"40 years old, acting like you're 12"— The Challenge star Darrell criticizes Laurel's behavior 

The Challenge season 40 aka Battle of the Eras saw Darrell Taylor get eliminated from the MTV show in episode 7. The cast member, who first appeared in Road Rules Campus Crawl in 2022, was part of Era 1, along with other veteran players such as C.T. Tamburello, Tina Barta, and more.

While on the milestone season which pits players of different eras of the long-running show against each other, Darrell got into an argument with Laurel Stucky from Era 2. Laurel was upset with Darrell for targeting her and after winning a trivia challenge and saving herself from elimination, the female cast member hurled abuses at him.

Darrell spoke to Entertainment Weekly about his time on the show and commented on his feud with Laurel. He criticized the cast member for her behavior and called her a "bully."

"I get it's a game, but she was taking it to another level. You're like 40 years old, acting like you're 12," he said.

Darrell added that Laurel was "doing too much" and that it was disappointing to see.

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"Throws temper tantrums"— The Challenge: Battle of the Eras star Darrell reflects upon Laurel's behavior during reunion specials

The Challenge: Battle of the Eras' eliminated contestant, Darrell spoke to Entertainment Weekly about Laurel Stucky's behavior on Wednesday, October 2, 2024. At the time, he recalled the female cast member's behavior on the show and how it had changed over the years.

Darrell said he had never seen Laurel act the way she did during The Challenge season 40. However, he recalled her behavior during reunion specials and her arguing with several contestants. He added that he had seen her yell at Michele Fitzgerald and called her previous behavior "crazy."

"I think if she doesn't get her way, she just throws a temper tantrum. I think it's a lot of insecurities on her part, honestly. That's the only thing I could think of," Darrell said.

Speaking about Laurel's time on The Challenge season 40, Darrell termed her behavior as "little kiddie sh*t." He stated that he believed the "game" got to her or stated that it might be a "front" to intimidate people. He said that it wasn't healthy because it consumed "too much energy." He said it might have been entertaining to watch, but it took a lot of energy.

He further chimed in on his argument with Laurel and revealed that the entire feud was not telecast. He stated that while they were on the bus, he was sitting next to Averey Tressler and someone was throwing peanuts at him. The Challenge season 40 contestant stated he stood up to figure out who was responsible and that Laurel looked "guilty."

"Then I said, "Male or female, I will beat your a**, hit me with another f*cking peanut again." And I was shaking and trembling because I was so angry," Darrell recalled.

He stated that he was worried about being disqualified due to his back issues and Laurel "picking" on him made it worse. He added that when they were back at the house, she was trying to "mug" him and "intimate" him and looked at him "all crazy."

The Challenge: Battle of the Eras player added that if Laurel had been a guy, they wouldn't have had these problems since it "would've already been handled." He said that he didn't feel like "they" didn't do enough to "protect" him because she was "trying to provoke" him to do something.

Darrell further said that Laurel continued her behavior towards him all season in hopes of getting a reaction out of him. He added that she bullied him and wanted him out of the show.

"I'm a male and she wants me to snap and do something stupid. I didn't feel like I was protected enough. I should get a restraining order on her," he added.

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The Challenge season 40 airs episodes every week on Wednesdays at 8 pm ET on MTV.