No one said it was going to be easy. Ben Driebergen and Tristan Phipps seemingly face a bump in the road in this week’s episode of The Challenge: World Championship.
In Us Weekly’s exclusive sneak peek of the Wednesday, April 19 episode, the two competitors get bogged down by an illness. The clip begins with Driebergen, 40, lying in bed coughing and wheezing. He tells his fellow competitor and close friend Sarah Lacina that he’s “never felt like this before” as she comforts him before the medic looks over the Survivor: Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers winner.
“Ben and I have been rocky throughout the game but Ben is really sick right now and I am a human being also,” the Challenge USA champion, 39, says in a confessional. “And even if he’s wronged me in the game or he’s upset with me at the end of the day like I want him to be OK.”
Kaycee Clark — who is partnered with the military veteran — weighs in with her worries about Driebergen’s condition noting that his body was “trying to fight something off.”
“When you’re partnered with someone in this game that is your partner through the whole entire game and if you don’t have a partner then you’re out.” the former Big Brother winner explains in the snippet. “I’m not sure what his body is trying to fight right now but I do need him to get better ASAP.”
Following Clark’s remarks, the camera pans to Phipps, 27, resting in bed talking to his Challenge partner, KellyAnne Judd. The Challenge UK alum apologizes to Judd, 36, revealing he’s also feeling under the weather and “can’t even get out of bed.”
“I feel terrible for Tristan, but it’s really hard to have your teammate — who controls your fate in this game — want to go home because they’re not feeling well,” the Real World Sydney alum confesses. “Like I don’t know, do I pack up my stuff now? I don’t even know how to feel. I don’t want to process this yet.”
The Paramount+ series — which premiered back in March — enlisted the best competitors from The Challenge franchise worldwide to participate in the highly anticipated global tournament in an attempt to reach the finale and take home the cash prize of $500,000.
Many alums from the MTV series joined the cast including, Amber Borzotra, Darrell Taylor, Jodi Weatherton, Johnny “Bananas” DeVenanzio, Wes Bergmann and more. They also enlisted some of The Challenge: USA stars including Driebergen, Danny McCray, Justine Ndiba and Lacina to fight for the prize in addition to stars of The Challenge UK and The Challenge Australia.
“They will help them win power, politics and avoid elimination in order to make it to the most difficult challenge of them all, the brutal finale worth $500,000,” a January press release stated. “In the end, only the most dominant will conquer the game and prove they are not just the best in their home country, but the best in the world.”
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The Challenge: World Championship airs on Paramount+ Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET.