Original subtitles

- Over the past few weeks, America's top blade wielders

have come here to put their weapons and skills

to the ultimate test...

Whoa! Total carnage!

And tonight, all the winners return

for a final clash against bigger and badder obstacles

with a $20,000 grand prize on the line.

This is the "Knife or Death" grand champion showdown.

- As far as the competition goes,

I'm really looking forward to it.

You gotta be fast and you gotta be precise,

and most importantly,

you have to avoid the penalties.

I finished Knife Fight with five penalties,

and I plan to do better.

I'm bringing a great blade and a very can-do attitude.

One of the Marine Corps mottos

is "improvise, adapt, and overcome,"

so the objective is

the other side of the obstacle with everything cut.

- I'm very excited for what's going to happen today,

but I'm not letting my nerves get the best of me.

My blade took a little bit of a set

on the PVC pipe

in Knife Fight last time.

I have maintained my strategy

of using one edge for the soft targets

and one edge for the hard targets,

so I don't know what things I'm going to be cutting today,

but we'll see what happens.

- I've already been here. I'm not nervous anymore.

The first time that I went out there,

the one penalty I did actually get

on my entire run was some cauliflower.

Never eating it again.

I'm here for one thing, and that's to win

and take this home. I'm just hoping

that these other guys can, uh, at least keep up.

It's nice to be a champion,

but it'd be really nice

to be the grand champion.

- I'm proud to be a "Knife or Death" champion,

and I'm here to win today.

One of the obstacles that I had

the most trouble with in the last challenge

was the ratchet straps.

This time, I'm gonna take my time.

I'm gonna make sure to make concise cuts.

I know today's gonna be tough.

I'm trying to go through the course

with no penalties this time.

I think that my skills are gonna put me in a place

where I know I can do well.

Bring it on.

- Knife Fight is going to be really, really challenging.

On Dead Run, I know I had a lot of penalties,

- 0 for 4.

- That's not gonna work this time.

I'm gonna have to charge into everything

as hard and as fast as I possibly can.

The competition I'm going up against today--

they're all very proven.

It's a championship round,

so they're gonna throw everything at us.

- This time, I'm worried about everything.

I just have to worry about making all my cuts

and getting to the end.

That's what I'm really concerned with.

I would love to get another shot

at anything that's fruit-related.

- 3 for 3, penalty-wise.

- He is so gassed right now.

- I've been working on my cardio.

Gassing out is everybody's worry

that's committed to something that's taxing on you.

Honestly, I don't think about my competition.

I think about it almost as a band of brothers,

and the enemy is the course,

- Welcome to the "Knife or Death"

grand champion showdown.

In order to succeed today,

every swing,

every cut,

needs to be perfect,

or you're going home.

At the end of the day, I see a group

of blade-wielding badasses in front of me,

and that's good,

'cause you're gonna need it

to get through this.

Knife Fight.

You've all taken on the Knife Fight course once,

but not like this. Some of you will face

different obstacles than you did last time,

and the difficulty has been ratcheted up.

One thing to keep in mind:

Decapitator is now a sudden death obstacle.

To move on, you have to cut

through just one row of targets

in only one swing,

but you have three chances to do it.

Get one, and you can move on.

Only if you miss all three rows

does your time in Knife Fight end.

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

US Army veteran

and Special Forces Green Beret Tu Lam.

- Welcome back, competitors.

Your ability

to generate speed,

power, timing, and accuracy

are some of the attributes

that led you here today.

If you fail to execute,

if you're not on point,

you're done.

Good luck.

- This is for all the marbles.

Go get your blades ready.

- I want to win this competition.

I've met my fellow competitors.

I would love to put my best

against their best and see who comes out on top.

- First up:

48-year-old Earl Culver, from Tampa, Florida.

Martial arts instructor,

Marine Corps veteran, and bladesmith

- I expect this course

to be completely different than what I ran through,

but it's cutting, and cutting is cutting.

Now, I am concerned about this blade.

This is more of a chopping blade,

just because of the geometry.

It's only 16 inches of cutting edge.

- He was concerned about his cardio,

in the first time taking up Knife Fight,

but he got through with flying colors.

It's the first time he's faced Trifecta.

Here we go!

He's gonna take on the 2x4.

