[Warning: The following post contains MAJOR spoilers for The Challenge: All Stars Rivals finale, “All Stars: An Un-Rivaled Twist.”]
The Challenge: All Stars Season 5 came to a thrilling end on Wednesday (April 16) night’s finale. Not only was there a win, with another “Rivals”-themed decision whether to keep or split the dough, but there was also an unexpected marriage proposal to cap it all off!
After the first four checkpoints, Shane Landrum and Da’Vonne Rogers led the final four with a whopping 13 stars. Just behind them were Adam Larson and Steve Meinke with 10, Nicole Zanatta and Melissa Reeves with nine, and Frank Sweeney and Sam McGinn with seven stars. Though Shane and Da’Vonne’s lead was no joke, it was still anyone’s game coming into the second day of the final.
The next checkpoint was a combination of eating and trivia called, “Pho King Trivia” (which host T.J. Lavin probably loved saying out loud). It featured delicacies like red chilis, coconut worms, and snails as add-ons to the pho bowls.
The next morning’s challenge was “High Ride,” a one-mile boat race, which saw Sam come from a distant last in the foot race to first in the rowing portion, bringing her and Frank into closer contention. The next leg, “Shoulder the Load,” saw the rivals having to carry water across a marsh, which was a challenge to those teammates with hurt knees and communication issues (neither Frank and Sam nor Nicole and Melissa finished, and the arguments got ugly as a result).
The final checkpoint, “Balance Them All,” required the contestants to balance sandbags and each other on a set of teeter-totters. It was essentially a horse race between Shane and Da’Vonne and Adam and Steve at this point for the big win, and it was the latter duo that got it done the fastest. That gave them the stars they needed for victory.
Finishing in fourth place (and winning $5,000) were Nicole and Melissa; third place (and $10,000) went to Frank and Sam; and second went to Shane and Da’Vonne (who took home $35,000). That left the remaining $250,000 prize money for Adam and Steve.
It wasn’t over, though, because it was then decision time for Adam and Steve. They were summoned to separate star chambers to make a decision about whether their partner would split or steal the money. “Rivals” seasons have produced some shocking moments when one contestant had to choose whether to split the final prize pot — both Johnny Bananas and Ashley Mitchell memorably yoinked the purses from their partners (in Season 28/”Rivals III” with Sarah Rice and Season 32/”Final Reckoning” with Hunter Barfield, respectively). Plus, Steve previously stole Adam’s star and took away his chance to make the final the last time they played together (hence, why they were rivals here). Still, both were confident enough to choose “split,” and they were right! This avoided the one-game playoff that they would’ve had to do, and they each went home six figures richer.
To celebrate the win, Adam decided to use his last confessional to send a message to his girlfriend at home, Averey Tressler, saying, “First thing I’m going to do, and obviously Averey, if you’re seeing this right now, you might want to look to the left or right to make sure I’m on a knee, and so, babe, whereever I am in the room right now, what do you say? Will you marry me?”
We’ll have to wait and find out whether Adam pulled off the timing of taking a knee for this proposal in real life and whether Averey accepts!