RHAP: We Know Survivor - Survivor AU: Australia V World Premiere Exit Interview

Episode Date: August 18, 2025

We Know Global Survivor host Shannon Guss chats to the first boot of Australian Survivor: Australia V World.

Australian Survivor is saying. Salviour. Survivor. Survive. Survivor. 21 South African. 12. Ordinary Australians.

Svian New Zealand. 1 million pounds. Million. Euron. Euron. Shkali. A million. Rumbli.

Try this interview from Australia, Australia v. World. If you haven't checked out, Australian Survivor, Australia v. World, definitely tune out because it's still be spoilers. And also, you're doing it wrong. Like, it's so good. Listen to the entire internet again. so either fandom rarely agrees on anything but I've seen just universal acclaim for one of the best premieres I think we've ever seen so I was lucky enough to chat to the first boot which was click away you're driving pull over click away all right first boot unfortunately Rob Bentelay who we've had on the podcast a few times I think the last time was 2021 on the premier recap of south africa and we've had him on the deep dive so he has been here with us on our hap this is this is

the worst possible way to speak to him in this forum. But always great to chat to Rob. It reminds me how strong poverty shallow is because the charm works on me. I'm not going to lie, it works on me, but she's a stronger woman than me. She's a great survivor player. So it was great to chat to Rob, but we have the F1 recap that's already out. Episode 2 recap should be dropping right around this time when this comes out as well with Puyah. And we'll have Mike for episode 3, TBD on other exits as well this week and then a weekly show with Rob. So thank you so much for checking all of that out. We know global survivor.com.

You don't miss any of that. I'm also sharing that. Ashton and Gates across all platforms, Blue Sky, Twitter, Instagram as well. Thank you for the support of the podcast. It's really warm my heart to see people, you know, the views rising on YouTube and to see it doing pretty well in the charts today on Apple Podcast.

So thank you all for listening or watching, however you do. Reminder that you can enter the Chizzy Raffle if you want to finale Chizzy Chizzy points from either me or the recap bitches. So $10 a ticket, $25 for three, all in Australian dollars. going to an incredible, incredible cause supporting a cat charity that helps cats here in Sydney. I posted about that on my Twitter, on Blue Sky, on Instagram, and all of the information about that is at the end of the episode one recap with Chappelle. So check out that recap generally and also donate.

And thank you all so much. Hope you enjoyed this ex-interview and I will see you next time. Bye. Rob, long time to speak. I'm so happy to talk to you and so sad to talk to you in this way. I know, I know, but it's good to see you again nonetheless. It's been too long. We need to do it on the win at deep dives more often than in this capacity.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, true. Yeah, how are you feeling about it all? Oh, no, I'm unhappy. It was a great edit. I went out with a bang. Yeah, it was perfect for me. Could have done this, could have done that, but you survive as a game at the end of the day. You win some, you lose some, but you still love the game regardless.

regardless, and you'll keep playing it. Well, I'm here to ask about the this and the that. I'd love to ask about the other non-U.S. internationals. We didn't see so much about the individual relationships. Between Lisa and Tommy and Cass, who were you really viving with, and what were the individual bonds like there? Oh, yeah, that's unfortunate. I mean, they obviously put in as much as they can,

but time is limited to cover two days of footage. But unfortunately, you didn't see how close Cass and I actually were, had a genuinely good relationship. and Tommy as well I also vibe really well with him but Cass and I we were on a very good page together

