Robots, activate.
[ cheers and applause ]
♪♪
Welcome back to "battlebots"
and what a season so far.
It has been
a roller coaster ride
of some serious upsets
and exciting new robots.
And we're just getting started.
And there's nobody I'd rather be
doing it with than
ufc legend and a robot fighting
analyst, kenny florian.
Chris, thank you very much.
So let's kick off another night
of over-the-top robot
bashing insanity.
It sounds like a plan, my man.
Let's take a look
at the fight card.
We've got an all star lineup
of "battlebots" rookies
and veterans alike
looking to get the season
started off with a bang.
Tonight, we'll see the return
of one of the hardest-hitting
hammer bots
in robot fighting history.
John reid is back with beta.
Yeah, chris,
it's been four long years
since we've seen
this legendary bot.
And tonight he'll get back
in the box to face victor soto.
And one of the most dangerous
horizontal spinners
on the planet rotator.
We'll also see
the screaming goddess
versus the angry toddler
as valkyrie
takes on a tantrum.
Now in its
third year of competition,
builder leanne cushing
feels like she finally has
valkyrie totally dialed in.
And she's hoping
it brings her glory
as she faces off against
aren hill's tantrum.
It's one of the sturdiest
bots in this competition.
This thing can take a punch
and deliver one, too.
And all that action
is leading up
to tonight's
absolutely electric main event.
It's gruff versus hypershock.
This is a battle
between a couple of teams
looking to prove
that this season
they are two of the top
contenders for the giant nut.
Gruff is
a fearless firebreather,
still smarting from his razor
close match
with tombstone last season,
known for his aggressive,
some would say, gruff driving
style driver sam mcamis'
plan is to bring the match
right to his opponent.
And hypershock
is a "battlebots" veteran.
In a main event
fight last season,
they nearly took the bite
out of bite force.
When he's on his game,
hypershock can go
wheel the wheel with some of the
best bots in the world.
When he's not, it's gotten robot
guts spilled all over
the battle box floor.
We'll see which hypershock
shows up tonight, chris.
For more, let's send it back to
our eyes and ears in the pits,
jenny taft.
Will bales and hypershock
are literally at it again.
They are still building
their bot,
and this is a race to the start,
as it always is, for hypershock,
some of their parts
were late to come in.
They're still working
on the robot behind us.
Yes, they're still working,
guys.
But will told me this
about gruff.
He said sam is a good driver.
I expect this fight
go to the very end.
I mean, look at gruff,
this thing is built like a tank.
I had a chance to talk to sam.
He told me that he's excited
about his two flame throwers,
a bit concerned
about the drive train.
But how about this dynamic
in the pit?
These guys are side by side.
There are no secrets here.
- Thank you, jenny.
We'll keep an eye on hypershock
as the night progresses.
But we start things off right
now with copperhead
and gigabyte.
So that we send it
on over to faruq.
Ladies and gentlemen,
it's robot fighting time!
♪♪
♪♪
In the blue square,
this is a full-body spinner
it's totally true,
with more bite than a tiger
in joe exotic's zoo.
Hits you so hard
it will make your bot sting,
proclaim itself
the new tiger king.
Hey, there, all you cool
cats and kits.
It's gigabyte!
[ cheers and applause ]
gigabyte 4-4 all time,
it's got three knockouts,
it's been knocked out
three times.
Jenny, we know these
full-body spinners
can dish out the damage,
but at times they can be
their own worst enemy as well.
That's right.
This will be john mladenik's
third season with gigabyte.
And he's upgraded the robot
with a new and improved shell
and a shock resistant motor.
He's hoping to avoid some of
the self-inflicted wounds
that have been
its achilles heel.
[ cheers and applause continue ]
in the red square,
this bot's one of our best,
but I know what you're thinking,
the best copperheads
on the penny,
and his name is abe lincoln.
Well, let's grab a coin
and play a game.
You choose a side,
flip it up and catch it.
Heads, he wins tails, you die.
It's copperhead!
[ cheers and applause ]
zach goff and copperhead two
and three a year ago,
this thing could pack a punch,
it can take one as well.
Yeah, and he believes
in this first fight
is really going to define
whether his bot is legit or not.
Zach told us
he doubled the power
of that drum speed out in front,
gets to speed in four seconds
instead of the seven or eight
that it took a year ago.
And chris, if he can get this
bot to work the way he wants,
he believes he's got
a top eight bot.
We did all sit and watch
all five fights
that we can find
for the last season of.
He has bigger exposed.
I like the big expose reels
because if we hit him
and he spins
and he gets more hits
from the shell,
we can knock wheels off
or tweak those wheels.
And once we do that,
I think that's over.
So what we've done
for this gigabyte match
is welded on a new front
wedge piece
that kind of ties
the force together.
And it'll make it
a lot less likely to break open
one of our side rails
like you saw in the kronos
fight from last year.
Now, I noticed
they actually increased
the height of their teeth,
so they're not going to be
hitting low anymore.
Kind of gave us
a nice little grab bar
because it's right
at the right for us
to catch a tooth
and send them through the air.
So I'm kind of wondering
why they did that,
but maybe they'll have
some more surprises for us.
Robots, activate.
Rose: You can see copperhead
has a couple of mini snakes
slithering around down there.
We'll see if those nuisance
bots can distract gigabyte.
A few seasons ago, zach goff
made it to the quarter finals.
So what does 2020 have in store?
Well, chris, both of these
bots have the potential
to move into that elite class
of teams this season.
Both have a lot to prove.
Blue team, ready.
[ cheers and applause ]
red team, ready.
[ cheers and applause ]
♪♪
♪♪
[ audience chanting "fight" ]
♪♪
Let the bot battle
begin! And oh!
Big-time box rush by copperhead
and the self-righting mechanism
on gigabyte is now off
oh. That is amazing!
Without that attachment,
gigabyte is now
driving blind, chris.
That was their directional
indicator.
The floor is ice.
Both these
teams are having trouble
with traction
on the battle box floor.
I think it was a big mistake.
Gigabyte stayed over close
to the edge of the box there,
chris, but can comprehend
take advantage,
gigabyte still spinning,
swatting away
those nuisance bots,
but in big trouble
and trying to line them up
for another big shot.
[ shouting ]
that was a massive hit!
The shell is off of gigabyte.
This fight is over.
This is unbelievable.
The box might be over two.
We've got glass shards
all over the box.
We've got gigabyte's head in
one area
it's body in another.
Unbelievable!
Somebody call the ame!
That happened
right in front of us
gigabyte's head is gone. I'm
glad we still have our heads.
Whoa. We are going to
have to take that
to the battlebots morgue.
Gigabyte is knocked out,
winner is copperhead.
An unbelievable performance
by copperhead.
[imitating speaking over p.A.
System] we're going to need
cleanup in aisle six, please,
aisle six. We have glass shards.
Thank you.
[ normal voice ]
kenny, you said, do you think
gigabyte made a mental error?
Yeah, I mean,
I thought they were way
too close
to the edge of the box.
I thought they should
have been positioned
at the center of the box.
They were kind of
a sitting duck there.
Copperhead once it got
control over their bot,
they went in for the k*ll.
And here's that k*ll shot
right there,
right into your
living room, folks.
Unbelievable.
There goes the head.
There goes some lights
in the battle box. What a shot.
If you blinked, you missed it.
That's how much energy
is inside that battle box.
Copperhead, what a beast.
We talked about
the amount of energy
that would be on display inside
the battle box you saw it.
[ cheers and applause ]
zach goff.
Zach, what is it like
to decapitate another robot?
Feels good, it feels great.
This was the match
that we were all scared about.
It kind of sets our trajectory,
I think,
for the rest of the fights.
So I'm so stoked that that, god
just came right off, didn't it?
Jack, you said that
this fight was going to tell you
a lot about your bot
and what it could do.
So what's your assessment?
Yeah, I think this is
a really great sign for us.
We get to advance.
We get that first win,
gets the momentum, took some
massive hits and held up.
So it performed,
you know, how we were hoping.
So I'm excited
for our next match.
I'm feeling really good.
How do you celebrate
decapitating another bot?
