Original subtitles

- Tonight America's top bladesmiths,

martial artists, and knife experts

put their blade-wielding skills

to the ultimate test.

Whoa! Total carnage!

Who will be skilled enough,

and which blades are sharp enough,

to earn the $20,000 grand prize

and the title of "Knife or Death" champion?

- I just love bladed weapons.

When I trace my finger over a blade, it'll make

a certain sound if it's good steel.

So it has its own soul, its own sound.

- Ever since I was a kid,

I've always wanted to be a blacksmith.

Whenever I make a weapon and I'm able to actually test it

on something, I just like that feeling.

- Blade wielders,

welcome to the most extreme, most punishing

knife competition ever created.

Complete two courses, and the winner earns

a cash prize and a spot in the Grand Champion Showdown

at the end of the season...

vying for $20,000 and the title

of "Knife or Death" Champion.

All of you have different reasons to be here,

but one thing is certain--

that purpose won't be realized

until you get through Knife Fight.

The Knife Fight course is a true test

of speed and power.

The two that make it the farthest the fastest

will move on to our second, even more grueling

course challenge-- Dead Run.

I am honored to introduce to you

U.S. Army veteran Tu Lam.

- To know oneself is important,

but to know yourself in relation to your blade,

well, that's critical and considered good strategy.

Our two-time "Forged in Fire" Champion

and blade expert Travis Wuertz will give your blade

one final test.

He finds anything wrong with your blade,

you could be eliminated.

- Only two of you will move on.

Good luck! Go get your blades ready.

- Hi, I'm Joel Rice. I'm 30 years old.

I'm a campus supervisor and security officer

out of Casper, Wyoming.

I've had extensive martial arts training,

ranging from karate, jiujitsu,

to Filipino martial arts.

With the growing rate of violence happening

in schools, I use my martial arts training

to see things before they happen

and to keep other people safe.

- So what do you got there?

- So this is a Techno SS.

It's based on the Kambantuli. It's a Filipino design.

It's a short-range Filipino weapon.

- Okay, so where'd you get this blade?

- So it's out of Victoria, British Colombia.

Friend of mine named Jeremy smiths out there.

- So here's your 12-inch blade, but you have a handle

where I can grip either here up close,

rotating around the center of mass,

or if I choose to do so,

I can take that one hand

and come back here and increase

my effective length. - Absolutely.

- Or a person can take two hands.

I'm gonna take a few swings, see how it feels.

- Thank you.

- Your blade cuts well.

It has good edge geometry. It has overall sharpness.

And it gives the user

quite a bit of variation to swing from.

Congratulations.

It makes the cut.

Good luck. - Thank you.

- Up the steps, Joel Rice.

A lot of people come to this show

for a lot of different reasons.

This guy came for a higher purpose.

He wants to be the most proficient security guard

so he can protect kids.

- Joel comes today with a 13-inch blade.

I like the modifications to the handle,

which will allow him to double up on the blade.

He's a practitioner of Eskrima,

which is Filipino martial arts.

As you can see, the circular patterns

that he's swinging that blade into now,

those are the angles of attack.

- First up, Trifecta.

Remember, the competitor must cut three objects

in half, release the falling torches.

Well, here he goes.

Joel Rice up at the bamboo.

- Very proficient in those circular motions.

- Boom, right through it. He got through there quick.

Oh, boom. Talk about quick.

Right through the PVC.

Now on to the rope.

Oh, my God, he just killed it.

- He has a lot of power. - Joel Rice through Trifecta.

Next he steps up to Box Cutter.

Remember, he has to go

all the way through both boxes.

- He's at the end of that blade handle,

giving him more power in his swings.

His angles of attack is dead on.

He's not in front of that box.

- There he goes. First box eliminated.

- Notice how he's using his body to control

the "spinature" of that box. - He is.

Catching up to the spin, waiting for it to stop.

Joel Rice...

finishes up Box Cutter.

He's stepping up to Decapitator.

He's got to cut all the way through

all of the objects with one strike

through each object.

Okay, first swipe.

Miss, right off the bat.

Got that one.

Wow, Tu, that was close.

Oh, nice, he got that one.

Two out of three done.

Only one penalty there.

On to Thrice.

Cut completely through all three ice blocks in order.

Two strikes, and he's through the first one.

One strike through the second.

Uh-oh, one penalty because he's not

going in order.

Moving on to Life Line-- sudden-death elimination.

If he does not go through that chicken with one strike

he's going home.

- Nice. - Boom, right through.

Beautiful slice right through the chicken.

Now he moves on to the tube.

Right through the tubing.

Next up is the fish.

Let's see the line of attack. - Nice.

- Beautiful stroke, great follow-through.

- Look at those angles, Bill.

That is a practitioner in Filipino martial arts.

It's all about hitting angles.

- Next up, Kill Shot.

You must fully slice through all six ratchet straps

within three swings.

- He only has 13 inches of cutting edge here

to get through all the ratchet straps.

He needs to pick his angles right.

- Okay, here we go.

That's not a good start.

Oh, now he's got one strike to get through four straps.

Whoa.

Joel Rice taken down by Kill Shot.

He was unable to cut all of the straps

with three strikes.

- Joel.

Let me take a look at that knife again.

You really made what's a smaller blade perform

like a much bigger blade because you're treating

this longer handle as a multiple-position grip.

- Right. - Completely changes

the weight and the balance, and the power

that this knife can deliver.

You still have to see if you made it far enough

and if you made it here fast enough.

- Let's hope. - Well, keep hoping.

And good luck. - Thank you.

- Thank you.

- I'm Ken Woodbury.

My background on sword fighting

is actually medieval combat.

Either I get a shield and sword or a spear,

and we get into armies and we have full-on melees.

- Looks like you got a kukri. - That blade--

I had specially made just for this competition.

It's an 18 1/2-inch blade,

15 inches cutting surface, with a 8-inch handle.

- The first thing comes to mind is bending.

I see some wiggles in the profile of this,

and then we're sharpened at a very blunt edge,

so we're just sharp-ish.

But we'll see how it does.

All right.

I would have liked to see a thinner cutting edge,

but this profile creates basically an axe section there

and should be a phenomenal chopper.

Congratulations, it makes the cut.

- Excellent, thank you.

- Here he comes-- Ken Woodbury.

40 years old.

Full-time production grip,

part-time sword fighter. - This guy is confident.

He's coming today with this hybrid kukri.

This is 18 1/2 inches.

A normal Kukri is about 12 to 15 inches.

Travis does have concern that this blade is very dull.

- Okay, here he goes.

Ken Woodbury takes on Trifecta.

- This is the perfect geometry

for this type of cut. - He's one strike away.

There he goes. Right through the bamboo.

Next up, PVC. - With the recurve

it's gonna allow that chopping power he needs.

- Okay, should be one or two more.

One and he's through.

Next up, the rope. - He needs to hit this

at an angle. - We can see that blade

bouncing a little bit, and Travis Wuertz said

it is not that sharp.

- There he goes.

Finally through the rope.

Next up, Box Cutter.

He has to go all the way through,

and those boxes do not stop.

- Wow, that's a huge hit.

- Nice. - Strategically placed.

Good job. - He needs to move on.

- Okay, second box.

- Needs to counter that spin.

- Oh!

Lost that blade a little bit. - That's what I was

concerned about. - Readjust.

Okay, he sliced the box off of the tether.

That is a penalty.

Stepping up to Decapitator.

Now, remember, this blade is very dull.

- I like his approach here.

- Did not complete it.

Penalty number one.

Oh, he went through the celery.

- Nice.

- Right through the pineapples.

One penalty on Decapitator.

Ken Woodbury moves on to Thrice.

Cut completely through all three ice blocks in order.

The Kukri should be the perfect weapon.

He's got height, he's got power.

- That is raw force and power.

He hit the wrong piece of ice.

That is a penalty.

As always, you got to pay attention to the rules.

Stepping up to Life Line.

He's got to dial it back.

Remember, he must cut through all three objects.

One cut, or you're done.

In compensation for the lack of sharpness on that blade,

he needs to put a lot of power behind it.

Okay, here he goes. - Nice.

- Oh, beautiful cut. - Made it up with speed.

- Bam, right through. - I love his angles.

- Beautiful cut there. He's 6'4", remember.

- Nice. - Beautiful cut on the fish.

He is moving on to Kill Shot.

Three chances to cut through six different ratchet straps.

Okay, one down.

Okay, two down.

One more strike and he's got to get three.

Oh!

One strap short!

Ken Woodbury taken down by Kill Shot.

- Ken.

- That was actually an extremely impressive run

'cause this knife was extremely dull.

But you're still left with a blade that has a chance

if this is far enough and if you made it here

fast enough to continue on to Dead Run.

- Hi, my name is Chad Remus.

I'm from Baytown, Texas, and I'm 35 years old.

My two firsts swords that I made

were 5160 katanas.

I've been playing with knives

since I was about six years old,

and I've been forging for about two or three months,

ever since I saw this show.

- So what do you got there?

- I got a 5160, 4-foot long,

3-foot blade, double-edged sword.

- Who made this knife? - So I made it myself.

- What do you have for heat-treating equipment?

- A custom-made forge I used.

I built a three-burner forge.

- You kind of have two different bevels here.

It looks like this was maybe designed to be

a sharper bevel. - Yes, sir.

- And it's ground to a pretty sharp edge.

What's this guard?

- That's a spring from the shop.

- So when did you weld it in here?

- I actually welded this one before I quenched it.

- You welded this on first and then quenched the blade.

- Yes, sir.

- This is a no-no spot to weld a blade.

By arc-welding this right at this critical juncture,

we have essentially...

very significantly damaged the steel.

I can think of no example

where welding a guard on a blade

with an electric arc welder would be advisable,

acceptable, recommended, or even safe.

This is a blade that I cannot in good conscience

allow to compete

for the safety issues that I see in this.

I'm sorry, but this blade does not make the cut.

- Appreciate it, sir. Thank you.

It's pretty disheartening.

I built a blade real quick in a few weeks,

made some mistakes in the process of welding.

Oh, I'll be here for next season.

Next sword I'll build won't have any welding involved,

and I'll just forge it all out of one big piece of steel.

- I am Zack Gulick. I am 19.

I just got done graduating high school,

and right now I'm in the middle

of starting out apprenticeships

with horseshoers to become a farrier.

I have been making blades for about two years now.

I brought a modified kukri.

It is about 12 inches long for the cutting edge.

- So what do you got there? - A kukri that I made.

- All right. How long ago did you make this?

- Six months ago, and it's all made

out of one piece that I just hand-forged on my anvil.

- Our profile's definitely a little odd.

You would have had a lot of mass forward...

- Mm-hmm. - But we have a lot of mass

in this...back here. - Yes, sir.

- What do you call this thing?

- Don't really have a name for it.

I just thought that would look cool

and function and make it so my hand can't really fall

out the back of the knife.

- What I'm kind of feeling back here

was making sure that there weren't really any sharp edges.

There kind of are right here.

That stretches out the leverage...

- Mm-hmm. - But then it also puts my hand

right in contact with this.

We've had problems on the show with knives that didn't have

a proper handle, and the user would get hurt.

So I'm just gonna take a few swings for safety.

- All right, sweet.

- This is not a pretty blade. - Yeah.

- But it cuts great. - Yeah.

- Even thought we have this little bit of exposed tang,

there's plenty of real estate to grab the handle properly...

- Yeah. - And away from those

sharp deals.

So I'm not too worried about that.

Congratulations, it makes the cut.

- Perfect. Thank you, sir.

- Good luck. - Thank you.

- Zack Gulick,

the young fighting farrier.

This kid shoes 20 horses a day.

- This country-strong kid brings a modified kukri.

Normally used by the Nepalese Gurkhas.

These Gurkhas, they're one of the most fierce soldiers.

My only concern is it's not really made to slash,

and that could cause some problems on Kill Shot.

- Let's see how he takes on this course.

You know, youth can be an asset

or a detriment.

Boom! One slice right through

the rope. - I like the double--

the double grip.

He needs to come in at a angle.

- Yep, that's a vertical slice.

Boy, he crushed that.

- Wow, he put his whole body into that.

- He did, and we've seen kids

with the youthful exuberance before

using it against their time.

This kid looks calm, he looks collected.

- He knows how to generate power,

as Long as he stays lead of that target

and meet that force.

Look at that, Bill. He comes in at the corner.

He's really accurate.

- Wow, what a great shot!

- He's--he's slowly picking his angles of attack.

He's not just rushing it, he's not just swinging freely.

- Okay, Zack moves on to second box.

- He needs to counter-spin. - Not the proper strategy

on that second box. - He's doubling up.

He's trying to generate more power.

- Well, what he's doing right now is he's generating

more of a spin on that box.

Oh, and the box is released!

That is a penalty.

You know, he spun that box so much it literally fell off.

And that's part of the rules.

You got to cut through the box.

You can't knock it off its platform.

Stepping up to Decapitator.

- All right, he needs to compose himself.

He needs to drop his level, get that horizontal cut,

and then swing right through all the items.

- Here he goes.

Oh, very poor effort.

There's one penalty.

Oh, he got the second one now.

Nope, he missed the last pineapple.

Two penalties on Decapitator.

He rushed it a little bit, too. - He did.

- Steps up to Thrice.

Remember, cut completely through

all three ice blocks in order.

- He has the youth, he has the power

to get through it. - That's power.

- Boom, third strike right through the first block.

- He's not going in order.

He hit the wrong piece of ice.

That is a penalty.

You have to pay attention to the rules, Tu.

Next up, Life Line.

- Geometry on his blade will hook that item

back on the blade path.

- Beautiful job. Sliced right through the chicken.

Take his time. Got to go right through the tubing.

- Look how he's driving down from the ground.

- Next up, the fish. - Nice.

- Beautiful job. Great follow-through, great power.

- Now, Bill, I am concerned about Kill Shot.

He only has 12 inches of recurve blade.

That means this is more of a chopping blade

versus a slashing blade. - Here we go.

- Oh! Two swings, two straps down.

He's got to get four more straps.

- You have to slash those ratchets

and not chop at it.

- And he did not get any more.

Zack taken down by Kill Shot.

- He more went with an impact swing

versus a slashing swing, and I was concerned about it

because the geometry of the kukri

has a recurve on it-- he ran out of blade.

- I'm happy with the way that my blade help up.

I just wish I probably would have put

a little bit sharper of an edge on it.

- I'm Bobby Cannon. I'm 49 years old.

I began my martial arts training

when I was five with my Uncle Jess.

He trained me until I was 13.

He taught me to do everything with both hands...

and so he named me "Little Bobby Two-Hands."

Two days after I graduated high school,

I went to the Army,

trained with people from all over the world,

became who I am today.

- What do you got there? - This is a clave.

Long enough that I wouldn't consider it a combat machete,

but not as long as I would consider it a sword.

I commissioned for this blade to be made in this fashion.

- So the recurve of this

would be this slight S shape, or this drop in the profile

that creates more belly. - Yes, sir.

- If this came straight in here,

we wouldn't have quite this proud curve right in here.

- Correct. - And so, by having

that indentation, what it does for us--

and I'm not actually gonna swing it--

but as we come through here, well, my wrist

can only go that straight forward,

and having that contour drop

or the handle drop creates

a better approach in the most powerful part

of this blade. - Yes, sir.

- I'm gonna go ahead and strap in.

- Wicked nice, ain't she?

- It has a great weight and balance.

Congratulations. - Thank you much.

- This definitely makes the cut.

I look forward to seeing what you do with it.

- Thank you, sir.

- Here he comes-- Bobby Cannon,

"Little Bobby Two-Hands," 49 years old,

Greensboro, North Carolina.

Surgical assistant,

martial artist, and Army veteran.

- He comes to us today with a 20-inch cutting-edge blade.

I love the geometry on this blade, Bill.

This is a cutting weapon.

This thing is made to slice,

and it's made to chop.

- Martial arts background--

we see that in his attire today.

Bobby Cannon steps up to Trifecta.

- Boom, right through.

- This thing is a powerful blade.

- Powerful, and look at his body positioning.

He is putting everything he has into that swing.

- He needs to come in at a angle.

- Through the bamboo. Next up, the rope.

- He comes in at a angle,

or that blade's gonna snap back at him.

- Done with Trifecta.

Bobby Cannon moves on to Box Cutter.

Okay, here he goes.

- He needs to counter that spin.

Doesn't look like he's very accurate

in his attacking approach.

- They're powerful strikes for "Bobby Two-Hands."

He is almost through the first box.

And he gets it.

- He's not moving on with a purpose.

- I don't like these flat strikes on the box.

- You have to hit the corners of this box.

- Wasted a lot of energy, lot of time here

at Box Cutter.

Finding it a little difficult

to get through that second box.

- Second box eliminated.

Moves on to Decapitator.

Let's just see how he attacks Decapitator.

Here he goes. - He missed it.

- No horizontal strike through.

He didn't lower his body.

Got the second one.

And the third one, got that.

Little Bobby Two-Hands moves on to Thrice.

- Proper technique with his power,

he will cut them through no problem.

- First one. Two strikes, done.

Bobby Cannon moves on to the second obstacle.

- Wow! - One strike, done!

- That power!

- Ah, he was relying on one strike there.

Two strikes, Thrice completed.

He's moving on to Life Line.

- He's making incredible time through this.

Let's see if he hits the proper angle.

- Boom, right through.

He should have everything in place

to complete this task. - Nice.

- Right through the tubing. - I like his angles.

- Steps up to the fish. Can he do it?

- Studying the fish. - Boom!

Beautiful stroke right through.

Nice twirl on the blade.

Stepping up to Kill Shot.

And most importantly, he needs to pick

the proper way through these six straps.

And that is not it.

First swing, one strap.

Okay, he left three hanging.

Second swing-- - He can do it! He can do it!

- One more strike, and he's through.

- Yes!

- Boom, and he's done!

What a recovery! Bobby "Two-Hands" Cannon...

- Wow! - Moves on,

completes Knife Fight.

- That was impressive.

- That was a hell of a recovery.

- I was a little bit concerned after that first swing.

- He changed his approach mid-obstacle,

and he completed it.

Kill Shot, he made his bitch.

- I am so happy to be greeting you here

at the finish line of Knife Fight.

- Amazing.

- This blade has held up actually very well.

We got a few little burrs in here...

- The way they should be.

- And then pristine edge, a burr.

You got to be thinking about,

how is this gonna do

with your chances going in to Dead Run?

- Right.

- Here's your blade, and good luck.

- I need a IV. That was exhilarating,

exhausting, wonderful.

- I'm Rashelle Hams, I am 51 years old,

and I am living in Portland, Oregon.

I'm a bladesmith and blacksmith instructor

at an outdoor survival school.

I was on "Forged in Fire." I came in third.

And now I'm looking for a little bit of redemption.

- So what do you got there? - Got a gladius I made.

- How long ago did you make this?

- A few years ago. - So what's the blade steel?

- 5160. - Nice springy, tough steel.

- Yep. - We have a hidden

tang construction that means there's

very little weight in this handle,

and with that double-edge construction,

it can make this a very formidable cutter.

Let's take a few swings for safety.

- All right.

The dynamics of this blade cut very well,

although for my hand... - It's a little small.

- This handle's a little bit on the skinny side

and a little on the... - Yeah, yeah.

- And so that's gonna be a big deciding deal

because it's not made to fit my hand.

- Right. - Congratulations.

Your knife makes the cut. - Thank you.

- Good luck. - All right.

- Portland, Oregon's own Rashelle Hams--

the blacksmith and bladesmith instructor

and a survivalist,

"Forged in Fire" veteran.

This, Tu, is one tough cookie.

- Definitely. She comes today

with the modified Roman gladius sword.

It was used by Roman foot soldiers.

Devastating on the battlefield.

- Today she starts with Trifecta.

- Wow. - She just destroyed

that PVC. - That's a lot of power.

All right, see how she's coming in at those angles?

