‘The Challenge’: Nelson Thomas Teases His Ex and Partner Nurys Mateo With a Marriage Proposal Ahead of ‘Ride or Dies’
The Challenge Season 38 is almost here and it will feature a number of rookies competing for the first time. Fan-favorite Challenge players are teaming up with their “Ride or Dies” to compete for the $1 million prize — a total of 17 teams in all. One of those is Nelson Thomas and his ex, Nurys Mateo.
Nurys Mateo is a rookie competitor in ‘The Challenge: Ride or Dies’
Nurys is part of a class of Challenge rookies that include family members, close friends, and significant others of popular cast members. Some have little or no reality TV experience, but Nurys does have a history of appearing on other MTV shows.
Most notably, she starred in season 6 of Are You The One? in 2017. The following year, she appeared in Ex on the Beach 2 with castmates Angela Babicz, Morgan Willett, Jozea Flores, and Jay Starrett.
Her ex, Malcolm Drummer, originally appeared with her on AYTO. But later, her other ex — The Challenge star Nelson Thomas — also showed up.
Nurys is 27 years old and a native of Portland, Maine. In addition to appearing on reality TV, she is a model, athlete, and social media influencer.
Nelson Thomas teases his ex with a marriage proposal
MTV released videos introducing the various duos competing in Ride or Dies, and fans learned a lot about Nurys and Nelson’s relationship in their two-and-a-half-minute clip. The video begins with Nelson telling fans not to let Nurys’ face fool them because she is a “feisty one” and he loves it.
When Nurys attempted to describe Nelson in one word, she said he was a “big ball of energy.” Which prompted him to say, “We’re gonna have trouble with math.” His one word to describe her is “undeniable,” and it’s at this point in the video that it starts to look like these two aren’t just exes.
“I think Nelson and I are Ride or Dies because we’ve gone through so many obstacles. We’ve gone from dating, or whatever, to not talking to being friends to trying to figure out if we could ever be a thing again — to now being great friends, great partners in this game,” Nurys said.
The duo had nothing but glowing reviews for each other and continued to list each other’s strengths. Which prompted Nelson to tease his ex with a marriage proposal.
Nelson Thomas reveals his ‘The Challenge: Ride or Dies’ partner’s biggest weakness
While describing Nurys’ greatest strength heading into The Challenge: Ride or Dies, he said that she was able to hold everything in when something is bothering her. And in The Challenge house, that is an important quality to have.
“You’ve gotta realize, this house is meant to break you. People are gonna break you. They’re gonna push your buttons, and see how far they can push you to where you break and just lash out and lose it. But for her, she comes to me and she speaks to me before she speaks out, and that’s a great partnership. You know, we might as well just get married, I’m just saying,” Nelson said.
Nurys chimed in, saying “He’s still very much in love, if you couldn’t tell.” And he responded by sharing her biggest weakness — “commitment.”
The Challenge: Ride or Dies premieres October 12 on MTV.
