‘The Amazing Race 26’ episodes 7 and 8 preview: Ranking the top six teams!

Friday night’s new “Amazing Race” episode is going to be a two-hour affair, which we personally hope means one thing above all else: Excitement! This is a chance to give us a non-elimination leg in Namibia, and then follow that up with an elimination. At some point during these two episodes, we also know that the U-Turn will also rear its ugly head and raise the stakes a little bit.

Since this is the biggest point in the competition so far, it seems appropriate to bust out our contestant rankings! Note that these are spoiler-free, and based mostly on our individual assessment of each team so far.

6. Mike & Rochelle – We’re rooting for them to win. However, there are very few seasons where the team we are rooting for actually does come home with the grand prize. They are the most normal of the remaining teams in that they’re not particularly athletic, which could make the upcoming legs difficult since there seems to be a big physical component.

5. Hayley & Blair – While they are coming off of a first-place finish, these two have shown to be the most likely team to spontaneously combust at any given moment. Given that they barely get along, it is hard to have much confidence in them.

4. Matt & Ashley – They are consistently decent, but have never finished in first place. At a certain point, you have to consider that to be troublesome, even if some teams have won the final leg and not a single one before it.

3. Jelani & Jenny – More physically imposing than Hayley & Blair, but also almost as likely to get into major arguments. Their distaste for each other seems to be a little bit more of a slow burn, but it is still there nonetheless.

2. Laura & Tyler – A blind date team that seems to get along, and fare pretty well at almost every task. They’ve never finished in first, but have remained consistent while never making us afraid that they were going to start screaming at each other.

1. Aly & Steve – Sure, we’ve seen a preview with them getting a flat tire, but they are so athletic and seem to get along so well that we’re still not too worried about them. We also don’t want to get into a position where we are trying to over-analyze a preview for an episode.

If you missed it, head over here to see our review of this past episode. Also, race over here to get some other TV news sent right in your direction, courtesy of our CarterMatt Newsletter. (Photo: CBS.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3OCcvLCVV9g