- The following is an NBC Special Presentation
of "American Ninja Warrior."
[upbeat music]
- * Here we come now *
- It's time for the Couples Championship...
- On "American Ninja Warrior."
- Oh, that's pretty good.
- Grab your partners, do-si-do!
12 ninja couples are about to compete
to be our new champions!
- * Oh, here we come now *
- They've been married longer than some of these couples
have been alive.
- I think there'd be nothing better
than to teach the young kids a little bit of a lesson.
- You can call us Beauty and the Geek.
- Guess which one I am.
- I want to see the PDA, yeah, all the hugs!
- Are you ready for this?
- Born ready.
[cheering]
- Ah!
- Here we go. [bell chimes]
Ah!
- There can only be one couple that wins this,
and it's going to be us.
- Whoo!
- We've been a team for 14 years,
so it's going to be a blast being
a team on the Ninja course.
- I love you guys. I love Megan.
I love the Couples Championship.
- Oh-- - I love you!
- Well, we raise a glass to love.
- Oh, love.
- * Here we come now *
[dramatic music]
* *
- Love is in the air once again
at Universal Studios Hollywood.
It's our second Couples Championship
on "American Ninja Warrior."
Hello, everyone, and thanks for being with us
on our version of Valentine's Day.
I'm Matt Iseman.
- And I'm Akbar Gbajabiamila.
Matt, this is special.
Remember, "Ninja" brought us together 12 years ago.
- Oh--hey!
- [laughing]
Anyways, we're just one of the many couples united
by our love of this sport.
- You know it, big man.
And, tonight, we'll see a dozen couples who Ninja together
show off their skills.
Now it was a lot of fun last year.
But this time, we're adding side-by-side
racing to the competition.
For all the details, let's go down to the third wheel
in our relationship, Zuri Hall.
- Hey, as long as I don't have to pick up the check,
I'm cool with it, OK?
This is going to be a lot of fun.
The winning couple has to earn this championship by competing
on two different courses.
In round 1, all 12 couples will run relay style
through our qualifying course, with the first teammate
taking on Pole Vault, Double Twister,
and Dangerous Waters.
Then they'll tag their partner for the final three,
Duck Duck Goose, Ring the Bells,
and the Warped Wall.
The top eight teams,
those that complete the most obstacles
in the fastest time move on to round 2,
where they'll race head to head on our two-lane course.
All right, guys, let's see what these couples can do.
- Thanks, Zuri.
They may be competing as couples,
but we're going to see some of the best ninjas
in the business tonight.
- That's right.
We've got some new faces and some old favorites.
- There's super mom Sandy Zimmerman
and her husband Charlie.
They may be in their 40s, but they are still a force.
Plus, last year's winners, stuntman Kyle Soderman
and his fiancée, Army doctor Megan Johnson,
are back to defend their title.
And from Houston, Texas, it's the Beast Body
with more than 1/2 million followers.
Social media star Tremayne Dortch returns to "Ninja"
with his wife, Cassandra.
And we're bringing in the big guns to kick things off.
It's Army captain Jeri D'Aurelio
and her husband, former Army officer Tyler Struss.
Jeri's a longtime "Ninja" veteran,
but for Tyler, being here is a bit of a surprise.
[upbeat music]
- We met back when we were both active duty Army.
Members of the panel...
- She was my legal advisor for a year
for the operations that I was doing.
* *
- His job was to make things go boom.
* *
My job was to make sure when things went boom,
we didn't violate any laws doing it.
* *
When I heard the Couples Championship was coming back,
I got so excited.
Open it!
I went ahead and submitted an application
for both of us without Tyler knowing.
- Wait, what?
She's, like, surprise, you know.
* *
I think we bring a unique aspect to the competition
because we're so opposite in our strengths.
* *
I call her my Spider Monkey, and she calls me the Gorilla.
- We are so excited to compete tonight.
- I'll throw her across the course
if that's what it takes.
- [laughs]
* *
- They're going to split up now and take
their places on the course.
And their cheering section includes Jeri and Tyler's
one-year-old son, Holden, who's on the sideline
with his godfather, the Eskimo Ninja Nick Hanson.
- You know he's going to be cheering for mama.
- Hey, buddy! - There she is.
- Hey, buddy!
- Well, Jeri has the experience.
She's competed eight times on "Ninja Warrior,"
so she'll take the more technical back-half obstacles.
Tyler has no "Ninja" experience,
so he's going to try to muscle his way
through the first three.
- He's 6'2", 205 pounds, the biggest athlete tonight.
[countdown clock beeping]
- He's gonna be tested right away on this first obstacle,
Pole Vault.
Big boy, get it! - Come on, all right.
- Stays dry. - All right.
- Whoo!
- And that's got to be a nice boost.
You survive the first one.
- One at a time!
- You got it!
- And now on to Double Twister.
We'll see how the big boy handles this.
Those handles freely spin.
See if he can control his momentum,
if he can build up the strength to make the transfer.
- Oh, he's spinning. He's starting to spin.
- It's in the hips, homie.
You've got to get north and south,
and you've got to use your hips.
- Kick it, kick it!
- Go.
- This next one, you got it!
- Nice! - Good throw!
- OK, and look at Jeri cheering him on.
Everybody needs a partner like that that's going
to cheer you on like that.
- I think he's going for a blind reverse dismount.
- Yeah. - You do it, big boy.
- All right, here we go. He's going around.
I think--oh!
It's a 7.2 on the Richter scale!
I felt the earth shake!
- He is leaving it all out there.
- That's the best. That's the best!
- Two obstacles down, two points for this team.
Big Tyler Struss is surprising us.
- You got this!
- Well, now he gets to test his agility,
the Dangerous Waters,
his wife waiting on the other side.
- Oh, this is scary.
At 205 pounds, those three panels are going to spin.
- Nice, nice, nice, oh!
Ah!
[air horn blares]
[crowd exclaiming]
- Tyler narrowly misses the final obstacle.
- Oh, look at that.
- Let's go, Mom.
Let's go, Mom.
- Well, Tyler picked up two points.
And even though he fell, Jeri gets to take over
for the final three obstacles.
Jeri's a lawyer in the Army JAG Corps,
but she's also gone through Airborne School.
She'll need to take flight on this obstacle,
Duck Duck Goose.
She's holding the wings of the brown duck, got to swing
over to the white duck.
- You got it, girl. - You got it!
- Oh!
[air horn blares]
Our Army officer
is grounded by Duck Duck Goose.
Who would have guessed?
The "Ninja" rookie gets the only points for this team.
- Well, Jeri told us that Tyler likes
to make things go boom, and he did just that.
The "Ninja" rookie couldn't quite
make it across the third obstacle,
and then Jeri just missed with her hands on the fourth,
so they end up with two points overall.
- So we'll have to wait and see if that gets them
to the next round, but either way,
Holden's proud of his parents.
Up next, a duo that takes the cake among "Ninja" couples.
David Bergstrom-Wright is known as Da Cake Ninja,
and he and Caitlyn Bergstrom-Wright
are slicing up a wedding cake at the start line
to celebrate their "Ninja" romance.
- Whoo!
[soft music]
- David and I met in the 2019 Las Vegas Finals.
- When we first started dating, it was tough.
She lived in Florida. I was in Texas.
- We were texting nonstop, FaceTiming nonstop.
[laughs]
And I guess he thought we were already dating.
- I did.
- But I wasn't ready to commit
until we got to hang out more in person.
- I moved to Florida three years ago.
I got a summer job.
And I said I was going for summer vacation,
and I never moved back.
- Right when he moved there, it was, like,
oh, it just kind of clicked right away.
- And then we got married in September 2022.
- Competing in the Couples Championship
is what I'm most excited for.
I get to compete with my husband finally.
There can only be one couple that wins this,
and it's going to be us.
- We have got the Bergstrom-Wright stuff.
* *
- Another couple brought together by "Ninja."
Well, we raise a glass to love.
- Oh, love. - And "Ninja."
- Congratulations to the Bergstrom-Wrights.
- Cheers!
- Zuri's toasting with the rest of the Bergstrom family,
including Caitlyn's brother, Caleb, and his wife, Ashley.
They'd be competing tonight too,
but Ashley injured herself in training.
- Let's go, baby!
- David's going to take the back half of the course.
- He and Caitlyn have matching hairdos.
He's got the power buns, and so does she.
They better power up! [countdown clock beeping]
- Let's go, Caity! - You got it!
- Caitlyn Bergstrom-Wright, coming off her best season.
- She made it to the Vegas Finals
for the first time since season 11.
That's when she and David met.
No problem with Pole Vault.
- On now to the Double Twister.
- Caitlyn and David were the second married couple
to qualify for the National Finals.