She's creating that gap.

- Look at the power she's got.

Now she steps up to the rope.

She is through. - Rashelle knows how

to generate power, you can see,

through her body mechanics.

- She's about to step up to Box Cutter.

Here Rashelle goes.

- I like how she's attacking the corners.

- Two hands on that sword-- looks like a good strategy.

- She's putting her whole body into the swing.

- Okay, one final swipe at that box,

moves to number two.

- She came in more of a steep angle.

Notice how she's attacking the corners now, Bill.

- Very smart.

- Wow!

- That second box is done.

Rashelle Hams moves on.

Now, she is taking a couple deep breaths there.

Stepping up to Decapitator.

Ooh, that's a miss.

She's gassed. She's got to take her time

and take it down the way it should be.

Nope, another miss on the pineapple.

Steps up to the celery.

Right through it. - Nice.

- One for three on Decapitator.

She's got to be disappointed

at what she just did on Decapitator.

Next up, Thrice.

- I see her generating

a lot of power through this apparatus.

- Here she goes. - Wow.

- Good technique.

Compromising both sides.

Boom, she's through the first one.

On to the second block of ice.

She is using both sides of this blade.

There she goes. Number two complete.

Number three...

- Look how she's winding up for that power.

- Boom. there she goes.

- Look at her, she's winded.

She's basically gassed.

That's why cardio is so important

when it comes to this competition.

You know, she needs to dig deep and focus.

- Here she goes.

- Nice! - Beautiful job.

Right through the chicken.

Next up, the tubing.

Boom! Great job.

Blue powder exposed. Next up, the fish.

Let's see how she attacks it.

Wow, Rashelle takes that fish down.

Beautiful slice.

- That is the perfect example

of angles and power-through.

- Let's see how she attacks Kill Shot.

- You know, Bill, I'm a little concerned

about her mind-set here.

Up until now, she's been doing more of a impact type of swing.

If she attacks this with more of a slash back,

with the sword pulling back on her body,

it's gonna generate enough power on that slash

to cut through.

- Whoa! She only got one strap there.

Two more.

Only one strap.

This is gonna be a tall task.

One strike to get through four straps.

And boom.

Taken down by Kill Shot.

Rashelle Hams, unfortunately,

did not have the right strategy on Kill Shot.

- When she walked up, she's more impact type of hit

versus a slashing hit.

- Rashelle, I'm sorry that I'm meeting with you here.

You weren't taking no light swings,

and the way that this knife held up throughout the course--

we'll just see if it's impressive enough

to put you outside. - Thank you.

We'll hope so. All right. - Thank you.

- Blade wielders,

congratulations on your efforts today.

However, only one of you completed Knife Fight.

With a time of 3:55,

Bobby.

Congratulations. You're moving on to Dead Run.

- Thank you, sir.

Confidence is strong.

If I can equal what I just did,

I have a good chance to win it all.

- You four made it as far as Kill Shot.

With a time...

of 4:01...

The competitor to face Bobby in Dead Run is...

Joel.

- I'm super proud to be here.

I'm super proud of my performance.

I can't wait to do Dead Run.

I can't wait to see what the course has in store for us.

- Congratulations, Bobby and Joel.

Whatever you did to prepare yourself

for today's course, you'd better ramp

that puppy up times ten,

because Dead Run is a whole different animal.

Gentlemen, go get your blades ready.

- I'm super proud to be here.

I'm super proud of my performance, and I'm honored.

- I can smell it. I can taste it.

I am ready to face Dead Run.

- While Knife Fight was the ultimate test of blades,

Dead Run is the ultimate test of speed, timing,

accuracy, and precision.

Remember, in Dead Run,

the clock never stops.

For every challenge not completed,

a 20-second penalty will be added.

Okay, we have two traditional martial artists

going head-to-head--

different styles, different approaches.

Let's see if they have similar runs.

Joel Rice takes on Dead Run.

He's got youth on his side.

He's not worried about wasting too much energy

because he is dancing in the ring of fire right now.

- Trained in Kali martial arts.

He should be able to be proficient

at moving targets.

- Okay, here he goes.

