‘The Challenge’ Couples Who Are Still Going Strong

Credit: Courtesy of Instagram/Nany Gonzalez

'The Challenge' Couples Who Are Still Going Strong

Finding real love on reality TV. Despite the added pressure that being followed by a camera adds to a relationship, sometimes stars quickly fall head over heels. On MTV's The Challenge, finding a romance is very likely — but making it last is not. Many didn't think Paulie Calafiore and Cara Maria Sorbello would create a real bond after meeting on Final Reckoning in 2018, but they proved others wrong. The duo went on to compete alongside each other on War of the Worlds later that year and War of the Worlds 2 in 2019. Then they hit pause on filming reaity TV to focus on themselves both individually and as a couple and later decided to move in together in Montana. “You can’t put a price tag on happiness. For so long, I was, like, you know the money is so good. I can’t say no. I needed a little break for my own sanity and my own happiness, just finding what makes me me again and get my light back,” she explained to Us Weekly exclusively following the War of the Worlds 2 finale in December 2019. “I’m freakin’ fantastic, so I’m gonna have a little break so they can make someone else the bad guy this next season because I’m not going to be on it!" "Here we are today, after everything we have been through, still together — and only we know what that means," he added. [jwplayer ycjrZjmx-zhNYySv2] Although Sorbello and Calafiore are a more recent couple, some have lasted the test of time. Sean Duffy and Rachel Campos met while filming the first-ever season of The Challenge in 1998, then titled Road Rules: All Stars. He had previously appeared on The Real World: Boston while she had starred on The Real World: San Francisco. The pair went on to marry in 1999 and have nine children. Their ninth child was born in 2019 with a heart defect. "She was born last week, one month before her due date. She is doing great, though still in the NICU until she learns to eat on her own. I’m home now, trying to recover from my first C-section (hats off to all the c-section moms out there — I had no idea!) and working hard with my breast pump to keep up with her growing appetite," Campos wrote via Facebook at the time. "When we visit with her at the hospital, the kids fight over who can hold her — I don’t blame them! She’s the sweetest, most perfect angel we have ever seen." Scroll through the gallery below to see more Challenge couples whose romance lasted outside the house. [podcast_block]

Credit: Courtesy of Instagram/Nany Gonzalez

Nany Gonzalez and Kaycee Clark

The pair, who met on Total Madness in 2020, got closer off screen but secured their relationship during season 37, Spies, Lies and Allies, moving in together after filming wrapped in 2021.In August 2022, the couple opened up to Us about their plans for the future. 

"The next step, obviously, would be marriage," Gonzalez told Us at the time. "And then, of course, after that would be children and that, obviously, would, you know, come with IVF and all of that. So that's definitely something that we're going to look into eventually and we're super excited about just our future together."

Clark, for her part, revealed that the relationship was going "amazing," noting that after "sleeping [together] in bunk beds" on The Challenge, moving in together was a seamless transition. 

Credit: Courtesy of Jenna Compono/Instagram

Zach Nichols and Jenna Compono

The couple met during Compono's first season, Battle of the Exes II, in 2014. They dated on and off for years, and he proposed in December 2019. In February 2021, they announced they're expecting their first child together. In March 2021, the pair tied the knot.

Credit: Courtesy of Cara Maria/Instagram

Cara Maria and Paulie Calafiore

Despite a rocky start, Sorbello and Calafiore couldn't deny the sparks after meeting in 2018 on Final Reckoning. After a brief split, they got back together in 2019 and moved in together in Montana.

Credit: Courtesy of Leroy Garrett/Instagram

Kam Williams and Leroy Garrett

After meeting on Vendettas in 2018, the pair had an instant connection. Though they had an up and down romance over the years, they got back together in August 2019 and moved in together in Texas in 2020. The couple announced in December 2021 that they are expecting their first child together.

Credit: Courtesy of Rachel Campos/Instagram

Sean Duffy and Rachel Campos

In 1998, the Real World: Boston alum met the Real World: San Fransico star during the first season of The Challenge, Road Rules: All Stars. They tied the knot the following year. She went on to be a Fox News correspondent while Duffy is a politician. He resigned from Congress in 2019 when Campos became pregnant with their ninth child, who they learned would have health complications.