American Ninja Warrior Season 12 Recap: Second Night of the Semi-Final

In a breathtaking blink of an eye, the American Ninja Warrior Finals are over! We knew this season would be eight episodes short and sweet, and it flies positively. The second night of the semifinals brought the last ninjas back to the track. They were treated by one round.

Corkscrew, the winner of the Season 11 Obstacle Design Challenge, positioned itself as obstacle number eight and was once again the bear of the challenge. In the end, six ninjas reach the bell, including Nagy Richardson in an astonishing display of physical and mental perseverance. But the night was not without shocks. Read on to find out who made it to the finals and who reached the end of the season!

the classroom

• Steps shrinking
• Spring forward
• Clockwork
• Burning rubber
• slingshot
• Deformed wall
• Salmon salmon
• the key
• The dungeon
• Spider trap

You can jump to the leaderboard here.

Here you’ll find a list of where your run ended up with the obstacle course.

• Verdale Benson:
  The former army medic got his first whistle in the qualifiers. After staying in control of Spring Forward and Clockwork, Verdale hesitated before Burn Rubber and took his time at Slingshot. He survived the first twisted drop of the key, but didn’t make the jump to the second pin.
  calendar: Off the key
• Thomas Stellings:
  After an emotional rehabilitation tour to the bell, he was out on Corkscrew.
  calendar: Off the key
• Dan Polizzi:
  A Chicago area firefighter was representing both Towers of Power after his friend Brandon Mears knocked out the playoffs. Dan stumbled into Burn Rubber and made a rickety ride on Slingshot. But after a quick spell to Matt and bigger than Warped Wall, he was in the back half. With his tall hull, Corkscrew really skinned him, but he survived. At The Dungeon, Dan shuts down the board, but there’s nothing left after that.
  calendar: Outside in the dungeon
• Megan Martin:
  Megan shared the exciting news that she is now engaged to her boyfriend of two years, Dave! She looked strong in Spring Forward but took a flopped belly on Burn Rubber that propelled her onto the landing pad, then the water.
  calendar: Outside on burning rubber

• Alex Carson:
  After receiving his first qualifying vote, he finished his season on Slingshot.
  calendar: Out on a slingshot
• David Wright:
  The Cake Ninja led his team by winning the first round. The sophomore contestant looked like he’d been loving these hurdles, smiling the whole time. He laid a very strong path to The Dungeon.
  calendar: Outside in the dungeon
• Amir Malik:
  You’d never guess that at the age of eight, Amir discovered that he had a heart disease that could have caused a heart attack and required surgery. After avoiding sports for a long time, he found the ninja prince and fell in love. It is normal. Complete the qualification course and relive this semi-final tournament. Matt tried to say he was struggling with Slingshot, but he didn’t even have time to finish his sentence before Amir got out of there. It circled through the key. Without breaking a sweat, complete The Dungeon and look at the Spider Trap. Here, he finally seemed inexperienced. Amir had difficulty getting his feet into the chute to open the doors, but he squeezed through. That is, until a slide in the last set of doors kept this bell out of reach. But his teammates were immediately cheered by him.
  calendar: Out on the spider trap

• Taylor Johnson:
  He was a 4’11-inch ninja in every moment.
  calendar: Out on Clockwork
• Shawn Bryan:
  It seems his shoulder injury will not be a problem this season. Sean was even adjusting his time in the cycle, keeping his eye on top. Suddenly, he came out on a slingshot.
  calendar: Out on a slingshot
• Nagy Richardson:
  Nagy was representing Ninjas for Black Lives, an organization that had a deep personal meaning for him. We joined him on the course as he skillfully handled a slingshot. He seems to be enjoying this run. After crossing the reverse salmon ladder, Nagy Corkscrew made his pet. In The Dungeon, Nagy begins to look tired on the journey to the final board, making the transition. Suddenly we felt intense fear for him while he was crouching, panting for air and asking for an inhaler (Naji suffers from asthma). Michael Torres brought it to him and we all held our breath while Nagy was sniffing. Then he walked into the spider trap and brought this thing home!
  calendar: completion

• Jessica Helmer:
  After falling to the first hurdle in the qualifiers, her captain, RG Roman, revived her season with a victory over the Tower of Power. This time, I made her shoot it.
  calendar: Out on Clockwork
• Army Louis:
  Jeshuah was revived by Joe Moravsky. He has reached the key.
  calendar: Off the key
• Will Schlagter:
  Will tried to run the cycle when he was 14, and his father tried in his place. After falling to the beehive in the playoffs, captain Joe Morawski managed to bring him back. Imagine growing up watching the show and someone like Joe being your savior in your rookie year?!? Things looked suspicious to Will on Slingshot, but he made it to the back half. Unfortunately, he was out during the first moments of Corkscrew.
  calendar: Off the key

• Lauren Ball:
  First OG Ninjas fell on Burn Rubber.
  calendar: Outside on burning rubber
• Brian Critch:
  Next was Brian, who got stuck into Burn Rubber, but got knocked down by Corkscrew.
  calendar: Off the key
• David Campbell:
  Things went similarly for David. After a bailout on Burn Rubber, it is twisted by Corkscrew.
  calendar: Off the key
• Lance Becos:
  We watched some passionate Lance as he helps his wife, Heather, who has MS, ride a horse with their seven-year-old daughter, Gracie. Every season, we are reminded how knit this family is in the face of rough times. We were very hopeful that he would head away in the season, but he was one of the ninjas who got stuck by surprisingly burnt rubber.
  calendar: Outside on burning rubber
• Alex Nye:
  After hitting a whistle in the playoffs, he was knocked out at Slingshot.
  calendar: Out on a slingshot
• Tiana Weberley:
  We definitely cried out in frustration when Tiana, who just got her first bell, fell on the third hurdle.
  calendar: Out on Clockwork
• Maddy Howard:
  Likewise, Madi moved us all by completing the qualifying training course. With Meagan Martin and Jessie Graff cheering on her, we thought she had the first half of the course. But the burning rubber struck again.
  calendar: Outside on burning rubber
• Take Harrington:
  The 19-year-old rookie flogged via Spring Forward, but bounced back on Slingshot.
  calendar: Out on a slingshot

Elizabeth Morris / NBC

• Jerry Di Aurelio:
  Jerry was smiling at the session, especially after surviving Burn Rubber. She didn’t skip the slingshot, but she was in the finals as one of the two best women!
  calendar: Out on a slingshot
• Michael Torres:
  After a very busy period during the pandemic, including his virtual wedding, Michael was having an amazing season. With his new wife Sarah looking out of the house, Michael wasted no time. He plunged into the course and released The Dungeon. Does he have enough power left to trap the spider? It looked like it was slipping at some points, but Michael refused to give up and fought a battle with the last set of doors, reaching his second voice this year.
  calendar: completion
• Ben Melik:
  He was the second member of RJ Roman out of Clockwork.
  calendar: Out on Clockwork
• RJ Roman:
  RJ was really into ripping up the course. After a hairy moment in The Dungeon, he shot the bell for the fastest time of the night until this point.
  calendar: completion
• Devin Harrelson:
  After struggling several times with the fifth hurdle on the track, Devin was hoping to break the streak. He was able to weave his way through Burn Rubber, bypass a slingshot, and finally savor the back half. And this is where Corkscrew got it.
  calendar: Off the key

• Austin Gray:
  Veteran three times energized during the training session, creating New Best Time.
  calendar: completion
• Lucas Reale:
  Then, in an impressive show, Lucas hit the bell much faster!
  calendar: completion
• Jesse Graff:
  After completing the qualifying course for her fifth career, everyone wanted to see Jesse in the extended course. Finishing a course of 10 obstacles has been her goal for years. We wanted to see this happen. After exiting via Burn Rubber, Jesse was vacated for the finals by the women’s leaderboards. It’s fair to say that no one doubted her ability to complete the first half of the course, and she did exactly that. But then, Corkscrew happened. Jesse has been dealing with shoulder issues and we’re sure she wasn’t enthusiastic about this hurdle. She escaped the first drop, got hooked on the second, and hit the water, trying to reach for the third pin. You’ll get one more chance in a long round in the Finals at least.
  calendar: Off the key

• Joe Moravsky:
  Joe wants it all this season. He beat the Mega Wall and won the Power Tower in the playoffs. For these semi-final matches, he never got off the gas. After no obstacles at the front of the path, skip the steps onto the salmon ladder. This course looked like nothing with Joe on it, heading through Corkscrew and The Dungeon. At the bottom of the spider trap, Joe had a tight 30 second if he wanted the fastest time. Is this possible? Thats if you are Joe. It kept the highest time in under a second. Also, maybe Akbar should calm her down with the “Abbi Bud” comments. Joe is without doubt at his best.
  calendar: completion