That's oh, that's dark.
That's real dark.
You got win number one.
We'll see you down the line.
Thank you. That's great.
[ cheers and applause ]
so copperhead
definitely answered
some questions about itself.
No doubt about it, it's durable,
it has a very potent weapon.
It was ssspectacular.
Sssensational as well.
Alright, coming up,
we've got a night filled
with so much action,
the only thing we're missing
is arnold schwarzenegger.
Up next, it's the frozen
tundra versus sin city.
We'll see
take on newcomer jackpot
as "battlebots:
Fight night" continues.
Rose:
Welcome back to "battlebots".
We're just getting started here
on a night
where we'll see
a legend in john reid
make his return
to the battle box with beta.
And then possibly some legends
in the making in our main event
featuring gruff and hypershock.
But up next, we've got
jackpot and subzero.
And let's start with jackpot.
Jeff waters jr.
He's a plumber from las vegas.
If you need to build a bot
on a budget
and on time, he's your guy.
He only sunk four grand
into this robot
and he built it
in a month's time.
Can't wait to see what it'll do.
Florian:
Yeah, this guy is really
what "battlebots" is all about.
It's no secret that building
one of these things
is an expensive undertaking,
but that doesn't mean it can't
do some serious damage, chris.
Look at this thing
in the test box,
it's got the other builders
buzzing.
Talk about bang for your.
You know, his goal is really
to show
that you don't have to spend
thousands
and thousands of dollars
in order to have
an effective robot here.
He'll be taking on subzero,
a familiar bot to many of you.
However, its longtime driver,
jerry clarke,
and for years he was like,
this is my last go around.
And this off season,
he finally called it quits
and officially retired.
He just didn't have the time
nor the money that it takes
to maintain a pneumatic
weapon bot like subzero.
So this off season,
he handed over the reins.
Logan davis is now
the guy in charge.
He's the captain.
He's super excited.
Now, the thing about subzero,
for years,
always an entertaining bot it,
get flipped up in the air.
It do some flipping,
but it wouldn't win a lot.
How does it change that?
Well, under logan's leadership,
subzero has upgraded its arms,
its armor and its drive train.
Inside, it's a whole new bot.
And tonight he can show us
what a grizzled veteran
brings to the table
against a rookie in jackpot.
That's kind of what
this season's been about, right?
We've seen a changing
of the guard this year.
But I want to see
if a logan davis led subzero
could show us something new.
Faruq, the world is yours.
In the blue square
from las vegas, nevada.
Place your bets. It's jackpot.
[ cheers and applause ]
jeff waters, jr. Really
trying to make an impression
in the robotics community
in las vegas,
a winner, too, would do that.
And boy, he's got
it decked out to the nines.
He sure does. And his excitement
level is at 10.
So excited to be here
at "battlebots".
Looks like the crowd is excited
to see it in action, too.
In the red square
from dallas, texas,
it's the serial chiller,
subzero.
[ cheers and applause ]
we mention always one
of the most entertaining bots.
And again, while this
is his first year as
team captain logan davis
has been driving subzero
for the last 15 years.
Yeah, chris, it was subzero
under the two hundred
and fifty pound weight limit.
They're using those
extra pounds on their
flame-spewing drone spitfire.
A little fire and ice
for this team.
Getting subzero,
we're going to make sure we have
the ground game against them.
We've we've incorporated
a little bit of wedge lift
in the front of our bot
I know they're probably
gonna employee
some type of box rush
against us.
If we get under them,
they can't flip us.
If we win this fight,
I'd be huge for us
to be first match my battle.
That's career.
Subzero, all I have to say
to you is watch out.
All bets are off.
- Jackpot is probably
one of the meanest vertical
vertical spinners we have here.
I've got to be patient.
I've got to find my opening.
There is a lot of pressure in
becoming a new team captain.
It's making those important
decisions that will either win
or lose that fight.
Pressure's never been higher.
Robots, activate.
[ cheers and applause ]
and now let's bring in
another member of our team,
our bot whisperer,
pete abrahamson.
Pete, kenny showed us jackpot
looking like a monster in the
test box.
Are these young g*ns for real?
Yes. There is so much fear
over jackpot
in the pits right now.
Nobody really knows
what it can do.
And everybody's actually
kind of frightened
and think this is
the next death row right here.
This is going to rock, guys.
[ cheers and applause ]
♪♪
[ audience chanting "fight" ]
♪♪
Let the bot battle begin.
Those diamond cutters
on jackpot up to speed,
but oh, no, do we have
drive train issues already?
[ clanging ]
caught under subzero.
Wow!
Jackpot eating
in the subzero from above,
but gets flipped in the process,
jackpot moving
a little better now, chris.
That drone is dropping flames,
but now jackpot
looking frozen once again.
And here's subzero scooping
him up from behind
and delivering him into the
corner of the box.
Oh, [bleep]!
This is not where you want
to be, against a flipper, chris.
Oh, he's got jackpot moved to
position.
He's trying to take him out of
the arena, kenny.
This is exactly
what subzero wants.
All they have to do
is engage that flipper
and they can end this one
could subzero, deliver
the k*ll shot?
Backing off now
and choosing instead to just
head butt jackpot.
Oh, I think subzero may have
an issue here, chris.
Jackpot up and moving,
but, oh, subzero is not.
Wow.
After dominating this fight,
they're going to have to show
some sort of movement
or they'll be counted down.
Unbelievable.
Referee:
Subzero, you've got to
show me something.
Oh, my goodness, the struggles
continue for subzero.
They were looking so good.
Ten! The countdown has begun.
Can subzero
shake itself back to life here
or will jackpot
find some late luck?
...Two, one.
That's a knockout...
[ buzzer sounds ]
whoa! Jackpot it is.
[ cheers and applause ]
♪♪
Well, kenny, that wasn't pretty,
but a win is a win, yeah.
Jackpot started the fight off
with some drive train issues
which allowed subzero
to land a big blows
and really control the fight
early on,
and it looked like
they were just one flip away
from launching them
out of the battle box, chris.
And then the tables turned.
Yeah, as jackpot was looking
into the jaws of defeat,
subzero just stopped working,
and that allowed jackpot
to squeak by with the win.
Logan davis was hoping to change
subzero's
reliability issues this year.
So far, that hasn't happened.
♪♪
So subzero starts the season
off on a cold streak
if logan davis and subzero,
you got to be sitting there
scratching your head.
They were dominating this fight.
They were dominating the fight.
So I think with
some tweaks there,
they can come back
and get some wins.
You've got to get that flipper
working at some point
in the near future.
But we're just getting started
here on "battlebots" tonight.
It all leads up to a match up
with a couple of fan favorites.
It's flash versus flames
when gruff takes on hypershock
in tonight's main event.
Welcome back to "battlebots."
that's all right, kenny.
Let's turn our attention
to our next fight.
It's uppercut and gemini.
The question for ace shelander,
as it is every year
with team gemini,
is it truly twice as nice?
He's got two 125 pound robots.
And we asked him
have you ever moved off that
and maybe try to take
on a different robot?
And he said, listen,
we haven't had the time.
We haven't had the finances.
So this is what we've got.
Is it good enough
to get a victory?
Well, it's interesting
that you say that
because he believes that
this season is going to indicate
whether they continue
with this two bot format or not.
Again, there's a 250 pound
weight limit on "battlebots,"
you can split that weight up
into as many parts as you want.
Each of ace's bots weigh
roughly 125 pounds, of course,
if they don't do well
this season,
they're probably just
going to abandon this
and kind of build
a whole different bot.
So it really is do
or die for them.
They'll be squaring off
against uppercut
and the kids from mit.
The team is, of course,
led by alex hattori,
who just happens to be
the number two
ranked yo-yo competitor
in the world.
Last year,
an amazing battle bots debut,
they won four matches.
They made it to the top 16
before getting ousted by the
eventual champion bite force.
This is a team to be reckoned
with in 2020.
Yeah, chris uppercut
is really unique
and they have a massive
new motor powering that fist.
And I think that's going
to really help them land
some big blows this year.
Take a look.
