This Show Will Hold You Over As You Wait For A New Season of 'The Challenge'

The Challenge Season 30, which concludes Tuesday night, features the largest prize in show history: one million dollars and of course, bragging rights for life. The series, which has evolved over the years from lighthearted competition between MTV shows to an intense battle around the world, shows no sign of slowing down anytime soon. Fans continue to tune in as the stakes get higher and the history between contestants becomes more complicated. So, when is The Challenge Season 31 premiere date? While the show doesn't have a specific return date, there is a Challenge spinoff to enjoy in the meantime.

If Season 31 follows past patterns, it should air sometime early in the new year. For now, fans can enjoy the show's latest spinoff mini-series, The Challenge: Champs vs. Stars, which premieres directly after Tuesday night's finale, at 10 p.m. ET. According to the MTV website, ten of the most intense Challenge competitors will compete against celebrity athletes and entertainers to win $150,000 for the charity of their choice. The whole show will be hosted by WWE superstar and former Challenge competitor Mike “The Miz” Mizanin.

This isn't the first season of a Challenge spinoff to include a twist to the game and a prize that went to charity. This May, The Challenge: Champs vs. Pros pitted former Challenge competitors against professional athletes. The second season, however, of the spinoff labels the newbies "stars" instead of "pros," as this evolution of the spinoff allows for broader casting because the competitors don't have to be professional athletes. The cast features a wide variety of stars, from former Bachelor world alum Josh Murray to stand-up comedian and Wild N' Out star Matt Rife. Only time will tell how the stars handle what can be physically brutal challenges.

On the champs side of the coin, many popular players who have proven they can bring the competition, drive, and drama are returning.

The competition will be fierce as the competitors put on their game faces and matching shirts. A sneak peek, shown above, has the contestants pulling a 41,000 pound tow truck across a series of check points in the first challenge. Many of the stars are also professional athletes, including gold medal-winning gymnast Shawn Johnson, NFL wide receiver Terrell Owens, and Olympic volleyball player Kim Glass. Anyone not a professional athlete may have to step it up, to even keep a foot in the competition.

While we don't have more details yet on when Season 31 of The Challenge will return, the series shows no signs of slowing down. The show premiered in 1998, starting out as a way to create some friendly competition among MTV reality shows, and has since evolved into an intense athletic competition. In an interview with For The Win, executive producer Justin Booth spoke about the evolution of The Challenge, discussing how what began as camp-like games has evolved into something much more serious. Booth told the magazine:

I hoped [The Challenge] would become something the kids participating took seriously. I wanted it to be about an overall game, and obviously there’s all the politicking in the house, but to emphasize the competition part of that, just to take a little bit away from a bunch of kids getting into a house. I wanted it to be more than that and I believe it’s become that.

The often grueling competition on The Challenge has become so much more than fun, kooky games. At least we know that after we bid adieu to Season 30, we'll have a spinoff to hold us over. Still, waiting for Season 31 of The Challenge will be... a challenge.