Tonight’s on NBC American Ninja Warrior airs with an all-new Monday, June 30, 2025, season 17 episode 5 and we have your American Ninja Warrior recap below!
In tonights American Ninja Warrior season 17 episode 5 called, “Qualifiers 5,” as per the NBC synopsis, “Qualifying rounds continue in Las Vegas on the world’s most challenging obstacle course. The top 20 athletes of the night will advance to the semifinals.”
Tonight’s episode looks like it is going to be a great season 17, so be sure to tune in for our coverage of NBC’s American Ninja Warrior at 8 PM – 10 PM ET! While you wait for our American Ninja Warrior recap make sure to check out all our American Ninja Warrior news, spoilers, recaps & more!
Tonight’s American Ninja Warrior recap begins now – Refresh Page often to get the most current updates!
On tonight’s American Ninja Warrior episode, it was night five of the Qualifiers! There were plenty of fan favorites. There were also a lot of rookies ready to make a name for themselves tonight. Up first was a ninja veteran, Mady Howard. She’s been featured six times. She has her own ANW poster.
She took time off after she had her baby and now that baby was a toddler. Beckham was three years old now. He helps out in the kitchen. He goes to Mommy & Me Gymnastics. It even helped Mady keep fit during the off-season. She was an elite ninja and the course tonight didn’t daunt her in the slightest.
Mady easily sailed through the obstacle course. She made it all the way to the Warped Wall where there was admittedly a hitch with her first try. It was on her second try that Mady was able to hit her buzzer.
Her first buzzer since becoming a mom. She was doing great as a mom and a ninja. She was also set the tone for the night. It was going to be tough following her incredible run, but several ninjas did give it a try during the commercial break. There was even a finisher that sadly didn’t get the airtime he deserved.
Next up was Bob Wormus. Bob was an older ninja at fifty-seven. He was forty-two years older than the youngest competitor tonight and he doesn’t look it. He was in great shape. His family was supporting him on the side.
The army veteran was on his second obstacle when he too messed up. He just didn’t recover as fast as Mady did. He fell and that was it for him this season. He was followed by Lance Pekus. He’s a ninja veteran. He’s been competing since 2012. He was formerly known as the only ninja from Idaho.
Which wasn’t the case anymore. Lance used to run by himself on his own makeshift course and now he trains with two other ninjas from his hometown. They were all happy to make Idaho proud.
They just didn’t count on the Balance Beams. They took out Lance nine years ago. History repeated itself when he fell again tonight on that very same obstacle. It was a disappointing end to his season and hopefully he’ll take his revenge against it one day. That obstacle was a menace. It took out another over the next commercial break.
The show came back with Clayton Reeves. He was an Iowan Nina. He was adopted. He was also trans. He came out as a teen and it was a struggle in his community because it stopped feeling like a community.
He was often bullied. He was feeling depressed until one day he posted a video on YouTube. His story resonated with a lot of people. He helped some kids that were struggling to see the light on the other side of transitioning. He gained confidence. He found his new community. He even made a great debut on the ninja stage tonight.
Clayton got as far as the Ferris Wheel when he started to slip. It was the fifth obstacle. He had great time and so the eventually fall might not stop him from going into the next round. In time honored words, he has to wait and see.
Next up was Andreas Johnson. He was a baby-faced newbie. He struggles with anxiety. It was so bad that he wasn’t entirely sure if he’d run tonight. He often turns to art to help him through the attacks and now he has ANW as well. He combined his love for both into making some amazing artworks tonight.
Andreas wasn’t tall. He was 5’8. He weighed 120 lbs. His slight frame ended up helping more than he knew. He easily went through the entire course and not even the balance obstacle shifted once he was done.
He went on to become a finisher in under two minutes. He now has a buzzer under his belt. Andreas was followed by Glenn Davis. The father of three opened the first ninja gym in Atlanta. He coaches a lot of the kids there. The former gymnast met his wife through ANW. He was back tonight for two things. The first being he wanted to prove that the old guys couldn’t be ruled out.
