After the guys and girls mixers, the entire Perfect Match villa was shaken up when the guys’ poor judgments came back to haunt them. Rather than stick with Scott van-der-Sluis, whom she found “fun,” Rachel Recchia opted to match with Ray Gantt, whose spark made her feel secure. Officially in the villa for the first time this season, Rachel and Ray could cook up the ultimate victory and shock the long-standing pairs. And yes, the original joke credit does go to host Nick Lachey.

For the third season in a row, the mixer proved to be a major shakeup for the singles. Typically, the mixer sees old flames return and makes amends with those they’ve parted with. It happened with A.D. Smith and Ollie Sutherland and Madison Errichiello and Freddie Powell. But following the men’s drama, Ray and Rachel blindsided the villa with their coupling. Not only did their impulse garner success, but they were victorious in the final compatibility challenge, allowing them the last Board Room visit. This might be the sign of a massive power shift that could significantly alter the outcome of the season.

‘Perfect Match’ Found Strategy Over Love

While viewers are curious about the love connection between Ray and Rachel, part of their bond has been through their strategic mindset of victory. Rachel had the safe option to remain with Scott. It was an easy choice, given she had been paired with him for two matches before. But she also knew that he was not her path to victory. Rachel saw Scott for who he was. He was there for a good time, not a long time. Now, with Ray in the house and determined to actually get a shot at playing, the final hour matching has become a threat to the other couples. They took a chance on a whim, and it paid off.

In the final Board Room, Rachel and Ray played aggressively. No longer were they looking at their friends and which available singles could make a cute pair. Although Rachel was emotional about potentially hurting friends, the power couple were focused on shuffling up the deck and sewing enough discourse with the dates they set up to further establish their own connection. They saw unfinished business from The Ultimatum, involving trial marriage pair J.R. Warren and Sandy Gallagher, who had recent issues with Louis Russell. They also saw Scott and Juliette Porter as a “strategic” pairing, deciding to bring back Carrington Rodriguez to break them up. Though it does solidify the tight connections of other pairs, it’s a stronger path to victory for Rachel and Ray. Perfect Match has evolved so much that we’re talking about strategy before romance. It’s brilliant!

Rachel Explains How She and Ray Might Win ‘Perfect Match’

Now, here’s where things get interesting. The cast, for the most part, have remained relatively tight-lipped about the outcome of the show. That being said, Netflix dropped the bomb that Ollie and A.D. were engaged during the Love is Blind Season 8 reunion. It’s likely that they wouldn’t project the show’s winners in that manner. Rachel has gone on record, calling out Louis for his recent PDA with Love Island‘s Huda Mustafa. For her part, while appearing on The Viall Files, Rachel has alluded to some evolution of Perfect Match couples since filming. “There’s a lot still going on, like, even just from that Netflix [Summer Break] event,” she said. “There’s a lot happening. Oh, my god, there might have been more drama at that Netflix event [than on the show].“

She teased, “I might be talking to someone,” but stayed silent on her status with Ray. Is she avoiding spoilers—or hinting they’re over? Interviews mid-season invite speculation, and with the latest episodes putting Rachel and Ray front and center, a win would be a game-changing shock for the original couples. If they pull it off, Perfect Match could shift into a full-on strategy game.

Perfect Match is available to stream on Netflix.