It may not come as a surprise
for a bot designed
by a bunch of mit students,
but uppercut's ability
to land such powerful punches
all comes down to science
thanks to its massive size,
uppercut's weapon stores
an immense amount of energy,
in fact, compared to a weapon
that's just an inch shorter
uppercut's arm
is able to produce about
But in the battle box,
it's not necessarily
how much energy
you can generate,
it's how much energy
you can transfer.
And during a strike, one way
to maximize energy transfer
is for more of your weapon
to come in contact
with more of your opponent.
It's like a baseball player
connecting on a home run
versus a foul ball.
Indirect contact
doesn't send the ball very far,
but when the bat connects
with more of the ball,
more energy is transferred.
Uppercut's able to do this
by getting closer to an opponent
before their weapon
makes contact.
Compared to
a double sided weapon,
uppercut's single fist
is in the strike zone
for a smaller amount of time.
That means they can continue
to get closer to an opponent
as their weapon
finishes its rotation.
And compared to a bot
like end game,
if an opponent approaches at
five miles per hour,
uppercut's able to get four
times closer
before they make contact,
and that increases the chances
that the strike goes
from a foul tip to a home run.
And unlike last season
when they landed a strike,
thanks to an entirely
new weapon motor,
uppercut is now able to get back
to its top speed insanely fast.
In fact, in the test box,
we clocked their weapon
reaching its peak
rotational velocity
at just 1.76 seconds.
That's about 30 percent faster
than the weapon
of a bot like tombstone.
And it's actually so fast that
when we wired up their weapon
with an accelerometer,
it actually broke our sensor.
So this season, when
uppercut's throwing punches,
they're not going to be
throwing jabs,
they'll be throwing haymakers.
Wow. We'll see how that
matches up against gemini's
two-bot approach.
Faruq, take it away.
In the blue square
from cambridge, massachusetts.
It's the fist of robotic theory
uppercut.
♪♪
Well, kenny, you broke it
down for us a few moments ago,
this uppercut is bigger,
stronger, faster
than the one we saw last year.
Think that'll be enough
for the mit kids
to avoid a sophomore slump?
Well, I've been impressed
with what I've seen so far,
but it's one thing
to break an accelerometer
during testing the battle box is
a whole different story, chris.
In the red square
from joshua tree, california,
the zodiac robot k*ller...
Gemini.
♪♪
Give credit to team gemini,
they can take a punch,
nine fights in "battlebots"
history,
they've never been knocked out.
Yeah, that's right.
You know, they are very durable.
And because they have two bots,
it's harder to take them out.
But they're looking to do
some damage, too.
They're using bar spinners
that are
four times heavier than
the ones they used last year.
We haven't been able
to see the robot
for the last six months,
so it's been a very busy
few days getting it running.
We have some
weapon motor upgrades
and motor controller upgrades,
which should help us spin up
a lot faster
in the case of gemini.
We're just going to keep
the front faced
towards whoever's closer to us,
and then we'll see what happens.
We hope it'll spin up and then
hopefully we'll hit something.
For gemini 2020,
we really focused
on upgrading our weapon.
We went from a little weapon
axle to a big weapon axle.
Tonight, we're definitely
going for offense.
Uppercut is a really
powerful robot.
Newcomer last year, really
showed what it's made out of
and we want to show what we've
made it up to and take them out.
Robots, activate.
Now, keep in mind,
both of gemini's bots
need to be disabled
to score a knockout
and they have some
new drivers this year.
It's a father son duo,
dominic and 11 year old hunter.
Well, uppercut wants
to land that big blow,
but gemini and there, too mini
bots have made a living,
avoiding those kinds of shots.
We'll see if that holds
true tonight
or if it's double the trouble
when we come back.
Rose:
Welcome back to "battlebots".
We've got two bots
with their engines roaring
and ready to go.
It is uppercut versus gemini.
[ audience chanting "fight" ]
let the bot battle begin!
Florian: And the two on one.
Oh! Punted out of the arena!
Holy smokes!
What?
And there goes
gemini's second bot.
Well, we're screwed. Thank you.
This might be
the first-ever knockout
that gemini has suffered.
One's out of the arena,
the other is in pieces.
Kenny, what the hell
just happened?
I am speechless!
That wasn't even a fight, he
just knocked out two dudes.
Somebody better tell uppercut
to settle down.
One! That's a knockout, gemini.
[ cheers and applause ]
wow! That was crazy.
[ cheers and applause ]
well, that was a shocker, kenny.
You want to see a good start?
How about this one?
Wham, bam, thank you, can.
Outta here! Look at that shot.
That was just ridiculous.
Maybe breaking our sensor
was a sign of things to come
for uppercut, chris?
Uppercut, able to get so close
to those mini bots
and just throw haymaker
after haymaker.
And if you're gemini,
not what you want to see.
Uppercut ending their
no knockout streak
in spectacular fashion.
Took out both of his bots
in like ten seconds.
It was like patrick swayze
in "roadhouse."
look at that. See, ya.
Thanks for playing.
Alex hattori, explain to us
what just happened.
The robot spun. [ laughter ]
that's all we could hope for.
We wanted to spin up that blade.
We wanted to just touch
the robot somewhere.
And that's what happened.
When you punt your opponent
across the arena
and out of the box,
what does that feel like?
I'm impressed with the work
that we were able to do.
We haven't seen uppercut
in the past six months,
so we just started putting it
back together three days ago.
And now I guess it works.
Now, you were able to do that
against a bot
that weighed 125 pounds.
You took out each of them.
Can you do that to
a 250 pound bot you think?
We'll see.
Rose: Alright, alex.
Well, congratulations.
That was an amazing performance.
You are the first robot
to ever k.O. Gemini
in the history of "battlebots".
Well done.
Thank you.
Alright, well, uppercut
starts their season
with about as big a bang
as we've seen so far.
But, kenny,
we're just getting started.
Up next, we have a return
to the battle box
for years in the making,
its beta versus rotator.
Let's take a look
at this big time match-up.
Big hit from beta.
Last time we were here,
the force of that hammer is
ridiculous.
We had three wins,
but then we faced tombstone
tombstone just
grinding down beta.
Lost in the end.
I've been working
on a replacement
for that robot
for quite some time.
We were trying to get
the most powerful hammer ever.
That hammer is just so powerful,
chris.
The big change this year,
we've gone from electric weapon
to a pneumatic weapon.
Electric beta was the most
powerful hammer,
at "battlebots".
[ whirring ]
and now we're going
three times more powerful,
we really want to show
the world what they can do.
Whoa, rotator pulls off the
monumental upset.
Last season, we were able to
knock out tombstone,
knock out bombshell.
Rotator is now
a very reliable robot.
I think we're ready for a whole
new level this season.
We treat each match almost like
a chess match.
So against beta,
we're actually planning on
running the high blade.
So if he comes
and strikes down on us.
He's going to have
to go through our blade
to really hit our frame.
Victor is a brilliant
strategist and rotator
is on a similar level
to tombstone.
But if he's running
the bar on top,
it would be insanity to fire
the hammer into that.
Tombstone just chopped off the
base to beta's hammer.
Now, we do have
a little surprise for him.
He doesn't know about.
But his metal top armor.
The strategy will be
to turn him over
and then hit him
from the underneath.
Beta's a very defensive robot.
Rose & florian: Oh!
They have good armor.
I don't expect
to go through that armor.
I'm expecting to go
underneath it or over it.
Tauheed: Rotator!
New beta hits with the force
of four kilojoules,
which is equivalent of dropping
a washing machine on you
from about five meters up.
Tauheed: It's beta!
I'm actually expecting
a three minute brawl with them.
I challenge anyone
to come up and build
a better hammer than us.
Rose:
And we'll see that fight when
we come back on battle bots.
We continue on with
"battlebots: Fight night."
and up next,
we've got a familiar face
to the "battlebots" fan base...
Beta.
John reid, gabriel stroud have
brought this bot back stateside.
The last time
we saw it was in 2016.
It lost a classic match
against tombstone.
But you have got
this flailing hammer
that just has so much power.
And if you haven't seen it
fight before, look out.
