description: The October 21 Albania leg gave the same leading pair two Driver's Seat decisions: 50–100 pounds of grape must and 8–16 byrek pastries. Here's how the advantage worked and why fans debated it.
Michelle and Matt reached the Driver's Seat first at both tasks in the Albania leg. The twist lets the first pair at a designated board assign different amounts of work to their rivals. On the October 21, 2026 episode, it happened twice. That turned an early lead into a chance to shape the workload at the next stop, prompting a very specific fairness debate.
The episode and the rules
CBS aired season 39, episode 5, “That's Honestly on Them,” on Wednesday, October 21, at 9:30–11 p.m. Eastern/Pacific. It was the show's first visit to Albania, around Tirana. The Amazing Race sends pairs across countries to complete challenges and reach a Pit Stop. The Driver's Seat is not a literal driving assignment: it is a board where the first team gets to distribute easier and harder versions of a task. It appeared in earlier seasons, but two decisions in one leg made this episode unusual.
First decision: grapes by the pound
At the grape-harvesting and crushing Roadblock, Michelle and Matt assigned teams 50, 75 or 100 pounds of grape must to produce. They gave themselves 50 pounds, while Anuar and Andrea were among those assigned 100. A 100-pound target is twice a 50-pound target, not simply a small time penalty. Ali and Joanna used an Express Pass to skip the task, so an assigned target did not necessarily become actual work for every team.
Second decision: how many byrek pastries?
Teams then headed to a culinary institute to roll dough for byrek, a savory pastry associated with Albanian cooking. The second Driver's Seat offered targets of 8, 12 or 16 pastries. Michelle and Matt reached the board first again and took the eight-pastry assignment. The largest target was twice the smallest. The potential feedback loop is the story: less work on grapes can help a leader reach the pastry station sooner, where another decision can preserve the lead. Actual finishing times also depend on driving, skill and mistakes; doubling a target is not proof of doubling the minutes.
Why viewers argued about it
Some fans see allocating work as the reward for getting there first. Others question whether the same advantage should be available twice in immediate succession. In the October 22 post-episode Reddit discussion, one viewer called back-to-back Driver's Seats unfair to trailing teams. Other comments praised the leg for its self-driving, physical tasks and real interpersonal tension. These are identifiable individual reactions, not a representative survey of American viewers.
Who finished first and who went home?
Michelle and Matt won the leg. Sisters Dafina and Saran arrived last and were eliminated. After the two workload stations, the course still included a Cold War-era bunker code task and navigation around Tirana. Commenters also pointed to navigation problems in the sisters' result. It is reasonable to say the double advantage strengthened the leaders' position; it is not established that it alone eliminated the sisters.
The answer
The same pair got to make two decisions because they were first at two separate Driver's Seat boards. The numbers tell the story: 50 versus 100 pounds, then 8 versus 16 pastries. On a race around the world, the fastest pair briefly became the people setting everyone else's homework.
Sources and verification
CBS's episode notice, Paramount/Apple episode metadata, task records and real viewer comments were cross-checked. The complete broadcast was not directly played back; precise task allocations come from episode documentation. No claim is made that the clip trended in every country.
Reference links
- CBS / Paramount Press Express, episode announcement (2026-10-15): https://www.paramountpressexpress.com/cbs-entertainment/shows/the-amazing-race/releases/?view=113416-the-race-travels-to-albania-for-the-first-time-in-the-shows-history-where-the-drivers-seat-returns-twice-causing-havoc-and-hurt-feelings-on-the-amazin
- Apple TV / Paramount, season 39 episode 5 (2026-10-21): https://tv.apple.com/us/episode/thats-honestly-on-them/umc.cmc.jianhm9ynnzrmk72wkqhb5yr?showId=umc.cmc.5d8zsu7cuihk3iqkm980no10i
- The Amazing Race 39, leg-five task and result reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Amazing_Race_39
- The Amazing Race Wiki, Driver's Seat rules and earlier appearances: https://amazingrace.fandom.com/wiki/Driver%27s_Seat
- Reddit / r/TheAmazingRace, 2026-10-22 episode discussion (individual reactions, not a poll): https://www.reddit.com/r/TheAmazingRace/comments/1xc7d00/the_amazing_race_season_39_episode_5_post_episode/
- Reddit / r/TheAmazingRace, 2026-10-22 live discussion: https://www.reddit.com/r/TheAmazingRace/comments/1xc5frp/ep_5_live_discussion_thread/
