Johnny Bananas Believes Wes Bergmann's 'The Challenge' Retirement Is Temporary

The milestone 40th season of The Challenge brings back some of the franchise's most legendary personalities, including seven-time champion Johnny "Bananas" Devenanzio.

While he's eager to add another win to his record, Bananas is a bit disappointed that one of his old frenemies won't be competing alongside him.

For those unaware, Johnny is referring to Wes Bergmann, a three-time Challenge champ who last appeared on The Challenge: USA 2 in 2023. So, why isn't Wes making a return for Season 40? Keep reading for all the known details.

During the second season of The Challenge: USA, Wes announced his retirement from the franchise. He shared his decision in Episode 6, citing work commitments and his growing family as the reasons behind his choice.

After losing an elimination match against Survivor winner Chris Underwood in Episode 10, Wes confirmed that was the last time he would compete on The Challenge.

In a follow-up with Entertainment Weekly, Wes clarified his retirement: "I'm not retiring because I'm not good. I'm not retiring because I don't want to be there." he shared. "I love the game, I love going, I love the aftermath, I love the in-between the seasons, I love the fan engagements, and the community."

"It's strictly a scheduling and work-related thing with my real job, which I happen to find more fulfilling and more lucrative," Wes added.

When asked if there's a chance he might return to the show one day down the road, Wes was straightforward: "Not really, no."

"I want to be clear that I'm not leaving the community — I'll still pop in for random cameo-esque things, if there's a mercenary role, I might pop in and host something, I'm going to be active on the interwebs about the shows," he said. "I'm very proud of the game and the show and not everybody but a lot of the players, and I think that there needs to be a very public cheerleader, and I think that that's the role that I would like to move into now."

Ahead of the Season 40 premiere, Johnny Bananas spoke with Us Weekly and revealed that Wes Bergmann is the one big name he wishes was part of the legendary cast.

"Everyone 'I'm really close to is pretty much all there," the reality TV star shared with the outlet before admitting, "[But] I wish Wes was there."

Although we know Wes is retired, Johnny Bananas believes he's simply "taking a hiatus" from The Challenge.

"Wes isn't going anywhere. Are you kidding me? He just needs to get his mojo back. Wes currently has an APB out for his mojo because he lost it," he joked. "How do you have a battle of the eras with all this era representation without Wes? He's been doing it for longer than I have. He's just one of the biggest names. It was a bummer that he wasn't there [but] next time."

Catch new episodes of The Challenge 40: Battle of the Eras on Wednesdays at 8 p.m. EST on MTV.