Yeah, but we heard
gabriel stroud
say they're really going
to pick their spots
on when to fire the hammer.
They're adding more armor
to their body.
They do not want to see
their brand-new hammer
get shredded in its first fight.
So I'm curious to see
what kind of approach
they take coming out of the box.
And tonight,
it is taking on rotator
another bot which
is making its season debut.
And speaking of tombstone,
victor soto told us
he gave tombstone the worst
beating it has ever suffered.
That happened in 2019.
With all that being said,
rotator only went 2-3.
Missed out on
the postseason party.
He said, yeah, it was kind of
a successful season.
But this year he's gearing up
for at least the top eight.
Yep, tombstone's,
a big time legend.
You know, there's not many
bots on that level.
But I would say that john reid
and beta and his whole team,
I would give them
legendary status as well,
perhaps the best hammer bot
we've ever seen.
Somebody's got to win!
Faruq, take it away.
Ladies and gentlemen,
it's robot fighting type.
[ cheers and applause ]
in the blue square,
the hammer bought
from the land of camelot.
It's so dashing.
Even the brits think,
[british accent]
"well, isn't it smashing?"
[ normal voice ]
the heavy-hitting britain, beta!
♪♪
One of the most popular robots
in the world,
one of the most powerful robots
as well,
but, kenny,
that is a different hammerhead
than we've seen them
use in testing.
Well, that's part
of their defensive strategy.
I was talking about, chris,
that's a lighter weight pill.
The weight they save there
is being put into
their front armor.
They're expecting to take
some shots from rotator.
In the red square,
he fills prescriptions for pain
like he was a pharmacist,
and last year he set tombstone
ablaze like he was an arsonist.
He really turned heads
and he did it with ease.
And it's only right
the fire was 360 degrees.
Because he's rotator!
[ cheers and applause ]
rotator remember in 2018,
it went all the way
to the quarter finals
before bowing out
against bite force.
Kenny, it has eight different
weapon configurations.
And tonight, what are they
doing with?
Victor is running that top
blade tonight, chris.
Just daring beta
to fire into it.
This is a pure strategy
play here.
Rotator a really well known
for their armor as well, chris.
That wedge is brutal.
♪♪
Well, beta has gone from an
electric to a pneumatic hammer,
but their upgrades
didn't stop there.
Pete, what else
is new with the robot?
Can I geek out
for a brief moment here?
Because this robot
has really brought
some new stuff to the table.
One of the things they've got
is the wheels will retract up
inside the robot
sucking with magnetic force,
the plate of the bottom right
to the floor of the battle box,
allowing them to really
strike hard with the hammer
and not leap up into the air.
I can not wait for this.
Chris, I think that all means
the hammer could hit
even harder.
Okay, guys. Good luck.
- Let's do this, now.
- Okay.
Robots, activate.
[ cheers and applause ]
♪♪
I'm being told that
singular blade is up
from 40 to 50 pounds.
I mean, that sounds
good and all,
but what can it do
against a bot like beta
who's got so much armor, kenny?
Victor soto really
wants to climb up that wedge
and disable beta's hammer,
just like tombstone
did back in 2016.
It's a tough strategy,
but we'll see
if he can pull it off.
Blue team, ready.
[ cheers and applause ]
red team, ready.
[ cheers and applause ]
♪♪
♪♪
[ audience chanting "fight" ]
♪♪
Let the bot battle begin!
Rotator's weapon ramping up
the speed.
Beta tried a little box rush,
wanting to dictate
the pace early,
try to line up that hammer shot.
Oh!
And beta rams rotator
with that giant front wedge
now delivers him into the
perimeter box.
Sparks flying as rotator's
blade makes contact
with the battle box floor.
Both: Oh!
On again, on again.
Florian: Rotator has to be
careful to not let
beta rush them around
to violently here,
chris, we've seen
horizontal spinners
catch a blade on the floor
and blow themselves up before.
when's beta gonna
fire that hammer?
It is so expl*sive.
Yeah, beta it definitely
choosing to bide
their time with that hammer.
They've got the wedge
working right now, chris.
Uh-oh! Oh!
And beta uses rotator's disc
against itself.
Exactly what I was
talking about, chris,
things could get very dicey
for rotator
if they allow themselves
to get bullied like that.
And here it is again.
John reid slams rotator into the
side of the box,
rotator retreat's
with that plate still spinning
and now going for a ride.
Oh! My goodness! Rotator can
take some serious punishment!
Beta with an amazing
driving skill,
john reid on fire right now. Oh!
Kenny, it's amazing
has yet to fire that hammer!
He's trying to slow down rotator
and then he's going to
pour on the heat
with that hammer, chris.
Yeah but when? We are closing in
on one minute to go.
Up, up, up, up, up.
He's waiting for
that primary weapon
to rotate or to slow down.
I mean, beta is trying
to pin rotator
in the corner against the rails,
it's really working
all that great, though.
He's got to be careful because
if he does fire that weapon,
that weapon could be vulnerable
to that horizontal spinner
on rotator.
But, yeah, I mean, he's got
to start planning some damage.
[ clang! ]
[ shouting ] gone!
That's exactly what I was
talking about,
I think that's what
he was worried about.
So without firing the hammer,
at one time, john reid's weapon
is gone!
Can beta win this fight
without an active weapon?
This is going to be
fascinating, chris.
Beta has been in control,
but rotator.
May have just pulled ahead
with one swing of that blade.
Yeah!
Btu look at the driving by beta.
Able to keep
rotator off balance.
Incredible that rotator's weapon
is still working
after all this contact.
That thing is indestructible.
Never stops.
We're in the final few seconds.
And beta continues to push,
rotator around,
will it be enough to secure
the victory?
[ buzzer sounds ] whoo!
Victor soto's team super
excited.
But this one is in the hands
of the judges,
so remember, there are
three different categories,
five points for damage,
three for aggression,
three for control.
Kenny, did you ever think
you'd see a fight with beta
where he wouldn't
fire his hammer?
I mean, yeah, I was really
confused by that at first.
But then when you saw
that horizontal blade spitting,
I don't think he wanted
to take that risk.
And we saw as soon as it made
contact with the weapon armor
with the tip of that hammer,
we saw it just fly straight off.
But I thought that
by far beta won
the control aspect
of that fight.
I thought rotator
was going for a ride
repeatedly
throughout that fight.
I thought the wedge of beta
was doing a great job.
So as far as control aggression,
I kind of give that aspect
to beta.
But certainly losing
your primary weapon
did not look good.
That's a lot of damage.
It was done by
the primary weapon of rotator.
This is a really close fight.
So let's go to faruq
to announce the winner.
The results from
the judges are in.
We have a split decision.
[ team members "ooh-ing" ]
judge derek scored
the battle for beta.
[ cheers and applause ]
judge jason scored
the battle for rotator.
[ cheers and applause ]
judge lisa scored the battle
for your winner.
Beta!
[ cheers and applause ]
♪♪
John reed, gabriel stroud,
how are you doing?
Wow.
Probably not as well
as you guys are.
Are you shocked
by the decision, john?
I'm shocked. I'm not shocked.
We dominated
that room all the time.
We only lost this bit.
[ laughter ]
bit of glue it'll go straight
back on.
It's alright.
Just a flesh wound.
[ laughs ] now, were you guys
not firing your primary weapon?
You weren't firing that a hammer
because you were afraid
that it would get chopped off,
is that why?
Okay. Exactly.
Yes. We were trying to pin him,
but he's so slippery
and he keeps moving.
Just can't pin him down.
We got him flipped over.
Then we would have given him
some goodness.
But it was all about
getting him into the sights.
Do you guys think that
because of the aggression
that you showed
and the control that you showed,
that you ended up
being victorious?
So we use the arena
to our advantage
and just had him
against the wall
all over him all the time.
So he was really just there
for us to mess about with.
Alright, guys,
congratulations on your
first victory of the season.
That was fun.
Thanks. Thanks a lot. Take care.
[ cheers and applause ]
victor soto, the look
on your face says it all.
Are you shocked
it didn't go your way?
I'm pretty shocked. Yeah. Yeah.
Why?
Although beta was doing
a good job pushing us around,
I think we had some good
control points out there
at certain points of the match.
And damage is supposed to be
the biggest factor.
And we did a lot of damage.
They did no damage to us.
They're there
holding the weapon.
They never fired in their hands.
And we have maybe
some scratches.
[ cheers and applause ]
sorry, judges,
I think you got it wrong.
Alright, well,
it's a long season, my friend,
just the beginning here.
Victor soto, it's good to have
you back on "battlebots."
we'll see you down the road.
Thank you.
Alright, man. Yeah, man.
I don't know it couldn't have
been better than that.
Well, kenny, this is proof
that two people
might sit next to each other
and watch the same event
and see it very differently.
This is what happens in combat.
I mean, again, depending on
how you're seeing the fight,
what you deem
is aggressive or control.
And, you know,
it was a very close fight.
And at the end of the day,
you can't let it go that way.
You got to do whatever
you can to learn
as much damage as possible.
And the best thing to do
is not let it go to the judges,
right? Very good point there.
But either way,
beta's comeback ends in a win.
And for victor soto and rotator,
it just puts that
much more pressure on them
to perform in their next fight.
But our night of heavy hitters
just keeps on coming.
Up next, we've got valkyrie
versus tantrum on "battlebots."
we are back
on "battlebots: Fight night."
up next, we have
a marquee match up as valkyrie
takes on tantrum.
But first, let's bring
in jenny taft,
who has got much more on that
controversial decision
that favored beta,
went down to the wire,
went to the judges' score card,
and there were a lot of ooh's
and ah's
when beta ended up winning,
even though it didn't use
its main weapon back there.
What was everybody's response?
Oh, guys, it is a tense
moment back here in the pits.
And some of the builders
have started to gather,
express their frustration about
that controversial decision.
And the question is,
to win a fight do you
have to fire your primary
weapon?
The rules say,
you have to have an active
weapon going into the fight,
but you...
Nothing about using it.
Why have one
if you're not going to use it?
No offense to john,
he did an amazing job driving,
but from the judges'
perspective,
if the robot
never uses its weapon,
it's essentially a sumo bot.
But this isn't sumo wars.
This is "battlebots."
I don't care what the rule set
is as long as it's consistent.
Because I don't feel it is.
This is not backyard fun time
robots.
This is this, is "battlebots."
this is supposed to be
the a+ ultra of events
where you have to have a weapon
to get in here.
There's a requirement.
There's an application process.
There are a whole bunch of
robots that didn't make it here
because they were deemed
to not have
a sufficiently effective weapon.
So how the hell can you go
into there and not use one?
But that's what it's all about.
You don't have to
do that anymore.
There are a lot of opinions.
There's a lot to discuss.
And frankly,
I'm going to let everyone
cool off right now, guys.
Rose:
Wow. Things are getting
pretty serious down there.
Thanks, jenny.
Victor soto told us
at the beginning of the season,
he said,
I am going to be ticked off
if I don't make it
to the top eight.
He is 0-1 after his first
fight of the season.
And tough to move on from
a controversial fight like that.
But, you know,
our next two teams
will be looking
to avoid a judge's decision.
Right now, we've got a match up
between valkyrie and tantrum.
Let's start with valkyrie
and leanne cushing.
We met with her
before the fights
and we said,
hey, listen, leanne,
you didn't make the round
of 16 two years ago.
She said, "thanks
for reminding me."
we didn't make the round
of 16 a year ago.
She said,
"thanks for reminding me."
how do they take that next step?
Because they're a really
well driven bot.
They've got a ton of weapons
that they can play with as well.
You know how to push buttons,
don't you?
I do.
You know, you could see,
when you were talking to her
that she was upset about that.
But she has spent a lot of time
improving her bot.
And not only that, she spent a
lot of time studying strategies
and looking at what other bots
bring to the table
on fight night.
Taking on aren hill and tantrum.
And this bot has been
with us the last few years.
And the indelible image of it
is what it fought tombstone
to and had its fist cut off.
And it ended up in that post
right behind our heads.
Oh! Holy!
[ laughter ]
smile. [ camera shutter clicks ]
so, how does tantrum go
from that's it
to us complimenting what it
actually does in the battle box?
You know,
this is a new technology.
It is a vertical disk spinner,
but it's one that
kind of shoots out,
and kind of gets into
a proper range
in order to be effective.
So, it can retract,
and then extend.
He's been having
some problems with it.
He wants for that
to not just be this gimmick.
We're gonna find out
if he actually do that.
Let's see if aaron hill
and tantrum
are ready to fight it out.
Faruq.
In the blue square,
from somerville, massachusetts,
it's valkyrie.
So, valkyrie has sonic,
sweet caroline, sour caroline,
diet doctor teeth.
Oh, yeah, a new triangular
disc called "glory."
what's it got out there?
Yeah, valkyrie gives every
one of their different blades
a unique name.
And this one tonight
is known as "sweet caroline."
it's a huge 65-pound weapon,
and it's no joke, chris.
In the red square,
from mountain view, california,
it's tantrum.
Kenny, tantrum looks the same,
but the weapon, apparently,
has improved considerably.
That's right. That primary
weapon now has a longer reach.
And also, the spin-up time
is now down to 3 to 5 seconds.
Well, once again, it has
the fists on top of the robot.
And apparently, those things
can now be used
to self-right, kenny?
And they're also gonna be
spitting some flames,
so watch for that, as well.
The strategy tonight against
valkyrie is pretty common
against horizontal
spinning robots...
Get them tilted up,
get them into the arena wall,
have them larger objects,
get them flying.
I hear valkyries like to fly.
Got to get a win
straight off the bat,
especially when they give us
a robot as good as valkyrie.
I spent this morning
laying in bed,
watching all of aaron's fights.
I think we have
a pretty good chance
just because of our reach
versus his.
Aaron still isn't
completely familiar
with the depth of the box,
and so, we're really hoping
that we're gonna be able
to get up to speed
before he comes at us
and at the point,
good luck, man.
Robots activate.
Alright, peter, so, aaron hill
just said he's gonna try
and use valkyrie's big blade
against itself.
Did leanne make the right
weapon choice, here?
Peter:
I totally agree with leanne.
I think sweet caroline
is definitely
the right choice in this.
They've got the reach
to keep tantrum at bay.
Now, aaron believes he can keep
valkyrie in the middle, there,
and believes that it's just
an intelligent arena hazard.
But we know fred and leanne.
They're here to get
the 15-second knockout.
This should be a good one.
A pair of ascending bots.
Blue team, ready
ooh. Easy, there.
The valkyrie brass knuckles,
red team, ready.
[ cheers and applause ]
[ crowd chanting "fight!" ]
let the bot battle begin.
And here comes tantrum.
Right out of the box, big hit.
Went all the way across the box.
Tantrum is targeting
valkyrie's weapon, chris.
No fear.
Now, valkyrie looking
for some payback.
Runs that big disk
over the top of tantrum.
Oh!
But tantrum punches right back,
throwing valkyrie
into the screws.
Whoa! Man, oh man!
And uh-oh, valkyrie's weapon
has stop moving momentarily.
This is exactly what beta
was trying to do, to rotate.
This is right in front of us.
Tantrum doing a great job
utilizing the battle box
to its advantage.
Yeah, with that weapon down,
tantrum is free to go
to work, now, chris.
And there you see it,
as tantrum gives valkyrie a ride
across the battle box.
It has been all tantrum, here,
to open this match.
Yeah, frederick moore,
the veteran driver,
got to do something
to get valkyrie
back to the center of the box.
Instead, it is caught
under the pulverizer,
and really not
moving well at all.
Yeah, look for tantrum to get
their vertical disk going, here.
They did take some damage
to the top of the bot.
Hopefully, that weapon
is still functional.
There it is, kenny.
You hear that spinner firing up
as these two go for a waltz.
And now, look who's raising
the fist... tantrum,
trying to take valkyrie
for a ride.
Their spinner is active,
but I'm not sure they can
deliver it into valkyrie.
Almost midway
through this fight.
It has been all tantrum so far.
Just keep driving.
Keep driving. Keep driving.
