Joe Sugg makes Chase history after taking a £201,000 gamble

Joe Sugg took a huge risk on The Chase when he turned down a £1,000 offer and instead went for a staggering £201,000 — an amount that would make history if he could survive his head-to-head with Paul Sinha.

The 32-year-old content creator and former Strictly Come Dancing finalist had already built up £8,000 in the Cash Builder when he was presented with the choice.

The celebrity special, which aired on Saturday, also featured singer Myles Stephenson, newsreader Lucrezia Millarini and former footballer David James. The group were competing to raise money for their chosen charities while taking on Sinha, better known as the Sinnerman.

For Sugg, however, the biggest decision of the episode came before he even faced the Chaser.

Sugg chooses the £201,000 offer

After banking £8,000, Sugg was given two alternative offers for his head-to-head.

The lower offer was £1,000.

The higher offer was an eye-catching £201,000.

Rather than protect the money he had already earned, Sugg decided to take the risk.

“If I go for the [the high offer] it could make a viral moment, which is a good thing,” he said. “It’d be an incredible amount for charity as well.”

He went for the higher figure — and immediately put himself in a position where one successful head-to-head could dramatically increase the celebrity team’s prize fund.

Sugg then worked his way through the questions against Sinha, keeping the enormous offer within reach.

Bradley Walsh could see what was at stake and told him that getting through would make him part of The Chase history.

One final hedgehog question

After a strong head-to-head, everything came down to one question:

“Which of a hedgehog’s senses is very poor?”

Sugg had three options: sight, hearing or smell.

He chose sight.

Before revealing whether Sugg had made the right call, Walsh appeared to be enjoying the tension as much as anyone.

“You’re gonna make history here, mate. If you go though you’re making history,” the host told him.

Walsh then joked: “We’re gonna go viral. I better stand next to you if you’re gonna go through! Come on, good luck.”

The answer was sight.

Sugg immediately jumped up in celebration as the audience cheered, before embracing Walsh.

The successful answer meant he had brought the full £201,000 through his head-to-head — subsequently reported as the biggest amount won in a Chase head-to-head.

The prize fund climbs to £213,000

Sugg’s success put the celebrity team in a strong position heading into the Final Chase.

Lucrezia Millarini had already been eliminated, leaving Sugg, Myles Stephenson and David James to face Sinha.

With Sugg contributing £201,000, the team’s total prize fund reached £213,000.

The trio managed to answer 18 questions correctly, giving them a substantial target to defend.

But the Chaser continued to close the gap and eventually caught them with just under 30 seconds remaining on the clock.

The entire £213,000 prize fund was therefore lost.

Despite that, the celebrities were not sent away empty-handed. Each received £1,000 for their chosen charity.

A record-breaking moment despite the final defeat

The team may not have been able to protect the £213,000 in the Final Chase, but Sugg’s individual performance remained the defining moment of the celebrity special.

He had started with £8,000, rejected the safety of the £1,000 low offer and risked everything on the £201,000 high offer.

Then, with the entire gamble resting on one final hedgehog question, he correctly identified sight and secured the enormous sum for the final.

The money was ultimately caught by Sinha, but Sugg had already achieved the moment he had hoped for — taking a record-sized amount through the head-to-head and giving The Chase one of its most memorable celebrity rounds.