[robotic voice]
Robots activate.
[audience cheering]
[applause]
[audience cheering]
Hey everybody.
And welcome to BattleBots
World Championship VII.
I am Chris Rose,
joined as always by UFC legend
and the best
robot fighting analyst
east and west
of the Mississippi.
- [chuckles]
- The one and only
Kenny Florian.
[audience cheering]
Thanks, Chris.
Tonight's gonna be incredible.
These teams have been working
their butts off back
in the pits
to prepare for these fights.
That is right, Kenny.
as 5,000 pounds
of hardware each
to be ready for this season.
Weapons, chassis, armor,
controllers, the list goes on.
[Kenny] No doubt every
configuration for these robots
factors into what they've hauled into
the pits for World Championships VII.
[Chris] And their work
is just getting started.
Only 28 squads have put
their designs to the test.
Inside the BattleBox here in
our first round of qualifying fights.
And tonight, 14 new
teams begin their quest
for the most coveted trophy
in all of sports, the Giant Nut.
[audience cheering]
Let's take a look
at the fight card.
Two fan favorites
will square off
in a k*ll or be k*lled
popularity contest,
when Bunny Sauriol Malice collides
with Donald Hutson's Lock-Jaw.
[Kenny] We'll also see a
kinetic clash of the Titans
as Bloodsport looks
to cut the head off
of the slithering
serpent Copperhead.
[Chris] And tonight's main event
is gonna be a flippin good time.
The bad boy ofBattleBots,
Jake Ewert and Hydra
takes on 28 teams most
destructive Robot Rotator
captained by the
golden boy, Victor Soto.
[Kenny] Jake's been
talking a big game.
He wants Rotator to
scrape our 16 foot ceiling,
but Victor hope before
he flies, Hydra dies.
You do not want to miss that.
[Chris] But we're kicking things off
with some thunder from down under.
After two years away,
Australia's own death world
reenters the BattleBox against
the British basher, Cobalt.
[Kenny] Back in World
Championship for DeathRoll
made it all the way
to the semifinals
and it's ready to pick
up where it left off.
But this field is
exponentially more violent.
No better example than Cobalt's
decimation of Ghost Raptor last season.
Get your popcorn ready for
this one or for the Aussies,
your vegemite.
[audience cheering]
These fans are ready Kenny.
So let's get this thing started.
- What do you say?
- Let's do it.
Faruq, take it away.
Ladies and gentlemen,
are you ready?
[audience cheering]
It's robot fighting time.
[audience cheering]
In Red Square,
Cobalt was discovered in 1735
by a Swedish guy named Georg.
But mess with this Cobalt, and
they'll discover you in the morgue.
And as a tribute to Sweden,
he'll not only beat you.
But leave your body in more
pieces than furniture from IKEA.
Seriously, I bought
a couch last year,
and I still haven't
finished putting it together.
Anyway, give it up for Cobalt.
[audience cheering and applause]
[Chris] He's Cobalt in for the
first of their four qualifying fights.
The robots designer UK's
Dave Moulds pushing Cobalt in
and Kenny there is his
co-captain, John Mladenik.
[Kenny] Yeah, John
also owns Gigabyte
but he's all in on
Cobalt this year.
They've got a tough schedule.
You can see Minotaur is up next,
but there's no looking past a
dangerous foe like DeathRoll.
[audience cheering]
In the Blue Square, this robot
reminds me of one of those thrillers
where white people are dumb
and run straight toward the k*ller.
The dude's got a knife,
so you better beware.
No, you idiot.
Don't go in there.
They never listen.
It's DeathRoll.
[Chris] There's team
captain Steven Martin.
He says DeathRoll's basically been
in a crate the last couple of years.
Hey, it looks pretty
good. No dust.
[Kenny] Their win over End
Game at World Championship IV
is still one of the greatest
fights I've ever seen.
Notice no forks on
the front of this robot.
The question is, can
a two-year-old design
compete with a
state-of-the-art bot like Cobalt?
[audience cheering]
DeathRoll is very
similar to 2019.
We've made some tweaks
and some improvements,
but it's pretty much
the same old robot.
Cobalt's a very similar
design, a big vertical spinner.
When two big
vertical spinners meet,
there is some
spectacular carnage.
I expect to see sparks
flying everywhere,
robots flying around the arena.
The chance that this ends in a
knockout, I reckon, is about 90%.
If we can stay on the offensive
and try and get around
the back of Cobalt.
Hopefully we can
come out on top.