Rose: You can hear leanne
cushing
imploring her driver, fred,
"keep going. Keep pushing."
uh-oh.
Tantrum has dominated,
chris, but like beat beta,
it hasn't used
its primary weapon,
and I know we just had
a controversial decision,
but let's remember,
in the damage category,
it's heavily weighted to what
you do with your active weapon.
And so far,
that vertical disk spinner
hasn't done the substantial
damage to valkyrie.
Instead, it's really been
the battle box.
Under a minute to go.
Both bots
circling the drain, here,
in the center of the box.
It would seem, at the moment,
at least,
that tantrum is done enough
to secure the victory.
But look at this!
Tantrum is suddenly lifeless.
I'm not sure
their motor's working.
Kenny, this is a huge problem,
because tantrum
has stopped moving.
Uh-oh.
The referee imploring
team tantrum,
"show us some kind of movement,
or the countdown's gonna start."
and it has.
Tantrum trying to
come back to life,
but I don't think
it's gonna happen, chris.
The fists are waving,
but they're waving bye-bye,
as in "I'm done."
tantrum is knocked out.
Yeah!
What a heartbreak.
A tremendous job
by frederick moore,.
Leean cushing, a team valkyrie,
to just stave off elimination,
keep its wheels turning,
and take the w by ko.
What an unbelievable bout.
Right out of the gate,
tantrum had a game plan,
and stuck to it, kenny.
Got the pop early on.
And went valkyrie
hit the screws,
you knew that they were
going the wrong direction.
Yeah, that's right.
You know, both teams
really got some great hits
to start up the fight,
but it was tantrum
who started to take over,
and looked like
he was gonna come back
with an unbelievable win.
But right here is where
the tide starts to turn.
Tantrum doing a great job
of bullying valkyrie
around the battle box.
But all of a sudden,
it just stopped moving.
All that energy, all those hits,
all that power,
came to a complete halt.
And this is why
it is so critical
to have a veteran driver
that will not panic.
Even when you think you're down,
you are never out.
Leanne cushing, you're laughing
behind that mask. Why?
I was really worried, there.
I thought we were gonna
go the third year
not winning our first fight.
And I was like "please.
I can't have this happen again."
so, I'm so glad it didn't.
Leanne, you said you wanted to
make valkyrie more durable,
and you certainly
proved that it is.
Yeah, for the most part.
But our weapons still suck.
So, guess what we're gonna
go obsess over?
Valkyrie, congratulations on
getting that elusive
first win of the season.
A job well done.
We'll see you down the road.
Cushing: Thank you.
Rose: Coming up, we've got our
first-ever team from india...
And they just happen to be
under the tutelage
of none other than ray billings.
Up next, it's atom #94
taking on big dill.
And then, it's the fight
of the night.
Will bales and hypershock
square off against
sam mcamis and his
flame-throwing machine, gruff.
All that when we return,
on "battlebots."
rose: We are back
on "battlebots: Fight night."
it has been an action-packed
fight card so far,
and we are just one match away
from the main event,
where gruff
and their dual flame throwers
will take on will bales and
the lightning quick hypershock.
Kenny, we talked about it,
but these two teams
really could take it
to the next level this season.
Florian: Oh, 100%, chris.
Gruff nearly
beat tombstone last year,
and they're as confident as ever
coming into this season.
And hypershock was so close
to making the top 16 last year.
Will spent a year thinking about
getting back into "battlebots."
I'm excited for this matchup.
And we'll see them
after this next fight
between a couple of newbies.
Let's kick it off with atom #94,
built by yash deshmukh.
And he is our first builder
from india,
so everybody's really excited.
He's super excited.
He's been interested in robotics
ever since he was a little kid.
Then, a few years ago,
he took the big leap.
He wrote direct messages
on facebook
to a bunch of big-name builders.
Only one returned it...
Ray billings of tombstone.
That's a pretty good mentor
to have.
Yeah, absolutely.
He chose the right guy.
Has a ton of experience.
And for ray, he said he
asked the right questions.
He said he did enough work
to where he felt that,
"you know what? I'm gonna give
this guy some information."
taking on another new bot
called the big dill.
Emmanual carrillo used
to be a driver
for team mad-catter.
And emmanual. He told us,
"hey, listen, the first thing
you're gonna notice about me,
I was born without a right hand.
I accept the responsibility
of being somebody out there
that little kids can look up to,
and say,
'hey, listen, if I've got
that challenge, it's okay.
I can do whatever I want.
I could be an athlete.
I can be an artist.
I can be a musician.
I can be a bot-builder.'"
I'm anxious to see
what he brings inside the box.
Well, I tell you what,
you know, he's here to inspire,
but he's also here
to win, as well.
He believes he has
the most powerful
true lifter in "battlebots."
and kenny, taking a look
at these numbers,
who do you like in this fight?
Well, chris,
it's an interesting matchup,
lifter versus vertical spinner.
Big dill has the obvious
reach advantage, here.
But for the lift
to really be effective,
they're going to have to attack
at different angles.
And I think
an experienced driver
like emmanuel carrillo
can't do that.
But the giant x-factor
here is atom #94's
ray billings
tombstone connection.
That's like being trained
by mike tyson
for your first boxing match.
But with a couple
of rookie teams,
who knows what we're gonna get.
And I love the name
"the big dill,"
because the jokes
write themselves, right?
"he's caught in a pickle."
"he's a really big dill,"
all that sort of stuff.
So, I have started
the cliche jar
that we are going to donate to
every time we use one of
those stupid cliches, okay?
I love it.
We're gonna fill this thing up
definitely by the end
of the season.
There's no question about it.
Faruq, shake it, man.
It's all yours.
Faruq: In the blue square,
from india, by way of canada,
it's the b*mb... atom #94.
Well, they're named after
plutonium s atomic number,
and I love it.
Yash his entire team
just soaking in the moment,
how special this is.
He told us, "yeah,
I want to be a role model
for all those kids back in india
that want to be the
bot-builders of tomorrow."
that looks like a very cool bot.
Very low to the ground,
and it looks like
a deadly dual disk spinner.
In the red square,
from seattle, washington,
fork out for big dill.
Big dill led by 31-year-old
industrial designer
emmanuel carrillo.
He said, "hey, if we can ruin
some days, that'd be solid."
he really wants to upset
some big teams.
So, he does have
realistic expectations,
being a first time captain
here at "battlebots."
but I think a lot of people
believe it can go pretty far.
♪♪
Carrillo: Tonight,
we're fighting atom #94.
They're a new team.
They're a two-wheel drive
vertical spinner.
We have these super
long reach forks.
They're a little drum...
Little drumette.
They don't have much reach.
We're gonna fight this fight
and they're gonna
have no chance.
Yesh: The primary weapon
which we are using today,
it's, like, the fastest speed
which we can go to,
and just in the air
to the [indistinct].
The hits are gonna be insane.
I hope that I'm gonna see
the big dill flying in the sky
in the arena today.
This is my dream
come true moment, right now.
Robots activate.
Alright, so we've got
a couple of unknowns.
That's why we bring in peter,
our bot-whisper.
Pete, what do you got?
Well, big dill is planning
on being able
to use spicy meatball...
Which is the mini bot...
To get under atom #94,
allowing big dill to come by,
and get those extra-long
pickle forks on the end
right underneath atom #94,
and get the good scoop.
Alright.
Hold the spicy meatball.
I've got a foot-long turkey
with swiss coming.
Thank you, pete.
Blue team, ready.
♪♪
Red team, ready.
♪♪
♪♪
[ cheers and applause ]
let the bot battle begin.
Atom #94 having
some drive issues
right out of the gate.
Spinning in circles, here,
this is an opportunity
for big dill,
who wants to win the ground
battle with those forks.
And how about spicy meatball,
the little guy, helping out?
He's like, "hey, let me in.
I want to have some fun."
trying to set up the big dill
for the big move.
Uh-oh. Look at this.
And here's big dill,
able to invert atom #94.
And it self-rights.
[ man speaks indistinctly ]
atom #94 is smoking a bit,
but it is driving on its head.
Big dill very much
in control so far, chris.
