Battle of the Exes is the 22nd season of the MTV reality game show, The Challenge. The season is directly subsequent to Rivals. It takes place in the Dominican Republic and Iceland, with former cast members from MTV's The Real World, Road Rules, Fresh Meat, Fresh Meat II and the Spring Break Challenge competing. A launch special, "The Pre-Game," premiered on January 11, 2012, explaining the previous history of how the couples became exes. The season premiered on January 25, 2012, and concluded on April 4, 2012, with the Reunion special.
After a seven-year-long absence from The Challenge, WWE superstar Mike "The Miz" Mizanin returned to the reality show as the host of The Battle of the Exes' season finale Reunion Special.
Format[]
Each team participates in numerous challenges (sometimes called "missions"), which are followed by an elimination round — "The Dome." The winning team of each challenge earns the title of "Power Couple," as well as immunity from entering The Dome, while the last-place finisher is automatically sent to The Dome. The "Power Couple" also earns the right of choosing the team that will face the last-place finisher in The Dome. The team who wins the elimination round returns to the game and has a shot at a $300,000 prize, while the losing team is eliminated from the game.
At the end of the season, three teams will compete in the final challenge. The first-place finisher wins $150,000, second-place wins $100,000 and third-place wins $40,000.
Cast[]
Host: T. J. Lavin,
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Teams[]
| Male Partner | Female Partner | Team | Eliminated |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johnny Devenanzio | Camila Nakagawa | Johnny & Camila | Winners |
| Chris "CT" Tamburello | Diem Brown | CT & Diem | Runner-Up |
| Ty Ruff | Emily Schromm | Ty & Emily | Third Place |
| Mark Long | Robin Hibbard | Mark & Robin | Episode 8/9 |
| Dunbar Flinn | Paula Meronek | Dunbar & Paula | Episode 7/8 |
| Aneesa Ferreira | Aneesa & Rachel | Episode 6 | |
| Rachel Robinson | |||
| Abram Boise | Cara Maria Sorbello | Abram & Cara Maria | Episode 5 |
| Tyrie Ballard | Jasmine Reynaud | Tyrie & Jasmine | Episode 4 |
| Leroy Garrett | Naomi Defensor | Leroy & Naomi | Episode 3 |
| Dustin Zito | Heather Marter | Dustin & Heather | |
| Wes Bergmann | Mandi Moyer | Wes & Mandi | Episode 2 |
| Vinny Foti | Sarah Rice | Vinny & Sarah | |
| Nate Stodghill | Priscilla Mendez | Nate & Priscilla | Episode 1 |
- Note: Aneesa & Rachel are the only same-gender team in this challenge.
Pre-season Romantic Backgrounds[]
- Abram & Cara Maria: The two met on Cutthroat and began to show affection for each other throughout the entire season of The Challenge. After the show ended, the two continued to date, and Abram provided moral support to Cara Maria over the phone during her stint on Rivals.[1]However, the two separated after Abram was arrested following a disturbing and highly publicized brush with the law.
- Aneesa & Rachel: The two met on Battle of the Sexes and developed a relationship after the show, which was unknown to most viewers until this relationship was revealed during The Duel II, where tension occurred between Aneesa, Rachel, and Rachel's newest partner at the time, Jenn Grijalva.
- CT & Diem: The two met on The Duel, where CT instantly developed a crush on Diem, who, at the time, was dealing with the side-effects of her chemotherapy resulting from her battle with ovarian cancer. CT had helped Diem to feel confident with herself by the end of her time on The Challenge, and the two began dating after. The two were still dating as of The Gauntlet III, but due to how Diem felt she was treated on that season, she broke up with him prior to the reunion. In The Duel II, Diem indicated that she believed she would marry CT, but that she wanted to put her career first at that time. CT was removed from the show after a fight with Adam King related to CT's and Diem's relationship. CT also mentioned in the season premiere that Diem did not go to the wake after his brother died.
- Dunbar & Paula: The two had a relationship based upon fighting with each other, and kissing and making up throughout The Island and The Duel II. It was revealed on The Duel II Reunion that the two did have sex after leaving New Zealand. After feeling betrayed by Dunbar before her elimination on Cutthroat, Paula felt as if she could no longer trust him, and Dunbar stated that he was done with Paula.
- Dustin & Heather: The two were season sweethearts on their season of The Real World: Las Vegas (2011) and dated, until shocking revelations about Dustin's past tore their relationship apart.[2]They later got back together in an on-and-off relationship.
- Johnny & Camila: Camila had stated that she had a crush on Johnny and that she would marry him on Cutthroat, but nothing much was shown happening between the two of them.[3]A possible fling was hinted at during the season's "The S#!% They Should've Shown" special, where Johnny and Camila were suspected of hooking up in the house bathroom and averting detection by having Camila possibly leave through the room's window. Johnny was in a relationship at the time, and in interviews for the special, he and Jenn Grijalva denied any fling between Johnny and Camila,[4]however, RW: Cancun alumna Jonna Mannion hinted on Derrick Kosinski's Ultimate Challenge Radio podcast that a fling between the two did occur during Rivals.
- Leroy & Naomi: The two were "friends with benefits" during their season of The Real World: Las Vegas (2011), but only got together at night if neither had found someone else that day. During this time, Naomi had a medical scare where she believed she might either be pregnant or have contracted an STD, which stressed their casual relationship.
- Mark & Robin: The two met on Battle of the Sexes 2, where the two began a relationship that lasted even after the season had ended. On the The Inferno II, Robin and Tonya got into an argument over Mark. In the first episode of The Duel, Robin revealed that she was single, and was no longer dating Mark.
- Nate & Priscilla: Due to Priscilla's underage status during her time on The Real World: San Diego (2011), she was unable to enter the bars and clubs with her 21+ year-old roommates, and one night, Nate stayed home with her, and the two made out while alone in the house.[5]Nothing more occurred after this instance, despite an attempt by an intoxicated Priscilla during a group trip to Cabo San Lucas.
- Ty & Emily: The two quickly connected and hooked up on their original season of The Real World: DC,[6]but during the season the relationship turned bad when Ty's behavior became too much for Emily to handle, and she became wary of entering a serious relationship with him.[7]Ty and Emily later got into a tumultuous argument on Cutthroat.
- Tyrie & Jasmine: The two hooked up in the first episode of Rivals, despite Jasmine having a boyfriend at the time.
- Vinny & Sarah: The two were partners on Fresh Meat II, and hooked up in that season's second episode.[8]On Cutthroat, after Sarah stated that she would be voting Vinny into the Gulag, he expressed that he was done with any kind of friendship with her.
- Wes & Mandi: The two were teammates on Fresh Meat II, but would later hook up on Rivals after CT no longer expressed any interest in Mandi.