We're fighting DeathRoll.
He's got a weapon like Cobalt, and
he's a great driver and he doesn't break.
I think this season I think the way it's
driven is gonna make a big difference.
I'm going to try and do it
kind of cautiously to start with
and then really go for the knock
out if we get the upper hand.
I think it's gonna be whoever
gets the first big hit really
is gonna win the whole match.
I just really hope we get
that first hit before they do.
- This side?
- Yeah, wherever the hell you want.
[robotic voice] Robots activate.
[audience cheering]
[Chris] All right, Kenny. Two
weapons straight out of a horror movie.
Dial us in.
[Kenny] Cobalt wants to use those piano
key wedgelets to control the Aussie bot,
feed it up into that single
tooth 45 pound disc.
But he'll need to survive the
all-out offense from DeathRoll.
And it's 50 pound spin.
[robotic voice] Red team ready?
[audience cheering]
[robotic voice] Blue team ready?
[audience cheering]
[Kenny] These fans
are foaming at the mouth
for some good
old-fashioned robot carnage.
Here we go.
Anything can happen.
[Chris] Let the bot battle begin
and here comes DeathRoll.
Wow, what a shot as
it cascades backward.
- [Kenny] Oh, my goodness.
- [Chris] Oh, man.
All right, there goes those
green piano keys got another shot.
I'm at telling you
Cobalt's nasty.
[Kenny] Cobalt's so
much lower than DeathRoll
and that is bad
news for the Aussies.
[Chris] Now going face to face again and look
at this, Kenny. It's just topping itself.
And now it takes the
shot from the pulverizer.
- [Kenny] Wow!
- [Chris] ...this is a terrible spot to be.
[Kenny] Stuck between a rock
and a hard place they are pinned.
[Chris] Oh, man, the pulverizer
is holding that dude down.
You can see him try
to climb out with a spin.
- [Kenny] Oh!
- [Chris] Cobalt says "Mercy is for the weak".
[Kenny] Oh!
[Chris] Look at
it. This is just flat.
Look at this thing.
Oh, it's just. Oh, come on now.
[Kenny] Oh, it took a huge gash
on the underbelly of DeathRoll.
My goodness. I don't think that
thing is going anywhere, Chris.
[Chris] DeathRoll's used to
being the bully here at BattleBots.
It's getting punched
in the mouth,
in its return can it self-right?
- [Kenny] Oh.
- [Chris] Oh.
[Kenny] Almost able
to self right there.
[Chris] It is... Is it alive?
Is it alive Kenny Florian?
[Kenny] Cobalt just sitting
there. Come on, I dare you.
[Chris] Kenny, look at this
it's missing some fingers...
- Oh, my God.
- Two, one.
- Knock out!
- [Chris] That gotta be it.
[audience cheering]
[Chris] DeathRoll, RIP.
- Courtesy of Cobalt.
- [Kenny] Wow.
[Chris] Kenny, it was
a serious box rush
and I'll tell you, DeathRoll
had a death wish.
[Kenny] Yeah, you know,
these are exchanges
that DeathRoll is used to winning,
but Cobalt just to low to the ground here,
fed DeathRoll, right
up into the weapon.
And without a ground
game, the Aussies came out
on the wrong side of
every single impact, Chris.
[Chris] And DeathRoll's
weapon is spinning so viciously
every time it gets
knocked head over tails.
You knew that that thing was
gonna be bouncing like a basketball.
[Kenny] DeathRoll is one heck of a machine,
but it was no match for Cobalt tonight.
[Chris] And DeathRoll
tried and tried and tried,
but in the end just took
too much of a pounding
and dead.
[audience cheering]
John Mladenik, Oh, you got Dave
Moulds all over you, I understand.
- Hey, John.
- [laughter]
Dude that weapon is nasty, huh?
- Hey, well, it...
- It still works.
- Yeah.
- [laughs]
[audience cheering]
It seemed like
DeathRoll wanted to go.
Weapon to weapon with you guys.
Do you think that was a
miscalculation on their part?
- No, we have the same idea.
- [laughter]
I think it was... There's not
a lot either of us could do.
They're very similarly
matched robots.
And, yeah, it's about as best
as either of us could have done.
So it was who got
lucky first, really.
And fortunately for
us, it was, it was us.
Dave, is there any question that you
can take the Giant Nut back overseas?
Yeah, there's no
question it's gonna happen.
Oh, really?
[audience cheering]
Guys, Congratulations.
Great job!
[audience cheering]
[Chris] Listen, this was
a big time win for Cobalt.
[Kenny] Absolutely. And the
good news is the boss gonna be
in great shape heading into
that second fight against Minotaur.
Mark your calendars
for that one.
[Chris] And after a two year
hiatus, the jury's out on DeathRoll.
[Kenny] Yeah, you know, two
years is an eternity here at{\i0}BattleBots.
Last time we saw DeathRoll,
they were top of the food chain.
They'll have a chance to rebound in
fight number two against Switchback.
All right. Up next, the debut of
a rookie that floats like a butterfly
and stings like a speed.
Hopefully it's more
dangerous than me.
It's ominous taking on the
speed demon Claw Viper.
That's when they return
here on BattleBots.
[audience cheering]
[Chris] We are back on
BattleBots World Championship VII.
That is Kenny Florian.
I am Chris Rose.
And up next is the return of Claw
Viper, captained by Kevin Milczewski.
Kenny, Claw Viper is one of the
fastest robots in the entire field,
but as a grappler
it's had its troubles.
How does this team with three
career wins turn things around?
[Kenny] Well, Kevin says this
version of Claw Viper is even faster.
But he told us the
most important change
is its ability to
hold onto its prey.
In previous years, Claw
Viper would lift opponents
and immediately suplex them,
leaving the bot vulnerable
to shots in the back.
Kevin designed a new strap for the
grappling arm he calls the idiot strap.
This locks the arm in place, so Claw Viper
can now grab and carry opponents with ease.
The team was working late into
the night to get the strap dialed in.
We'll see if this new design helps
Claw Viper dominate the control category.
[Chris] They're taking on a
rookie robot named Ominous.
The architect is Tim Bouwens.
He is from the Netherlands.
He's been here before.
Back in 2018, he captained
a bot called Reality,
which had a career
record of two and two.
Not bad. Tell us
about this robot, Kenny.
[Kenny] Ominous is one
of only three bots in the field
featuring omni
directional wheels,
which allows the robot to
move seamlessly in any direction.
That kind of agility is
vital to escaping trouble,
avoiding hazards and
controlling the center of the box.
Ominous features a 50
pound vertical disk spinner
with a tip speed of
while Claw Viper
wants to control you.
Ominous wants to destroy you.
I love to fight where I have
no idea what's gonna happen,
which is actually most of the
time around here at BattleBots.
Faruq
[audience cheering]
In the Red Square,
from Seattle, Washington.
He came from the Pacific
Northwest to deliver your death.
It's Claw Viper!
[Chris] Kevin Milczewski,
there all the way to the left.
Told us he lives for these three
minutes inside the BattleBox.
Says it's the only time a
buttoned up engineer like himself
can satisfy some bloodlust.
[Kenny] Well, he's got to
let Claw Viper loose tonight.
It can accelerate from 0 to 20
miles per hour in half a second.
That's almost twice as fast
as a Lamborghini off the line,
if you've never seen this
bot in person, buckle up.
In the Blue Square
from Tilburg Netherlands
and speaking
fluent Netherlandian,
it's Ominous.
[audience cheering]
[Chris] From Holland
it's known for its windmills,
tulips and, of course,
murderous robots.
Here is Captain Tim Bouwens,
and here's our first look at Ominous.
I've got to tell you, that
thing is looking pretty cool.
[Kenny] Yeah, it's a gorgeous
design, but BattleBots
isn't a beauty contest.
It's k*ll or be k*lled.
We'll find out very soon if Ominous
is as effective as it is beautiful.
Claw Viper uses permanent
magnets to suck it to the floor
the way a race car
uses aerodynamics.
So we have increased the
magnet from last year four times
that let's Claw Viper
accelerate even faster.
If you thought Claw
Viper was fast last year,
look out it's even
faster this year.
I've been dreaming about
this robot for three years.
It now finally drives
like I want it to drive.
Those Claw Vipers you've
seen the last two years
that's not what
it's supposed to do.
This is what it's
supposed to do.
Claw Viper is known for
bulk slashing the opponent.
So I'm just gonna have to avoid him
until the weapon spins up to full speed.
And then we can engage.
Once the fight starts, I'm
just gonna go sideways.
The only directional drive is
really maneuverable drive system.
But it's not it's
not the creepiest.
So the weapon really compensates
for that. It can really pack a punch.
So hopefully that combination
will be perfect for this competition.
[robotic voice] Robots activate.
[audience cheering]
[Kenny] All right, folks.
Here's how all the team
members back in the pits.
See this one going down.
They seem to think it's the
rookie bot that has the edge.
[Chris] Listen, when a
new robot comes along,
the builders see fresh meat.
They're sizing it up in
the pits in the test box.
Clearly, they've seen
something that has them believing
Ominous is the real deal.
[Kenny] That's some serious
bulletin board material for Claw Viper.
[audience cheering]
[Chris] Let the
bot battle begin.
And holy smokes, look
how fast Claw Viper is.
[Kenny] It is lightning fast.
[Chris] Oh, yeah. Ominous
get thrown into the corner.
[Kenny] Ominous
needs to stay squared up.
[Chris] Oh, every which way I
took a shot. Now it's on its head.
[Kenny] Tim Bouwens just
trying to get his bearings.
Claw Viper super
aggressive to start.
[Chris] Can Ominous
find a way to self, right?
- Uh, or maybe Claw Viper will?
- [Kenny] Oh.
[Chris] Do the
heavy lifting literally.
Ominous breaks free. Claw
Viper just misses a nice hold there.
[Kenny] That's what
Kevin is looking for.
He wants to pick up Ominous
and carry it around the box.
- Look at this speed?
- [Chris] Holy smokes! This is the best Claw Viper.
Look as he takes Ominous
and puts it up on the screws.
[Kenny] Uh-oh.
[Chris] Yeah, those
screws will reverse.
Let's see if it
spits out Ominous.
- Let me go here, please.
- [Kenny] Little help?
- [Chris] Can you reverse the...
- [Kenny] And... bam!
[Kenny] Claw Viper looking for
the right angle to get a good bite.
Which is Ominous back
on the screw system.
[Chris] Hey, why don't you hang out there
for a second while I run some numbers?
Oh, boy.
Ominous trying to get
down and get out of town.
There you go. Tim
Bouwens searching for space.
But the lightning bolt Claw
Viper continues to close the gap.
[Kenny] Claw
Viper is crazy fast.
[Chris] Man, oh, man.
Claw Viper gets a
huge hit on top of it all.
[Kenny] Yeah, they continue to win the
ground game. They're there on a nice...
[Chris] Taking our
BattleBotssign down.
Ominous on its head again.
Claw Viper still
looking to get a bite.
Look at that. Stay up there.
- [Kenny] Ominous looking for an exit here.
- [Chris] Yeah.
[Kenny] And he gets it.
[Chris] Claw Viper all over it
has the grabber arm wide open,
still looking for a bite.
Ominous, inverted yet again.
How you doing, guys? Hi.
Approaching a minute remaining
in what has been a one-sided fight.
Claw Viper has
Ominous on its nose,
now teetering against the rail.
This is a precarious spot
for the Dutch bot, Kenny.
[Kenny] Oh wow.
He's up on his wedge.
He can't make
contact with the floor.
[Chris] Is he waving
goodbye like I'm done?
- Hello?
- [Kenny] Oh, boy.
[Kenny] I know that team
trying to get that weapon going.
Seeing if the force
can rattle it free.
[Chris] Oh, that's it. The
countdown has started.
Kevin Milczewski bot dominant
for the entire two and
half minutes in this one.
[audience cheering]
- Yeah.
- Yeah.
[Chris] Kenny, I would
say even in slow motion,
that Claw Viper is really fast.
[Kenny] Yeah. I mean, it's
like trying to swat a mosquito,
except this is a
[Chris] And check this out.
We didn't speed this footage up.
The agility of Claw Viper clearly
overwhelmed Ominous in this one.
Both the Omni drive and the
self-righter on the Dutch bot
looked sluggish in comparison.
But how do you think Kevin will grade
Claw Viper's new grappling system Kenny?
[Kenny] Yeah, obviously
he was hell bent on getting
a bite with that new
idiot strap design.
Wasn't able to execute in
fully control Ominous here,
but once the team
dials it in, look out.
This is going to be
a tough bot to beat.
[Chris] Ominous did work its
way down from the upper deck,
but it got cornered in a
bad, bad way and eventually
got put to rest by Claw Viper.
[Chris] Kevin Milczewski.
[laughter]
Why are you so pumped?
'Cause it works. That's
the real Claw Viper.
[audience cheering]
Kevin, that speed is just
tremendous out there.
It's unbelievable to watch it.
Is that the most dangerous
aspect of your bot?
No you saw us grab
and hold him, right?
We can hold people up in the
air now and carry 'em around.
That's what we want to do.
[audience cheering]
You know, Kevin,
so many bot builders
want to use this first fight to
learn something about their robot.
What did you learn about yours?
Uh, that that we can
stop and hold up there?
That was brand new. We
built that last night, so it works.
That's pretty good late night
work by you and your crew.
Congratulations on
the wonderful start.
My crew and I are
the great people.
- Good job!
- Thank you.
Good fight, man. That was a
lot of fun too. That thing hits hard.
Hey, Kenny, I don't care what
sport you're talking about. Speed kills.
[Kenny] Claw Viper is
insanely fast, but for me,
seeing a grabber lifter
have that kind of success
against another vertical
spinner, it's great to see.
I think they can go really fast.
Yeah. Claw Viper was
underwhelming early in its career.
We saw that reflected in
the pit pole favoring Ominous.
But Kevin Milczewski
told us, "Listen,
I was a little disappointed in our
performance the past few seasons.
He's worked hard
and now it's kind of...
- Is paying off. Yeah.
- It's making the big time leap.
All right. When we return, two of the
nastiest weapons in the game clash
as Copperhead takes on the
sanguine striker Bloodsport.
That's coming your
way next onBattleBots.
We continue on
here on BattleBots.
And up next Bloodsport
taking on Copperhead.
And let's start it
off with Bloodsport,
a team captained
by Justin Marple.
Back in World Championship V, Bloodsport
went undefeated in the qualifiers,
earning the number two
overall tournament seed.
But last season was
a rude awakening
as they got stomped in the round
of 32 by the hooves of Minotaur.
What do we expect to see out
of the team this time around?
[Kenny] Well, after that
early tournament exit,
Justin was talking
about retiring Bloodsport.
Instead, he redesigned
it from the ground up.
The weapon now
spins faster, hits harder,
and Justin thinks Bloodsport
will be more destructive than ever.
[Chris] His opponent is slithering
in the shadows, ready to strike.
It's Copperhead, led by new
team captain Luke Quintal.
He takes over for Robert
and Kimberly Cowan,
who previously took
over for Zack Gough.
It's been a revolving door
of leadership for this team.
Do we expect any
massive changes here?
[Kenny] Well, no. This bot
is tried, tested and deadly.
At first glance, Copperhead
looks pretty basic,
but the brilliance of this
robot is that simplicity
like Minotaur the drum can take a ton
of punishment and keep on spinning.
It pummels opponents as
well as any robot in the field.
Six of its ten career wins
have come by knockout,
and the game plan
is always the same.
Smash that powerful drop
into opponents at top speed.
[Chris] Let's remember
when they walked out
of the tunnel a season
ago, they had a live snake.
If that thing is back,
y'all are gonna have...
What's that up your
leg... Oh, no that's...
Believe me, if we see that thing,
I'm out of here. It's that simple, Faruq.
[audience cheering]
In the Red Square
as the Philly fan,
this intro was
painful to be doing,
but this bot's from
out near Boston.
So, you know,
trouble is brewing.
He'll leave you with red
socks after he cuts off your feet.
And unlike the Patriots, he
doesn't even have to cheat.
Give it up for Bloodsport.
[Chris] Justin Marple there to the right
leading this team out for their fourth season.
And holy smokes, I'm
loving the new Bloodsport,
Kenny do not, do not look
directly into those eyes.
You might turn to stone.
[Kenny] Yeah. Those eyes are mounted
on a new more powerful weapon motor,
because it's so large they
had to move it out of the chassis
to the top of Bloodsport.
It'll power the new 75
pound weapon called Chunky.
The blades almost as big as Copperhead
and Justin says it hits like a truck.
In the Blue Square, this snake is
made of metal and has one in its name.
It's a hardcore thrashing k*ller,
bringing Megadeth and pain.
It's more poisonous
than anthrax.
It's disturbed and
kills with quickness,
so don't let it sink
its teeth in you
or you're sure to get
down with the sickness.
Oh!
It's Copperhead!
[Chris] Here's Luke Quintal
and talk about an entrance.
You don't see a lot of
captains surfing on their bot.
And hey, I don't
see any live snakes,
but they do have
a small live boy.
What?
[Kenny] Well, I don't
know how hard the kid hits,
but that drum spinner is
Now, it only has a 140
mile per hour tip speed,
but they've learned
faster isn't always better.
This lower tip speed actually allows
the weapon to get more of a bite
instead of just chipping away.
Bloodsport is an
extremely experienced team
as far as horizontals go, I think
they hit as hard as they come,
so they have the chance of
doing extreme damage to us.
But because their
blade is so high up,
we're just really
hoping for that uppercut.
My plan is pretty much to box
rush them as quickly as possible,
get the weapon up to
speed and try to hit them hard
before they get
up to full speed.
I think with my driving
skill and style, we'll be able
to take Copperhead to victory.
It feels amazing to be back
here at BattleBotsagain.
We've come back with a brand
new robot, brand new Bloodsport,
completely rebuilt
from the ground up.
So new to this season, we
have something called a flexlet.
This helps us get
under the other robot
so the strategy against
Copperhead is to avoid their drum
as much as possible. Hit them
on the side. Go for the wheels.
If we can get under
them even better,
we just know if they
hit us or they hit our bar,
we're going to go flying.
So we want to avoid that.
[robotic voice] Robots activate.
[audience cheering]
[Chris] Kenny, some brutal
weapons in this match up.
What's gonna be
the difference maker?
[Kenny] I like the addition of
those flexlets on Bloodsport,
but we'll see how they hold up
to Copperheads unstoppable drum.
[robotic voice] Red team, ready?
Let's get bloody!
[audience cheering]
[robotic voice]
Blue team, ready?
[audience cheering]
- How about it? Yeah.
- Nice.
A little jab.
[audience cheering]
[Chris] The vertical drum
spinner, the horizontal blade,
the selection committee
craves violence.
[audience cheering]
[Chris] Let the
bot battle begin.
Weapons up to full speed.
[Chris] Oh, look at
the Copperhead...
What did it do to Bloodsport?
- [Kenny] Oh, my goodness!
- It burst a blade.
[Chris] It just destroyed
it with one shot.
[Kenny] Wow. The chain just
fallen out of Bloodsport there.
[Chris] Unbelievable!
Bloodsport, a bloody mess.
Won and done.
Courtesy of Copperhead.
[audience cheering]
[Kenny] Well, Kenny,
this didn't take long, did it?
[Chris] Yeah. What a shot.
[Kenny] And it
wasn't kind of flat on.
It was just a little edge that it
caught Copperhead is that powerful.
I mean, take a look at
the force of this collision.
The transfer of energy snaps, Bloodsport,
self-righter in half in mid-air.
Ridiculous.
[Chris] I mean, you're talking
about sending a 250 pound robot
half way through the battle box.
[Kenny] And immediately
Bloodsport went up in flames
and just a devastating shot.
[Chris] Yeah. Anti-venom ain't
gonna help with that snake bite.
Bloodsport is DOA.
- Luke.
- Whoa!
- Congratulations, man.
- Oh! Thank you!
Yeah, well, now, Kenny and I thought
you could finish him in under 10 seconds,
so we were a
little disappointed.
- Uh, 12 seconds that's got to do.
- Yeah.
Did you expect something
like that to happen?
Oh, no. One hit knockout
I was not expecting that.
That was a massive collision.
We obviously had some
drive issues there at the end,
so I'm kind of glad it
happened in one hit.
So, yeah, that was,
that was insane.
Luke, what was the strategy
heading into this fight?
We definitely wanted to
hit the left side of their robot
because of the
rotation that they spin in.
I think we got the hit
we were looking for.
I think we clipped the
bottom of their weapon
and did some
serious damage there.
We know that in recent seasons
that Copperhead has gone full throttle
and been right there in the mix.
Do you think that this robot has
what it takes to lift the Giant Nut?
I mean, Copperhead's, an
amazing robot, it's built like a tank.
And every year we
get better and better.
I mean, we only lost
one fight last season,
and right now we're undefeated.
- So I think we got it.
- So is that a yes or a no?
- That's a yes.
- Okay. Thank you.
- Good job, Luke. Congratulations.
- Thank you. Thank you.
[audience cheering]
[Chris] Kenny, this might have
been Copperhead's toughest matchup
in the qualifiers and
they made it look easy.
[Kenny] Yeah, they've got
the rookie Triton up next.
We're gonna see
them later tonight.
Right now, Luke's got to be feeling
good about his path to the tournament.
[Chris] As for Bloodsport,
this new design clearly
needs some more
time in the oven.
[Kenny] Yeah, unfortunately, there's not
much you can learn from a one hit knockout.
Their runway to work out the kinks of
this new bill just got a whole lot shorter.
[Chris] All right. Coming up,
we've got a bot chock full of ill will
and taking on a
mandibular m*rder*r
as Bunny Sauriol Malice
looks to snatch an early victory
from Donald Hutson and Lock-Jaw.