The first married couple to do it,
that was Caitlyn's brother, Caleb, and his wife, Ashley,
who did it the year before.
- And before that, Caitlyn and Caleb
were the first brother-sister duo to make it to Vegas.
- So a lot of "Ninja" milestones
for the Bergstrom family.
And Caitlyn's now through two obstacles.
- Come on, Caity, you can do it.
- On now to the balance obstacle.
She's taking a look at this one
because she fell on this in the regular season.
- Go, go for it, go for it, nice.
- Nice. - Right into his hands.
- Perfect. - Oh, nice little tag.
- So Caitlyn completes three obstacles, get three points.
David will try to finish off the remaining obstacles,
starting with Duck Duck Goose.
- You've got to grab the flapping wings.
You've got the Mallard duck first.
And then you fly over to the white duck, just like that.
And then, finally, you got to let it loose
and get that black goose.
[cheering]
- Well, Da Cake making it look like a piece of cake.
- Just needs the dismount here to get their fourth obstacle.
Well, there it is.
- Now it'll give us our first look at Ring the Bells.
- Nice, walk on with your bad self!
- Well, Cake rolling right through the Bells.
Loading up.
-Nice, whoo! - Makes the transfer.
He almost pulled off of that one.
- Five quick points and now just needs the Warped Wall,
and they can be our first finishers.
And he's going to do it.
- The Bergstrom-Wrights have a perfect six points.
[cheering]
And Caitlyn's running over.
Yeah, bring her up.
- Yes!
How about that?
Cheers to you guys, guys. - Cheers!
We've got some cake right behind you.
- Turn around, Caitlyn.
- Turn around, right there.
- Come on. - Yeah!
- They started with Cake and ended with cake.
And with six points, we can expect to see
them racing in the next round.
- You're tearing up. - No, I'm not.
- Love, it's love.
Love makes him do this, folks.
He's a big softie. - Cheers.
- Tonight, you're going to love it...
- Oh, look at that.
- As "Ninja's" most dynamic duos battle
to be our Couples Champion.
- Whoa!
- Jared "Flash" Gordon is a star in the UFC.
Now he and wife, Christina Gambino,
will try to fight their way through a "Ninja" course.
- Tonight, we're going to knock out the competition.
- And they call him the Muscle for good reason.
[upbeat music]
Social media star Tremayne Dortch and his wife Cass
are returning to "Ninja."
- The Beast Bodies are back.
- Plus, a rare disease meant she could barely walk.
Now Lisa and Austin Hair are celebrating a miracle baby.
- Mmm, that is good.
[laughter]
- I can't wait for Lena Rosa to see us both on the course.
- Yeah!
- That and more on the Couples Championship
of "American Ninja Warrior."
- Welcome back to Universal Studios Hollywood
and the "American Ninja Warrior Couples Championship."
And our next duo is hoping to do some damage on this course.
It's Jared "Flash" Gordon, one of the top fighters
in the UFC, competing with his wife,
"Ninja" veteran Christina Gambino.
They're an athletic couple, and their romance started all
the way back in first grade.
[soft music]
- We've known each other for around 30 years.
* *
- We first met in first grade.
* *
- We were in the same class.
I had a huge crush on Jared.
* *
I took a picture of Jared jumping in the air.
I developed it.
I remember looking at it and being like--
[gasps]
Oh, Jared.
I literally would kiss it when I was a child.
[laughing]
I know that's weird, but I still have the picture.
You were so cute.
[dramatic music]
I've been training Ninja for eight years.
- Nice, here we go, come on.
- But Jared's background is in MMA.
* *
Before getting signed to the UFC,
he won featherweight and lightweight championships.
- Oh!
When it comes to being a ninja,
I'm greener than green.
- [laughing] Ah, you kicked--
- I kneed you in the head.
- You kicked me in the head.
- But I've made leaps and bounds
in the last couple of weeks.
* *
I'm not worried.
- He's not-- [laughter]
* *
- Tonight, we're going to knock out the competition.
* *
- Well, Flash is a Ninja newbie,
but Christina's got some Ninja experience.
She's going to take the back-half obstacles.
Flash Gordon starting things off.
- Now, we'll see if he goes the distance.
He's got his corner men down on the sideline.
- They're over there with "Ninja" veteran
Flip Rodriguez.
He works with Christina at their gym in Florida.
- Round 1, hit it, Akbar!
- Let it begin!
[bell rings]
[countdown clock beeping]
- He's been in a lot of big UFC fights,
but this is like nothing he's tried before.
- Ooh, look at the athleticism.
- Come on, big man--no!
- Oh, boy, that ended in a flash.
- Akbar, that was like a Mike Tyson fight.
That was over fast for Flash Gordon.
- So no points for Jared.
Christina Gambino will now start on obstacle number 4,
Duck Duck Goose.
- As we mentioned, she's a three-time "Ninja"
veteran, was a college gymnast at Rutgers University.
She's only 4'11".
Needs to generate big swings.
- Whoo! - Nice!
She's looking strong here.
This black goose though, those wings have the biggest drop.
- Get up high, get it.
Come on, Gambino.
- Nice!
And she is making sure, got that goose in a headlock.
- You know, she's a black belt in jiujitsu herself.
- Oh! Oh, look at that!
- What was that?
This team is on the board with one point.
- That is how you exit a ring.
That might be the best dismount
we've ever seen on "Ninja."
- Come on, Babe!
- The UFC fighter knows how to answer the bell.
Can his wife handle Ring the Bells?
- This might be a little bit of a challenge with her reach.
Ooh.
- Round after round, this one,
it's tough to go the distance on Ring the Bells.
- She's already one up on her husband, Jared.
She's completed one obstacle.
All she needs to do is do this one here.
- And you can see those bells bang
into each other, makes reaching that handle tough...
- Nice! - But she got it.
- Oh, the more obstacles she completes,
the more trash talking she can have
when it's pillow talk time.
- You dead hang so long.
You can do this.
- Oh, these two, just a great couple to be around.
Love their energy.
- Jared is never going to hear the end of this.
- Come on, Christina!
- Oh!
- The grip gives out, but Christina
got one where Flash got none.
- Flash, the fighter, got knocked out early.
But his wife came through.
She flew through Duck Duck Goose,
and the former gymnast gets a perfect 10 for that dismount.
- Flash is a big star in the UFC,
but tonight he knows his wife is the hero.
- You did great.
- Hey, Jared, I want to get in the ring with you!
I want you.
- I'm holding him back! - I want you!
- I'm all yours! Let's go!
- He's a good sport about all of it.
Love having Flash out here.
- Man, he'd probably knock me out.
Up next, another couple from Florida, Lisa and Austin Hair.
Austin is a former professional wakeboarder.
But for his wife, some days,
it's a miracle she can walk at all.
[soft music]
- Lisa has a condition called ankylosing spondylitis.
It's where the spine fuses together
and causes a lot of pain.
- I have spent decades not knowing
if I could walk that day, not knowing if I
could even roll over in bed.
In season 13, we found out we were having a baby.
- And that's when we did our gender reveal.
- Oh!
It's a girl!
- Girl dad.
- Mmm, that was good.
- With ankylosing spondylitis, I was so afraid
that I wouldn't be able to be a mother.
- [babbling]
- Just waking up in the mornings
and hearing her giggles
gives you motivation and inspiration
to do things that you never thought that you could do.
Oh, my gosh, that's steep.
- Yay! - Whoo!
Whoo!
- Having Lena Rose watch us in the Couples Championship
is going to be absolutely amazing.
It's going to be impossible not to have a good time.
- And when we hit that buzzer, boom.
She's going to say, nice, Mama.
* *
[cheering]
- Hi.
- They're waving over to that miracle baby, Lena Rose,
who's got a front-row seat
with Jeri D'Aurelio's son, Holden.
- Aww, look at that, they're snacking on a little fruit.
Zuri's down there babysitting. Man, they're in good hands.
- Holden, you ready? You watching?
- Austin's going to head back to take the final three
obstacles, which means Mama Lisa
will be kicking things off.
[countdown clock beeping]
Lisa's 5'1", barely 100 pounds.
- Lightest athlete out here, making
the Pole Vault look easy.
- She did so well on season 6 of "Ninja Warrior,"
made it to the fourth obstacle.
- Austin's impressed, and so is Lena Rose.
Mom's got one point, going for another on Double Twister.
Really about controlling your momentum,
keeping it going north, south, avoiding the rotations.
- Yeah, you start going southwest, northwest.
- There it is!
- She was a good athlete growing up.
She was offered a college track scholarship
before her medical issues sidelined her.
- Good job there, that's two obstacles down.
- But now Dangerous Waters.
- Ooh.
- Balance obstacle, kiddos, you ready?
- This is going to be tough.
Her medical condition makes it hard to walk,
so running across these narrow panels,
this may be her biggest test.