Tell you what: He is ferociously chopping.

Okay, right through that 2x4,

moving on to bamboo.

He's coming in straight on right there.

- If he doesn't be careful,

this blade's gonna bend on him.

- Yeah, he's about to take down the bamboo.

Right through. Now steps up to the rope.

Boom! One strike through there.

He stepped up, and he absolutely

destroyed Trifecta,

but at the same time,

it started whittling down

on his blade.

Stepping up to Box Cutter,

and this is the first time

he's facing Box Cutter.

- Wow. - Nice. Look at the power

that he is generating.

He is compromising the corners,

no question about it.

Whoa! - Whoa, that's right!

- That's what I'm talking about!

He's moving on to box number two.

Another beautiful strike.

- He needs to control the target.

It's spinning out of control on him.

- Yep. I don't like

watching him watch that box spin.

He's gotta do something about it and steady the box.

Frustration is setting in.

Now he's lodged in. It's very disheartening

to watch competitors get hung up

and continue losing valuable time on the clock.

There we go!

And he's moving on. - You got it.

- And he is searching for some air.

- And air is what he needs right now,

because he needs clarity.

- Remember, Decapitator

is now a sudden death obstacle.

You slice through one of them,

and you can move on.

If you don't get it in one swing,

you have two more chances

on two more rows. Miss all three,

and your time on the course ends.

Boom! Right through.

He should move on quickly.

Beautiful job.

Spent no more than a couple seconds

there at Decapitator.

Moving up to Thrice Pick.

Question is, is he too gassed?

Oh, my--one slice, all the way through

Wow! Another single slice.

Uh, he wasn't doing it on that big one,

but three slices,

and he makes it right through the big one.

Moving on from Thrice Pick.

Made up a lot of time there.

Next up, Lifeline.

- This one strike has to slice through

two chickens. He has to hit this thing

with speed and velocity at an angle.

- Beautiful job.

Earl Culver goes through the double chicken.

Next up, the fish.

Right through the double fish. Moving on to the rope.

This is the big one.

- It's all about angles here,

and speed, and sharpness of the blade.

- He's concentrating. He's getting ready to strike.

Oh, no! What happened?

- He rushed it. He came in at the wrong angle,

and also, that blade is probably dull

after going through the ice

and the box. - So Earl...

- Let me go ahead and take a look at that knife.

So now, we picked up a bend.

- A bit.

- Where do you think you picked up this bend?

- Boxes.

- So something that a person goes to swing,

and that just totally screws up

your indexing. - Yep.

- So this could be interesting if this is far enough

and you made it here fast enough

to put you outside in Dead Run.

- Thank you, sir.

- Good luck. - Thank you.

I don't know that there's anything that I could've

done differently on this course.

If I make it to Dead Run, I'm not worried

about taking that blade.

I can make the adjustments

in my angles of attack.

I don't see it being an issue.

- Young gun Joel Rice,

security officer,

campus supervisor,

and martial artist.

- The last Knife Fight, in Decapitator,

I was still a little hyped from the previous obstacle.

I should've re-angled my blade

and followed through a little bit more.

This blade was built for this competition,

and today, I fully intend to bury my blade

in the stump.

- The edge on that blade,

the geometry on his blade,

and the length of this blade--

he needs to plan it right.

- On his first try, Joel completed Trifecta

in just 24 seconds.

Let's see how he does against the thicker rope

and the harder bamboo.

Is he taking the proper angle?

- No, he's not coming in at an angle this time.

He's coming in overhead strike.

- Oh! He's through.

He's cracked it. He's compromised the bamboo.

He sees light at the end of the tunnel.

Yes, he's done!

To the rope next.

- Yeah, he has to slice.

He's more of a chopping. - Okay.

- He's through.

Not enough strategy.

- He just didn't hit it at the right angle,

and that--that started destroying his blade.

- Next up, Box Cutter.

- Those are powerful blows.

He's pretty accurate in his blows.

- Great footwork, though.

Trying to compromise those corners.

There he goes through box number one,

and on to box number two.

Let's see if he can adapt his style.

- He needs to come off-center of that box.

- And he does.

He's almost through that box.

Okay, there he goes.

Box number two, done.

Crossed the finish line. Joel Rice

moves up to Decapitator.