That's next onBattleBots.
You've returned for more of
BattleBots World Championship VII
that is Kenny Florian,
I am Chris Rose.
We've been treated to some
world class combat tonight.
And coming up later
in our main event,
we have got a monster matchup
between Hydra and Rotator.
But Kenny, we're hearing
whispers that Victor Soto's team
is experiencing some
issues with the bot.
[Kenny] Yeah, they've been
struggling with their radio transmitter
and they've spent
most of their time
in the test box
troubleshooting it.
Every robot here is controlled
by radio transmission.
A bad radio signal means
you can't control the bot.
Think driving through a
tunnel and dropping a call.
But in the battle box,
it's a recipe for disaster.
[Victor] The transmitter is fully
charged, so it's a brand new issue.
[Chris] Well, his opponent,
Jake Ewert, is circling
the test box like a shark,
and he smells blood.
We'll keep an eye on
this story as it develops.
But up next, we've got Bunny
Sauriol and Malice squaring off
with aBattleBots OG in Lock-Jaw.
But do not call
Donald Hutson O-L-D.
Some people wanted to say that last
season, after Lock-Jaw went winless,
they went 0-4 overall
in all their fights.
But Donald Hutson,
he's got the spry attitude
of like a 20-year-old.
He says, "Listen, I'm
ready to be battle tested.
I can't wait to get
it back out there."
I think that's the attitude we
love about Donald Hutson.
- He loves this stuff.
- Yeah.
Since he was 22-years-old, he
said he's been building things.
He's accomplished
so much in this sport.
But the reality is he's
not getting any younger
and he's desperate to prove
he can still compete here
in the modern era.
He's completely redesigned
the electronics inside of Lock-Jaw,
and he has determined to
have a bounce back season here
at World Championship VII.
[Chris] And Kenny, tonight
with Malice for the first time,
it is a family affair.
Bunny and teammate David
Liaw got married in the off season.
A win tonight against Lock-Jaw
would be the perfect wedding present.
[Kenny] Funny, I never
got the registry link.
Listen, Malice has struggled
mightily with weapon reliability issues
in its first two seasons,
and until they prove that they can
consistently keep their spinner active
for the full three minutes, they are a team
in jeopardy of falling out of the top 50.
David Liaw is grabbing
the controls for them.
He has a ton of experience
in other competitions,
has racked up a lot of awards.
Bunny feels it's the right time to
move on from former driver David Rush.
Mr. Liaw's got a big test right out
of the gate here against Lock-Jaw.
- You ready to check it out?
- Let's do it.
Faruq, do your thing.
[audience cheering]
In the Red Square from
San Diego, California.
If you get near his jaw, you'll be
drinking your meals through a straw,
it's Lock-Jaw!
[audience cheering]
[Chris] There is the
man, Donald Hutson
with his big infectious smile.
He spent half his life
eating in robot combat
and he has unfinished
business, Kenny.
[Kenny] Yeah, this is a
critical season for Lock-Jaw.
Check out that V-shaped
plough on the back.
That thing looks angry.
He wants to back that thing
up and jam up Malice's weapon,
then put that big
vertical spinner to work.
[audience cheering]
In the Blue Square,
from San Jose, California.
Your bots like her ears.
They're about to get lit up.
Give it up for Malice.
[audience cheering]
[Chris] Here we go.
Our first look at Malice.
And there she is, Bunny
Sauriol in all of her glory.
She always makes quite the
entrance, and so does that robot.
And you know what? I always
forget how imposing Malice is.
Especially because
Bunny is so sweet.
[Kenny] She's sweet and
spice and everything nice
until she gets into the
arena, then look out.
They're going with their mischief
set up to combat Lock-Jaw's plough.
Malice has that 55 pound
aluminum bar called drumstick
and new forks to fight
for the low ground.
[audience cheering]
Bunny and her team have
had this robot for many years.
It's got a big nasty
heavy spinning mass.
Our plan is to go in
with a configuration
that allows us both the
ability to destroy them
and a little bit of
armor to help protect
against some of the big hits
that weapons gonna put on.
So Lock-Jaw instead
of having a wedge,
which comes at more of a slope.
He has a plough which
is more, more vertical.
So we have to adjust and
use our lighter weapon.
Our plan is to get into that
plough and toss them so hard.
[audience cheering
and applauding]
[robotic voice] Robots activate.
[Chris] All right.
Big time fight here.
Will a new driver make
the difference for Malice?