- Come on.
Nice, nice, nice, nice, yes, made it!
Tag, you're it, Austin.
- Wow! - It's your turn now.
- What a job by Lisa Hair.
The new mom battling a medical condition gets it done.
- And now Austin showing that grip on Duck, Duck
and trying to get to the Goose.
Well, Lisa, just a remarkable performance, loved it.
Now it's on Austin to hit the buzzer.
He's got to finish what she started.
- Yes! Yes!
Go, go!
Let's go!
Come on! Yeah!
- Getting up on Ring the Bells.
This one is not easy but a real smooth move there,
getting already to the third bell
and using that second one
to build up the momentum.
I like it.
- Nice!
- Oh, that's a big move.
- He out there, showing off that wakeboarding power.
Now, look at this.
- This couple with a young baby may not be getting much sleep,
but they are getting a buzzer.
[buzzer blares] - Team Hair, wow!
- You coming up?
Hang on a minute.
- Come on up, there you go. Look at that.
Lisa running up to celebrate.
Nice!
[laughs]
[buzzer blares]
- The Hairs got all six points, and Lena Rose says,
good job, guys.
- Yes!
- Lena Rose is going to have a great memory from this.
But, Lisa, what do you want to say
to people at home who are battling
their own health challenges?
- Oh, my heart is with you.
I'm in the battle with you.
If I can go and we can hit this buzzer,
you can get up and do your goal today.
Please let me be your inspiration.
- Well, you were inspiring.
Go celebrate with that beautiful girl of yours!
- I love it.
They surprised us with that run, Akbar,
and now they're almost assured of moving
on to the next round.
[upbeat music]
Coming up, another family dedicated to Ninja.
Charlie and Sandy Zimmerman have a course
in their backyard.
And even though some of the other teams
are 25 years younger, don't count this couple out.
- We need to walk away with that crown.
- We'll see them next on our "Couples Championship."
- Sandy Zimmerman was 42 when she made history.
- Yes! - Oh, oh!
Yes, yes!
- The first mom!
- Now at 47, Sandy is ready to create more amazing moments
in our Couples Championship.
And Zuri's going to get her going.
- They're almost 30 years older than some of the others,
but Sandy Zimmerman and her husband,
Charlie, are out to prove that they can still
run with these younger ninjas.
This couple from Spokane, Washington,
has been married 25 years, and not all of them
have been easy.
During last year's Couples Championship,
Sandy and Charlie were very candid about the state
of their marriage.
- In our 24 years of marriage, the word divorce hadn't
come up, but it came up.
- Anybody who says it's easy, they've never done it
or they're lying.
[cheering]
- They went out early in the competition.
- Oh!
- But in the past year, they've been
steadily overcoming the obstacles
in their relationship.
- Ninja is really a way for Charlie to show love.
He's become more of a rock during the time,
so I can kind of have my weaker moments that people don't see.
[upbeat music]
I couldn't do all this without him.
- I'm a very, very lucky man.
- Now they've got a chance to put their bond to the test.
- Speaking for myself, I just want
to get past the first round this year.
You want to win it.
- Yes.
God, isn't that's why we're here?
- Well. - Geez.
- Yes, but baby steps here.
* *
- Matt, we love the Zimmermans.
They've got their two oldest kids watching back in Spokane.
- Let's go!
- Along with a big group of those who train
at their backyard course.
- Last year, Sandy started it off.
And she finished her three obstacles,
but Charlie only finished one.
So this year they're switching it up,
and Charlie will take the first half.
Their youngest child, Blake, on the sideline
with other family members.
And to give Mom a hug as she gets into position
for the back half.
- Charlie's a big guy now,
6'3", our tallest competitor tonight.
[countdown clock beeping]
- Well, he's an athlete in his own right.
He played baseball at Gonzaga.
That's where he and Sandy met.
- Yeah!
- Well, he gets through Pole Vault.
Now we'll see how the big boy handles Double Twister.
- Come on, Charlie!
- I've been to their backyard course, the Fortress,
and I know they don't have the Double Twister.
But they do put in a lot of work.
- Look at this!
- I think he's going to be able to complete this.
- And he is completely locked in, Akbar, made it look easy.
[cheering]
- Charlie says, I know my wife is the Ninja boss.
But I got some moves, too.
- Already has picked up two points,
can he make it a perfect 3?
[cheering]
- And he does it!
- Wow.
- Charlie holds up his end of the bargain.
- Good save!
- Now it's up to Sandy.
- Charlie did his part.
- Well, that's got to be a relief for Charlie.
He knows Sandy is a ferocious competitor,
known as the Pit Bull.
- And now Sandy just has to carry that momentum.
- Still several more teams to run.
But if she can get through this and get four points,
they'll be in a decent position to move on.
- And she does it.
- Whoo!
[cheering]
- Sandy now staring down Ring the Bells.
- Let's go!
[cheering]
- The former basketball point guard
needs to time her moves perfectly for this one.
Interesting approach there by Sandy Zimmerman.
This could be a little challenging.
She will have to generate enough power
to throw herself in there.
- Well, strength is never in doubt with Sandy.
Oh!
[air horn blares]
Couldn't do it!
So they end up with four points.
That could be good enough to get to the next round.
- Charlie did his part, sailed through Double Twister
and then just barely survived Dangerous Waters.
Sandy picked up a point on Duck Duck Goose
but couldn't find the handle on Ring the Bells.
- Congratulations on an awesome run, you two.
First of all, let's kick things off with you, Charlie.
Look, we know Sandy.
She expects a lot from you.
Were you feeling the pressure tonight on the course?
- No, I didn't want to let her down.
I wanted to be there for her
and carry my end of the stick so, yeah.
- And you absolutely did.
It was awesome to watch.
Sandy, how proud are you when you think of everything
that you've accomplished, particularly
after everything you've been through, these younger
ninjas coming in.
And you were still showing them how to get down.
- Yeah, that was something we joked about coming in.
That here we are, married 25 years,
which is longer than most of these people have been alive.
So--but we've still got some game, and we
definitely still got some abs.
So we're still fighting and still getting after it.
- I love it, 25 years, 25 abs.
Y'all got a whole lot of abs between you.
And I've got some good news.
You're in third place right now with a good chance
of moving on.
- Yes, all right! We're still alive!
- Matt, Akbar, back to you.
- His abs have made him
a social media sensation with 1/2 million followers.
Now Tremayne Dortch and his wife, Cassandra,
will try to muscle their way
through the Couples Championship
on "American Ninja Warrior."
[upbeat music]
- It's couples' night on "American Ninja Warrior."
- And that means, we've got twice the fun out here.
- And there's a couple having fun.
It's our defending champions Kyle Soderman
and Megan Johnson having a romantic candlelit dinner
high above New York Street.
We'll see them run in just a bit.
And up next is one of the youngest couples of the night.
This is 19-year-old Avery Glantz
and 22-year-old Luke Dillon.
Oh, nice! - Oh, that's cute.
- As you can see, these two are in sync,
which is impressive
considering they live so far apart.
[upbeat music]
- I'm from Warwick, Rhode Island.
- And I'm from Lafayette Hill, Pennsylvania.
- So we're about four hours apart,
and it's about 275 miles between us.
I'll make the drive almost every weekend.
It's absolutely worth it.
Whenever we hang out, we have a whole bunch of fun.
We looking good? - You look great.
- Thank you.
- Ready to cook.
- All right.
I like to cook for other people,
then make them try my food.
- He's pretty good, and he teaches me
how to cook as well.
- What's your opinion?
- I'd say about a 9 out of 10.
- Yeah.
- I've been teaching him a bit of guitar.
Put this finger on the bottom.
[laughs]
- Yeah, that was too hard.
[laughter]
* *
- We've been doing acro, which is kind of like
we balance each other on each other's hands
and stuff like that.
- Competing on the Couples Special
gives us an opportunity to see each other.
Ah!
- And maybe walk away with $25,000.
This is the best Ninja day ever.
* *
- These two have their parents watching
back on the East Coast.
- Let's go! - Whoo!
Go get 'em, go get 'em.
- Luke and Avery are going to get a final hug in
and then take their places.
It looks like Luke is going to run down
to take the back half of the course,
so Avery will be leading it off.
- So far, all the teams that have finished
had the women go first.
That strategy seems to be working.
[countdown clock beeping]
- Avery recently graduated from high school.
She's an avid rock climber.
- Good ascent.
- Nice, keep going, keep going, nice.
- She actually has rock climbing holds
built into the ceiling at her home
so she can train any time.
- Watch her control the momentum on Double Twister.
- Just kick and go. It's there.
- You can hear her boyfriend, Luke,
kind of coaching her from a distance.
- Intentionally turning around to build up
momentum, another big swing.
