‘The Challenge’: Wes Bergmann Said There’s No Way the Show Could Ever Be Rigged for Johnny ‘Bananas’ Devenanzio
The Challenge: Total Madness is over, and we know Johnny “Bananas” Devenanzio took the winning title for the men and Jenny West took the win for the women. There have been plenty of rumors circulating that suggest production rigged the show so that Devenanzio would have a better shot at winning, too. So far, Devenanzio and host T.J. Lavin have denied the claims.
Wes Bergmann was Devenanzio’s ally on Total Madness, and he also discussed the rumors. Here’s what he had to say about the show’s rumored rigging.
Rumors spread that ‘The Challenge: Total Madness’ was rigged in Johnny ‘Bananas’ Devenanzio’s favor
Devenanzio is known as one of the best to ever compete on The Challenge, as he’s won seven seasons and competed on 20. While he appeared to win Total Madness fair and square, many thought the show was rigged in his favor.
Devenanzio and West were allies from the beginning, and Devenanzio admitted he told West to practice Hall Brawl, as he knew she was going to have to compete in that specific elimination game. West did, indeed, go against Dee Nguyen in Hall Brawl — and West came out on top. Some fans thought production may have had something to do with Devenanzio knowing West was going to compete in Hall Brawl.
Not only that, but other rumors suggested Devenanzio split the money with West. Since West was the first one to finish the Total Madness finale, some thought she actually won $1 million and made the decision to split it in half with Devenanzio. West denies this allegation, though.
Rumors of rigging have been shut down
Devenanzio caught wind of all the rumors circulating that production helped him along. And he denied that any foul play took place that would help him get another win.
“Production totally rigged that win for me,” Devenanzio tweeted with a winking smiley face during one of the episodes of Total Madness. This was clearly a jab at those who believed the rumors.
Host T.J. Lavin also talked about the rigging rumors. When Devenanzio went on Instagram Live to talk about his seventh win, Lavin briefly entered the conversation — and he promised fans that “no funny business” took place on the show.
Rogan O’Connor was on Total Madness right up until the end as well. And he also talked about the rumors on the Challenge Mania podcast. According to O’Connor, “it sounds all very far fetched, but I love the fans, I love the passion.” Considering he watched Devenanzio compete the entire season, he doesn’t believe anything was rigged in the champion’s favor, either.
Wes Bergmann said there’s no way ‘The Challenge’ could be rigged
Bergmann shocked everyone when he teamed up with Devenanzio on Total Madness. While he didn’t make it to the end, he did note that there’s no way any of the rigging rumors on the show have any validity.
“No, it’s absolutely ridiculous,” Bergmann told the Challenge Mania podcast in regards to rigging. And he then explained that production doesn’t like Devenanzio nearly enough to help him out.
“Bananas is an a**hole to a lot of production. So, trust me, yes, he’s got a couple of fans inside of production for sure. … But the rest of them dislike him,” Bergmann added. “Like, I hear Cara [Maria Sorbello] and Hunter [Barfield] say this all the time, like, ‘Oh, God, production loves Bananas,’ it’s like, what production are you talking to? Because they hate him when I talk to them. They dislike him.”
It looks like production might not be doing Devenanzio any favors now or in the future. We’ll have to wait and see if he makes a return to The Challenge and attempt yet another win.
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