Steve Austin's Broken Skull Challenge

Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Challenge

Official logo
Genre Competition, Reality television
Created by Steve Austin
Directed by Adam Vetri
Presented by Steve Austin
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 2
No. of episodes 20 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s) Christian Sarabia
Rabih Gholam
Steve Austin
Jack Heller
Vince Cariati
Steve Kaufman (co-exec)
Location(s) near Los Angeles, California, United States
Running time 41 minutes
Production company(s) 51 Minds Entertainment
Broadcast
Original channel Country Music Television
Original run July 6, 2014 – present
Chronology
Related shows Redneck Island
External links
CMT.com: Steve Austin's Broken Skull Challenge

Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Challenge is an American reality television competition show that premiered on July 6, 2014 on Country Music Television.[1][2] Its second season premiered on January 4, 2015 and ended on March 15, 2015. It is created and hosted by former professional wrestler Steve Austin. New episodes will air every Sunday at 8 pm EST on CMT.

Series overview

Each episode of Steve Austin's Broken Skull Challenge brings a group of eight contestants, either all male or all female, to the "Broken Skull Ranch" to compete in a series of physical challenges. In an interview with KMTV-TV, Austin revealed that the actual location was not the real Broken Skull Ranch, which is owned and operated by Austin near Tilden, Texas, but an area just outside of Los Angeles, CA designed to represent his ranch.[3] The contestants were selected from athletic backgrounds, including CrossFit, Spartan Racers, Tough Mudder, mixed martial arts (MMA), and pro wrestling.[4] The contestants are eliminated in a series of competitions with the last one standing facing a tough obstacle course known as the Skullbuster, and possibly win a US$10,000 cash prize and a chance to win even more.[5][6]

Elimination challenges

In each episode, the eight contestants face off in head-to-head competitions in a single-elimination bracket format. The first round bracket match-ups are chosen at random. Austin first explains the challenge to the contestants and to the viewers, then provides verbal encouragement to the contestants and somewhat of a play-by-play analysis of the competition while it is ongoing. The competitions shown include the following:

Pit challenges

The final two contestants face off in a two-part challenge. The first part is not an elimination challenge; it is designed to wear down the contestants. Once the first part is completed, both contestants proceed immediately into the Pit to determine a winner. The competitions shown include the following:

The Pit is always featured as the final individual challenge to determine the episode's overall winner. It is also always immediately preceded by one of the previous challenges as described earlier, with no rest period except for the player who completed the previous challenge first. Beginning in the second season, a rule was instituted that the second contestant must enter the Pit within one minute of the first contestant or he/she is disqualified. The Pit is a circular dirt ring resembling an amateur wrestling circle or a sumo wrestling ring, measuring 15 feet wide. Once both players have entered the Pit, a signal is given, and the two contestants wrestle each other. The first person able to force their opponent out of the ring is declared the winner. Takedowns may occur but they do not apply toward the final outcome. The style of the Pit is very similar to the Conquer portion of the Breakthrough & Conquer event of American Gladiators.

Skullbuster

After a day's rest, the winner of the elimination challenges moves on to face the Skullbuster, a 1/2-mile-long obstacle course with a series of ten obstacles over the course. Some of the obstacles are identified as "restart elements", where the contestant must restart the obstacle from the beginning if they fail to properly complete the obstacle.

In the first season, the obstacles of the course were as follows, in order of their appearance:

In the second season, the Skullbuster was modified. The obstacles of the new course are as follows, in order of their appearance:

The first contestant in the series to successfully complete all elements of the Skullbuster wins $10,000, sets the time to beat for all future contestants, and is declared champion. Any future contestant must complete the Skullbuster in less time in order to win the $10,000, thus becoming the new champion and setting the new time to beat. Male contestants have a male champion and female contestants have a separate female champion. If a contestant fails to beat the champion's time or does not complete the course, the champion wins another $10,000 for every unsuccessful effort. In the beginning of the series, if a contestant did not complete the Skullbuster and there was no set time to beat (no champion), no one won any prize.

Awards and honors

Year Category Nominee(s) Episode Result
2014 Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Reality Programs Adam Vetri "Welcome to the Gun Show"Nominated

Episode results

Season One

E101: "My Ranch, My Rules"

Original Air Date: July 6, 2014

Trench Warfare Pulverizer Junkyard/The Pit
         
Todd
Jason
Jason
Ryon
Kyle
Ryon
Jason
Dustin
Daniel
Dustin
Dustin
Brett
Brett
Joe

Skullbuster results
Male time to beat = NONE
Jason's time = DID NOT FINISH

E102: "Didn't Even Break a Nail"

Original Air Date: July 13, 2014

Trench Warfare Pulverizer Junkyard/The Pit
         
Colleen
Ashley
Ashley
Kalin
Alysha
Kalin
Ashley
Ogom
Ogom
Melissa
Ogom
Tessa
Tessa
Shellane