- Got it.
- That's two down.
- Whoo!
- But now it's Dangerous Waters.
- Avery in her career has never
bested a balance obstacle.
This would be huge.
- Trust those steps, spot the feet.
- It would be big for her personally and for her team
if she can get through.
- Wow! - Nice!
OK, Avery.
Very good run! - Take it, Luke.
- Avery was locked in.
- Now Luke on Duck Duck Goose, and this kid can fly.
- Yes, he can, Matt.
- Let's go, Luke!
Yep, nice!
- Just 5'5", but you can see the power
he gets on the hooks.
- Let's go!
You're so strong.
- And they have a good time going.
The faster teams will go against the slower
teams in the next round.
- And Luke, clanging and banging to build up momentum.
- Nice, throw yourself, nice!
- Wow. - You see how--
- He muscled that. - He threw himself into that.
That's exactly what you've got to do.
- Look at this, our young couple's getting our third
buzzer of the night, beating the Bergstrom-Wrights
by more than 12 seconds.
- Luke Dillon!
- I love you!
- Whoo!
[upbeat music]
- Hey, Luke, get Avery up there.
- Avery, get over here.
- Do the wall!
- Beat that wall.
both: Beat that wall.
Beat that wall.
- There she goes. The crowd on their feet.
- That's right, power, power, power, power.
Yes!
- Come on!
[buzzer blares]
- How about that?
- I got to ask you guys.
What's better, date night or doing this together?
- This is our date night.
- OK, all right.
- All right, all right.
Well done.
Well, Avery Glantz and Luke Dillon
showed they're a couple to be reckoned with
in this competition.
- Matt, that's what we call a power couple.
- Coming up, the Webers have some secret weapons.
- We got the family here.
- A big family, his grizzly beard,
and her delicious baking.
- Whoever makes the best cookies should win tonight.
- They're just ahead on "American Ninja Warrior's
Couples Championship."
- Another "Ninja" power couple hit
the course while we were away.
Colorado's Jaelyn Bennett and Austin Gray have
been dating for two years.
They were introduced by fellow ninja
Gnarly Nate Hansen, who was watching with his girlfriend.
- Let 'em cook!
- These two made it to the final four
in last year's Couples Championship,
and they looked strong again tonight.
- She's going for time too, Matt.
I like it. They've got a game plan.
- Jaelyn, the 24-year-old engineer,
quickly made her way through the first three obstacles.
- And look at Jaelyn doing her thing.
- And Austin, the two-time runner-up
on the regular season of "Ninja," kept it going.
- He is not messing around.
- Yes, come on.
- He made it through all of his obstacles,
giving them six points, and did it
with the fastest time of the night,
by more than 20 seconds.
They're now guaranteed to move on to the next round.
This next couple is bringing a six-pack to the start line.
This is Cassandra and Tremayne Dortch.
And as you can see, he is absolutely ripped.
Tre competed for many seasons of "Ninja,"
and his muscles are legendary.
- This guy is like carnitas because he is shredded.
[laughing]
- Tre is known as the Muscle Ninja because--mm.
- You know. - Yeah.
[laughing]
- Look at them muscles.
- Whoo!
- I'm, like, yeah, that's my man.
[scoffs]
- Don't make me blush.
- Whoo!
- There's the commercial for his gym.
- We own Beast Body Fitness together.
If you ever see my social media,
you might see some crazy stuff.
- Some of his videos are like whoa.
[laughing]
But it's super motivational.
- So it's been a while since we've seen the "Ninja"
course, either one of us.
- As a mom, it's extremely challenging finding
the time to train for it.
There's not a lot of time that we get without
the kids around.
So this is going to be like a date night for us.
You ready? - Yeah, I can't wait.
- The Beast Bodies are back.
[upbeat music]
- Their two kids are watching back in Texas
with other family members.
- Tre out there flexing. Man, look how ripped he is.
You can see why he has 1/2 million
followers on social media.
- He's going to take those muscles
to the back part of the course,
so Cass will get them started.
She's also a personal trainer, competed a few years ago,
but it's been a while since this mom's
been on a "Ninja" course.
- Cassandra, long history as a dancer, great agility.
[countdown clock beeping]
- All right.
- Oh, no!
- She missed it.
- It's all right, baby.
- And that's just frustrating, just missed the pole.
Well, the Dortch family now relying on Tre to keep
them in this competition.
And you could see Cass is a competitor.
She's frustrated.
Well, when Tre was competing regularly, he was a top ninja.
He made it to the National Finals four times.
- And here he is back on "Ninja Warrior."
- Oh, it's good to see Tremayne back
and doing what he loves doing.
- Oh, no!
[air horn blares]
Well, that's a shocker, big man.
- Wow, I did not see that one coming.
- The Beast is down, and the Dortches,
no obstacles cleared.
Tre used to crush obstacles like this, no problem,
but after not competing for a few years, he's rusty.
He got his hands on the wings but couldn't lock it down.
- They didn't do so great on the course,
but those two still look good.
And our next couple isn't doing our bodies any favors.
This is Utah's Ian and Karissa Weber.
She's a baker, and she brought us cookies.
Karissa sent us some freshly-baked
snickerdoodle cookies.
- Oh, this is so warm, too.
You know what, I'm on Team Weber.
- Well, this family likes to go big in everything they do.
- We have a huge family.
- We've got the family here.
I've got nine siblings and 50 nieces and nephews.
Together, we are--
- Weber ninjas!
- I really love baking.
I do all our family's birthday cakes,
so I'm baking all the time.
And this guy has his hobbies.
- I've got a ton of hobbies.
I collect Hot Wheels.
I customize Hot Wheels.
I do beard competitions.
* *
And Ninja is the best hobby of all
because it brings us together.
- Weber ninja on 3! 1, 2, 3!
all: Weber ninjas!
- The last time we competed was on the "Family Championship."
- Ian Weber, wow, he is attacking this course, Akbar.
[buzzer blares] - Yes!
- It was a great experience, but I was so nervous.
- Stay on top!
Karissa, oh!
- So I'm hoping to make up for that this time.
I think we have the perfect recipe for success tonight.
- The Webers have their kids watching back home.
And, wow, it looks like every single member of their family
might be tuning in tonight.
- That's a reunion 'cause that's a big family.
- [indistinct] Power.
Show me, Baby.
- Ian's giving his wife a pep talk before he
heads to the back half.
Remember, Karissa didn't complete any obstacles
in the "Family Special."
Fell on the first one she attempted,
a balance obstacle, and that's haunted her.
[countdown clock beeping]
- If they can pick up 5 or more points,
they'll be guaranteed to move on.
- Get up, Karissa. Nice!
- Great job!
- Whoo!
Let's go!
- She already did better than she
did last time on the course.
That's got to give her some big confidence.
- And she gives a little smile.
You can tell she's relieved.
- On now to Double Twister, she's picked up one point.
- Look up!
- How far can this 34-year-old mother of three go?
- This obstacle is like mixing up cookie dough.
You start to turning it around and mixing
it right, throw it right onto the baking sheet,
just like that.
- Nice. - Now she's cooking!
- She almost smacked her head into the handle,
she threw that so well, generating
good power through the hips.
Got it!
- Whoo!
- You can see the joy in her face that she's doing so well.
- I'm excited to eat more of the cookies.
- You were doing that either way.
- I know.
I'm so sorry for smacking in your ears,
but I think she's going to make it across Dangerous Waters.
- Well, she fell on a similar balance obstacle
her last time on the course.
So this will be big if she can conquer it.
- Come on, come on.
Ooh! Oh!
Got it!
- OK, Karissa is perfect.
- Karissa just busted through Dangerous Waters.
[cheering]
- So now it's Ian's turn, and he's stroking the beard
so you know he's serious.
Got to jump up to Duck Duck Goose.
- Good launch there.
- 6'1", 200, one of the bigger boys
we'll see out here tonight.
- Nice, you got to just hope that as he's making
this transition, his beard doesn't get
caught up as he's bringing those wings down
on Duck Duck Goose.
- Well, just like Karissa, generating good power there
with the hips.
- He picks up their fourth point.
- On now to Ring the Bells.
- Get through this, and they'll have 5 points
and will clinch a spot in the next round.
And, you know, you could see, Akbar,
trying to make that move on the mount, couldn't do it.
- Got to make that transition quickly.
- Wow! - Nice!
- Good power for a big guy, Akbar.
He's real confident in his grip.
- Well, man, I think the strength is in his beard.
Nice!
- Nice, makes it.
- And he is pumped.
- Yeah!
- The Webers are moving on.
- Whoo!
- They were disappointed with their showing
in the family special, but they have
come back with a perfect run.
[buzzer blares] - Yeah!
- What a turn-around for Karissa and Ian Weber.