Ah, we may have an injury here.

- Got an abrasion on his left knuckle

from smashing the box.

Do you want a-- - Please.

- Okay, medical asked Joel if he wanted to continue,

and he said yes. This guy's tough.

Next up, Decapitator.

This is a sudden death elimination challenge.

Cut completely through one row of targets with one slice.

He had a little bit of trouble last time.

Let's see how he does.

- Wow. - Went right through.

Made up a lot of time.

Next up, Thrice Pick.

Now that busted finger may come into play.

- Absolutely.

- One slice, and he's through the first one.

- Nice. - And one slice

through the second. Wow.

Using both hands with that busted finger.

This dude's tough.

Takes down the last

crosses the finish line,

It seems that busted finger

was not a problem whatsoever.

Next up, Lifeline.

Here's where we got a problem:

the edge on that blade.

- Edge on that blade, the geometry on this blade,

and the length of this blade

is only 13 inches of cutting edge.

He needs to plan it right.

He needs to use the blade real estate.

- Here he goes.

Boom!

Nice shot right through the double chicken.

Next up, the double fish.

Back strike. Bam!

Here we go. - Look at those angles, Bill.

That is a practitioner in Filipino martial arts.

- Next up, the rope.

- There's no doubt this guy has power,

but he just has to hit it the right angle.

- Right through!

He pushed the rope!

- Unfortunately, I think what happened

was in Trifecta and how he swung

towards the hard objects, like the bamboo.

It further dulled his blade.

- This was a much tougher course.

I did underestimate the difficulty of the rope,

but I'm so excited

to possibly be going

to Dead Run again.

- From Garden Grove, California,

36 years old, checking in at 6'6" tall,

the sword fighting attorney,

Eric Hardeman.

Kill Shot took him down the first time

and made sure that he did not complete Knife Fight,

so can he do it his second time around?

- I had the fastest overall time on Dead Run

out of any of the competitors today,

and I didn't get through Knife Fight.

I know what I did wrong.

I'm gonna make the adjustments.

This is the endgame here.

- Eric, the great white knight,

comes today with a European longsword.

I do have a little concern about this blade.

There is a slight bend

16 inches from the guard.

- That might be the determining obstacle

right there, when we got

two harder targets to go through

at Trifecta.

Here he goes.

Eric Hardeman.

- The problem is he's impacting that blade

towards the tip. - And it's bending.

He is very close to getting through.

One forward slice right through.

Now next up, 2x4.

He's doing a vertical strike.

He needs to notch the wood

and then cut vertically through.

- I mean, you could power through this,

but it's going to destroy your blade.

- Well, he's definitely trying to power through it.

Right through the 2x4. Next up, the rope.

He thought he was gonna get through with one strike,

but it took two. Eric Hardeman

completes Trifecta. Next up, Box Cutter.

And he is lodged in that wood.

- He needs that distance to generate that power.

- Whoa! Destroyed it.

Moving on to box number two.

He's again embedded in that box.

Wasted a lot of time

waiting for it to settle itself.

- Hit it!

- Yes.

- Destroyed it. Cross the finish line.

Next up, Decapitator,

and remember, this is a sudden death obstacle,

but Eric only needs one row to move on.

Yeah, right through. - Nice.

- No problems whatsoever.

Very quick time at Decapitator.

Next up, Thrice Pick, and we talked

about the bend in that blade.

Does he have enough of the edge left?

- If he impacts this during the bend,

it could bend the blade even more.

There it goes.

- Two, three,

I see it rolling a little bit.

Five strikes. He's through.

- Nice. - For three.

- Oh, look at four, man.

Made pretty quick work of Thrice Pick.

Next up, Lifeline. We talked about the bend

in that blade. Does he have enough

of the edge left?

- Yes. - Yeah, right through

the chicken. Great job.

Great line of attack. Next up, the fish.

- I like how he's studying the objects.

- Absolutely. Beautiful.

No problem whatsoever. Next up, the rope.

One area where he does have an advantage.

He has been through that rope before.

Can he do it again?

Yes, he can! - Yes!

- Eric Hardeman gets through

Lifeline. Next up, Kill Shot.

Could be a bit of redemption,

as this is the obstacle

that prevented him from finishing Knife Fight,

but this time, he only has two swings

to get through six straps.

