I don’t think either of these players likes to acknowledge how much the other one bothers them as game players/human. Jordan does not respect Wes’s game because he knows that Wes is not stronger, faster, or even smarter than most of the other elite players. It’s true. A lot of what makes Wes is excellent is the little stuff: his ability to come up with ingenious strategies during daily challenges, his ability to leverage small voting power into significant political gains, and the fact he’s a damn good swimmer. To Jordan, it’s an insult people put Wes on the same level as him or even higher than him. Jordan is fucking fantastic at every type of athletic competition despite his disability, and he can’t see through his own Jordan cloud, that even though Wes plays an entirely different game, he can get one over on Jordan from time to time. Likewise, Wes doesn’t like Jordan because Jordan doesn’t give him anywhere near the credit he deserves and is, in general, kind of a kill-buzz. Jordan is the type of player who wants Wes out immediately as he knows the longer you let Wes stay, the more powerful he becomes. He’s like a fungus, or a virus, or Pete Davidson.

On Rivals 2, they competed without any animosity towards each other. Wes and CT won, while Jordan and Marlon finished in third. They reunited on Exes 2, where Wes and Theresa were outperforming Jordan and Sarah all season. Yet, near the end-game, Wes told Leroy and Jordan that if any of their teams were to end up in elimination, they would promise to throw in Jay/Jenna to face them, so they’d all make it to the final together. Leroy was cool with this idea, but Jordan did not want to take orders from Wes, and even took a jab at Wes’s physique, saying he wasn’t the same “roided-up” Wes. The exile twist occurred, the numbers in the game got flipped to Bananas’ side, and Wes got a daily challenge/elimination, which were unwinnable for him. Jordan and Sarah take the overall win for the season with Wes and Theresa out. The fact we didn’t get to see their two teams run the final against each other is a travesty.

During Champs vs. Pros, Jordan threw Wes into the first elimination because he thought Wes was the weak link. Wes beat Bananas, and then beat Jordan! Wes made the final for the season, achieved success during WOTW 1, and then got taken out early on WOTW 2, partially due to Jordan calling out Wes’’s alliance with the UK. These two loathe one another on a game-level, and I can’t wait to see them go toe-to-toe again on Total Madness.

5 Wes vs. CT

Every time I think the Wes and CT rivalry is completely overrated, I remember the video of CT cursing out all night during Rivals 1. Their “rivalry” began on the Duel 1. After CT got disqualified during the final elimination of the Duel, Wes called CT out for being a baby, and then even took a shot at his relationship with Diem, calling it “fake.” CT wanted to murder We and TJ Lavin but to no avail. What’s even crazier is they weren’t on another show together for like five-six years because Wes retired for three years, and then CT got banned right before Wes came back. When they did, Wes somewhat cheaply fed into the MOB kool-aid while partnered with Kenny, and was doing the most to annoy CT. CT did not take kindly to it, and one drunken, bombarded with Wes with a litany of curse words and verbal assaults. CT saying, “DIE. DIE. DIE. MOTHERFUCKING I’M COMING AND KEEP RUNNING” is something infused into my brain.

Ironically, these two played the same roles where they took on the entire JEK Mob solo, often losing, but looking like megastars in the process. Wes and CT were both like Minnesota Kevin Garnett, and when they teamed up together, they were ultimate Suicide Squad on Rivals 2, putting together one of the most feel-good wins in Challenge history. I wanted to compare one of them to Ray Allen or Paul Pierce, but they’re both too good. This is how I win.

4 Wes vs. Bananas

I think Wes is probably Johnny’s second-biggest rival (after CT). If you look at the seasons, Wes and Bananas have had a long-standing rivalry that on paper should put it #1.

Bananas voted Wes in twice on Exes 1 (Wes eliminated)

Wes won Rivals 2 against Johnny in the final

Wes voted Bananas in on Exes 2 (Bananas eliminated), Bananas came back and helped Wes get eliminated on Exes 2

Bananas threw in Wes twice on Rivals 3 (Wes eliminated), Bananas wins the season

Wes eliminates Bananas on Champs vs. Pros, makes final

Wes voted Bananas in on WOTW 1 (Bananas eliminated), Wes makes final

Wes and Bananas both suck on WOTW 2, now aligned for Total Madness

When you really think about it, why do Johnny and Wes dislike each other? Yes, they have thrown harsh jabs at one another many times, they don’t share the same social fancies, and they may just hate each other’s faces. Yet, you can say the same thing about Wes and a plethora of other challengers, and over time, he has gotten in good standing with them (and even is with Bananas this current season).

