playing a Challenge staple: Hall Brawl.
To begin, you and your opponent are gonna start
on opposite sides of the hallway.
When I say go, you are gonna run through your opponent.
Only this time, you're gonna have a shield.
You only have to hold on to that shield
for the initial impact.
Then, it's game on.
Once you get to the other side,
you're gonna lift the cover and start solving a puzzle.
The puzzles are different for the women and the men.
If you come up with the answer,
you'll come over to this black square and yell it out.
You get it wrong, you got to go all the way back
before you guess again.
This is a one-and-done elimination.
You win tonight, and you just punched your ticket to my final,
and your chance to take home $250,000 each.
All right, Cassidy and Chanelle,
you're up first, good luck.
♪ ♪
I fully expected TJ to call my name,
and so, I was very prepared
to go down and play and fight for my life.
I had expectations that it would be physical,
but, you know, now we have a puzzle in it.
But I'm optimistic and I am always gonna bet on myself,
so I'm excited.
CASSIDY: I think Chanelle is the best person
I could be going against right now
because she's never been down in the sand, so I think
that those nerves could frazzle her a little bit.
And I always have loved puzzles,
so I'm hoping that this will suit me.
TJ: All right,
it's one and done.
Ready?
- (air horn blows) - Go!
- MICHAELA: Hey! - BANANAS: Ooh!
MICHAELA: There you go, there you go. Push!
- Now run, run. - BANANAS: You can drop 'em!
MICHAELA: Good job. Way to fight.
Go, go, go, go.
This is the famous Hall Brawl.
It's what we were all avoiding.
But these twists make it a lot more
of an equalizer.
It's not just brute-on-brute strength.
When it comes down to a puzzle,
it's literally anyone's game.
(all shouting)
- There you go! - MICHAELA: Chanelle is putting up a fight.
We have been working together the entire game.
I'm cheering for her so we can run the final
against each other for that $250,000.
Run. Go get the puzzle, go get the puzzle.
- Let's go. Let's go. - CHRIS: Let's go, go, go.
DESI: Good job, ladies.
Way to fight.
CHANELLE: I am instantly excited
because it's the puzzle where you have to count
how many squares are inside of the shape.
That is the exact puzzle that I had on Survivor
and my team was able to pull it out for the win.
- (cheering) - CHANELLE: Just maybe
I will be able to come out on top with this puzzle.
TJ: No.
CHRIS: Wow.
TJ: No.
- Correct. - (air horn blows)
(cheering, applause)
- DESI: Good job, Chanelle. - CORY: Good job, Chanelle.
DESI: Good job, Cassidy.
Keep your head up, baby. You did so great, dude.
Good job, Chanelle.
CASSIDY: It wasn't the way I wanted to go out.
I think that I have so much more potential
to be an incredible Challenger.
It sucks, but this just motivates me
to want to train harder, to continue
showing up for myself
and showing myself what I am capable of.
JOSH: I played the best game I possibly could,
and today I did what I thought was best for me,
but honestly, now I just can't worry about
none of that, I need to just stay focused
and give it all I got 'cause I'm not ready to go home.
It sucks to be down in the sand,
especially against one of my best friends,
but now I look at, like, he's my opponent. That's it.
I want to make my first final.
FAYSAL: I've been in two Hall Brawls in the past.
Obviously, there's gonna be physical contact,
but it's gonna come down to the puzzle.
If you're wrong on the puzzle, you lose.
So anybody could win this.
(players shouting)
All right, fellas, you ready?
FAYSAL: You better get low or take a leap.
- (air horn blows) - Go!
Oh!
I need to make sure that I get through
that hall and figure out that puzzle,
because I have gotten so close to the end
and I've never made a final or won,
and this one's really important for me.
I'm not ready to leave.
I'm not ready to walk out of this game.
All right, fellas, you ready?
- (air horn blows) - Go!
(players shouting)
Fessy hits me hard.
I feel a little shaken up, but now it's like,
"Just keep moving your legs. Don't stop."
TORI: Way to fight, Josh!
