BY DC CUEVA
■ @DC408Dxtr @ TW / IG / YT
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| Twitter @MTVCoryWharton |
And before we begin our usual year-end review of the reality TV year this Christmas weekend, there's the latest life-changing moment for not one, but two people in this always fascinating world of the people who make this world happen. It's of something very familiar in one who has been on recent Challenges who started like many others on a Real World season, and we've seen so much happen to him since. But this also links all three shows we cover extensively here, as he is also linked to an Are You The One? alum, and for which they were casted together on one season and saw one of the many love affairs he's had in front of MTV cameras. And in the end, the result is two things that take on greater priority: the responsibility of family and raising a young kid at this young adult stage.
This is the very scenario that, just now, is beginning to play itself out in Real World Ex-Plosion alum and soon-to-be six-time Challenge competitor Cory Wharton and AYTO Season 3 alum and Rivals III finalist Cheyenne Floyd, and where of all things, a baby, has brought them together yet again.
Last Saturday night, eight people who have competed of recent seasons of The Challenge joined up with one who knows well the feeling of being a dad and a Challenger, and another from across the pond who's ready for his American closeup. The reason was to spend their pre-holiday weekend at a club outside of Chicago for a benefit event for both the late Diem Brown's MedGift charity and military veterans. For a moment, this was the place to be for those who are fans of the fifth major pro sport, where all roads will eventually lead to the premiere of Season 31, Vendettas, in the new year.
Johnny Bananas, Derrick K., Cara Maria, Jenna, Nany, Zach, KellyAnne, Britni, Chicago's very own Brad and the newbie of the bunch, Kyle from Geordie Shore, all met their biggest fans from the Midwest and enjoyed music and bowling for two worthy causes. But as they stepped into the club on the outskirts of the Second City, little did they know that they would be upstaged by one who was 2,000 miles away out in Los Angeles, who competed with them on Bloodlines, Rivals III, Invasion, Dirty 30 and Champs vs. Stars and who teased the previous night about big news that would steal the thunder from their big night ahead of him competing with six of them come January 2nd.
It was two years ago this fall that Cheyenne went onto AYTO Season 3 in Hawaii as a wide-eyed 22-year-old from L.A. who described herself as the "total package" in being both beautiful and smart. Up until what happened two weeks ago, they had the biggest comeback in that show's history, and on that season she was very vocal: both around fellow fiery roommate Nelson and then with the person who formed part of Team Princess, Devin, when she went in on him for his disrespect for women in that house. It brought them to Rivals III, and during that time Chey and Cory first started to lay eyes on one another in Mexico... and when fate intervened in her & Devin being brought back after losing an elimination, they got another chance to explore each other, though the question of whether they actually hooked up remained unanswered.
While we have been watching him getting eliminated in the second Redemption on Dirty 30 and then getting upset by Wild N' Out and TRL's Matt Rife in the first elimination of Champs vs. Stars a few weeks ago, Cory has been laying low… word is that not only is he part of this upcoming Vendettas season that debuts 13 days from tonight, but also the new U.S. version of Ex on the Beach, making 2018 a year that he becomes more of a household name than just to MTV fans. But after a few months away from social media on Friday, December 15th, he teased about something about a piece of news which he has been keeping under wraps due to his busy fall schedule.
Then on the 16th came the news that would break the internet: just after 8PM ET, Cory posted the following messages on Instagram and Twitter, followed shortly after by Cheyenne:
Instagram @CoryWharton_IG
"I’ve been off of social media for a while now... for many reasons. Most importantly God has given me the biggest blessing in my life, my daughter Ryder K Wharton. I want to say thank you Cheyenne for being such an amazing mother. I look forward to co-parenting with you and giving Ryder all the love in the world. I can’t wait to watch you grow up and be there for you every step of the way, love you Moochie !!! @cheynotshy @thatsryderk"
Twitter @MTVCoryWharton
"I’ve been off of social media for a while now... for many reasons. Most importantly God has given me the biggest blessing in my life my daughter Ryder K Wharton. I want to say thank you Cheyenne for being such an amazing mother. I just wanna say thank you to everyone for all the congratulation wishes. I appreciate all the positive energy you guys are sending my way🙏🏽 A HUGE thank you to you guys!!!!✊🏽"
Twitter & Instagram @CheyNotShy
"all that matters is that Ryder is healthy and loved ❤️ thanks for the positive support. Cory is nothing short of an amazing father. We are so blessed to be raising mooch as co parents together and I couldn’t have asked for a better father for my princess. Our daughter is the best of both of us. ❤️ @thatsryderk @corywharton_ig"
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| Cory & Cheyenne during Rivals III. |
It was more than a year ago that Cheyenne announced on her 24th birthday in October 2016 on Instagram a picture of a baby bump and "the greatest birthday present in 24 years 👶🏽✨." Her birthday bash doubled as the baby reveal party, which was captured on social media and SnapChat, including the moment of her eating a cupcake that revealed the gender of the newborn, which turned up pink... signifying a baby girl. Devin and Season 3 lovebirds Zak & Hannah were there for her baby shower earlier this year, and following that magic moment this past April, at the time she didn't disclose who the daddy was. It would take nine months until this past week for us to finally find out.
