American Ninja Warrior 2020: Results and Top Highlights from Episode 6

This year's season of American Ninja Warrior is only on its sixth episode, but because of changes brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, we are already close to the end.

This is the second and final week of semifinal runs. After this, the only thing standing between the ninjas and $100,000 is the final round.

The semifinal course operates similarly to the city finals course in past seasons. It is an extended course with 10 obstacles meant to test endurance, agility, balance, grip strength and speed.

Here is a list of the obstacles the ninjas had to conquer this week:

• Shrinking Steps
• Springboard
• Clockwork
• Burn Rubber
• Slingshot
• Warped Wall
• Salmon Ladder
• Corkscrew
• Dungeon
• Spider Trap

Verdale Benson was the first ninja to run the course. He made it through the first seven obstacles, but when he got to Corkscrew, his upper body was too shot to grab the second spinning wheel, and he fell into the water below.

Dan Polizzi represented the Towers of Power while the other half, Brandon Mears, cheered him on from home. The veteran ninja made it all the way to the ninth obstacle before his grip gave out on him. He had to hope his time was enough to advance.

Meagan Martin was the first woman to take to the course this week. She looked good on the first few obstacles but took a surprising fall on Burn Rubber.

The rookie run of Amir Malik saw him hit a buzzer in the qualifying round. He continued to impress the commentators by making it all the way to the final obstacle. He made it through the first two doors on Spider Trap before his legs gave out on him and he fell to the pad below.

Najee Richardson was up next. After telling a heartbreaking story about being racially profiled by the police, he took to the course. He took a puff from an inhaler to treat his asthma after completing the first nine obstacles. It must have helped because he shot up the Spider Trap to become the first finisher of the week.

Lorin Ball, Brian Kretsch and David Campbell were the only three ninjas who have competed in every season of the show, but all three of them fell early on the course, giving some of the newer ninjas a chance to stand out this year. Lance Pekus is a veteran of this sport in his own right, but he also fell on Burn Rubber.

Rookie Tage Harrington may be a skinny 19-year-old, but he blazed through the first few obstacles with ease. His confidence may have been his undoing as he went out on Slingshot.

Michael Torres almost slipped toward the top of the Spider Trap, but he managed to fix his footing and made it to the top to hit the buzzer and advance to the finals.

Devin Harrelson was looking to avenge his fall on the Ferris Wheel during the qualifiers. He has never hit a buzzer in six seasons of competition. He had an impressive run going, but he fell short once again when he got to Slingshot.

Jessie Graff is one of the most popular and well-known ninjas in the sport, so the show made sure to make a big deal out of her run. She has set records and made history multiple times over the years and looked to add another buzzer to her resume this week. Unfortunately, she fell just short on Corkscrew but made it far enough to secure her spot in the finals.

Joe Moravsky was the final competitor of the evening. He officially qualified for the finals by making it through Slingshot, but he didn't want to end without hitting the buzzer. He took his time getting through the final two obstacles and hit the button at the top to earn the fastest finish of the night.

Here is a look at which ninjas will be moving on to the finals next week:

• Joe Moravsky (Finished)
• Lucas Reale (Finished)
• Austin Gray (Finished)
• R.J. Roman (Finished)
• Michael Torres (Finished)
• Najee Richardson (Finished)
• Amir Malik (Fell on Spider Trap)
• David Wright (Fell on Dungeon)
• Dan Polizzi (Fell on Dungeon)
• Thomas Stillings (Fell on Corkscrew)
• Jeshuah Lewis (Fell on Corkscrew)
• Jessie Graff (Fell on Slingshot)
• Jeri D'Aurelio (Fell on Slingshot)

Next week will see the ninjas face the first stage of the finals course. We have no idea what this modified season has in store for us, so the course could be drastically different than it was last year.