CHRIS: This is exactly what I wanted,
and Josh and Fess are putting on a show.
I'm really, actually impressed with Josh's ability
to hold his own ground inside of that hall.
- BANANAS: Come on, Fess! - CHANELLE: You got it! You got it!
- BANANAS: Come on, Fess! - MICHAELA: Get to the puzzle!
- Get to the puzzle! - TORI: Go! Go! Sprint, go!
- MICHAELA: Puzzle! - TORI: Sprint, sprint.
FAYSAL: With these type of puzzles,
you have to count the number of squares there are
on this board.
These puzzles, they're meant to trick you.
Nope.
TJ: No.
FAYSAL: My strategy is,
don't waste too much time staring at this puzzle.
Wha-- he didn't even look.
Because, hopefully, I can just guess
the number right before him.
Nope.
CORY: I want Fessy in that final.
That would be three for three with me and him.
But I think Josh might actually pull this one off.
He is better at puzzles,
but you just don't know.
Nope.
(air horn blows)
(cheering, applause)
DESI: Good job, Fess.
- MICHAELA: Good job. - (panting)
Good job.
FAYSAL: It's bittersweet.
Sucks I had to send my boy home, because he's never made a final.
I know how bad he wanted to be in that final,
but that's the game.
This is gonna be my third final.
I'm just excited to give it all I got and hopefully
I can put the cherry on top of this season, finally.
- (both panting) - I'm sorry.
I love you.
- You did good, Josh. - Nice job, Josh.
- You did good. - You did good, man.
JOSH: I'm just disappointed in myself.
I feel like I was willing
to do everything and anything to make it to the end
that I just sold myself out.
Turning on Bananas was the worst thing I could have done.
So I guess this is my karma.
TJ: That was a great battle tonight.
But Cassidy, Josh, unfortunately, you lost
the worst possible elimination of the season:
the last elimination.
This ends your time here on The Challenge: USA.
- Take care. - Thank you.
To have fought so hard
and to come up seconds short of a final reminds me
of being so close in Survivor.
It is really painful
to go through again. (sniffles)
But I have the fight in me to win.
I know my day will come.
- It's been an honor. - (applause)
Seeing my best friend advance, I'm happy for him,
he deserves it, the guy's a beast.
Every single person left is so deserving to run that final.
They've earned it, they all played a great game.
And to fall short yet again is... this one's a hard one.
Keep your head up.
BANANAS: Josh, everybody else
can feel sad that you're leaving and your game is over.
Not this guy.
In the wise words of a man named TJ Lavin,
"Don't take care, hope to see you never."
TJ: All right. You survived,
and now all of you
are in the final.
(cheering, applause)
Not only am I in the final, but I'm in the final
with people that I've been working with,
that I've built relationships with,
that I'm going to be cheering on as well.
Any of us could win it,
but I still want to beat y'all.
TJ: Congratulations.
The final starts tomorrow.
(whooping)
- Let's go! - See you soon.
Get out of here.
CORY: We made it.
We punched our ticket.
We have all earned our way to this final.
I think we're all competitive.
Fess needs that first win, Johnny needs his 20th win,
and then you got Chris, who all he does is win.
So it's about to get dirty, crazy, chaotic.
It's time to put up
or shut up, and for me to stamp
that Challenge champion name on myself.
All right, so we splitting the money?
♪ ♪
Captioning sponsored by CBS
Captioned by Media Access Group at WGBH access.wgbh.org
TJ: Next on the season finale of The Challenge: USA...
Welcome to the final.
...after enduring weeks of grueling challenges
- and eliminations... - Yeah!
...eight competitors have risen above the rest
- to earn their spot... - Let's go!
TJ: ...in a two-day race designed to push the Challengers
to their absolute limit.
CHRIS: This is one of the hardest things
I've ever had to do.
MICHAELA: I'm a little dizzy.
TJ: It's time to find out who will crumble
- under the pressure... - (shouting)
...and who has what it takes
to be a champion of The Challenge: USA.
♪ MTV. ♪