Matt Amodio’s Jeopardy! run was one for the books, especially when you consider that his unprecedented winning streak coincided with the whole Mike Richards debacle. Amodio broke James Holzhauer’s record for the second-longest winning streak and amassed over $1.5 million in winnings. He’s truly winning right now. After such a monumental run, the Ph.D. student might be setting his eyes on some gigantic fish. The Jeopardy! champ revealed if he’d want to compete against the GOATs Holzhauer and Ken Jennings and any time soon.
Joining the ranks of such esteemed competitors must be a tremendous milestone for Matt Amodio. Viewers hadn’t seen a winning streak like that since Holzhauer’s run in 2019. But with his time on the storied trivia show now behind him, would he be willing to take on his fellow champs? The academic and TV champ recently appeared on The Dan Patrick Show and spoke on whether he's willing to battle it out with the two legends:
I would love to have the opportunity [to compete against them]. I'm sure they would wipe the floor with me, but it would be fun. It would be fun to see what they would be like in person.
It seems that he hasn’t interacted with either of the Jeopardy! veterans outside of social media. That's interesting, especially since Ken Jennings is a consultant on the game show. However, in fairness, that role may not require him to actually be present on Stage 10 that often. Such an interaction would be interesting, especially considering that Amodio is quite different from his predecessors. The graduate student acknowledged this difference by saying:
So, I tried to have a more laid-back persona than that. They’re really intimidating, and they create a barrier between the average person and them. And I think I'm more like the average person. And so, I’m trying to convey that.
Many viewers seemed to like that average Joe appeal, as they watched him use his intellect to win on the beloved game show. While his fellow champs might seemingly intimidate him, that doesn’t mean he isn’t willing to go up against them. Like the show's other high-profile competitors, Matt Amodio will compete in the “Tournament of Champions” episodes. That means he might finally come face-to-face with James Holzhauer and Ken Jennings. So viewers would finally get to see if the newest member of the GOATs club can hang with the big dogs.
But if anything, Matt Amodio’s interaction with his fellow champs would likely create a new bond as opposed to any negative competition. Interestingly, Amodio has proven himself to be a divisive figure within the fanbase. So maybe he could learn a thing or two from his peers on how to navigate the game show waters. While we wait for the historic matchup, viewers can watch Jeopardy! weekdays in syndication, with Ken Jennings and Mayim Bialik alternating on hosting duties.