- Whoo!
[upbeat music]
* *
- Ian, I feel like you've been waiting for this moment
for a long time.
- You got to--yo.
- Dude.
- I'm so proud of my wife.
On the family show, she fell in the first obstacle.
It's been eating her up for years.
And, man, I'm so proud of you.
[cheering]
- Karissa had never completed an obstacle
before she got through one, then two, then three of them.
And Ian followed it up with his three.
The Webers are moving on.
So right now, the Webers are
one of five couples
that are guaranteed
to be advancing to round 2.
These three couples are on the bubble
because there are still three more teams
that will get their chance to run in round 1.
- Coming up, she's a pageant queen.
He's a nerdy pharmacist.
- I'm all about science.
- And I'm all about fashion.
- Can this Beauty and the Geek beat our course?
The Wilsons are up next on "American Ninja Warrior's
Couples Championship."
- Welcome back to the Couples Championship
on "American Ninja Warrior."
Now, tonight, we've got a sweet surprise for our winning
couple, but it's not candy.
- That's right. It's a box of $25,000!
- Well, we only have a few couples left in round 1.
And up next, a tale as old as time, Beauty and the Geek.
- I like that.
- He's a nerdy pharmacist.
She's a pageant queen.
And, together, this pair from Tennessee can make sparks fly.
- Ah, look at that.
- You know, they say opposites attract.
- This pharmacist probably had his supplements this morning.
- I come from this sciencey background.
I was a chemist in undergrad, and I've
got a doctorate in pharmacy.
And she kind of comes from the pageantry world.
- Mrs. Tennessee, striking a pose.
- I was crowned Mrs. Tennessee and then
later Mrs. United States.
So my world is a lot of glitz, a lot of glamour, runways.
- The pageant queen had the answer.
- Something that's really important for the longevity
of a relationship is to find something
that you love together.
And for us, it's training for "American Ninja Warrior."
- Got it! - Wow, that was the Beauty.
- We're going to hit this course in style.
- I mean, have you seen us?
- Ah, look at that, they look so good together.
- We're going to make you proud!
- They'll have their families watching back in Tennessee.
Ben's got more experience.
He's been on three seasons of "Ninja," so he'll
head to the back half.
Juliana is going to kick things off.
5'9", our tallest woman competing tonight.
She'll need to keep that hair out
of the water on Pole Vault.
- This is the talent portion of the contest for Juliana.
[countdown clock beeping]
- A trained ballet dancer but sliding down the pole,
you've got to elevate. - Get up!
- Watch your hair!
- Oh!
- Her hair and her feet hit the water.
She is done.
- And that's got to be a frustrating start.
- So now it's up to Ben.
- Go, Ben!
- He'll need to get at least 2 points to have
any chance of moving on.
First up is Duck Duck Goose.
- Here we go!
- Ben grew up on a small farm in Tennessee.
They actually raised ducks, so he should feel at home here.
- You're good. Come on.
- He just got on that one.
- He's a big boy, 6', 185 pounds,
that's a lot of mass to move.
- Big drop here on the wings, 90 degrees.
Locked it in.
- Whoo, can't blame that one on the Goose!
- Nice job by Ben Wilson, and there's one.
- Yeah!
[cheering]
- On now to Ring the Bells.
- He'll jump right into it.
Nice. - There it is.
- Nice transition there by Ben Wilson.
That's about as efficient as you can be.
- Whoo!
- It looked like he rushed it.
- It's OK. We got this.
- But he's still going to get a kiss.
Our Beauty and the Geek couple end up with 1 point.
- They were smoking walking up to the start line.
And Ben came through on Duck Duck Goose.
But on Ring the Bells, he tried to get through it
quickly and just missed.
- And with only 1 point, no chance for the Wilsons
to move on.
They will walk off into the sunset
with a pageant wave.
Our next couple is one of the youngest
but also one of the most talented.
It's 20-year-old Isabella Wakeham
and 21-year-old Sam Folsom.
She lives in Texas.
He's in Illinois, brought together by this sport.
- So we are at the barn. It is called the Danger Zone.
And inside of the barn, I would estimate
around 70 to 100 obstacles.
And a lot of them are original designs
that I came up with myself.
- Whoa.
Geez.
That's legit.
Sam and I actually met through Ninja.
- Hey, you made a full move.
- That one's hard.
- We knew each other a long time in the Ninja community
before we started dating.
- I actually came out here for one of his barn comps.
- Yeah, yeah, yeah, and so it was actually a World Finals
event where we started dating.
- Right after I won, so...
- Yeah, we were running joke that I
was, like, whoever wins this thing,
I'm going to ask them out.
both: Yes!
- I like this one, Sam. - Thank you.
- Well, here it is, Duck Duck Goose.
Sam designed it.
- So on season 16, Sam and I both had
the privilege of competing on obstacles that he designed.
- And Isabella Wakeham!
- She isn't even looking fazed.
Now Sam Folsom is flying--
- From the barn to the big course.
- Whoa! - Oh, no!
- He went out on the Duck.
- I'm excited to see Sam tackle Duck Duck Goose.
I mean, I got it in qualifying, so it's his turn for us.
- Yeah.
- Sam is ready for his rematch.
He's lined up to take on Duck Duck Goose in the back half
of the course.
Isabella will lead it off and attempt
the first three obstacles.
Her mom and brother are down on the sideline.
- Let's go!
- Right next to Sam's family.
- You got this, come on!
[countdown clock beeping]
- Well, this is the couple that everyone's talking about.
- Isabella has competed in our women's championships,
and both of them have been to the national finals in Vegas.
- Isabella Wakeham, so strong, got
her first buzzer last season on the big show
and has been rolling.
5'5", 135, this college student says
college has not slowed down her training, so disciplined.
- Breathe, Bell, breathe!
- Going to college at Texas A&M and still
training for "Ninja," and she gets
through her three obstacles.
And now Sam can get his revenge on the obstacle he
first designed, Duck Duck Goose.
- Well, it was the second duck that took him out.
- Yeah!
- But not tonight.
Second Ducky, quack-quack, baby!
- Well, got to be pretty cool for Sam Folsom.
- He gets to see his obstacle on the course,
and now he gets to defeat it and goes right into the Bells.
- Oh, nice.
Well, they want that top time, Akbar, give them
the seeding for the races.
- The fastest team will race against the slowest
in the next round.
- It's going to be close.
- Sam Folsom, wow!
- Let's go! - Man!
- They've got the fastest time of the night so far.
They are going to be dangerous racing in the next round.
- Isabella flew through her three obstacles,
and Sam made the most of his rematch
with Duck Duck Goose, then cruised through the final two.
They've got the top time so far.
And Isabella is going to join him at the top.
- Oh, look at that.
How beautiful is it!
- And they're at the top of our leaderboard.
Only the best eight will move on to the next round.
And with only one more couple to run, seven of the couples
are now locked in, with Jeri D'Aurelio
and Tyler Struss on the bubble.
- And that final team happens to be our defending champs.
- What a performance by these two!
- Kyle Soderman and Megan Johnson crushed it last year.
They'll try to make it two in a row.
And, later, we're kicking it into high gear,
as our couples race each other on our side-by-side course
to crown our new Couples Champion
on "American Ninja Warrior."
- Here is your massive trophy!
- Zuri helped them celebrate their victory last year,
so it's only fitting
that she should get them started tonight.
- Guys, they are the defending champions
of our Couples Championship.
Megan Johnson and Kyle Soderman
absolutely crushed it last year.
- And they're bringing that big, heavy trophy
to the start line,
making it look a lot lighter than it is.
The Army doctor and speedy stuntman
want to show that last season's win wasn't a fluke.
[cheering]
- Let's go, Kyle!
[cheering continues] - Yeah!
Whoo!
- This is our second Couples Championship,
and we're hyped.
- Ready to do it again. - Yeah.
- Soderman's a speed demon. He's pulling ahead.
- We were able to beat Chris DiGangi
and Jesse "Flex" Labreck.
They have 20 buzzers between them.
- Big upset! I can't believe it!
- Let's go!
- They're 25 grand richer.
- We just moved into a house.
- So many boxes. - I know.
And having that check
from winning the Couples Championship
gave us a really good head start
on the outside of the house.
Now if we can do it again,
we're going to get started on the inside.
Oh, yeah, this is, like, the movie-watching spot.
- Oh, this is perfect.
Only half of our house has flooring.
The other half is concrete.
So I would love to be able to get that done.
- Oh, yeah, and we got a puppy.
- And can't forget-- we have a dog now.
His name is Augie.
- And maybe we can build some obstacles for him outside.
[dog barks]
- We need to be able to give him the best life that we can.
- So we are back to defend our title.
- You ready to do this? - Absolutely.