I wouldn't lie it was good I felt I could really trust to a certain point definitely what were you immediately that this one yeah

what was it about Lisa like what was the disconnect there I could just feel her energy it wasn't 100% there but at the end of the day I needed the four of them for us to take down the Americans so I had

to bring her in on it. But I knew that if anyone were to crack, it would definitely be Lisa, not Cass, not Tommy so much. It was Lisa. And so the moment they saw Lisa wasn't 100% on board anyway, they could see that, right, we need to shift, we need to pivot here. Had you thought much further down the track about like medium to long-term goals about sticking with that group or like the Australians, the Americans, like what were your medium-term thoughts at that point? Yeah, you know, I like to interlate myself pretty well as soon as possible. And for us, it was also a logical decision to say, look, there's three Americans here,

there's four of us, we all alone, we need to band together just to keep control of this tribe. But I think I'm loyal to the fault. You know, when I meet people for the first time and I make a promise to them and these are my people, I do everything I can in my power to make sure we get to the end, even if I'm not the one who wins. I wanted one of us from the small survivor franchises to take this one home. So I would have done anything and everything in my power just to get one of the four of us to the end. It truly was genuine.

It's not gameplay, it's just my nature. I am loyal like that and I wanted to fight to make sure they get through. Yeah, proven as well. Proven track record, but maybe with these new international amigos, but it wasn't to be. But I'd love to talk about someone on the other side of that was poverty. This relationship was a roller coaster in not a long amount of time. Like, you were, it was wonderful to see two people kind of known for charming the opposition work each other.

That was, as a viewer, I was, it was like the multiverse of charm, really. And I kind of felt like at first it was something she tells you about deal and no deal island and then it goes so south so quickly. So could you walk me through the trajectory of that relationship? Yeah, so look, I'll tell you something that unfortunately also didn't see too well in the edit. I could see it though. So when we first got in the mat and David was on this other side, he stared me down flat out

nonstop. It was incredible. And you know how David can give you a look, say? And what on earth did I do to this guy? Like, why is he looking at me like this? Like, what's going on here? So I really wasn't trusting the David thing too much. You know, when he spoke to me as well, I went up for our first challenge, I was still

very skeptical because I know what David's like. I realized, okay, maybe he's setting up a trap for me. So when Pov came to tell me that, no, they just came out of a game together. and David says he wants to work with me. I was very skeptical because I was like, no, this is probably a long-term plan that they're sitting up to actually take me down. They're trying to soften me up.

They're getting in my head now early. So when we do hit merge, he's got an easy shot at me. So I didn't 100% trust it, but I do realize that I needed to at least work with Pab as much as I can. She's still a number. She's a vote.

I did underestimate Pab's abilities. I won't lie. She is a far better player than I ever could have imagined. It's problems that I didn't know them. you know I didn't have a clue who these guys were if anyone I knew slightly was Tony but then I also knew not to trust Tony

you know his SpireShack stories and all this stuff you know it's just so I was at a huge disadvantage because I didn't know these plays there was so much backstories I mean just the fact that I actually suggested Siri 2Pav these people have been working together for 16 years of this game it was it was crazy just sure I did not know these players yet they all knew each other they knew backstories

so it's kind of an advantage for them disadvantage for me, but I definitely could have read the room better, definitely. Yeah, next time hit me up, I'll give you the dossier. Like, I'm happy to do that for you. What did you know? Like, what did you know coming in of anyone there?

Oh, so the Aussies I knew exactly who they are perfectly. I've watched them perfectly. I was so happy to see the godmother there, Janine. I'm such a huge fan of her. Luke, Tony, I mean, Luke, George, I, the solid place.

Shawnee, all of them. Kirby, I knew every single one in Sierra, obviously, David. So they were, they would have been much nicer to play with them. But the World Tribe, I knew nothing of them whatsoever. Right. Okay, let's talk about Deal on Odeal Island. This is information we thought would come out. I think poverty had recently filmed it.

