The Challenge 40 episode 9 recap: Rachel carries Era 1 forward while cracks form in others

The Challenge 40 released episode 9 on October 16 at 8 pm ET/PT on MTV and Paramount+. The latest season features contestants from the past competing against each other in four different eras. After eight episodes, 20 players remain in the running for the prize money of $1 million.

TJ Lavin returns as the host of The Challenge 40. Derrick and Averey were eliminated after facing off against Cory and Rachel, respectively. The decided targets for this week included Rachel from Era 1, Ryan and Laurel from Era 2, Devin and Tori from Era 3, and Kyland and Kaycee from Era 4.

According to MTV, the synopsis of episode 9 reads:

"Having seen their whole team lose in elimination, one challenger must hold their entire era on their back to earn safety; cracks in an alliance begin to form as relationships across eras create paranoia and uneasiness."

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What happened in The Challenge 40 episode 9?

After winning the elimination round last week, Rachel tried to figure out how to oust the entire house, as she was the only member left of Era 1. Ryan volunteered to become a target this week, expressing his desire to save Rachel if his era wins the challenge. Cory mentioned in a confessional that he would like to work with his Era 3 teammates but confessed that he only trusted Nehemiah from Era 2.

Tori, Devin, Josh, and Kaycee remained loyal to their Vacation Alliance, hoping that either Era 3 or Era 4 could win and keep them safe. Devin and Michele discussed their feud with Bananas, but Michele tried to calm her showmance, as she did not want a target on their backs.

Moving forward, this week’s challenge was titled Bottoms Out, in which players had to answer a series of equations. The players were perched in a container, and answering a question correctly kept them longer in the game. The last team standing would stand last and would be declared the winner of today’s challenge and exempt from the elimination round.

Although Rachel earned six footholds, as mentioned earlier, she was alone in her era. Era 2 earned 17, Era 3 earned 14, and Era 4 earned 14 footholds. Rachel gave a commendable performance for Era 1, and Nehemiah tried to keep Era 2 in the game. Era 3 and Era 4 saw Devin and Kaycee try to fight it out for time, respectively.

Later, TJ announced the results and revealed that Rachel had won the challenge, hanging for over 14 minutes. Era 3 put out the worst time, which meant that Tori and Devin would be heading to the elimination round. Rachel was given the power to decide who would go against Tori and Devin.

Kaycee pitched to Rachel in a way that irked her, implying that they had an alliance that was never mentioned before. Rachel mulled over putting Laurel against Tori, which would also put her friend Ryan in danger. Later, Kyland along with Laurel offered their loyalty to Rachel in hopes of staying in the game. Rachel eventually decided to send Kyland and Kaycee into the arena.

The elimination round, named Cable Connection Showdown, required players to untangle cables to light up a motherboard. The motherboard would in turn light up the logos for all 40 seasons of The Challenge. The player who finished last would be eliminated from the game.

Kyland managed to beat Devin, while Tori edged out Kaycee, resulting in their elimination this week. After winning the challenge, Tori decided to target Derek, Ryan, and Bananas, while Kyland chose Rachel, Aviv, and Jenny.