While Bananas, Cara and company danced the night away in Chicago, it did not take long for that to take second fiddle to Cory, Cheyenne and Ryder K. taking all the buzz away among MTV fans as the big buzz story of the moment not only in the Trifecta but outside of it too, with media outlets here and even abroad (Britain's Daily Telegraph) to report it on their sites. And the reaction to the baby daddy news swiftly made its way around the social-sphere in giving Ryder's parents their congrats and also of how this news caught many in total surprise. In fact, over 9,000 comments were left under that picture on both Instagram and Twitter since it was first posted on Saturday night.
Cory's Bay Area roommate Jamie tweeted, "Congrats @MTVCoryWharton !!!you're gonna be such an awesome dad😭🙌," while Cara Maria tweeted a GIF of a clip from the Maury Povich show of his signature segment of revealing a paternity test in announcing "You ARE the Father!". That enemy of his Bananas chimed in, "The hat says it all! Congrats daddy #Savage," while Zak added, "Congrats brother. Love you guys." And for his fellow Young Bucks, Hunter wrote, "Couldn't be more proud of you and I cannot wait to come see that beautiful baby girl! I love you bro! #famforlife," while Nelson added, "Picture perfect Bro!!!! I'm so happy for you !!"
For Cory, the persona of being The Challenge's resident playboy changes very considerably with what he has ahead of him in the long-term, along with him being on our screens again in two weeks. As he told US Weekly, "Once I found out I had a kid, my whole life changed. It's a feeling inside of yourself that there's a bigger purpose. Now I’m doing everything for my daughter, instead of for myself. I had to put somebody before myself for the first time. I feel like I've got my power pack, like I'm untouchable with my kid. I have her and that's all the love I need in the world. It gave me a sense of purpose. I never thought I could love anybody more than myself and I do."
This holiday weekend, Cory, Cheyenne and Ryder will spend the baby's very first Christmas not at home out west where it'll 70 degrees on Monday, but meeting his family in Michigan where there will be snow falling outside their window once Santa delivers her presents. He adds, "It has been a blessing. I’ve needed Ryder in my life more than she needed me. She has an amazing family in Cheyenne’s family, and I’m just glad that now we can give her two families and give her all the love that we can. Becoming a dad just means it’s time to grow up a little bit. You have a child in the world, you have to provide for someone else … so buckle in and figure things out!"
Although doing Challenges is something Bananas takes for granted, not everyone is willing to extend those 15 minutes, and being a parent changes everything especially in co-parenting scenarios such as is the case here. This includes Cory's schedule of having to go to the gym earlier before dawn before coming over to Cheyenne's house (10 minutes away if the infamous L.A. traffic has its way), and be with Ryder all day until she falls asleep late at night. Plus, there's a pre-existing condition the baby has called VLCADD, which made the mom's first months this year tougher, and though with no side effects they still have keep a watchful eye on Ryder.
This is not the first time that Cory has faced the prospect of being a dad in his early twenties - in fact, there are two prior instances: just after she moved into his Real World Ex-Plosion house and while they were exploring rekindling old flames of the past, his ex Lauren - whom he had been dating on & off since they were in 7th grade - took a pregnancy test and the results came up positive. Also, she told him that she had slept with another man before she flew to the Bay Area, but after talking with roommates and fighting with him, she decided that it would be best not to deal with this in the public eye and she left the house to get an abortion... the first time that the reality original had seen a castmate get knocked up. He told Zap2It at the time, "It was life-changing, but there was a lot of personal growth. After this episode, I really just grew up a lot. After loving somebody for so long and finding out that she’s pregnant by somebody else, it was tough."
