After seven weeks stuck in the blazing Australian outback, one castaway has emerged as the winner of Australian Survivor: Brains V Brawn for 2021.
And that winner is Hayley Leake.
Hayley Leake is 2021’s Sole Survivor!
(Ten)With a $500,000 prize on the line, every castaway was giving it their all this season and several major players looked like they had a shot at the title of Sole Survivor.
But it was Hayley who managed to outwit, outplay and outlast the competition and win over the jury to take out the top spot.
Taking to Instagram before her win, Hayley wrote: “It has been 47 days, and no-one has had an easy path to the top 3.”
“Yet here we are, ready to battle it out!”
The top three castaways – Hayley, Flick and George – faced off in a brutal final challenge that saw them balancing on their toes in what looked like a torture device.
Standing on metal pegs, they had to balance as a grate was lowered above them.
George tapped out after a few hours and in the end Hayley’s cool attitude saw her outlast Flick in the painful challenge.
After enduring that torture, the final three headed into a nail-biting tribal council where Hayley got to vote one person out.
Deciding Flick was a massive threat, Hayley chose to eliminate the pro surfer and go into jury with George as her only competition.
They both presented bold pitches to the jury, George relying on bravado and emotion while Hayley was calculated and cool with her delivery.
The jury were then able to ask questions – and boy, did they choose some uncomfortable ones!
Cara demanded to know why Hayley “deceived and manipulated” other players in the game, while Andrew asked about George’s regrets. But the political operative said he simply didn’t have any!
Then the jury were given the difficult job of deciding who to crown as the winner of Australian Survivor 2021 – and Hayley came out on top!
As any fan of Survivor will know, the game is full of twists and turns, and earlier in the season it really did look like anyone’s game.
Long before Hayley secured the title of Sole Survivor, big players emerged on both the Brains and Brawn tribes.
Hayley and Baden were two of the most formidable Brains tribe members, playing clever social games while also dominating a few physical challenges.
They ended up both being voted off, before battling it out at Redemption Rock in episode 15 for another chance at Survivor victory.
Hayley won and Baden joined the jury that went on to choose her as this season’s winner – he even voted for her to win!
George was another huge personality from the Brains tribe, playing one of the most devious and entertaining social games we’ve ever seen on Survivor.
On the Brawn tribe, Simon, Emmett and Dani stood out as Sole Survivor material, each of them possessing huge physical strength and some clever strategies.
Simon was booted in episode 12 when he became too much of a threat to the rest of his tribe, then Emmett was kicked out in episode 18.
Dani made it to the final six before being eliminated in episode 21 after a tense three-way tie at tribal council.
But the Brains tribe seemed to be the masters of outlasting, and in the end four made it to the final five castaways,
Flick was the last Brawn tribe member left in the game as it came to an end, and was only defeated when Hayley eliminated her at the last minute.
In the end, it looks like brains really can beat brawn, even in the gruelling game of Survivor.
And as the intense final episode concluded we even got a glimpse of the next season, which is set to air in February 2022 – we’ll see you then!
Survivors ready? Get more info on the Brains V Brawn season here
EXCLUSIVE: Gerald reveals how George nearly set everyone on fire in wild unaired Survivor moments
Meet the Australian Survivor cast for 2021’s Brains V Brawn season
Kez reveals the bizarre Australian Survivor: Brains V Brawn moment that never made it to air
Where to follow the cast of Australian Survivor 2021 on Instagram
Is Australian Survivor fake or real? Former contestants and crew speak out
Where is Australian Survivor filmed? The show has finally returned to Australia in 2021
Australian Survivor winners: Where are they now?
How much do Survivor contestants get paid? The answer may shock you