And she gives you this information. And you blow that up at tribal council. So what was your thinking, getting that information? What was the thought process with it? Was that like plan to do that? counsel and if so when or was there any thought maybe of taking that to people earlier in the day earlier at camp more privately like there's a lot of information so it was a draw-dropping moment but what was your thought process in terms of of that information you know with that information again i did

make a promise that i won't share it and i genuinely was not going to share information i try to keep my promises as much as i can on survivor especially in the early stages of the game you don't want to burn your social capital so i was never going to tell us all about that but when things went south with parv and i i still wasn't going to say anything because i went into tribal feeling pretty comfortable however i could start seeing the writing on the wall syri was a bit too comfortable pa was a bit too comfortable i wasn't getting much on a read much of a read on the others so then i when i saw that i realized okay let me just take the shot um and so i went for it it was not definitely was not planned but i realized that no something was cooking here let me stir it up with it yeah that was a

huge tribal council. So he gets up to talk to the other international. So what was your thought process through all of that? I should have followed through because at that moment, their heads were all spinning. That was the perfect. I could have still pulled it back from there. I really still could have, knowing myself, I could have still pulled them back from there because their heads were spinning. And I could have just kept playing that, that card. And I could have possibly turned it around. But I can also admit, you know, I didn't consult them as well as I should have. I was definitely too dominating too soon. I underestimated part, but I also overestimated my alliance's logical thinking.

For me, this was a simple logical decision. There's only four of us. There's three of them. One of them have to go. I'm definitely not an option. We all know Survive Australia is highly physical. If it was Survivor America, another story you can work me out. This is Survive Australia.

We know how tough these challenges are. so I didn't think that they would want to lose that position of strength I didn't think they would want to lose that too soon so I definitely didn't see it coming because I just relied on them making the most logical decision

even if I don't have to trust you I can trust that you can understand basic logic and go with what's right but I was fighting for them I think they just didn't see it yet but I was really committed and loyal to that alliance yeah I mean I honestly agree with you in terms of like how much they kind needed you, I thought, in the challenges. So you heard Lisa kind of, you know, undermining

in terms of the slingshot or the fire, like, do you have anything to speak to how that was being, like, minimized a little bit in terms of your contribution to the tribe? Well, okay, what did she do in the challenges? All those people that are talking, especially her and Lisa, those people who talk the most are actually doing the less, for the least for the tribe. They're not even trying to do nothing. I mean, in the challenges, at least the Australians, everyone was pushing. Syria and Lisa. And, and Lisa, we're doing nothing in the challenges. So I'm like, no, this guy's actually taking a lot of weight.

And so I don't really care about that. They can take those shots, not a problem. Had you seen a bit of that relationship between something like Surrey and Lisa or maybe like Pav and the girls. Had you seen those kind of cross-world relationships in terms of the dynamics? I could have never guessed that. You see, that was always the disadvantage for me. But it's like, these people all know each other.

There's backstories here I'm not aware of. At least with the normal season, everyone is kind of, neutral ground. With seasons like this, if you don't watch this particular franchise, you had a big disadvantage. So I didn't have a clue that Lisa's a huge fan of Siri. I mean, I could not have

guessed that in a million years. She'd really hit that well as well. I went like, I was good of her. But yeah, it was a disadvantage for me. My lack of watching Survivor did show it. You can see. Yeah, usually everyone's on equal ground except Leanne and Nicole also knew each other in the original

driving. That one wasn't two you know these guys the backstories were are a big part of the season because there's relationships that are really so strong you can't penetrate them anyway you know they've been on there for years together so for sure what about the decision in when you won the first round of the challenge to take the box was that was any like back and forth on that or was that like i'm definitely going for the box like i've played this game before oh yeah like i think we all we all pointed out immediately it's like just take the box so i took it i mean you could Pab wanted it, everyone wanted that box.

We wanted to see what's inside. So that was an easy decision, not even what I really made. Were there many conversations that you had with Tony or Surrey, we talked about Poverty. Obviously, they're on the other side of the aisle, but thinking that, you know, if Poverty is going to go now, they'll still be in the tribe, working with them later down the line. I know Tony's chaotic and Surrey obviously is close to Poverty, but was there any kind of through line there with them at all? Yeah, look, you know, I could have played this one of two ways.

I really knew I could easily hold the four of us together. That was not a problem. But I then got greedy and I tried to take the whole bus. I thought, you know what? I don't want to blindside anyone this soon because then if I make Tony or Siri feel alienated, then as soon as we get to the Australians, those are the first two running to the other side.

