‘Jeopardy!’: Why Matt Amodio ‘Felt Bad’ for Jonathan Fisher After Their Epic Game

It’s been well over a week since Matt Amodio’s 38-game winning streak on Jeopardy! came to an end and fans are still mourning the loss. The Ph.D. student raked in over $1.5 million in cash and earned the second place spot for most consecutive wins in Jeopardy! history. Rather than focusing on his own disappointment after being defeated by current champ Jonathan Fisher, Amodio recently revealed he had empathy for the competitor who cut his victory run short.

Matt Amodio ‘never felt invincible’ on ‘Jeopardy!’

On Oct. 11, Amodio went up against Florida native Jonathan Fisher and Nashville research specialist Jessica Stephens in what would be his last Jeopardy! game. Fans were both shocked and saddened when Amodio came in third place following Final Jeopardy!, bringing in only $5,600. Fisher was crowned the new Jeopardy! champ with a total of $29,200. The Yale student recognized that one loss can be more memorable than numerous victories.

“It’s kind of a shame that when you win 38 games of Jeopardy! and lose one, the loss comes at the end,” Amodio wrote in Newsweek. “Because that’s what you remember most recently. If the loss were to come at the beginning and then you were to win 38 games, you’d really realize what an accomplishment it is.”

Amodio gave props to Fisher and Stephens for being such strong competitors.

“I always knew losing was a possibility,” he remarked. “I’ve had close calls before, so I never felt invincible. I didn’t lose a game of Jeopardy! There were two people who fought hard to win, and one of them won. It was a poorly timed downturn for me, because I was up against two of the best and they did a great job capitalizing on that.”

Matt Amodio wanted new ‘Jeopardy!’ champ to have the spotlight

Surprisingly, Amodio’s initial reaction to losing that fateful game had nothing to do with his own emotions.

“Of course, I was feeling very sad when I lost,” he explained. “I loved being on the Jeopardy! stage, I loved winning on the Jeopardy! stage, and I didn’t want it to end. But my first thought was that I felt bad for Jonathan Fisher.”

Amodio didn’t want the end of his winning streak to overshadow Fisher’s accomplishment of becoming a Jeopardy! champion.

“I remembered how amazing the moment felt when I won my first game, and I was worried that his moment of winning was going to become my moment of losing,” the Ohio native said. “So, I wanted to congratulate him, tell him he deserved it and push as much of the focus back on to him as I could.”

‘Jeopardy!’ champs share mutual admiration

Fisher confirmed that the rumors about Amodio’s kind persona and good sportsmanship are all true. He commented on how welcoming Amodio was when introduced to new Jeopardy! competitors.

“Matt was really, really nice,” Fisher wrote in his own article for Newsweek. “He was so friendly and accommodating to all the contestants who were there and wanted to bombard him with questions because he was the current Jeopardy! celebrity. He was really gracious and friendly; a great guy.”

Now on his own Jeopardy! winning streak, Fisher is still amazed that he was able to take down the record-breaking champ.

“A part of me is like, ‘It’s true, I did beat Matt Amodio !’” Fisher shared. “But another part is more rational; someone was going to do it at some point. I don’t think I’m anywhere near the caliber of player Matt is, but I did a pretty good job.”