Warning! The following contains spoilers for The Amazing Race episode "We're Making Big Moves." Read at your own risk!
The Amazing Race traveled to Manaus, Brazil in its third leg, and sent the contestants all around the market to the tribes of the Amazon to advance to the next stage. For the first time this season, Will Jardell and James Wallington got to finish ahead of everyone else and earned a five-night stay in Bali for their trouble. The win was impressive, but did the two lovers make a mistake pulling the Double U-Turn on Leo Brown and Alana Folsom?
To recap, Will and James had a comfortable lead on their competition and finished first on this leg with some time to spare. The two were the first to the Double U-Turn, which meant that if they used it, the team targeted would have to go back and complete the other challenge they hadn't done previously. Will and James really didn't need to use it on anyone, but instead targeted Leo and Alana.
Even if the move was made to help their game, in my opinion, it was a poor play. Not only did every team who followed them see that they made that move, but Will Jardell and James Wallington now have to worry about Leo Brown and Alana Folsom gunning for them in the rest of the game. Those two just barely made it out of this leg, so you know they're coming for them if they get the chance next time.
Which, if you look at the finishes in the prior two installments, is more likely than not. Will and James have not finished behind Leo and Alana yet in the game, but it's worth mentioning that they haven't been always so far ahead of them. In the first leg, Will and James took fourth with Leo and Alana at sixth, and in the second leg, they finished sixth and seventh respectively. Now that the teams have a defined rivalry and are both still in the game, I think this is a bad spot for them to be in.
It would have made sense if the two used the Double U-Turn on Hung Nguyen and Chee Lee. They're clearly one of the strongest teams of the current season, so I think being the team that set them back a bit would put them in better standing with the other remaining teams.
Instead, Will Jardell and James Wallington targeted one of the weakest (but physically healthy) teams of the season so far, which just comes off as petty. It was the first time I felt a team this season has made a real enemy, and I'm wondering if they'll end up paying the price for this seeing as they weren't eliminated.
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