Well, he only got through two of them.

Can he do it? One final swipe.

- Oh!

- Oh. - He did not!

It looks as if Eric Hardeman was gonna make it.

Unfortunately, he did not, again.

- That is so close. Look at that, Bill.

I don't think that he applied

the proper slash.

He went more of an impact swing.

- I didn't finish Kill Shot,

but that happened on my last episode,

and I ended up ultimately winning.

I-I don't think I incurred any penalties,

so I think I'm right in it.

- Tom Mombert, 28 years old,

Vernon, New Jersey,

chemical operator bladesmiths.

When he went through this course before,

we watched in awe.

We saw a combination

of power and a blade we have not seen before

on "Knife or Death."

- My blade's small compared to some people's here,

so I have to really put a lot of body into it,

and I really want that win.

I want my name out there

as grand master, so bring it on.

- Today, he brings what he calls

the big-ass Bowie. It was amazing,

seeing what he can do with this thing.

- Guy only had one penalty going through Knife Fight,

but it's one hell of a lot harder course

than it was before.

Let's see how he fares.

Tom Mombert taking on Trifecta.

Watch the power, ladies and gentlemen.

But a vertical strike's not gonna get it done.

He needs to notch it. - No, he needs to get

more of an angle.

There it is. There it is.

The thing about this, Bill, is he can muscle through,

but he's gonna destroy that blade.

- Boom! Right through.

Now he moves on to the 2x4.

You want to create that notch, then a solid vertical strike.

- Yeah, I like how he shifts his weight forward.

- All upper body, though.

Oh, and he's through the 2x4.

Next up, the rope.

- Nice! - Oh, one swipe

through the rope. Next up, Box Cutter.

- You have 16 inches of Bowie blade.

He stays forward of the target

and meets that force head-on, he should be all right.

- There he goes. Last time, he did very well.

I'm expecting the same performance

here from Tom. - Yep.

Like how he's hitting in the corners.

- Missed that strike there.

- He's almost short-stroking these swings.

Not followed through.

- He does look a little gassed.

- Nice. - Okay, moving

to box number two.

- Notice how he's hitting the corners now.

- Great strategy chain.

Making quick work of it. - Wow.

Well, he figured out on the first box.

- He did. He adapted,

he overcame, and he changed his strategy.

Second box destroyed. - Nice!

- Moving on. Next up, Decapitator.

He excelled with the peppers and the pineapple,

but did not go through the cauliflower.

Definitely looks a little nervous.

Let's see his job.

Oh! Did go all the way

through the celery. - He did, he did.

- He's moving on very quick.

- That was close, though. - Very quick at Decapitator.

Next up, Thrice Pick.

- This is his arena.

He knows how to generate power.

This is the right geometry to hack

through these ice blocks.

- There he goes. First ice block.

- Nice! - Two swipes, and he's on.

Up to the second lar-- - Wow.

- Four swipes, he's on, on to the last one.

Two swipes, he's on. - Made up some time there.

- Quick work of Thrice Pick.

Next up, Lifeline.

It is a single-elimination obstacle.

He will go home

but he's definitely got the right power.

- Let's see if he's got the right angle.

Beau--right through the double chicken.

Big swing--got it! - Oh, no, there he goes.

- Oh, right through the double fish.

That rope is very difficult.

Oh, right through the rope! - Nice.

- Great job. Next up, Kill Shot.

Only two shots

to get through all six ratchet straps.

- It took him three slices last time,

but he knows how to create

a slashing type of swing.

Oh... - Uh-oh.

He's in trouble.

There's a lot of straps

to get in one swing.

Tom Mombert taken down by the ratchet straps.

- That's what happens when you rely too much

on strength. You need to slow it down,

assess the situation.

- Well, he relied too much on strength

and none on strategy.

- Tom.

- Yeah.

- Up until this point,

that was a phenomenal run.

This is a little tougher than the first time

you saw Kill Shot. - Yeah.

- Well, you put on a phenomenal performance.

- Thank you, sir.

Overall, definitely tougher run.

I'm not happy at my performance at all,

but, you know, hey, if it gets me

to the next round, it gets me to the next round,

but we'll see.