Glenn was sixty-one. No one in their sixties has ever made it passed the balance obstacles. He did and he made history when he did. The second reason he ran tonight was because he wanted to break his own curse. He hasn’t made it ps the fifth obstacle in years. He wanted to make it back to the Warped Wall.
He just couldn’t break the curse. He fell on the Ferris Wheel. Something he did on a previous season, so that obstacle became his new curse. It was such a shame too because he was doing so well and now he has to wait and see.
Taylor Green was next. She was a veteran. She started off on ANW Junior. She dominated then like she dominates now. She trains with some elite ninjas in her area.
She was quickly becoming one herself. Taylor went through the course like it was nothing tonight. She became a finisher with no problem. Her time actually beat out Mady’s. They along with Andreas and Neil Hertz from the commercial break were the only finishers up until then. There was soon joined by another finisher during yet another commercial break.
Next up was Jenedy Paige. She has three kids now. Only she still honors and remembers her fourth child. She lost a child in a tragic accident. The family had been living with her parents at the time and they had a pool. They took every precaution. They even taught their then two children to swim.
It still wasn’t enough to save her child. It deeply traumatized Jenedy. She turned to family and art to help her cope. She was also a strong competitor. She made it as far as the balance beams from hell when she fell. It would still good to hear her story and caution other parents against the dangers.
Sean Bryant was next. The Papal Ninja as he’s known. He worked for the Catholic Church. He was very spiritual. Hence the nickname. He was also super fast tonight because he finished the course in under a minute.
He wanted a chance at the Mega Warped Wall and sadly his speed didn’t carry him through there. He missed out on the additional ten grand, but there’s always next year. There were more finishers tonight before it was Zhanqiue Lovett’s turn. This mom of three has overcome a lot over the years.
Zhanique’s mom was an addict. She was going down that same path when she got pregnant. She realized right then and there that she didn’t want to make the same mistakes as her mom.
She had her baby. She finished school. She went to college. She started her own business. She was now happily married with three beautiful children and they were supporting her during her run tonight. The baby changed it all was now an adult watching from her own place. The family got to see Zhanique be the third mom to hit a buzzer. And it was a glorious moment.
The women were doing great tonight. Next up was Brian Doom. The Airforce dad was thrilled to be back. He last competed in 2016. He’s back after nine years and was still in great shape.
He has to be for his job. He has to pass a physical exam to fly. Even if he was just passing gass nowadays. He also had fun on the course and its sad that it came to end much too soon. He fell on the balance obstacle. It took him out the last time too. He was followed by Payton Myler. She was one of the Ninja Kidz. She comes from a competitive family. They do it all.
They did ninja, boxing, gymnastics, and they were always looking for more sports. Payton met Luke Beckstrand when her family went over to play in his backyard ninja gym. They’ve hung out ever since.
They went to prom together and that was their first date. They’ve now been together for seven months. He was there cheering for her. He even felt her disappointment when she fell on the balance obstacle. Luke later had his run after the commercial break. He was barely on that course because he finished with the fastest time so far.
Luke even beat out the Papal Ninja. He got his chance at the Mega Wall and he missed it by a few. Maybe next year? Luke was followed by Brittney Durant. She was a veteran ninja that took time off to join a new sport. She loves what she does. She feels it gives her an advantage with ANW. Its one of the reason she returned.
She was doing well on the course tonight when she slipped on the final part of the fifth obstacle. She was so close when she fell. She went far enough fast enough to qualify for the next round. Meaning tonight wasn’t a total write off.
And the final ninja of the night was Kai Beckstrand. He was Luke’s brother. Kai was known as a speed demon in his own right. Although, it was going to be hard to top his younger brother’s time tonight.
The whole Beckstrand family were great ninjas and so Kai still put on a darn good show. Kai was going for speed and he accomplished it when he easily beat out his brother’s time by two seconds. He wanted the Mega Wall. He got the Mega Wall. He used the money last season to upgrade his personal gym. It paid off. He just doesn’t know what he’ll do with the money tonight. He told the hosts that he’ll find something.
THE END!