- Hi! - Whoo!
- Love you!
- The defending champs have family watching at home,
including Kyle's energetic mom watching from Minnesota.
- Whoo! You got this, guys!
Come on!
- Kyle's going to hop down,
head to the back half of the course.
Megan, or Megatron as she's known, will lead it off.
As the last team to run,
they know what they need to do to advance.
Get three points, and they're guaranteed to move on.
[countdown clock beeping]
- Megan's got a lot of swag
from winning this event last year.
She carried that over into the regular season.
She made it all the way to Vegas.
- And good job holding the pole steady.
[cheers and applause]
- And now to Double Twister.
- Come on, Megan!
- 5'5", 130.
- Jump into it, nice power.
The more power you bring into it,
it allows you to get nice momentum north and south
and then launch.
- Ooh, extra swing here.
- You know, those extra swings
cost you about two seconds, Matt.
It's about an extra two to three seconds
on the extra swing.
- Well, the speed does matter
if you think about seeding for that next round of the races.
And Megatron, she's in trouble,
getting that east-west movement.
- [shouting indistinctly]
[cheering, yelling]
- She's an emergency-room doctor at Fort Hood,
working hard to keep this run alive, and she survives.
There it is, a little boost of adrenaline.
- Yes! Whoo!
Yes!
- Well, Megan could put them into the round of racing
with this obstacle here.
We'll see if the Army captain can handle Dangerous Waters.
- All right, come on, Megan Johnson.
- Yeah!
- And she's got it. - Yes!
- Now, if they finish, they'll have a much better seed
and won't have to face one of the faster teams
in the next round.
So Kyle's going to turn it on.
[cheers and applause]
- Here we go.
- Well, Soderman's so strong, so fast.
[cheers and applause]
- You got it, Kyle!
- He's going to launch in right to the second!
- He just said, forget about that first one.
That was a big leap.
He could have cracked his head open on that first one.
- Well, he is "Send It" Soderman.
He's going to do his 3 obstacles
in just over 20 seconds.
[buzzer blares] - Yeah! Let's go!
- Crushed it!
- Way to go, guys!
- Here we go, baby!
I love you!
- It took a couple of extra swings,
but Megan got through her three obstacles.
And then look at this leap by Kyle Soderman.
Flew right past the first bell to the second.
Man, you better watch out for the defending champs.
- And the doctor is going to join her fiancé at the buzzer.
- Yeah! Yeah! [wild cheering]
[buzzer blares]
- Well, they look like they haven't lost a step
since last year.
The defending champs--we'll see how they handle the racing,
'cause that's coming up next.
And check out the matchups.
Number one seed
Isabella Wakeham and Sam Folsom,
will face our oldest couple and eight seed,
the Zimmermans.
Number two seed Jaelyn Bennett and Austin Gray
will take on the Webers.
And that run by Megan and Kyle landed them a sixth seed.
They're up against Avery Glantz and Luke Dillon.
And our first race features miracle mom Lisa Hair
racing side by side against Da Cake Ninja,
David Bergstrom-Wright.
And that's next on our Couples Championship.
- Welcome back to Universal Studios Hollywood
and our Couples Championship.
Only eight teams are left.
We're about to hit the accelerator.
- That's right. We're going racing, Matt.
We've moved over to our two-lane course.
The first team member will have to sprint side by side
across Home Run, Spring Forward...
and the Wingnuts.
Then the second team member will face
Hopscotch, Spin Hopper,
and a Rope Climb to the buzzer.
So our fastest finishers,
Isabella Wakeham and Sam Folsom,
are the top seed.
They'll take on the number eight seed, the Zimmermans,
in just a few minutes.
But we'll start with a "4 seed versus a 5 seed" matchup,
as Austin and Lisa Hair
take on David and Caitlin Bergstrom-Wright.
These two teams have a lot in common.
One hosts weddings, and the other just had a wedding.
- [shouts]
- Our wedding was the storybook wedding
that I've always wanted.
We got married in this beautiful mansion
on the water.
- It was like a scene out of a fairy tale--
lots of bright colors, lots of icing, lots of cake.
The wedding cake was Funfetti.
Oh, it was the perfect cake.
I almost cried, but I held myself back.
- I cried a lot. [both chuckle]
- Lisa and Austin Hair got married back in 2017,
but weddings are their bottom line.
They own a historic venue in Orlando,
where couples take their vows.
- When we first bought it, it was rustic--
beautiful but needed a lot of work.
- It's a labor of love is the best way to put it.
So we've been doing a lot of renovations.
Knowing that people are coming here to potentially
have the most important day of their entire life
is just a really special feeling.
If we could persevere through all
the different stages of remodeling this house
and getting it ready...
- Then no obstacles are taking us down.
[laughs]
[bell tolls]
- Well, each team can pick the order to run,
and we're seeing two different strategies here.
The Hairs have their least experienced runner, Lisa,
doing the first leg,
while the Bergstrom-Wrights
have the more experienced ninja, David, leading it off.
So the Hairs will have Austin on the final three obstacles
going side by side with Caitlin.
- Boy, it's about to go down.
This is gonna be real interesting.
- And the Hair's one-year-old baby, Lena Rose,
will be on the sidelines next to the Bergstrom bunch.
- Let's go, Caitie!
- Both teams finished all 6 obstacles in round 1,
and their times were only 4 seconds apart,
so this could be close.
[countdown clock beeping]
Here we go.
And a late start for Da Cake Ninja.
- There he goes.
Lisa Hair surviving Home Run,
making sure she doesn't get tripped up.
And this is what we expected.
David's gonna build up a big lead
and hope that Caitlyn can hold off Austin down the stretch.
- Well, I think the strategy Lisa Hair's going with here--
she might be a slow starter,
but knowing that Austin can finish strong.
- David finishes his third obstacle,
and he makes the tag just as Lisa is finishing her second.
Caitlin Bergstrom-Wright, a full obstacle ahead
and making her way through Hopscotch.
[cheering]
Lisa fighting through the Wingnuts.
This is not over, Akbar. - It is not over.
- Anything can happen.
- And look at Austin. He can't stand still.
He wants that tag and the bag.
- Caitlin gets through Hopscotch
and moves on to Spin Hopper.
But Lisa Hair is still fighting,
and she makes the tag.
And here comes Austin.
- Oh, man, Austin better get on it.
He better get on it like he want it.
- Well, he can look ahead.
He can see Caitlin progressing up.
- [shouting indistinctly]
- He's got to try to sell out here.
- Yeah, he's got to go all out here on this one.
- And Caitlyn Bergstrom transitioning for the descent.
- Austin can't shake it out. He's got to go.
- He may need a miracle here, big man.
- Yeah, he's going to need a big miracle.
- Caitlyn getting closer.
- Miracle on "Ninja" might happen.
- Oh, that was big!
Caitlyn Bergstrom going to the final climb.
Austin Hair! - It's not over!
He can still make it! Can he get there?
And here comes Caitlyn!
- Oh, what a race! [buzzer blares]
- Let's go!
- They gambled that Austin could catch up.
Just couldn't do it.
The Bergstrom-Wrights are moving on
and what a finish that was.
[cheering]
- David jumped out to a big lead.
And with the pressure on, Caitlyn brought it home.
And let's give some love to the Hairs.
They finished all six obstacles
and were just a few seconds behind.
- Well, Lena Rose can definitely be proud.
Her parents didn't hit the water all night.
Our next race is a Wild West showdown,
with Utah's Ian and Karissa Weber,
the number 7 seed,
taking on Colorado's Austin Gray
and Jaelyn Bennett, who are the number 2 seed,
and this could get hairy.
- Whoo!
I pull my strength from my beard.
It's got some special powers.
Jaelyn and Austin have got the cool hair.
The purple and the pink-- it's cool.
- It doesn't have the magic of the beard.
- You got to fear the beard, and they do.
- We are not going to fear the beard.
- You got to just hope
that his beard doesn't get caught up.
- They should fear the hair.
- And look at Jaelyn--
got that cotton-candy hair dye going on.
- We're ready to go.
- Go, go, go!
Ooh! - Karissa is perfect!
- They got some experience coming into this.
They've got a full clear.
But we happen to have a lot of side-by-side racing experience.
- What a matchup we have right now.
- But they did make Matt and Akbar cookies.
- I'm all Team Weber. - [chuckles]
- So...
- Well, we got no cookie love here for the second round,
so all bets are off.
- Well, both teams going with the men at the start.
The women will take the final three obstacles.
Gnarly Nate Hansen and his girlfriend
are cheering for Austin and Jaelyn,
and the Webers will have their family watching in Utah.
[all cheering]
Austin and Jaelyn were faster in round 1.
They're the number two seed,
but anything can happen head-to-head.
[countdown clock beeping]
- All right, here we go.