But that's not all: Cory had to deal with another surprise pregnancy when, as a college freshman, his football scholarship went down in flames when he dropped his athletic involvement because of a pregnancy scare with the girl he dated at the time... only to find out that he was catfished: the story of that became a complete hoax that would've made startled Nev Schulman and Max Joseph. He adds on Z2I, "I thought the next time I would be talking about pregnancy would be when I was sitting down with my wife talking about kids, you know? We'd go through it then. I never thought I'd go through it on national television, when my ex would show up, learn she was pregnant, and have it be by somebody else."
Ever since we first covered that Real World Ex-Plosion season - which debuted four years to the week that Vendettas debuts, we have seen Cory's evolution take place: him becoming the ladies' man he is, a mixed bag in his five Challenges with a couple finals, and having his moments that has made him an MTV favorite. This is the third time that he's dealt with joining the world of parenthood and second time on national TV, and after all that we have seen from him and as he has gotten older and being more mature, that time has now arrived as he's about to tackle this ultimate of life challenges.
With it comes the responsibility of being a father, adjusting all of those schedules he's had to help out any way he can, co-parenting with Cheyenne just as we have seen Tony do with Madison on his first baby Harper, and possibly taking time off from TV to what lies ahead. By our count, at least 40 alumni from the entire Trifecta ecosystem are or will be parents, and in the past several days they have offered both their congrats to Cory & Cheyenne and have given pointers to him about what to expect in this new phase in his life.
Sure, what we have seen from him in his Challenge career has been many and varied and not always for the right reasons -- as Allan Aguirre wrote in his Medium preview he wrote about his player ways, his arrogance, a win at all costs persona and not yet encountering the adversity that Challenge competitors endure to become greats. But as he enters Vendettas, he now has a goal much bigger: win the half million that goes to who reigns victorious, and not only does Cory shut down his critics, he will also have the future set in stone for Ryder back home... That is some lofty goal that he will have in mind as he takes flight in Europe next month.
But for now, this is one of those stories that practically all of us totally didn't expect: a guy from the Midwest who has been up and down in his six MTV appearances, including hooking up with many a girl. Here, he got to meet someone from a guilty pleasure reality romance show, where their time together has now brought us to this moment: the beginning stages of something so many of us can relate to. For Cheyenne, she has a beautiful baby, and for Cory, this experience has already been humbling, and it's just the start. We join with everyone else in offering them our congratulations and wish him best of luck as he embarks on the ultimate of all life challenges: parenthood.
While Bananas, Cara and company danced the night away in Chicago, it did not take long for that to take second fiddle to Cory, Cheyenne and Ryder K. taking all the buzz away among MTV fans as the big buzz story of the moment not only in the Trifecta but outside of it too, with media outlets here and even abroad (Britain's Daily Telegraph) to report it on their sites. And the reaction to the baby daddy news swiftly made its way around the social-sphere in giving Ryder's parents their congrats and also of how this news caught many in total surprise. In fact, over 9,000 comments were left under that picture on both Instagram and Twitter since it was first posted on Saturday night.
Cory's Bay Area roommate Jamie tweeted, "Congrats @MTVCoryWharton !!!you're gonna be such an awesome dad😭🙌," while Cara Maria tweeted a GIF of a clip from the Maury Povich show of his signature segment of revealing a paternity test in announcing "You ARE the Father!". That enemy of his Bananas chimed in, "The hat says it all! Congrats daddy #Savage," while Zak added, "Congrats brother. Love you guys." And for his fellow Young Bucks, Hunter wrote, "Couldn't be more proud of you and I cannot wait to come see that beautiful baby girl! I love you bro! #famforlife," while Nelson added, "Picture perfect Bro!!!! I'm so happy for you !!"
This holiday weekend, Cory, Cheyenne and Ryder will spend the baby's very first Christmas not at home out west where it'll 70 degrees on Monday, but meeting his family in Michigan where there will be snow falling outside their window once Santa delivers her presents. He adds, "It has been a blessing. I’ve needed Ryder in my life more than she needed me. She has an amazing family in Cheyenne’s family, and I’m just glad that now we can give her two families and give her all the love that we can. Becoming a dad just means it’s time to grow up a little bit. You have a child in the world, you have to provide for someone else … so buckle in and figure things out!"
