MTV Is Doing A Pros Vs. Joes Show Where Contestants From "The Challenge" Compete Against Athletes Like CM Punk And Shawne Merriman
ESPN- It’s finally happening. The competitors of MTV’s “The Challenge” are going to get their toughest test yet … going head-to-head against pro-athletes. In a six-week event “The Challenge: Champs vs. Pros,” 10 Challenge greats (who will be announced at a later date) square off against 10 pros, including Candice Wiggins, Lolo Jones and Tia Blanco. The series premieres Tuesday, May 16 at 9 p.m. ET/PT and will be hosted by NFL wide receiver Victor Cruz. “In what promises to be the most competitive clash of teams in Challenge history, viewers will finally get their wish to see how our champs stack up against professional athletes,” said Nina L. Diaz, EVP, Head of Unscripted Programming for MTV and VH1.
“The Challenge” is an iconic MTV series that I grew up watching,” said host Victor Cruz in a statement. “The sports world is known for producing remarkable athletes, colorful characters, and memorable heroes, but this competition will give my fellow pro-athletes a chance to test their skills against some of the absolute best Challenge Champs, and I can’t wait to see how it all unfolds!” Each episode of the event will focus on a different strength: Agility, ingenuity, brawn, brains, endurance and guts. The winning team’s captain will choose one member of their team to go into the elimination round, and the rest of the team will decide the fate of that person’s opponent. The losing team’s captain is sent into elimination while the rest of the team also decides on the opponent.
The best part? The final male and female competitors of the season will run a final that tests each strength for a chance to win $50,000 to donate to their favorite charity.
As a bonus, here is the complete list of the professional athletes competing and the charities they support:
Tia Blanco – Professional surfer (St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital)
Louise Hazel – Olympian and fitness expert (Save the Children)
Lindsey Jacobellis – Professional snowboarder (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals)
Lolo Jones – Olympic hurdler and bobsledder (Hurdles of Hope)
Candice Wiggins – Former WNBA athlete (Greater Than AIDS)
Gus Kenworthy – Professional skier and Olympic medalist (The Trevor Project and the Happy Hippie Foundation)
Shawne Merriman – Retired NFL linebacker (Lights On Foundation)
CM Punk – UFC fighter (PAWS Chicago)
Louie Vito – Professional snowboarder and Olympian (Wings for Life)
Kamerion Wimbley – Retired NFL linebacker (Kamerion Wimbley Foundation)
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There were rumblings about a show like this for a little while but I didn’t want to blog about it until MTV made an official announcement. Challenge fans were losing their fucking marbles when there were rumors floating that TJ Lavin had gotten cucked out of his Challenge hosting gig by Victor Cruz. Well now we know what that was all about. TJ Lavin doesn’t get out of bed to host a show that is in a location that has cell service or running water. And since I don’t see his name on that list, I have to assume that he is the secret boss that they unveil during the season finale. And if TJ isn’t hosting, then MTV needed a host that the cast could relate to. Luckily for everyone involved, Victor Cruz knows a thing or two about being part of a decision that would look bad in hindsight.
Yup, that fits the description. On the brightside however, I can take my salsa shoes out of the closet for a few months.
Now The Challenge has long been my guilty pleasure on TV. I loved the idea of Pros vs. Joes even though it always wasn’t the best TV in the world. And if we are being honest, I think MTV lifted this idea directly from my No Quitters podcast. But this list of athletes is underwhelming as fuck. Obviously CM Punk is the big name. But he got that name being a pro wrestler, not from getting his brains bashed in as a UFC fighter. I mean I wouldn’t mind seeing if a rabid CT could claw his face off in the octagon or Punk talking shit to everyone in the house like Wes except with real muscles. But it doesn’t have the same juice as a fighter that has a few W’s under his belt instead of getting treated like a piñata in his debut. I guess I’m excited to see Shawne Merriman on the list just because I want to see if his Lights Out Dance form is still good or if Bananas would have a snowball’s chance in hell beating him in a game of kill the carrier. And Lolo Jones’ name carries some street cred, but I don’t give a shit about hurdling or bobsledding. I’d just want to see if she could stay a virgin if she was near Tony Raines’ charm and seduction methods.
But to quote Jay Cutler, I am in straight up Dooooooooon’t Caaaaaaaare Mode about the rest of this list. The only surfer I remotely care about is Anastasia Ashley and that’s just because of Hank’s Snapchat escapades with her. I don’t know who the fuck Louise Hazel is, but fitness expert makes her seem like someone that is just good at exercise. Kamerion Wimbley? HARD PASS. And I get bored watching the Winter X Games after a few rounds and that’s the best winter athletes on the planet doing what they do. It doesn’t matter if it’s skiing or snowboarding. I’d rather try to outrun the Abominable Snowman in Ski Free than watch those snow sports (shout out to anyone that gets that reference). However I guess Candice Wiggins could be interesting if only because of all the “Could this WNBA/Women’s College hoops player do this” arguments.
As for the actual Challengers, MTV needs to bring the best of the best. The big dogs. No half measures AKA Are You The One dickheads or Aneesa. You need CT, Darrel, Laurel, and Bananas to come back after this season. Camila too because she gave Laurel her first L in an elimination round. You need to bring Ev, Emily, Landon, Paula, Derrick, Mark Long, Rachel and Alton out of retirement. Evan and Kenny are suspended for life? Nope! And figure out a way for Vinnie Mac to lease out The Miz for a bit. Anything less would be unacceptable. Especially with that crew of athletes headlining.