‘The Challenge’ Sneak Peek: New Captains Chosen, But Who’s Missing?

Last week’s episode of The Challenge ended on a major cliffhanger: Why is T.J. Lavin showing up to the house, and what bad news does he have?

Now, an exclusive sneak peek at Wednesday’s (September 15) new episode offers some major clues.

In the above clip, the Challenge contestants are lined up with their teams, and T.J. says, “I gave you a night to come up with a captain. Who’s it going to be?” There’d been a repeated stalemate before, but this time, it is unanimous … with a twist.

Unexpectedly missing from the Team Gray crew is Leo Dionicio, and he’s not the only one out of the picture; Nelson “Nelly” Thomas and Josh Goldstein are also visibly absent from Team Blue.

We’ll have to wait and see what has caused Season 42 to drop three from its roster so suddenly when the episode airs, but before then, we can see that what remains of these teams will at least be unified.

Paramount+

After Chris Underwood nominates himself to become captain of Team Gray, Adrienne Naylor explains her decision to support that choice, despite being insistent that she should run the squad earlier. “If we’ve figured this out correctly, it’s going to be a girl’s day, which means, ultimately, that still leaves me and Cassidy [Clark] on the table to go into elimination if needed. Right now, to me, that’s the fairest way to do it,” she reasons.

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As for Team Blue, it’s Alexis Lete who explains, “We’re the ‘Blue Angels’ left, all women, and tonight we are going to have Anna Leigh [Wilson] be our captain.” About that decision, Lete says, “I’m kind of just like, whatever, because I’ve talked to both Cara Maria [Sorbello] privately and Anna Leigh privately, and both of them want me in the finale with them. So, ultimately, I’m in the position to be in the finale with both of them.”

Meanwhile, Tori Deal remains the captain of Team Orange, unless, of course, any members of her crew decide to pull a mutiny.

The Challenge, Wednesdays, Paramount+