Skullbuster results
Female time to beat = NONE
Ashley's time = DID NOT FINISH

E103: "Beards and Brawn"

Original Air Date: July 20, 2014

Bagged Stacked Chained Up/The Pit
         
Brandon
Ryan
Brandon
Joe
Joe
Brian
Joe
Jeff
Jeff
David
Jeff
Michael
Doug
Michael

Skullbuster results
Male time to beat = NONE
Joe's time = 9:15 (wins $10,000)

E104: "Boom or Bust"

Original Air Date: July 27, 2014

Bagged Stacked Chained Up/The Pit
         
Connie
Shana
Connie
Jyllianne
Jyllianne
Darlene
Connie
Heather
Heather
Andi
Heather
Alison
Allison
Sandra

Skullbuster results
Female time to beat = NONE
Heather's time = 8:59 (wins $10,000)

E105: "Locked and Loaded"

Original Air Date: August 3, 2014

Possession Loaded Grip and Rip/The Pit
         
Keith
Josh
Keith
Giovannie
Nick
Giovannie
Giovannie
Grey
Michael
Dave
Dave
Grey
Joe
Grey

Skullbuster results
Male time to beat = 9:15 (Joe, E103)
Giovannie's time = DID NOT FINISH (Joe wins additional $10,000, total winnings $20,000)

E106: "The Good, the Bad, and the Crazy"

Original Air Date: August 10, 2014

Possession Loaded Grip and Rip/The Pit
         
Kristen
Tina
Kristen
Briana
Shelly
Briana
Kristen
Randalene
Ashley
Morgan
Morgan
Randalene
Randalene
Danielle

Skullbuster results
Female time to beat = 8:59 (Heather, E104)
Randalene's time = 9:22 (Heather wins additional $10,000, total winnings $20,000)

E107: "Welcome to the Gun Show"

Original Air Date: August 17, 2014

Drag Race Bagged Blowout/The Pit
         
Damon
Colin
Damon
Aaron
Aaron
Dustin
Aaron
Alex
Bryce
Tom
Tom
Alex
Alex
Matt

Skullbuster results
Male time to beat = 9:15 (Joe, E103)
Alex's time = 6:07 (wins $10,000, Joe leaves with $20,000)

E108: "Looks Can Be Deceiving"

Original Air Date: August 24, 2014

Drag Race Bagged Blowout/The Pit
         
Arianna
Jenny
Arianna
Karis
Amber
Karis
Karis
Megan
Taylor
Taunya
Taunya
Megan
Megan
Rachel

Skullbuster results
Female time to beat = 8:59 (Heather, E104)
Megan's time = DID NOT FINISH (Heather wins additional $10,000, total winnings $30,000)

E109: "Last Man Standing"

Original Air Date: August 31, 2014

Trench Warfare Pain Train Barrelled/The Pit
         
Trevor
Van
Van
Tommy
Erik
Tommy
Tommy
Bob
Barry
Frank
Frank
Bob
Josh
Bob

Skullbuster results
Male time to beat = 6:07 (Alex, E107)
Tommy's time = 5:58 (wins $10,000 and ends season as champion, Alex leaves with $10,000)

E110: "You Lose, You Leave"

Original Air Date: September 7, 2014

Trench Warfare Pain Train Barrelled/The Pit
         
Cameron
Laura
Laura
Regina
Adele
Regina
Laura
Heather
Leah
Rachel
Leah
Heather
Heather
Kristen

Skullbuster results
Female time to beat = 8:59 (Heather, E104)
Heather's time = DID NOT FINISH (Heather wins additional $10,000, total winnings $40,000 and ends season as champion)

Season Two

E201: "Welcome Back to Hell"

Original Air Date: January 4, 2015

Summit Tired Excalibur/The Pit
         
Josh
Skylar
Skylar
Justin
Chris
Justin
Skylar
Mack
Jeff
Dustin
Dustin
Mack
Mack
Casey

Skullbuster results
Male time to beat = 6:41 (Tommy, E109)
NOTE: As the previous season's returning champion, Tommy was given the first chance to run the new Skullbuster and set the new time to beat.
Mack's time = 7:00 (Tommy wins additional $10,000, total winnings $20,000)

E202: "Ladies First"

Original Air Date: January 11, 2015

Summit Tired Excalibur/The Pit
         
Ami
Francis
Francis
Desiree
Desiree
Heather
Desiree
Brittney
Brittney
Tanya
Brittney
Stephanie
Stephanie
Danielle

Skullbuster results
Female time to beat = 16:54 (Heather, E104)
NOTE: As the previous season's returning champion, Heather was given the first chance to run the new Skullbuster and set the new time to beat.
Desiree's time = DID NOT FINISH (Heather wins additional $10,000, total winnings $50,000)

E203: "The Last Face You See"