So I really did get greedy and I tried to take the whole bus. You know, it's almost like I came out of Survivor Island of Secrets with a certain mindset. because of what I built there that you need to start from scratch again and rebuild this thing. You know, I came in with that same momentum straight off Island of Secrets into

that game. And that was a very tall order, even if it was normal people, but these are the world's best players. So I don't know what I was thinking trying to pull that whole bus of my own. I got way too greedy. Because I wanted that good insulation. I wanted a proper, I wanted

us to work as a team as the world tribe. You know, put aside our individual games, but trying to just think that, okay, come have a high rain. Let's make sure Australian does not win this game. The Australians were united by flag and country pride. You know, they could much easily stay together. But we were strangers. I was trying to bring us together and fight together. Yeah, I mean, it's like, as you said, you're coming out of Island of Secrets. It's actually not as unique as experience as it should be where someone plays such a dominant game and then comes into a new season. They're obviously, A, a huge

threat and B have played at a speed of such dominance and now don't know how to not dominate. You know what I mean? And even totally could speak to that and he had a similar experience in his first two seasons. Like how do you look back at that? Because you've now like run the gamut of survivor experiences. And again, like it does happen fairly regularly. But you know, you played one of the best winning games in global survivor history. You come on and have this experience now. Like how do you look back at that whole kind of run in your survivor career? I think it's perfect. You know, it really now does make me well-rounded because, you know, I've won, I've lost.

I enjoyed both times as well. But now I know where the right balance point is now. I know exactly my eyes will be far better open next time around because I've experienced both sides of the spectrum now. I think a similar thing happened to Tony. He won the first game, second game, you got taken out, and then you came back and won. You know, it's knowing both sides, you know, my favorite word is balance, you know. So I've seen the extreme of both sides now.

So next time I can know exactly how to balance it perfectly in the middle. And so I'm happy. I've got the experience that I needed. I needed to taste that. You know, my promise I was truly fearless, absolutely fearless. But not to say I'm going to go next time, I'm afraid. But now there will be a decent level of alertness now. And you know that it is possible to be taken out.

Yeah. Well, I mean, you need to follow the Tony trajectory for sure. But I said that pre-season I was saying about the people who had, just even been blindsided in their own seasons, you know, or had had losses in their own seasons were almost better prepared because they'd had a more kind of comprehensive experience when your experience was very one-note. It was winning, winning, winning. And I think that, you know, you, that's a hard thing to adjust from, I'm sure. I thought that everyone kind of seemed a little slow to come out of the blocks, especially considering how fast the season is, except you.

I was, and probably a little bit except George, who's being very loud. But like, even on Matt, there wasn't a lot of, you know, that kind of, you kind of usually that back and forth. And I feel like people weren't really giving names. You were giving a name and then they kind of came back at you. Did you kind of feel that energy as well? Because it did make you stand out. But I think it's because the other, everyone else didn't seem to be playing at that speed that you were at so early. Yeah, like, look, I, I, I love playing.

You know, I don't like to leave anything to chance. I want to make sure I know exactly what's going to happen tonight. it's like how do i put it um you actually i had the perfect actually i was i was going let me do me just think one second just repeat that last bit of your question again please just about you know the speed that i feel like you were playing at compared to everyone else keeping it a little slow you threw out names no one else was throwing out names and then they reacted yeah so for me the reason was like i could have easily truly speaking if i had done nothing that's what would have been safe.

I knew that. But this was a line in the sand that I could not let the Americans cross. We had, I could not let one of the four of us go because now you truly lose, you lose the battle in the long term anyway. So it's like if you lose this fight now here,

there's no point carrying on anyway because now you're going to forever be on your back foot. You're going to forever be scrambling. And I didn't want that. I don't like that. I want to make sure that I get the soldiers where we need to get. And now we actually can work much better moving forward. So it's like if I lose this battle now in the beginning, I will spend the rest of my game on my back.