The reason why Bananas vs. Wes ranks so low is that it’s a watered-down knock-off version of the Kenny vs. Wes rivalry. Whereas the Wes vs. Kenny rivalry had legitimate animosity and history between two people who redefined what the modern era of Challenges would become, Wes vs. Bananas was always a step-down. They didn’t need ten years of squabbling to get on the same page. Them fighting makes for good television, but as reality TV fans, we will always like something real better.

3 Wes vs. Darrell

A money feud. If this were a wrestling feud, Wes would be the Heel wrestler who loses every time to Darrell, but each week he can cut a promo that enrages Darrell and can get the best of him from time to time. On Fresh Meat 1, Darrell played a part in throwing Wes into five eliminations. They both made the final, they both did well, and in the end, Darrell had a much better partner and a little more fuel in the tank.

Darrell then reappeared on the Ruins (Wes also hadn’t been on in a while). Wes was quick to isolate himself from the rest of his team by telling them that he was going to throw all the challenges unless they cede power to him. Darrell took jabs at Wes via KellyAnne by slut-shaming her and saying he shouldn’t be excited about hooking up with a girl who had sex with the entire house. KellyAnne had hooked up with Wes (current BF), Cohutta (ex-BF), and Adam King (took advantage of her while heavily intoxicated). Wes and Darrell got into each other’s faces and tried to take a “fight” outside. This fight was never going to happen, mainly because production wasn’t going to let the star of their season leave episode 1, and also, as much as I love Wes, he would have gotten murdered by the Golden Gloves Boxer. Darrell told the other men on the Ruins that he doesn’t care about what the overall gameplan was, all that he cares about is that Wes gets taken out.

Wes got what seemed like the last laugh when he got Darrell voted into the first elimination of Fresh Meat 2 (a plan that Kenny got on board for). Then fast forward eight years, and they appear on Champs vs. Pros together. Both players make the final, Darrell coasting and Wes winning a ton of eliminations, just like on Fresh Meat 1. In the end, they both make the final, Darrell wins, and Wes finishes in third, again like Fresh Meat 1. What’s amazing is they are so cool with each other now that they had a fake Twitter beef during Final Reckoning to poke fun at modern-day challengers.

2 Wes vs. Derrick

Two guys who are linked together in history and intertwine so much, yet are so diametrically apart. When Derrick appeared on the Gauntlet 2, he became King of the Gauntlet and was the first male ever to achieve both 3 and 4 elimination wins (all came in one season). The next season, Wes took some of his glory by winning five eliminations in one season. However, Derrick’s wins were of a higher quality as they were in one on one head to head games, and there was no Fresh Meat exile weight bagged non-sense. On the Duel, Derrick tied Wes’s record of 5 elimination wins by defeating Tyler. Later in the season, at final six, Wes called Derrick out for a Duel.

The two men with the most elimination wins in Challenge history were going to face each other (something that will likely never happen again for either gender). Not only that, but they faced each other in the first male pole wrestle in Challenge history. The men battled like wilderbeast, as not only was their stake in the game on the line, but their spots in Challenge history. Wes getting this win removed any potential asterisks from Fresh Meat 1 because he had beaten King of the Gauntlet in a physical game. Derrick had been on the show for 5 seasons, and really felt defeated after losing to someone with Wes’s ego. In two seasons, Wes made two finals, won 150k, and took the elimination record. For someone as hard-working as Derrick, that’s tough to deal with.

Things got better for Derrick as he’d go on a crazy 3-Peat from Inferno 3-The Island-The Ruins. To this day, Derrick has more wins (3) than Wes (2), and the same amount of finals appearances (5). However, things were still chippy between the two over time. If you notice in the Darrell/Wes Ruins fight, Derrick is cursing out Wes. Derrick would throw shots at Wes on his podcast, and Wes would throw shots back on social media. It got pretty dirty between the two. Luckily, some Scott Yager mediation led to Wes appearing on Challenge Mania twice, and the relationship seems to greatly healed. They aren’t friend yet, but definitely a massive step-up for the two.

1 Wes vs Kenny