Original Air Date: January 18, 2015

Snatch Barn Burner Cranked/The Pit
         
Lee
Ryan
Lee
Tony
Andrew
Tony
Lee
Chris
Chris
Johnny
Chris
Rob
Orrin
Rob

Skullbuster results
Male time to beat = 6:41 (Tommy, E201)
Chris' time = DID NOT FINISH (Tommy wins additional $10,000, total winnings $30,000)

E204: "Big Girls Don't Cry"

Original Air Date: January 25, 2015

Snatch Barn Burner Cranked/The Pit
         
Heather
Emily
Emily
Monique
Felicia
Monique
Emily
Jen
Jordan
Erin
Erin
Jen
Jen
Danielle

Skullbuster results
Female time to beat = 16:54 (Heather, E202)
Emily's time = DID NOT FINISH (Heather wins additional $10,000, total winnings $60,000)

E205: "Gods of War"

Original Air Date: February 8, 2015

Trench Warfare Loaded Hard Labor/The Pit
         
Joey
Nick
Nick
Sam
Sam
Jesse
Sam
Josh
Chris
Jake
Chris
Josh
Steve
Josh

Skullbuster results
Male time to beat = 6:41 (Tommy, E201)
Josh's time = DID NOT FINISH (Tommy wins additional $10,000, total winnings $40,000)

E206: "Fallen on Hard Times"

Original Air Date: February 15, 2015

Trench Warfare Loaded Hard Labor/The Pit
         
Nicole
Ashley
Nicole
Sarah
Sarah
Gena
Sarah
Jacqueline
Anna
Blair
Anna
Jacqueline
Jacqueline
Misti

Skullbuster results
Female time to beat = 16:54 (Heather, E202)
Jacqueline's time = 12:03 (wins $10,000, Heather leaves with $60,000)

E207: "Totally Ripped"

Original Air Date: February 22, 2015

Rip Off Ass Kicker Grip and Rip/The Pit
         
Kevin
Caleb
Kevin
Jonathan
Jonathan
Kyle
Jonathan
Will
Jeremiah
Will
Will
Nate
Anthony
Nate

Skullbuster results
Male time to beat = 6:41 (Tommy, E201)
Will's time = DID NOT FINISH (Tommy wins additional $10,000, total winnings $50,000)

E208: "Mean Girls"

Original Air Date: March 1, 2015

Rip Off Ass Kicker Grip and Rip/The Pit
         
Robin
Amber
Robin
Julie
Julie
Marti
Robin
Jessica
Jessica
Ashley
Jessica
Danielle
Tiffany
Danielle

Skullbuster results
Female time to beat = 12:03 (Jacqueline, E206)
Robin's time = DID NOT FINISH (Jacqueline wins additional $10,000, total winnings $20,000)

E209: "Put Up or Shut Up"

Original Air Date: March 8, 2015

Drag Race Ball Breaker Splinter/The Pit
         
James
Phil
James
Chris
Amadeus
Chris
Chris1
Joe
Alex
Joe
Joe
Lex
Lex
Logan

Skullbuster results
Male time to beat = 6:41 (Tommy, E201)
Joe's time = 7:29 (Tommy wins additional $10,000, total winnings $60,000 and ends season as champion)
^Note 1 : The contestant was disqualified for failing to enter the Pit within one minute of the opponent.


E210: "Best for Last"

Original Air Date: March 15, 2015

Drag Race Ball Breaker Splinter/The Pit
         
Christina
Elise
Christina
Megan
Megan
Brianne
Christina
Nikki2
Hannah
Erika
Erika
Nikki
Sophie
Nikki

Skullbuster results
Female time to beat = 12:03 (Jacqueline, E206)
Christina's time = 8:38 (wins $10,000 and ends season as champion, Jacqueline leaves with $20,000)
^Note 2 : The contestant was disqualified for failing to enter the Pit within one minute of the opponent.

BOLD challenge winner
RED contestant did not finish Skullbuster or did not beat best time
GREEN contestant finished Skullbuster and set new best time

References

  1. Genzlinger, Neil (4 July 2014). "In Battle of Muscle Shows, Only One Is Having Fun". New York Times. Retrieved 6 July 2014.
  2. Oates, Barb (3 July 2014). "Meet the Skullbuster: Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Challenge on CMT". Channel Guide Magazine. Retrieved 6 July 2014.
  3. ""Stone Cold" Steve Austin". YouTube. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  4. Fishman, Scott (30 June 2014). "Update: Stone Cold Steve Austin talks Broken Skull, CMT, WWE". Miami Herald. The McClatchy Company. Retrieved 8 August 2014.
  5. Snierson, Dan (2 July 2014). "Can you handle 'Steve Austin's Broken Skull Challenge' trailer?". Entertainment Weekly. Time Inc. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
  6. "WWE Hall of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin hosts his 'Broken Skull Challenge' on CMT". Miami Herald. The McClatchy Company. 16 June 2014. Retrieved 13 August 2014.

External links