Run your own race,
but you're racing against the other ninja.
- Austin Gray, a two-time runner-up on "Ninja."
We expect him to go fast.
- Whoa!
But Ian's stepping up! It's got to be the beard!
- Ian Weber linking up,
and, shockingly, he's just a hair ahead of Austin Gray.
I don't think anyone thought it would be this close.
- And here comes Austin.
- This is why we run the race. It's dead even.
- Matt, it is getting hairy out there.
The women are going to decide this.
Karissa Weber's up first,
and Jaelyn goes to the second handle.
- Oh, my word!
- The Webers can get the upset, but she falls!
- No.
- Both women hit the water almost simultaneously.
With that fall, it now comes down
to which man completed the previous obstacle first,
and that looks too close to call.
- Yeah, let's take a look at it.
Right here, you can see they were in sync
on that third Wingnut.
- But Austin released just a hair earlier.
And right there, his feet did hit the pad first.
But Ian Weber made that incredibly close.
- And Zuri's going to give them the news.
- Oh, my goodness, y'all.
That was quite a show you just put on.
Is everyone confused about who is moving on at this point?
all: Yeah. - We have no clue.
- OK, got it.
The person whose feet touched the ground first
after Wingnuts...
was Austin.
Austin, Jaelyn, congratulations.
You two are moving on.
But, Ian, Karissa, you put up a great fight.
Good work out here tonight. all: Thank you.
- Guys, back to you.
- Up next, they're more than 25 years older,
but Sandy and Charlie Zimmerman
will try to outrun one of our youngest couples,
Isabella Wakeham and Sam Folsom,
when our Couples Championship returns.
- It was one of the biggest upsets in our semifinal races
back in season 15,
when number one seed Isabella Wakeham--
- Oh!
- Shockingly fell,
giving the win to the underdog eighth seed, Sandy Zimmerman.
- [screaming]
- And now we've got a rematch of sorts between these women,
as Isabella and her boyfriend, Sam Folsom, number one seed,
will take on Sandy and her husband, Charlie,
the number eight seed, in a battle for the ages.
[rock music]
- Isabella and Sam are one of the youngest couples,
and we by far are the oldest couple.
- We've been together
longer than they've been alive, actually.
- You look like I'm an old man, and I can do this.
Come on!
- I definitely think that Sandy and Charlie
are going to have to step up their game
and push the pace if they want to keep up with us.
- Matt, this couple is dancing through the course
like it's the prom.
- We both train a lot, and a lot of it
is focused on speed and on efficiency.
So we're going to see how youth plays against experience
tonight on the course.
- Sam Folsom, wow!
- I think we both know that we're not going to beat
Isabella and Sam in a speed race.
- You guys make a great couple and a great team.
- We'll let the young kids
see if they try to go faster than maybe they should.
- You never know what's going to happen.
- You never know. - You really don't.
In fact, this feels a little familiar--
a one versus an eight.
- Well, she's going to have to earn it
against the veteran Sandy Zimmerman.
both: Oh!
- Wakeham is down,
and Sandy Zimmerman's going to Vegas!
- Everyone kind of likes an underdog.
We've got a few tricks up our sleeves, right, honey?
[laughs] - Old folks rule.
- Sandy and Isabella
will be taking the back half of the course.
But before we get to that rematch,
the men are going to start it off,
with Sam and Charlie taking the first three obstacles.
Sam, 21 years old, Charlie Zimmerman, 49.
Well, we saw Charlie really impressed us
in that first run, Akbar.
- Yeah, that's right.
Charlie finished all three obstacles.
[countdown clock beeping]
- Well, this first obstacle, Home Run, is agility.
The next four, all about the upper body.
- Look at Charlie keeping up so far.
- But look at Sam linking every move.
Sam already on to the Wingnuts--
Wow, just so fluid.
- And Charlie's still stuck on the second obstacle,
Spring Forward.
He's a full obstacle behind.
- Good. Take your time.
- And Isabella Wakeham will have a big lead.
Sandy's going to have to make up some ground.
- Oh!
- Charlie goes down. The Zimmermans are now out.
There will be no rematch between the women.
So Isabella Wakeham and Sam Folsom are moving on.
And Sandy can only watch.
- That's got to be hard,
'cause Charlie was on his way to that second Wingnut.
He got both hands on it, but he just couldn't hang on.
Hey, you know what?
Still, not a bad run for a guy 20-something years older.
- And Isabella now on Spin Hopper,
still wants to finish with a fast time.
This will establish seeding for the next round,
so Isabella still competing for something here, big man.
- Yeah, she is.
Going fast here means you'll go against a slower team
in the next race.
- Don't think they're going to catch the Bergstrom-Wrights
for fastest time, though.
Sandy's clapping, but she's such a competitor.
You know it's eating her up
that she can't tackle these final three obstacles.
- And this is going to give Isabella Wakeham
confidence for her next race.
- She knows it.
Isabella Wakeham and Sam Folsom remain perfect.
[buzzer blares]
[triumphant rock music]
- Yes!
[all cheering] - Let's go!
- I like that you got to hit that buzzer, Isabella.
We'll see you in the next round.
- Let's go. Thank you, guys.
- Those two are going to be tough to catch.
They'll get a few minutes before their next race,
but now we have to say goodbye to the Zimmermans,
but they represented well for the older ninjas.
Our next race also has a bit of an age gap.
It's our defending champs,
Kyle Soderman and Megan Johnson,
who are the six seed,
taking on the surprising three seed,
Luke Dillon and Avery Glantz.
The men will lead it off,
and there are some big differences
in where these couples are in life.
Kyle is 29, has a successful career as a stuntman.
Luke's 22 and still going to college.
For the women, Megan's 30 and a doctor in the Army,
while Avery's 19 and recently got out of high school.
The women used to train together
when Megan lived on the East Coast.
- With these two guys starting it off,
you can expect a lot of speed.
They're about to blaze through these first three obstacles.
[countdown clock beeping]
I like this, Matt. I really like this.
- Wow! That was dead even!
Oh, my, who can link 'em?
- We got a date night now.
- Both of these guys full out! [Akbar shouts indistinctly]
- It is just amazing-- no wasted moves.
- Luke Dillon is not going down.
He says, I want to take down the champ.
- And Luke the first one off.
Soderman needed one extra swing.
- And now it's Avery's chance.
- Avery up first on Hopscotch.
The women are going to decide this.
- And now Megan's catching up, though.
- Need a lot of grip strength, lot of upper-body strength
to absorb the drops.
- We saw high intensity between Kyle and Luke Dillon.
Now Avery's got to take that same momentum.
She can hit that buzzer.
[cheering]
- Now Megan is through.
Both women taking a breath before Spin Hopper.
- Well, Avery Glantz has the edge.
She completed Hopscotch first.
- Megan ain't just a doctor.
She's a soldier, and this mission isn't over, Matt.
- There you go. Come on, keep working it.
Keep working it, Megan.
- And look at Avery moving over to the descent.
But Megan Johnson keeping it close.
She's going to need a big surge here,
or the defending champs are going home.
Well, Akbar--
- Oh, my goodness, they about to take down the champ.
- There could be a disturbance in the universe...
- Oh, my goodness. - A changing of the guard.
- Here we go. Oh!
- Luke and Avery are gonna do it.
And they're going to have the fastest time.
[buzzer blares]
They'll be the top seed in the next round.
[cheering]
And Megan Johnson's going to finish it out.
[buzzer blares]
- Good job, baby!
- Love the respect,
but this means we are going to have
a new couples champion this year.
- Luke and Kyle started off hot and stayed in sync
until the end of the Wingnuts, when Kyle took an extra swing.
That allowed Avery to start with a slight lead,
and the teenager took it to the house.
Down goes the champs.
You know, Megan, it feels like the passing of the torch.
I mean, you guys were last year's champions.
And now you've got this young couple, this young love.
- I remember when she started training.
She's come so far. - Thank you.
- I love it.
This Couples Special is all about love,
and we can see the love between the competitors as well.
Megan, you and Kyle were fantastic.
What a race, Akbar.
It is time for a changing of the guard
here at the Couples Special.
Those two can take a moment to celebrate.
They're in our final four couples.
That run makes Luke and Avery the top seed.
They'll be racing against the four seed,
Austin Gray and Jaelyn Bennett,
And the two seed, Caitlin and David Bergstrom-Wright,
will be taking on
Isabella Wakeham and Sam Folsom.
That's next on our Couples Championship.
- Welcome back to Universal Studios Hollywood
and our Couples Championship.
- Matt, we're down to our final four.
This is when things get real.
- The winners here will move on to the championship race,
and we're starting it off with the young couple doing
the long-distance romance,
Avery Glantz and Luke Dillon,
going against Ninja veteran Austin Gray
and his girlfriend, Jaelyn Bennett.