- Okay, here we go. Keith Hill,

53 years old.

Blacksmith, martial arts training,

20 years on SWAT,

nine years with emergency service unit.

- Wow, look at that blade, Bill.

He's coming in with 18 inches

of cutting edge, heavy mass.

It's gonna allow him that chopping power

he needs here.

- First time that I went on the course,

the blade got a tiny little roll

on, uh, the one edge

when I went to hit one of the obstacles

that had concrete and rocks in it.

It's the only thing that I'm really concerned about

is, uh, getting all the way through

whatever it is that I'm trying to get through.

- He is attempting to be the first

"Forged in Fire" winner

and "Knife or Death" champion,

but it will be the first time he's faced Trifecta.

Okay, here we go.

Coming in with the angled strike.

Another angled strike. Great strategy.

- Nice. I like it.

He's creating that gap.

- And he's one of two guys to get through--

boom, right through the 2x4.

- Perfect technique. - Next up,

bamboo--great. - I like the angle.

- Angled strike. - Once you create that notch,

power through it.

- Wow! Beautiful job.

Keith Hill moves on... - Come in at an angle.

- To the rope.

Two swipes, right through. Next up, Box Cutter.

- Keith is a seasoned veteran

in chopping competition.

He can generate some power.

- Keith Hill takes it on.

- I like how he's attacking the corners.

- Me too, and man, he is doing it with some speed

and violence. - He needs to stop spinning.

Nice backswing to stop that spin.

- He was making quick work of that first box.

- Wow, he is through!

- One strike and he's through.

Boom! - Nice!

- He's moving on to number two. Great job.

- Oh, this guy means business. Loo--

- Got something in his eye.

I don't know if it was his time in SWAT.

Whatever it was,

he's come with a badass blade.

one--as we see it now,

Box Cutter. - Wow, I like his footwork.

- Okay, moving on. Next up, Decapitator.

Remember, he has to get through

one set of the objects, and he can move on.

If not, you've got to move on to the next target.

And he doesn't need to move on,

except for past Decapitator.

Next up, Thrice Pick.

Oh, he goes right for the big one.

- Look at that swing. That's a lot of power.

Seems like that blade is a little bit dull.

- It does.

Two strikes, and he's through this one.

Stepping up now. The Lifeline,

one strike through each object.

- This is where his experience

is either gonna shine through or not.

He needs to hit this thing at a proper angle

with the proper speed.

The blade geometry is there.

- Okay, look at his breathing.

He's taking control of his breathing.

Beau--right through the double chicken.

Right through the double fish. - Nice.

- Now the biggest test: a hanging three-inch rope.

- Yes! - Right through the rope.

That was one hell of a display right there.

He didn't take his time,

but he didn't need it.

Next up, Kill Shot.

Two shots and only two shots

to get through all six ratchet straps.

- He has 18 inches of cutting power here.

both: Whoa!

- That's what I'm talking about!

Nice! - Two strikes,

and he's through.

- Look at that.

- Wow, Keith Hill,

with an extremely impressive performance,

and he is our first competitor today

to make it all the way through Knife Fight.

- I really hope that my time is good enough

to get at the Dead Run.

I already have two championships

underneath my belt,

and I can smell the third,

and... I'm almost there.

Whoo!

- Checking in at 42 years old

blade designer and professional chef

Zeke Menacho.

He did have the slowest time on Knife Fight

compared to other competitors today.

- There was a couple of parts that I could've done better on.

On the Decapitator, I glanced off a couple of targets.

Uh, I should've came across with a backswing

instead of, uh, trying to go forward with it.

- Look at the size of this blade.

This thing is a monster.

It's the hooligan cleaver.

That's what he calls it. He grew up

on the wrong side of the streets.

What I like about this blade

is the recurve handle

and the straight edge on his blade.

- First up, Trifecta.

Nice angle of attack there.

- Oh, nice. - Right through.

Now he moves to the bamboo.

- He needs to come in at an angle

to create that gap.

- That big, deep breath.

- Oh!

Powerful shot. Next up, the rope.

- He's coming in angles--nice! - And he did--

came at an angle. Yes, he did.

Zeke Menacho makes it through Trifecta.

Next up, Box Cutter.

Okay, his last time up, there was a lot

of spinning with the box,

and he wasted a lot of time.

