For
some
stars
of
The
Challenge,
feeling
like
a
million
bucks
means
more
than
pocketing
it.
“Pride
is
a
hell
of
a
thing,”
Johnny “Bananas”
Devenanzio
mused
in
an
exclusive
interview
with
E!
News’
Francesca
Amiker. “Being
able
to
raise
that
trophy
and
being
able
to
say
you
won,
to
me,
goes
a
lot
further
than
the
money
at
the
end.”
Not
that
he
hasn’t
appreciated
the
roughly
$1.1
million
he’s
earned
from
his
franchise-best
seven
wins.
“That’s
obviously
nice,”
The
Real
World:
Key
West
alum
acknowledged. “But
people
don’t
understand
how
absolutely
mind-numbingly
difficult
this
show
is,
not
just
from
a
physical
standpoint,
but
from
a
mental
standpoint,
an
emotional
standpoint.
There
has
to
be
an
element
of
luck
every
single
season,
because
there’s
no
way
you’re
making
it
to
a
final
without
some
luck
falling
in
your
favor.”
Noting
the
obstacles
competitors
have
to
face
even
before
running
host
T.J.
Lavin‘s
notoriously
brutal
finals,
Johnny
continued, “Being
able
to
hoist
that
trophy
up
at
the
end,
it’s
one
of
the
most
difficult
things
you
can
do
on
Earth.
So
not
to
say
that
money
isn’t
great,
but
the
satisfaction
of
winning
is
much
more
gratifying.”
Celebrity Fails