Stepping up to Chopper.

We have two mats, and we have two pieces of wood.

He's got to cut through all of them.

First up, 1x3.

Strategic strikes.

Powerful.

Good strike-- he's almost there.

- He has proficient body mechanics, Bill.

- That he does.

Ooh, okay, missed there.

- Nice, he's through. - He's all the way through.

Moving on to the mat. - Look at his footwork.

He's moving as the target is moving.

- Not over-leading himself.

Beautiful. He's right through the mat.

Now he moves on to the wood again.

Nice, powerful strike. - That is power!

- Two strokes right through, on to the last mat.

Doesn't look like he's wasting much energy.

There he goes. - Nice!

- Okay, moving on to Ball Buster.

Nine balls coming down-- he's got to slice them

before they hit the floor.

- Let's see how he does with his angle of attack.

- Missed it.

Okay, oh-for-two.

He's got to figure out a way to get this done.

One for three.

Two for four. - Notice how he changed up

his pitch, his angle.

- Boom. Great strategy change.

Nice.

- Look at the size of that blade.

Perfect blade for this apparatus.

- Got that one.

He's thinking on his feet. He's doing a great job.

- Wow! - What a terrific showing

at Ball Buster.

Only two penalties.

Moving on to Flying Target.

Remember, the competitor must cut three ropes

that each release a swinging piece of meat.

Meat must be cut so that one half lands on the grill

behind the competitor.

Oh! Just missed on the first one.

- Little bit too late.

He needs to adjust his point of aim.

Nice! - Got that one!

Last one.

See how he does.

Nope, missed the grill.

- You don't want to cut too low.

- Two penalties.

Up next, Free Fall.

He needs to cut each piece of fruit as it drops.

Oh, boom. Got the first one.

One for one.

Two for two. - He needs to move with speed.

- Three for three. Great job.

Four for four.

- It's all about precision here.

- Boom, right through that one.

- Flawless in his technique.

- He's doing a great job. - He's perfect right now.

- He is perfect.

Great job.

- Yes! - Final one at Free Fall.

- Wow. - He gets it!

Moving on to Fire in the Hole. - He got it all, Bill.

- Cut completely through the 400-pound block of ice

to trigger the flame.

- He has an extra-small blade.

He needs to generate a lot of power.

- Wow! Nice!

- Two strikes, and he's through!

Boy, that was a great job.

Moving on to Crash Landing.

Cut completely through the flying targets

as they zip past you.

After that, destroy the crate to release the contents.

Beautiful strike!

- His timing is perfect.

Nice! - Great job!

Moving on.

That's not all the way through.

- That's a penalty.

- Another penalty. - This blade is 13 inches.

Not a lot of cutting edge. - Okay, here he goes.

He's got to release that red ball.

- He needs to stop that spin.

- And he did.

Great job.

There we go! - Yes! Go!

- Moves on to Fire Storm!

He ascends the stairs.

One final cut, and he is through!

- Let's just hope his time

was fast enough to make up for all of those penalties.

I love this kid. I like his spirit.

I love his mind-set, his accuracy here.

- That was almost flawless.

But let's see what he got in penalties.

Joel had...

six penalties.

Wow, Tu, lots of penalties but a very fast run.

Next up facing Dead Run--

Little Bobby "Two-Hands" Cannon.

- You know, when I'm looking at Bobby,

I would look at more of his precision.

This guy is more seasoned. He has more experience.

He has better blade geometry over Joel.

- I've spent my whole life in the service,

my whole life in the service of my family,

and I want to finally put on a showcase

and show them who Bobby Cannon is.

And I want my name to mean something.

- He was the only one that completed Knife Fight.

Former combat medic from the 101st--

he's here to demonstrate how proficient he is on the blade.

- Well, he better be proficient.

You know, I got to say, this is an absolute toss-up.

This is one hell of a final,

and I'm very excited to see it.

- Stepping up to Chopper.

What's first?

- That's a lot of power.

- He put his whole body into that swing.

- Yeah, and nothing happened, though.

- He has to come in more angle.

- Yep. Another vertical strike.

- Now he's tracking it.