Let's see if he can correct that,

and wow, what a powerful strike

that first one was.

He is stuck in the box.

Again-- - Nice.

- Y-you know, he's making good progress here.

- Whoa. - Oh, boy,

that was a powerful strike.

Moves on to box number two.

- Should've figured out how to do this

on the first box.

Let's see if he employs on the second one.

I like how he's adjusting the box,

how he's keeping everything under control.

Nice! - Whoa!

Wow. Zeke finished Box Cutter

in a full minute faster than last time.

- Last time, he did not do well

at Decapitator.

In fact, he accumulated

penalties on all three.

- He's gotta get through with one chop.

Then he can move on, and here he is,

up to the celery.

Okay, looks like he got it.

- He went through the salaries.

- The salaries? What is he, getting paid?

Okay, here he goes. Zeke steps up

to Thrice Pick. - Whoa.

Look at that power! - Oh!

Right through.

One slice, right through the second.

- Oh, he made up some time there.

- One slice through the third. He is pissed.

Zeke Menacho is taking it out on the course.

Next up, Lifeline.

You see he is taking note of that double chicken.

Here he goes.

Right through the chicken. Next up, the fish.

Can he do it?

He's moving to the proper side.

Boom! Powerful strike

right through the fish. - All right, he needs

to slow down. - Take his time.

- Yes! - Oh, right through!

Next up, Kill Shot!

Two chances to cut through a wall

of six different ratchet straps.

- He need to maximize the use of a 14-inch blade.

He needs to adjust that angle

and go more of a slashing swing.

- Nice!

- Here he goes. Here he goes!

One more.

- Boom! He's all the way through!

- Yes! - Zeke Menacho

takes on Knife Fight,

defeats it. Tell you what.

He had a stumble here or there,

but that is perseverance.

- I like how he extended his swing,

how he opened up his hip line

and swung through all the ratchets.

- Knife Fight was brutal.

I didn't know if, uh--

if I was gonna make it,

um, but I'm hoping to win,

because I would-- I would just love

to be the champion.

Whoo!

Yeah!

- Zach and Keith, you are the only two contestants

to make it all the way through Knife Fight.

Keith,

you had the fastest time

of two minutes and five seconds.

- Thank you, sir.

- Zeke,

you weren't that far behind, dude.

Three minutes and 12 seconds

was your time.

Looks like you're the underdog again.

- I'm okay with that. - You've got

to be comfortable there. - I am.

- Done one hell of a job out of that role.

- Thank you.

- You are both one run

away from victory.

Outside, Dead Run awaits

with a $20,000 grand prize on the line.

- I feel like i--I got one run left

and, uh, all I gotta do is max effort on that.

My level of confidence is ten out of ten.

- Gentlemen,

please prepare your blades.

- Dead Run--I'm anticipating for it

to be three times as hard,

throwing everything that they have at us,

so bring it.

- For the grand championship,

the Dead Run course has been enhanced

to put speed, timing,

accuracy, and precision to the ultimate test.

First up, Gauntlet.

From inside the circular platform,

you must cut each of the heavy-duty

rotating targets in half.

Ball Buster. Cut 12 rolling balls,

including balls that are much smaller than last time.

Flying Target.

Cut the ropes, release the different-sized meats,

cut the meat on the downswing,

and land it on the metal grate.

Miss the grate, or it bounces off,

it's a penalty.

Free Fall. You cut each piece of fruit

as it drops.

Fire & Ice.

Cut completely through the 400-pound block of ice

in two hacks to trigger the flames.

- Hey! Hey! - For every swing over two,

it's a penalty. - Hey!

- Next, Crash Landing.

Cut completely through the flying targets

as they zip past you.

Then cut the surprise objects that will block your path.

Cut the ropes, ascend the stairs,

and make one final chop to stop the clock.

Remember, in Dead Run, the clock never stops.

For every challenge not completed,

a 20-second penalty will be added.

Now let's talk about these two blades

and how they stack up against each other.

- Keith--he has a hybrid between a kukri

and a machete.

A lot of cutting edge here, a lot of power,

but I tell you, Zeke's hooligan cleaver--

this blade is heavy-ended.

It's gonna allow it to chop.