Luke and Avery live in different states
nearly 300 miles apart,
while Austin and Jaelyn share an apartment.
The guys are known for their signature haircuts,
with Luke's dark curls and Austin's purple highlights,
while the girls both like to let loose--
Avery on her guitar and Jaelyn on her motorcycle.
[engine revving]
Avery just ran minutes ago,
but she's going to lead it off next to Jaelyn Bennett.
The ninjas have to start from a different position
than in their last race.
If they did the back half before,
now they have to do the front half.
That means Luke and Austin will be waiting to take
the final three obstacles.
- Keeping it real loose out there,
despite the pressure of this contest.
Win it and you'll be in the championship race,
running for the trophy and 25 grand.
- Yeah! - Let's go!
- Here we go.
[countdown clock beeping]
Watch this start.
Avery's shorter, but she's first through Home Run.
Bounding through it, Avery Glantz first up.
- Avery's doing exactly what Luke did in the second round,
getting off to a fast start.
- And you can see Jaelyn just a beat behind.
[indistinct shouting]
Oh, my, what a race.
And there it is, dead even.
- Oh, I like this type of race.
You don't know which way this is going to go.
You get them going side by side, it gets crazy.
[indistinct shouting]
- Once again, Glantz a half move ahead.
Jaelyn's an engineer, trying to figure out the Wingnuts.
- Oh, no!
- Oh, she's down! - Oh, no!
- Jaelyn goes out, and that means Austin won't get to run.
They are done.
- Luke and Avery are advancing to the championship.
- Luke!
- But Luke's going to keep going.
[cheering]
Well, what a win.
At this point, he's just getting practice
for when he runs in the championship race.
Of course, getting a buzzer is always nice.
- Boy, it's like the wind just blew in a new Ninja couple.
- And this will give them a lot of confidence.
Hit that buzzer.
You're going to the championship.
[buzzer blares] - Whoo!
[shouts indistinctly]
- Ah, throwing up the heart sign.
[chuckles]
- Hey!
- And Jaelyn Bennett, one move away
from giving Austin a chance to match up against Luke.
- Jaelyn was keeping it close to Avery through most of it.
But as she went for the last Wingnut,
she just couldn't get a grip and peeled right off.
That gave the win to Avery and Luke,
and he coasted to the buzzer.
[buzzer blares]
[cheering]
- Congrats to those two.
They're going to be racing for the championship.
- So good.
- Now let's find out who their opponent will be.
It's going to be one of these two couples,
either Isabella Wakeham and Sam Folsom
or Caitlin Bergstrom-Wright and her husband, David.
Both couples have Ninja in the family bloodlines.
Caitlin, of course,
is a member of the Bergstrom bunch--
the talented Ninja family from Florida.
Back in season 11, she and her brother Caleb
were the first brother and sister to qualify
for the National Finals.
Two years later,
Isabella Wakeham and her brother Isaiah
became the second brother-sister duo
to compete in Vegas.
- I've been racing my brother for years,
so I know what it's like to go up against tough competition
and come out on top.
- And Sam Folsom's younger brother Phil
took second place in season 3
of "American Ninja Warrior Junior."
- Phil Send, you're sending yourself
to the grand championship.
- And you can see those brothers, Phil Folsom
and Isaiah Wakeham, on the sideline,
and Ashley and Caleb Bergstrom are back front and center
to cheer on their family.
Both women ran the back half in the last round,
so they'll lead it off here.
- Oh, a little friendly hug right there,
but it is going to get very competitive in this race.
- One spot left in the finals.
[countdown clock beeping]
- You know that pressure can put a little extra step in--
Oh, no! - Oh!
And just like that, Caitlyn hits the water,
and it's over for them.
- Love you, babe!
- Anything can happen when you're racing side by side.
Isabella and Sam have the win,
but they're going to keep going to get some practice.
- Well, let's go back and look at what happened.
Caitlin's only 5'3".
She was using two feet at first.
But then she tried to one-step it,
and she came up just short on that last one.
- Isabella's still going strong.
They want to finish it out.
They'll likely be handling the same obstacles
in the championship race.
[cheering]
Sam Folsom...
wow, he just hopped through Hopscotch.
And this means our two youngest teams
are going to face off in our championship race.
- Matt, this new generation of ninjas are built different.
- And look at this, they are absolutely flying.
- We're going to have two fast teams in our final.
- They are making a mark.
[buzzer blares] - Wow!
Wow! [cheering]
- And Sam's already headed down
to celebrate with Isabella
and get ready to run for $25,000.
And you have to feel for Caitlyn and David.
It was over so quickly.
They never got to show what they can do.
- It's OK.
- Matt, I'm not sure if anyone could have caught
Isabella and Sam in that race.
- So youth has prevailed.
Our championship's going to come down
to our two youngest couples.
Will it be the East Coast duo
of Luke Dillon and Avery Glantz?
- This is the best Ninja day ever.
- Or the twosome from Texas and Illinois,
Isabella Wakeham and Sam Folsom?
- We would be so stoked to take the crown
on the Couples Championship.
It would be pretty awesome.
- It's one race for 25 grand and the title
when "American Ninja Warrior" returns.
- We're about to crown a new couples champion,
and what a night it's been.
After round 1, we had to say goodbye
to the Beast Bodies,
the Pugilists, the Army Parents,
and Beauty and the Geek.
- Round 2 was the end of the road
for the Miracle Mom and Dad, the Determined Veterans,
the Beard and the Baker, and the defending champs.
- And round 3 wrapped up the night for Curls and Cake
and the Purple Pair from Colorado.
So now only two couples remain.
Well, this is it.
Our Couples Championship
is going to be decided by one final race.
- And you can feel the pressure.
One mistake could cost you the title.
- It'll be a sprint on our six-obstacle race course,
and Zuri is going to get them going.
- Guys, last year this trophy went
to Kyle Soderman and Megan Johnson,
but it's going home with someone new tonight.
Our championship is going to be decided
by our two youngest couples.
Will it be 22-year-old Luke Dillon
and 19-year-old Avery Glantz
or 20-year-old Isabella Wakeham and 21-year-old Sam Folsom?
- The guys are going to run down
to get into position for the back half,
and the women will lead it off
and race through the first three obstacles.
These teams so evenly matched.
With the championship on the line.
- Holy moly!
[countdown clock beeping] We got action.
- Starting off here, watch Isabella bounding.
- And Isabella knows what Avery's capable of.
Avery's done nothing but speed in her the last couple races.
- Well, see who can link it here.
Avery gets it! - Oh, boy!
- And that gives her an edge.
- Matt, this is what she's done best.
In her last couple races,
she's gotten out ahead and stayed ahead.
- But look at Isabella closing.
Oh, my!
And Isabella pulls ahead. - Who's gonna tag first?
Who's gonna tag first? - Oh!
Isabella gives Sam Folsom a slight edge,
but here comes Luke.
- Wow!
Luke is like the lache king here.
Oh! - Oh!
Look at that--Sam first off!
Oh, my goodness, watch out! Watch out on the Spin Hopper!
- Oh, it couldn't get better than this, Akbar!
- Look at this!
- And Sam Folsom is gonna do it!
[buzzer blares, cheering]
- Oh, my goodness! [cheering continues]
- What a race!
[buzzer blares]
- Matt, these young couples held up to the pressure.
I mean, what a way to end the night.
[cheering]
Sam Folsom, that right there was a barn burner, man!
- Thank you. - You both were spectacular.
Luke, how proud-- you and Avery,
out here making it all the way to the championship.
- I'm so proud of Avery. I'm so happy. I'm proud of her.
She did great stuff. She got the Warped Wall early.
It's been awesome all night. I'm so proud of her.
- And, Sam, you and Isabella are the champions!
- Yeah.
- Unreal!
Why don't you guys go celebrate?
- Awesome, thank you.
- Akbar, what a Couples Championship!
- Well, Matt, that one had us on the edge over here.
I didn't know which way this was going to go.
But what a great run. They deserved it.
[cheers and applause]
Isabella finished Home Run first,
but Avery linked moves on Spring Forward,
and she pulled ahead.
Then Isabella came back and passed Avery on Wingnuts.
That gave Sam a lead, but Luke immediately passed him,
only to see Sam come back and take the lead for good
and just barely held off Luke down the stretch.
- And these young ninjas continue to impress.
Zuri's going to give our winners their trophy!
- Congratulations to our couples champions,
Isabella Wakeham and Sam Folsom.
You guys are awesome.
[cheers and applause]
- Well, that's going to do it
for our second Couples Championship.
For Akbar Gbajabiamila and Zuri Hall, I'm Matt Iseman.
We'll see you next time on "American Ninja Warrior."