You know what happens when you assume?
Tori Deal was smacked in the face with a reminder of that this week onThe Challenge: Total Madness.
“It was devastating, for sure,” Tori tells EW.
Credit: MTV
“But it was definitely a cool one, you know?
And that was a hard-ass workout, so I am proud of it.”
you’re free to’t venture to outsmart the game.
MTV
And I think that’s what I was trying to do this season.
So it was a huge blow to my ego, and it really set me back.
I deleted Instagram off my phone for like five days and for me that’s a long time.
MTV
Im surprised to hear you say you thought you were being handed an elimination win.
Was that just a front or did you really not know if you were coming back?
Sometimes they’re before the event occurs and sometimes they’re after.
MTV
You’re just talking about things and hoping that your words don’t bite yourself in the butt.
But at the same time, that feeling of going into an elimination, it’s almost unbearable.
You’re like, “What the f— am I getting myself into?”
MTV
So you don’t want to get your hopes up.
But I really did think when I was out there that she was not going to perform.
I really thought she wasn’t going to, so it definitely caught me by surprise.
What was going through your mind then?
When I first got my brick, I didn’t know that they were going to shatter like that.
There’s just so much that you learn on the spot.
I was like, “Holy s—.
1, I thought that this was going to be easy.
2, I’m behind now.
3, I’m just completely taken off guard.”
So I went into it with my guard down and that’s what really bit me in the butt.
Jordan was shouting at you so much during the elimination, and you did get visibly flustered.
Was Jordans yelling ever helpful at all or was it just a distraction?
It totally distracted me, but I don’t think it was his fault.
I’m going to get frazzled.
I put a lot of weight on my athletic abilities.
butThe Challengeis so much more than athletic ability.
That is something that, after this season, I realized I really have to work on.
Was it that close in real life?
It was 100 percent that close.
F—ing stop!"
Forty-five minutes of working so hard to lose by a second, a literal second!
It was that close.
I was completely devastated.
“If anybody recognizes me right now, it’s just going to look so bad.”
That’s brutal, I’m so sorry.
You know what, you really do live and you learn.
I’ve found things that I’m thankful for within that loss.
I really do think it was a humbling experience, and I can’t get ahead of myself.
I’m just going to have to work for it.
It almost felt like the roles were reversed and he had lost instead of you.
I felt like I had lost for him, you know?
I felt like I failed him.
I gave it my absolute all; I couldn’t have given any more.
That maybe would have changed something, but I gave it my all.
He wanted to be like, “What the f—?
What were you doing?!”
I went immediately into nurture mode.
I [didn’t want to], I’m not going to lie.
I was like, “F—ing asshole, you beat me!
And then you want me to go fix your relationship?!”
I was really upset about that.
I would hope she would reach out to Jordan.
I definitely kept him calm.
Do you have any regrets about the way you played this season as a whole?
And I wouldn’t have tried to outsmart the game.
I wouldn’t have tried to go in against somebody that I thought I could beat.
With every singleChallengeyou go on, it’s going to be chancy.
What are you doing in your time off to better prepare for your next season?
[Laughs] I have been running, doing a lot of long-distance running, incline long-distance running.
I just f—ing do it.
I’ve been training on my puzzles and working on math.
And I think people are really going to see it.
Is there anything that didnt see air this season that you think is important for fans to know?
And those moments happen more often than you think.
He gets a pretty bad rep, but he’s a really good person.
Looking back on this season, did anyone surprise you with how you got along with them?
It’s interesting to really get to see everybody’s personality once the time comes around to show it.
That was one person that has really surprised me.
Everybody else, I really do genuinely get along with.
I love everybody for their differences, but it’s a game.
When people are acting shady, that’s what really bothers me.
The Challenge: Total Madnessairs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on MTV.