Oh, and big dill
with full control, now,
lifting a flailing atom #94
above the battle box.
Atom #94 has got to
flip itself back over.
You're seeing some smoke
start to come from the inside
of atom #94.
There it is.
And that fork is tied up
in the belts of
atom #94 right now.
How about the strength
of the big dill?
He is a really big dill.
There.
I'm donating.
Those long, serrated
forks of big dill
have been very effective
so far, kenny.
Yeah. Atom #94's drive issues
have allowed big dill the space
to just sort of skewer them
at will, here.
They've made it way
too easy for big dill.
And now, more smoke
pouring from atom #94.
Will there be a nuclear meltdown
before the bell?
The big dill having its way
with the other rookie.
Right in front of us.
That's gonna hurt.
He's really got atom #94
locked in those horns,
you could say he's in
a pickle, chris.
Donate. Thank you.
Thank you very much.
Alright, under a minute to go.
What's gonna happen, here?
Because the big dill
has to try and release atom #94,
but it really looks like
they're tied up, here.
Yeah, he's pretty
stuck in there.
Let's see if he can
back out of it.
I believe they're gonna...
I can't... I can't move.
Both teams now signaling
they're stuck.
Time out. Time out.
And our ref is gonna
stop the match.
Kenny, if they can't
unstick these two,
this one's
gonna go to the judges.
And atom #94 cannot not afford
to let that happen at all.
Yeah. Atom #94 needs
this fight to resume
to have any chance of winning.
And here comes the crew bots,
to try and separate these two.
If they're successful,
it's still anyone's game.
We're gonna take a quick break.
But the fate of these teams
will be decided
when we come back,
on "battlebots."
rose: Welcome back
to "battlebots,"
where atom #94 and big dill
are in a bit of a pickle.
After a collision,
these bots got stuck,
and the match had to be stopped.
Time out. They're stuck.
Rose: And you're not
gonna believe this,
but we cannot get these two
unstuck, kenny.
You ever seen anything like this
in the octagon?
Fabian: Well, I've been put
in a pretzel
about a million
different ways, chris,
but I've never seen
anything like this.
Rose: As stated in
the "battlebots" bylaws,
section 7.5 10-a,
if two bots cannot be separated
after becoming entangled,
this thing has to go
to the judges.
Judges seeing a lot
of action tonight.
So, we say "hello" again to
former "battlebots" participants
jason bardis, lisa winter,
and derek young.
Kenny he's called
"the big dill,"
but for emmanuel carrillo,
most of that fight was kosher.
Yeah, chris, big dill
was able to do pretty much
whatever they wanted to
to atom #94.
Those forks worked exactly
like they wanted them to.
With a good driver,
a weapon that has
a reach advantage like this
cannot be underestimated.
Atom #94 spent
much of its time on its head,
and really couldn't get
that main weapon rolling at all.
Had little smoke break, as well.
And then, here it is.
Yeah, that's some serious power,
there, for big dill.
And how about that?
Right in front of us.
Outside of getting stuck,
really a dominant performance
out of big dill.
So, kenny, the judges
coming into play, here,
seems like a bit of a formality.
But after the beta decision
we saw earlier,
let's see what happens.
Faruq is standing by
with the decision.
The results from the judges
are in.
The winner, by a
unanimous decision, is...
...Big dill!
[ cheering ]
♪♪
Emmanuel, was had
a little victory dance
we just saw you do?
Oh, yeah. It's big relief to,
you know,
get a win in and get in there,
and just perform
well enough to get a win.
It was an impressive
performance, man.
You know, as a grappling bot,
that's exactly what
you need to do,
is show that kind of control.
Did you did you expect it
to go that way?
No. I was expecting
spicy meatball
to do a little bit more,
and really kind of
high-center him.
So we could really just come in,
and get the perfect grab.
We ended up grabbing him
in some really, really weird
way,
and, you know,
almost had him out of the arena.
We ended up getting stuck.
I was, you know, so close
to just ringing him out.
That's the ultimate goal,
is to get a bot
somewhere stuck on the arena,
and, you know,
make sure he doesn't have to go
to the judges all the time.
Is it safe to say that you
and the other team members
from big dill
are going to relish this win?
Oh, for sure. For sure.
Yeah, we jammed them
up pretty good,
and they just had
to dill with it.
Very good.
Emmanuel, congratulations.
You actually have to make
a contribution
to our cliche jar, now,
after that terrible joke.
There'll be more of them.
Very, very good. Well done.
And kenny florian,
you better fill this thing
with about 20 or 30 bucks,
after that one.
"relish." nice work.
Rose: Well, certainly one of
the stranger fights we've seen.
But ladies and gentlemen,
up next, we've got a matchup
between a couple of squads
looking to prove that,
this season, they are top
contenders for the giant nut.
It's gruff vs. Hypershock
in our main event.
Wow, gruff
taking it to tombstone.
Last year, we had an epic
Wow.
That was one of the best driving
performances I've ever seen.
It showed we can go
Both: Oh!
Nice shot by hypershock!
You just gave bite force its
toughest fight, in my opinion.
You know,
we got some kinks to figure out,
but I'm feeling confident.
This year's hypershock is new.
It's nothing surprising.
We build a new one every year.
Just like we did last year,
and the year before that,
and the year before that.
It's new hypershocks
all the way down.
Gruff is kind of a combination
of a lifter and a grappler.
I am really impressed
with the toughness of gruff.
And we definitely have the
strongest torch in the field.
A lot of teams have, like,
orange fireballs.
Ours us blue. It's hot.
That's a flame that comes out
at 3,600 degrees fahrenheit.
Man:
This year's hypershock is just
better armored all around,
we should be more powerful.
We've upped the voltage
on everything.
You still have a single-disk
weapon and a double-disk weapon.
I, personally,
like the double-disk.
It allows me to be a little bit
more cavalier with the driving.
Will bales
and his best friend, chaos,
have entered the battle box.
So, especially against gruff,
who is just gonna get under you
no matter what...
We're just gonna
run straight at you,
and have a nice, wide-open
channel to hit you
with whatever we got to do.
That was a perfect
box-rush, chris!
Faruq: It's gruff.
I really think this is
a good matchup for us.
The idea is to either, like,
lift and [indistinct]
hypershock...
He's gonna try to throw him
out of the arena, kenny.
...Or to grab on to him,
and torch him really good.
In this fight, it's gonna
get really nice and hot.
We'll see that fight
when we return,
on "battlebots."
rose: This one is in
the hands of the judges.
We are the people
who decide who wins
if the match goes
the full 3 minutes.
Faruq: We have a split decision.
Young: Judges will all see
the same fight,
and make the same decision.
But occasionally,
when it's close,
we will have a split decision,
where two judges
think one robot won,
and one judge thinks
the other robot one.
We have three categories
where we assign points...
Damage, aggression, and control.
It's battle.
Damage is the most important.
They are five points
to assign for damage,
three for aggression,
three for control.
There's a rule that you have to
get let into the arena
with an active weapon,
but nothing stating that
you actually have to use it.
Kenny, it's amazing.
Beta has yet
to fire that hammer.
Maybe that should be changed.
I'm not sure.
But if you let it go
to the judges,
anything can happen.
It will be tight.
Faruq: Your winner...
Beta.
Sorry, judges.
I think you got it wrong.
We are back on "battlebots."
kenny florian,
it is time right now
for a very special main event.
It's in all-florida affair...
The clean-cut crew
from miami, hypershock,
is ready to pit
their vertical spinner
against the battle-tested boys
from tampa, team gruff.
Kenny, hypershock is always
one of the prettiest machines
in this competition.
And when will bales' bots
have been problem-free,
they've been
absolutely electric.
Problem is, they aren't
always problem-free.
Yeah, chris, as a driver, will
can go toe to toe with anyone.
And we've seen hypershock
nearly take down bots
like bite force in the past.
So, we know
what they're capable of.
But the question is,
which hypershock
are we going to get today?
And on the other end
of the spectrum, we have gruff.
It's built like a tank,
and looks like it could
survive a hit from one, too.