Look at his footwork, Bill. - He's tracking it.

He's doing a good job.

He is taking his time.

Kept his body positioning proper.

- Now he's dropping his knees. - Through the mat.

On to the wood.

- Wow! - One strike right through!

- All right, trying to do same thing there.

- He's almost through. That's a lot of power.

- Three strikes right through the second mat.

Moving on to the last piece of wood.

- Nice!

- One shot right through. - He needs to move!

- Beautiful job.

On to Ball Buster.

That is one difficult obstacle right there...

with a blade of such length.

Slice nine balls in half before they hit the floor.

- No, he missed it.

- He got that one.

Miss.

Got that one.

He got it, he sliced a bit off.

Tu, using two hands... - Wow.

- He is near perfect.

Got that one.

There's a miss.

Oh, and got the red one, too.

Three penalties.

Next up, Flying Target.

Not really in any hurry. - No.

- Is that gonna come back to bite him?

- And that comes down to situation awareness.

Okay, one for one. - Nice!

He found his sweet spot, and he cut just the amount

of meat to land on the grate. - He definitely did.

And he is two for two. - Oh, he is on it, Bill.

- He's 100% so far.

One more flying target. Can he do it?

Yes, he can. - Nice!

- Three for three at Flying Target.

- Perfect. - Very systematic approach.

Very calculating.

- Time is something you don't have here.

He needs to move.

- He's through the first one.

Second one, boom, down.

That blade is not tracking very far.

Not much movement.

- He's really accurate with it.

- Doing a hell of a job.

He is four for four.

Five for five right now as we speak.

Okay, first miss.

- Okay, he got that one.

- I think he cut through the top.

- Got that.

- Ah, got a penalty on the last one.

His aim was off.

Two penalties.

Next up, Fire and Ice.

How many strokes is it gonna take

for him to get through this 400-pound block of ice?

He is very concerned about his stamina,

and so am I.

- Well, making up some time here.

There he goes. Just cut the block.

Moving on from Fire and Ice.

Next up, Crash Landing.

He is making this...

this way closer than it should be.

If he had some urgency, he would run away with this.

- Nice. - Okay, great job.

Right there he didn't have the accuracy.

- He missed that one. He needs to move.

See, his situation awareness isn't there.

He missed one. - He missed that.

Got that one.

There's two penalties.

Okay, he's moving on to the box.

Remember, he's got to destroy the box...

- Wow, that's a lot of power. - Dislodge the red ball.

Then he can move on.

It's a lot of power, but we don't see

much destruction going on. - No.

He stayed on the ice blocks way too long,

and it dulled that blade.

- Now he's losing a little technique,

but it might work to his favor.

And boom! There goes the ball--

exposed on the ground.

Moving on--Firestorm.

Cut one more rope, ascend the stairs--

- He needs to move with a purpose, Bill.

- I think it's gonna be close.

- Wow. - Why he's going so slow

I do not know.

Single strike right through.

He is finished.

Little Bobby "Two-Hands" Cannon

with a very respectable run on Dead Run.

- I mean, he was accurate.

He didn't accumulate a lot of penalties.

My concern is his pace.

- Well, I don't know how many penalties he got.

There were very, very few,

but it's gonna come down to time.

Bobby had...

Seven penalties. - Ooh, that's gonna hurt.

- I have absolutely no idea who's gonna win this one.

It was tight.

One penalty separates both of them.

- It's still anybody's game right now.

- Joel's time with penalties was...

4:43.

- Good job. - Thank you.

- That was a fast run. - That's a good time.

- Bobby's time with penalties was...

5:48!

both: Congratulations, Joel!

- Good job, man.

Fantastic. - Thank you, brother.

- I had to pace myself at my age

and at my cardiovascular fitness level.

I did the very best job I could do,

but I wasn't quite fast enough between the obstacles.

- You performed more than admirably,

my friend.

Okay, you got to regroup, come back here,

and kick some ass.

- I feel excellent.

I just took each challenge as it came, used my skills,

and fell back to my knowledge and just did the best I could.

Kept looking forward.

I'm ready to come back and give everything I've got

to this competition.