Coming into a reality TV show like The Challenge, where so many of the competitors have competed before and know each other well, can be extremely intimidating for a rookie. And unsurprisingly, many first-timers that are eliminated early in the game never really succeed on the show, and sometimes they don't even make another appearance.
It's a bit of a tradition for vets on The Challenge to target the rookies and send them home first. However, some challengers who were sent home extremely early in their debut season actually have gone on to become fan favorites and champions of the series.
Michaela Bradshaw
There are a few contestants from other reality shows that Challenge fans were hoping might show up on the MTV series, and Survivor alum Michaela Bradshaw was one of them (especially after Jay Starrett, her ally-turned-rival on Millennials Vs. Gen X, made his debut on The Challenge).
And although Spies, Lies, and Allies finally made that dream come true, it was seemingly all for naught, as Michaela was the first girl out on this season. Fingers are crossed that she will come back for another shot though, ideally on a season with Jay or some other Survivor players.
Cheyenne Floyd
It's easy to forget considering how far they actually wound up making it, but the deadly duo of Devin Walker and Cheyenne Floyd were actually the first team out on their debut season of Rivals III. They were ultimately brought back because other teams quit or were disqualified though, and after they returned they wound up making it to the final.
It doesn't seem like The Challenge was really Cheyenne's type of series, however, she wound up becoming one of the stars of Teen Mom OG after her appearances on The Challenge and Are You The One.
Rogan O'Connor
Oddly, sometimes being the first player out on a debut season of The Challenge seems like it can be a bit of a good luck charm, as many contestants who are eliminated first wind up going very far in their next season. Such is the case with Rogan O'Connor, who wound up being eliminated before the game even started on Vendettas and then wound up winning his subsequent season, War of the Worlds 2.
While some fans love him and others love to hate him, Rogan is undeniably a heavy-hitter who flopped (literally and figuratively) in his first season.
Tyler Duckworth
The entire cast of The Real World: Key West did not have an easy time on The Duel. Three out of four of them were eliminated first in the season (Svetlana being the notable exception), and while Tyler managed to win his elimination against Bananas, he was immediately defeated by Derrick.
Despite having a more than mediocre intro into the world of The Challenge, Tyler returned and ultimately became one of the strongest competitors of his era, winning two finals during his Challenge career.
Natalie Anderson
In the contemporary era of the reality TV competition, The Challenge draws its competitors from a litany of different shows. But there are few newbie challengers that are more intimidating to the rest of the cast than Survivor players, and it's easy to see why. Not only is Survivor a great preparation, but people who have competed on that series are typically tough, intelligent, and can endure almost anything.
Natalie Anderson proved that she wouldn't back down in her first season on The Challenge, but she was DQ'd early on for medical reasons.
Paula Meronek
Like the rest of her Key West castmates, Paula did not have an easy go of things in her first season of The Challenge. And when she went up against Aneesa in the grueling Pole Wrestle elimination, she unsurprisingly lost.
That certainly didn't diminish Paula's fighting spirit for The Challenge though, as she went on to appear in 10 seasons of the series in total. But, it took her quite a while to snag her win, as her first win in Rivals was actually her eighth season.
Evelyn Smith
Even though the competitive atmosphere of The Challenge has only gotten more intense over the years, Evelyn Smith is one of the rare competitors who would still scare the daylights out of everyone today. She's indisputably one of the greatest women to ever play the game, which is why her elimination in the first Exile of Fresh Meat is even more astonishing.
Yes, The Real World: Austin were the first targets in the game, and yes, her partner Danny wasn't a particularly skilled player, but considering Ev's Challenge resume, it's still a shock that she was eliminated so early.
Devin Walker
Devin might not be the dominant Challenge player that some of these other early boots are, but he consistently exceeds expectations in of his competition performance, and more importantly, he went from a first-outer to one of the fan-favorite stars of The Challenge.
Along with his partner Chey, he lost the first elimination on Rivals III. But they were both brought back and made it all the way to the final, and Devin has been making his mark on The Challenge with his outspoken attitude and sense of humor ever since.
Cara Maria Sorbello
Cara Maria Sorbello is arguably the female face of The Challenge, so it's astounding to recall that she was the first out on Fresh Meat II. And, she managed to lose an elimination despite the fact that Challenge GOAT Darrell Taylor was her partner.
But Cara has more than redeemed herself in the intervening years. Although her reputation as a mediocre player didn't die nearly as soon as it should have, she is now undeniably considered to be one of the best players in the history of the series.
Johnny "Bananas" Devenanzio
Plenty of Challenge players have won more than one Challenge, but Johnny Bananas is the winningest winner of them all. Which is why his introduction into the Challenge world is so ridiculous in retrospect. The Duel was his first season, and when his Key West roommate Tyler found himself in elimination, he bafflingly chose Bananas as the player he wanted to go against.
They competed in "I Can," a flop of an elimination format where one player claims that they can lift a certain amount of something, and the other player either has to "bet" higher or call their bluff. Johnny apparently vastly underestimated Tyler's strength and was eliminated, but obviously went on to have an illustrious Challenge career that shows no signs of stopping.