Yeah, sam mcamis has
one of the sturdiest machines
we've seen at "battlebots."
last year, gruff went the full
three minutes with tombstone,
proving that they can hang
with the best of the best.
Alright, kenny, when you
look at the numbers, here,
who do you think
has the advantage?
Well, looking at
the drive train,
hypershock should be able
to drive circles around gruff,
but we'll see how much damage
their vertical spinner
could do against
gruff's exterior.
It's made from
a special blend of steel
called "magnum triple alloy,"
which was able
to survive multiple
direct hits from tombstone.
And while I like
the reach of gruff's lifter,
their dual-cannon flamethrower
is the weapon to watch
in this fight.
They have one of the only
torches in this competition
that can truly change
the course of a match.
It's gonna be a ton of fun.
Let's check it out.
It's called the main event.
Here is faruq.
Ladies and gentlemen,
it's robot-fighting time.
[ cheering ]
♪♪
In the blue square... after his
bout with tombstone last year,
fans started to talk, and he
became the people's champ,
just like the rock.
This year, the giant nut
is the only place he's looking,
if you smeeeeeeeell
what gruff is cooking.
♪♪
Gruff 2-3 a year ago.
Three of its fights
went the distance,
including that classic one
against tombstone, kenny.
Yeah, I got to say,
this is one of
the toughest bots to knock out.
That thing is a brick.
In addition to being
a flat-out brick,
this thing's got fire. Fire.
Yeah, his strategy is gonna
be the same... grab and torch.
He's made some really good
upgrades all around the bot,
to the drive train,
the lifter, and the motor.
In the red square...
It'll charge you
like a bill of sales.
And when you're broke,
wondering why,
all I got to say is,
"will bales."
when it rolls, you get rocked.
It's hypershock.
♪♪
It's amazing, but will bales
and hypershock,
one of the most entertaining
teams around, kenny,
has never made it to the top 16.
Well, he's always had problems,
you know, fixing his bot.
It's always like it comes down
to the wire with these guys.
But will told us this was
the most legit
hypershock has ever been.
And you could see
that double-plate spinner
they're using tonight.
It's maybe just a little bit
less powerful
than the single blade,
but it means
wilt doesn't have to be quite
as accurate with this strike.
[ cheering ]
so, pete will bales told us,
"this is the most confident
and calm I've ever been."
but he was still racing
to the finish,
to try and get this bot
ready to fight tonight.
What do we expect
to see out of hypershock?
Pete: This bot is so much better
than his other robots.
I mean, he's done so much work
to make it serviceable,
modular parts of electronics
that come right out the bottom,
so it's really easy
for him to work on
all the complicated elements.
What I'm looking forward to,
though,
is gruff's flamethrower.
Those new nozzles are exquisite.
Robots activate.
Whoa. Oh, yeah.
Sam, that looks really good.
That double-flamethrower.
Show-off.
Blue team, ready.
♪♪
Red team, ready.
♪♪
[ cheering ]
feeling good?
Yeah.
Alright.
♪♪
Mcamis: Make sure you hook him
down before we make contact.
Yeah, I'm a little nervous
they're sitting too low,
but it's okay.
Rose: Let the bot battle begin.
Bots meet in the center.
Both: Oh!
Gruff takes a shot,
and has already shown off
the double-flamethrower.
And it's will bales showing off
with the driving.
Oh, going head-on.
Doesn't want to do that
for too long.
Oh, that could definitely
burn up the insides.
No question.
Hypershock is...
Oh!
Gruff able to self-right.
Seem to be caught on
the rails momentarily,
but works himself free.
Hypershock's weapon
is up to speed.
Oh. Gruff kind of
backed himself in.
And look at the flamethrowers
on that.
Wow. What sort of damage
can that do to the interior
of the other bot?
Oh!
Another big pop.
His weapon's not spinning.
I got nothing.
You heard will bales
right there.
Hypershock has lost
its primary weapon, kenny.
They are gonna have
to seriously scramble
to find a way
to score points, now.
Wow.
Once again, it's what does
your primary weapon do.
A great job.
Gruff has put hypershock
up on the screws.
Just like rotator, gruff takes
out his opponent's weapon.
Now, he's going to work.
And now, hypershock
is actually smoking a bit.
Can will bales get his bot to
move before a count-out?
Or has the flame of gruff
claimed its first victim
of the 2020 season?
Referee: 10...
There it is.
The countdown has begun.
Hypershock is gonna end up
losing to one gruff bot.
♪♪
Those look so beautiful.
- Dang.
- Oh, my god.
I want to take a nap so bad.
♪♪
Kenny, gruff is becoming
the type of bot you just don't
want to see on your schedule
if you're an opposing team.
Yeah, this is one tough
robot, chris.
That magnum triple alloy steel
seems indestructible.
You add that flamethrower
to the mix,
and gruff is just a beast.
Hypershock did a good job
of attacking the flanks,
even managed to flip gruff.
But in the end,
sam mcamis' strategy prevailed.
Absolutely. Gruff wanted to
break hypershock's weapon.
It was tough enough to do that.
And it was durable enough
to outlast hypershock.
Sometimes, robot combat
is just that simple.
[ cheers and applause ]
sam mcamis of team gruff,
what's cooking?
Hypershock.
Is that what's on
the menu tonight?
Yeah.
We finally got him pretty good.
So, do you think the flame
is what did him in?
That's what ended his night?
It's hard to say.
We didn't really get a good,
like, grab and torch.
So, I'm not...
Like, I didn't dump
as much heat into him
as I would have liked.
But at the end, he was smoking,
so... We got it.
Sam, what was the game plan,
here, against hypershock?
The goal is just, basically,
try to keep the forks
pointed toward them.
We knew that we could get
under him if we...
As long as we didn't let him
get around to our sides.
But that happened
a couple of times.
We got some pretty gnarly damage
up in the front.
So, do you think this is
quite a first impression
for the selection committee,
as you try to crack the top 32?
Yeah. I think... I think
it was awesome.
It's hard for us...
Like, for a lifter
or a torch to get a ko.
And it was nice to get a ko.
No question about it.
Sam mcamis, congratulations
to you and team gruff.
Thank you.
Oh, buddy.
Alright, will bales.
You're smiling,
but what happened to that bot?
Did it get overdone?
For the most part, I think we
did a pretty good job.
There was a good portion
of that match
where I only had
one side to drive.
So, I was doing what I could
to avoid the front.
Still, for the most part, I
think we got some okay hits in.
In I'd like to see better.
Now, it's still
your first fight, will,
so how much weight
do you put into
this performance, right now?
If we can get the electronics
up and running,
with a little bit more time,
now that the mechanical side is,
for the most part, figured out,
I think we can get
some solid fights in.
The beginning of the match
was okay,
with drivetrain and the weapon.
But I see a light.
It's a very dim light,
but it's up there.
Alright, will bales,
thanks for having
some fun with us.
Head back to the pits,
and go work on that baby.
Yes, dear.
Kenny, we know how tough
a bot gruff was a season ago,
a difficult loss
against tombstone.
Here, I think they made
a point tonight.
They definitely made a point.
They took out a pretty strong
team in hypershock.
And for me,
these guys are true underdogs,
and could go very far
in the tournament, for sure.
Alright. What another
spectacular night
here inside the battle box.
We saw a few rookies
get their first career wins,
some returning bots
start their seasons off
with a couple of huge kos,
and we witnessed one of the most
controversial decisions
we've ever seen
here on "battlebots."
we'll see how the action tonight
affects teams as they continue
to try to impress
the selection committee
for those coveted playoff spots.
For faruq,
our bot-whisper peter,
jenny taft back in the pits,
and my man, kenny florian.
I am chris rose.
We'll see you next time
on "battlebots."
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05x03 - Stop! Hammer Time!
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Show is an adaptation of the American Robot Wars competitions hosted in the mid–late 1990s by Marc Thorpe, in which competitors design and operate remote-controlled armed and armored machines designed to fight in an arena combat elimination tournament.
Show is an adaptation of the American Robot Wars competitions hosted in the mid–late 1990s by Marc Thorpe, in which competitors design and operate remote-controlled armed and armored machines designed to fight in an arena combat elimination tournament.