Although doing Challenges is something Bananas takes for granted, not everyone is willing to extend those 15 minutes, and being a parent changes everything especially in co-parenting scenarios such as is the case here. This includes Cory's schedule of having to go to the gym earlier before dawn before coming over to Cheyenne's house (10 minutes away if the infamous L.A. traffic has its way), and be with Ryder all day until she falls asleep late at night. Plus, there's a pre-existing condition the baby has called VLCADD, which made the mom's first months this year tougher, and though with no side effects they still have keep a watchful eye on Ryder.
This is not the first time that Cory has faced the prospect of being a dad in his early twenties - in fact, there are two prior instances: just after she moved into his Real World Ex-Plosion house and while they were exploring rekindling old flames of the past, his ex Lauren - whom he had been dating on & off since they were in 7th grade - took a pregnancy test and the results came up positive. Also, she told him that she had slept with another man before she flew to the Bay Area, but after talking with roommates and fighting with him, she decided that it would be best not to deal with this in the public eye and she left the house to get an abortion... the first time that the reality original had seen a castmate get knocked up. He told Zap2It at the time, "It was life-changing, but there was a lot of personal growth. After this episode, I really just grew up a lot. After loving somebody for so long and finding out that she’s pregnant by somebody else, it was tough."
But that's not all: Cory had to deal with another surprise pregnancy when, as a college freshman, his football scholarship went down in flames when he dropped his athletic involvement because of a pregnancy scare with the girl he dated at the time... only to find out that he was catfished: the story of that became a complete hoax that would've made startled Nev Schulman and Max Joseph. He adds on Z2I, "I thought the next time I would be talking about pregnancy would be when I was sitting down with my wife talking about kids, you know? We'd go through it then. I never thought I'd go through it on national television, when my ex would show up, learn she was pregnant, and have it be by somebody else."
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| Twitter @MTVCoryWharton |
With it comes the responsibility of being a father, adjusting all of those schedules he's had to help out any way he can, co-parenting with Cheyenne just as we have seen Tony do with Madison on his first baby Harper, and possibly taking time off from TV to what lies ahead. By our count, at least 40 alumni from the entire Trifecta ecosystem are or will be parents, and in the past several days they have offered both their congrats to Cory & Cheyenne and have given pointers to him about what to expect in this new phase in his life.
Sure, what we have seen from him in his Challenge career has been many and varied and not always for the right reasons -- as Allan Aguirre wrote in his Medium preview he wrote about his player ways, his arrogance, a win at all costs persona and not yet encountering the adversity that Challenge competitors endure to become greats. But as he enters Vendettas, he now has a goal much bigger: win the half million that goes to who reigns victorious, and not only does Cory shut down his critics, he will also have the future set in stone for Ryder back home... That is some lofty goal that he will have in mind as he takes flight in Europe next month.
But for now, this is one of those stories that practically all of us totally didn't expect: a guy from the Midwest who has been up and down in his six MTV appearances, including hooking up with many a girl. Here, he got to meet someone from a guilty pleasure reality romance show, where their time together has now brought us to this moment: the beginning stages of something so many of us can relate to. For Cheyenne, she has a beautiful baby, and for Cory, this experience has already been humbling, and it's just the start. We join with everyone else in offering them our congratulations and wish him best of luck as he embarks on the ultimate of all life challenges: parenthood.
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A HeadsUp to fellow fans: before he joins me for our 2017 Reality Debrief, make sure to join Andrew Kirk (@CSUGradAKirk) on his YouTube channel tomorrow as he will be joined by fellow blogger, Allan Aguirre (@FebreezyFresh), as they will discuss this year in reality TV, with special attention being given to The Challenge. If you got questions for them, make sure to send them before they do their chat tomorrow, and if you got something for me and Andrew for our year in review, make sure to tweet your questions by using #AskDCBLOG and we may answer that on Part 1 devoted entirely to the show coming up on Christmas Day... deadline for that is this Friday night.
Tonight is part two of the AYTO Season 6 reunion, and DCNOW will bring you that on my live hub at @DC408DxNow, and tomorrow it's Episode 5 of Floribama Shore. We'll have the 'Pulse of those and last night's Champs vs. Stars covered on DCBLOG this weekend... and what else will be featured this week will be revealed after the reunion airs on the west coast. Enjoy tonight's reunion, and we'll see you back here this weekend... and Happy Holidays.
- I AM DC
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