I'll always be on my back foot for the rest of the game, which I don't like that. You know, I don't want to be in danger. So that's why I really had to push hard to make sure that an American goes home. And I also preferably wanted a woman to go home because, you know, now if there's too many women, automatically they come together in a creator or female alliance. Same as we'll do if there's too many men. There's too many men will come together to make her all male alliance, things like that. I was trying to keep the balance because the plan.

long term was to really keep this tribe together as far as possible, obviously, to a certain degree. We eventually have to start turning on each other. But at least if we walk into merge with a majority world tribe, I already know that that's a bit of advantage ready for us. So I was trying to keep the numbers on our side, especially I did want one of the small franchises to win this thing. So I was never going to take a shot at them unless I absolutely had to, but that would have been towards the end. At least we could have walked out of it all saying we presented our countries nicely. We stayed in the game. That's why I didn't want, we could afford to who's one or two Americans because there's three of them, you know, it's fair enough.

You know, so that was a line in the sand. I did not, I had to, had to defend that. I didn't want to let any one of us go home other than Americans. Well, I wish, um, yes, the Tony to me, I could have gone with that. Because remember the first, yeah, the first conversation I said, Siri. And then the second one in when she said, let's speak alone. I asked her again, please give me a name. If she had at least given me a Tony, I could have gone with that.

Not that I would have liked to because Tony was actually out there working with me. pushing hard in the challenges, working around, you know, camp. It wouldn't have been nice to see him go, but that could have been a compromise I would have gone with. For me, Siri is the most logical right now. Yeah. Because at these stages of the game, you need the strength. But when we get to merge, now I'm the target. So we have to take turns at this.

I know in the beginning I should be safe. But when we hit merch, it's another story. Now I'm on the back foot. It's a disadvantage. Yeah. So you would have been happy yet to go for Tony. If poverty comes back, saying, no, not sorry. We'll do Tony.

but once poverty was stuck with Ceres so much, it became poverty, and now it was a whole thing that we all saw. Correct, yeah. It blew up. It definitely blew up. Underestimated Pave, really did. I really did. Had I known who I was up against better,

then I would have traded a lot more carefully. I mean, she was right when she says she felt disrespected. Because I didn't know her, you know? So it makes complete sense. I would have traded a lot more carefully around Pavv. I should have worked a bit more with Pavre in the beginning. But again, we two very, very. big characters, I think, too dominating.

We're always going to butt heads. You can't have two bulls in there in the crowd. You can't do it. Yeah. Well, I loved seeing the interaction. You did represent South Africa. Always great to get a South African on Australian Survivor. I say always like it's ever happened.

Great this one time to have gotten a South African player on Australian Survivor. You know how much that franchise means to me, how much I've always valued our relationship as well, how great it was to see you on TV, how great it is to see you now, even under these circumstances. and I do wish it was in better circumstances, Rob, but it is always so great to chat to you. It's just always mine, always mine, Shannon. And yeah, we go back a long way,

and I think the journey is only starting. Look, I prefer how I left rather than just, you know, going under the radar and still getting taken out. That is not me. Then there would be no point even coming back. I play hard, and that's what I'll do. So I left with a bang, and I'm proud of it. I'm happy.

It's fine. I think that you need to see more now. There's only more reason to come back now because now there's like unfinished business. But next time, let me come back with some more soldiers from South Africa. You guys should do a tri-nations. We should do a tri-nations.

Because I think this season is definitely going to be so successful that they're going to have to do more of these ones. You know, it's doing very well. So imagine like a tri-nation survivor where you got your, you know how you're so competitive with the rugby? You get your Australians, New Zealand.

So a tribe of Australians, a tribe of New Zealand, a tribe of South Africans, and then let's roll. Then let's roll. Well, I'd love to see it. They have so many good casting opportunities in South Africa. You know that I would absolutely love to see that. But Rob, so great to chat to you, and I hope you have a great rest of your day. Cheers, Jen.

Bye. One million pounds. Million, Euron. Million. Thank you. I think a million. Tribe Spote. It's shit.

Try. Spoke. To the adventure of a life.