- Standing in the ring of fire,

53-year-old Keith Hill.

Former "Forged in Fire" winner.

He is trying to become the first dual champion.

- Oh, he's definitely well on his way.

He comes today with a hybrid

machete, 18 inches.

This thing has a forward mass. It's made for chopping.

He knows how to generate power.

- Having the grand championship within grasping reach

is just an amazing feeling.

This is the championship round,

so I-I'm anticipating them throwing

everything that they have at us.

Bring it.

- Let's see him take on Gauntlet.

Wow! - Ni--

- What a start!

Second one down!

He's got his head on a swivel.

- He does. He does.

- Boom, through the third one.

Wow, look at these powerful swings.

- A lot of power. Nice.

- Oh, no problem right there at all,

and another one

like a hot knife through butter,

or like a whirling dervish.

Dominating the Gauntlet.

Ooh.

- He doesn't have a lot of range here.

- Can he get it?

Ah. Wait for it to come back.

There he goes. - Nice!

- This is all about taking advantage

of target opportunity.

Beautiful job!

Oh, he didn't get the bottle there,

but he's moving on!

One penalty. Next up, Ball Buster.

More balls this time.

We got 12 balls coming down,

all different sizes.

- Last time he went to Ball Buster, Bill,

he went for 4 for 9.

This definitely is not his strong point.

All right, he got the first one.

Look at his angle.

- 2 for 2. - He is on it, Bill.

- Oh, missed that one. - Spoke too soon.

- Oh, a little one.

- Accuracy. That's what I'm looking for.

- Clear that deck.

Cut the wrong ball.

More balls, more in his way.

Got that one.

Got another one.

He missed that one by a mile.

Got that one.

- Hit it!

- Oh, he's stuck in the ball.

Pushed it. - Penalty!

- He gets the red one. He moves on.

Four penalties on Ball Buster.

Now Flying Targets--

it's much more difficult,

much smaller objects, okay?

We got chickens coming right at him.

- His accuracy has to be dead-on.

- It sure does, and that was strike one.

When it was Extinguisher,

he didn't get any of them.

Does he have enough momentum?

Nope. - No, not enough.

He has to hit a downward swing.

- Boom!

- Nice. - Okay, 1 for 2.

- This is hard. A chicken.

- Can he get it?

Good job!

One penalty on Flying Target.

Okay, Free Fall.

Needs to cut each piece

of fruit as it drops.

Got that one.

It's all about setting up that blade.

- That's a miss! - Too much motion

on that blade.

- Another miss! - He's cocking it,

and then having to swing forward.

Good job.

Beautiful slice.

- Gotta track those movements.

- Miss. Gotta be quick.

Got that one.

Got another one. Upward swings!

That's quick hand-eye right there.

Final one, miss.

Four penalties!

Moving on to Fire & Ice.

Two chops to cut through.

Every other chop is a penalty.

Okay, he's through. - Wow!

- Two chops. Now he moves on

to Crash Landing.

We've changed it up,

added two hanging targets

next to the box.

- Nice. - He got the first one.

Got the second one. Needs to move up.

Okay, here he goes, working that big badass blade.

Got that one.

And he got that one.

He is accurate,

and he is destructive. - Wow!

- Destroyed both of those two tubes.

Moving on to the box.

He needs to release the red ball.

- This guy's on a mission.

- He is compromising the corners.

Whoa! That's destruction.

He released the ball.

- He needs to move.

- On to Fire Storm.

- Great run by Keith Hill. - Wow.

- That was a championship performance.

He was a whirling dervish, man.

He was destructive.

- Fast run time.

- So only time is gonna tell

whether it was good enough.

Let's see how many penalties Keith had.

Ten penalties.

Okay, that was one

hell of an impressive run.

Zeke truly is the underdog, just like he's always been.

42 years old,

the Long Beach chef,

Zeke Menacho

steps up to Dead Run.

- Zeke comes tonight with 14 1/2 inches

on a hooligan cleaver.

This blade is heavy-ended to handle--

it allows him to double up on the grip.

- Let's see what he and his creation can do.

- I'm stoked. I didn't think

I was gonna make it. I think I'm just gonna hit

everything that looks the toughest the hardest.

- He was the second-slowest time

on Dead Run last time.

