Twenty-year-old Josiah Pippel of Moorestown, N.J., was crowned the winner of “American Ninja Warrior,” taking home the Season 18 title and the $250,000 grand prize.
Additionally, NBC has greenlit the hit summer competition series for an additional two seasons. Season 19 will see the return of the iconic Mt. Midoriyama and Season 20 will celebrate the sport’s inclusion in the 2028 Olympic Games with a special Summer of Champions, featuring several former Olympians and elite ninja champions from more than 15 countries around the world.
To win Season 18, Pippel battled through the Qualifiers, Regionals, and National Finals, outperforming more than 200 of the country’s best ninjas on a series of high-stakes obstacle courses designed to test speed, strength and endurance. The season also introduced the Tripleheader, an all-new supersized three-lane racecourse that raised the stakes with thrilling head-to-head-to-head races.
First appearing on “American Ninja Warrior” at 15 years old, Pippel has competed in six consecutive seasons without ever missing the National Finals. Motivated by a disappointing early exit in the Season 17 Finals, he returned for Season 18 with a renewed focus on speed and precision. His title-winning journey started with a first-place finish in his Qualifying round and a successful climb up the Mega Wall. After dominating the Regional rounds and securing the #2 seed in the Final Round of 32, Pippel began an impressive championship run, winning five straight head-to-head races to claim the title. Along the way, he defeated a formidable lineup of veteran competitors, including Donovan Metoyer, Matt D’Amico, Enzo Wilson, Nacssa Garemore, and defending champion Kai Beckstrand.
This season, the top four female competitors earned the opportunity to compete in a bonus tournament for a $50,000 prize and title of ANW Season 18 Women’s Champion. Reigning Women’s Champion Taylor Greene, an 18-year-old college student, successfully defended her title by defeating Isabella Folsom in the final head-to-head race, becoming the first female athlete in franchise history to win back-to-back titles.
Production for Seasons 19 and 20 will begin later this year, with all rounds of the competition filming in Las Vegas.
Year-to-date in 2026, “American Ninja Warrior” social content has amassed over 873 million views across all social platforms.
“American Ninja Warrior” is produced by A. Smith & Co. Productions. Executive producers are Arthur Smith, Kent Weed, Anthony Storm, Brian Richardson and Kristen Stabile.