- Yeah, he's gonna have to do

a lot better than that to beat Keith.

- Here he goes.

Steps up to Gauntlet.

- The recurve handle should give him

the hacking power he needs here.

- We've got a lot going on at Gauntlet.

Boom! Right through.

I like his backhand technique.

Wow, he is making quick work of Gauntlet.

One slice apiece.

He is on a roll right now.

Ooh, that was one hell of a slice right there.

So was that. - Nice.

- Anything within his reach, he is cutting in half.

- That's a sharp blade, Bill.

- Uh-oh! One penalty

because he broke the apparatus holding the tube.

Good job.

- He's taking targets

of opportunity right now.

- He's almost all the way through,

but he's moving on.

Another penalty.

Didn't slice all of the tubes.

Next up, Ball Buster.

Hey, Zeke struggled on Ball Buster last time.

He only got three out of nine.

Here come the balls.

Okay, got the first one. Got the second one.

- I like where he's positioned that blade.

- Missed the third.

Small one. - That's a miss.

- It's so hard to drop your blade level

to get the small one. Got it.

Missed that one. He needs to clear that deck.

Got that one. - It's a very light blade,

very fast in his hands.

- Got the little one. Great shot.

Strike four on that one.

Got that one.

- Building up again.

- Missed the small one.

Red ball goes through.

Zeke moves on.

Six penalties

on Ball Buster.

Moving on to Flying Target.

- He had three penalties

on Flying Target last time.

Hit it on the downward slope.

- Boom! Nailed it!

- Nice!

- Great job.

- Great timing. - Great technique.

Number two.

Oh, strike one. - Oh.

He needs to study the angle.

- He cut the rope! That's gonna be a penalty.

- A little bit too early.

- Final one,

the dreaded chicken.

Got that one, but not enough of the meat.

Two penalties on Flying Target.

Next up, Free Fall.

- Oh, he needs to set up this blade.

- Got that one. Little wasted motion there.

- Nice. - Got that one.

He's tightening it up.

Got it. - The advantage of this blade

is it's easy to wield.

- Got that one.

Got it!

Ooh!

That's a miss.

Nice. He got that one.

- Nice!

- Got it again.

Oh, no, he missed the last one.

- He only missed two on that.

- Moving on. Next up, Fire & Ice.

- He needs to generate some force here.

Only has two swings. - Yep.

Every other swing past two,

and you get a penalty.

He does not need one of those now.

But he's gonna get one.

One penalty there.

Okay, next up, Crash Landing.

Good hand-eye coordination.

Let's see if he can display it

again here.

Cut the first one.

Let's see if he can keep it up.

Got the second one.

No problem whatsoever.

Moved up.

- Nice. - Got the third one.

He is on point right here.

- Got it. - 4 for 4 so far.

On to the tube.

Oh, one slice.

- Ah! - Oh.

Two slices there. Moves on to the box.

Remember, gotta release the red ball.

- Wow, look at that power.

- Boy, that blade is doing its job.

Boom, beautiful job.

He released it.

Okay, Fire Storm.

Heading to victory.

Will it be enough?

- Yay!

- Wow. - Final cut.

Time stops.

- Ooh, this is close.

- Zeke Menacho, with one hell of a run.

How will it stack up?

Zeke had...

13 penalties.

Well, he is the underdog,

and now it's time to see

if the underdog has his day.

Zeke's time with penalties was...

7 minutes and 24 seconds.

Keith's time with penalties was...

5 minutes and 39 seconds.

- Whoo!

- Congratulations, Keith.

You won $20,000, and you won the title

of "Knife or Death" grand champion.

Not only that, but you're the first "Forged in Fire"

and "Knife or Death" champion.

- Whoo!

I'm the grand champion

of "Knife or Death"!

- How the hell does it feel, Keith?

- Awesome! - Yeah!

It is an honor and a privilege

to have you as our champion, sir.

- Thank you.

- What are you gonna do with the money, Keith?

- Don't know yet. I'll discuss it with my wife,

'cause she'll tell me what to do.

- Oh, you're a good man, and a smart man.

- On top of the world right now.

Th-this is absolutely

an incredible feeling.

I pushed myself to my--

to my limit, and I love it!

Whoo!

- I am the champion!