Or will offseason upgrades turn Lock-Jaw
back into a championship contender?
We're gonna find out
when BattleBotscontinues.
[Chris] We are
back on BattleBots
and we are now moments
away from brawl in the box
between the heavy horizontal
Malice and a retooled Lock-Jaw.
[audience cheering]
[Chris] Malice, Lock-Jaw,
two teams in need of
a bounce back season.
Who's gonna get that
all-important first win?
[audience cheering]
[Kenny] Let the
bot battle begin.
Connects to Lock-Jaw, the
aggressor, trying to slow down Malice.
Throw it into the screws.
[Chris] I expected that box
rush to try to test that reliability
of that active weapon on Malice.
[Kenny] And Malice's
weapons being jammed up.
Good job by Donald Hutson.
[Chris] Donald's so
good at configuring
for his opponent so many
years of experience in this sport.
He is a master strategist.
[Kenny] He's going plough first right
into that 55 pound weapon of Malice.
He's done a great job
not allowing it to spin up.
[Chris] Yeah. And he's
laying the ground game.
He's getting underneath Malice.
[Kenny] Oh, big hit
there, weapon to weapon.
[Chris] Lock-Jaw with the
vertical spinner in the mix now,
looking for the right angle
to land a k*ll shot on Malice.
David Liaw for the
new driver of Malice,
trying to get around Lock-Jaw
And now take it
right to the weapon.
[Kenny] Hutson seems to be having some
issues there. He's kind of spinning around.
[Chris] Maybe having a little trouble
with some ground clearance on the floor.
[Kenny] Let's see if
Malice can take advantage.
Chris, David Liaw looking
for space to spin up.
[Chris] Malice looking for
the right way to deliver...
Instead it takes one
right to the kisser.
[Kenny] Yeah. Big
shot there by Lock-Jaw.
I don't think the tires of Lock-Jaw
are making great contact to the floor.
[Chris] Oh, weapon
to weapon action here.
Malice now playing the aggressor,
trying to corner the veteran.
[Kenny] Donald, alternating between
the plough and that vertical spinner.
He's looking to do damage.
[Chris] Huge hit. That's
the best one of match so far.
And in fact, Malice
has been inverted now.
It can't thrive isn't
as efficient, though.
[Kenny] And I think this is where Donald
Hutson really is gonna step on the gas.
But he's helped
Malice out there.
[Chris] Yeah, turned it
back over, a minute 15 to go.
[Kenny] And Chris, the primary weapon
on Malice has slowed and stopped.
This is the issue
that's haunted this team
throughout its career
weapon reliability.
[Chris] Donald Hutson
knows it and he capitalized.
[Kenny] It looks like that weapon is
about to fall off of Malice right now.
- Serious damage there.
- [Chris] Under a minute to go.
Lock-Jaw definitely
on the attack.
Oh, we have smoke in Lock-Jaw.
That has been
trouble in seasons past.
[Kenny] Keep an eye on
Lock-Jaw's weapon, can it stay active?
If Malice can stop
that vertical spinner,
it could even the
score cards here.
[Chris] It's not much, but there
is some life in that weapon.
The judges definitely take note.
[Kenny] Malice trying to
get underneath Lock-Jaw.
There they have those forks.
That's a new configuration for
them getting underneath Lock-Jaw.
Lock-Jaw having some
issues there with its tires.
[Chris] Under 30 to go.
As weapon on weapon
fireworks to start this match.
These two now pushing
their way to the finish line,
both trying to earn
any last points they can
in the aggression
and control categories.
Lock-Jaw, still smoking
under 10 seconds remaining.
And we will head to
the judges' scorecards.
They are Derek Young,
Lisa Winter, and Fon Davis.
Scoring on an 11 point system.
Five points to be
awarded for damage.
Three apiece for
aggression and control.
All right, Kenny, what'd
you see early on in this one?
[Kenny] Well, these are the kind
of fights that Bunny and Donald
love to be a part of.
It was a back
and forth w*r here.
Both teams willing to
stand in and trade shots.
But strategically, I thought that
V-shaped rear plough on Lock-Jaw
was very effective and
gave Donald the early edge.
[Chris] Lock-Jaw did a nice job
of leading with that plough in
order to slow down Malice's weapon
and then whipping
around for attacks
with the vertical spinner
eventually landing this monster shot.
[Kenny] Big time
shot right there.
And this is where the
fight really turned Chris.
The boogie man
came for team Malice
in the form of their weapon,
breaking down again.
[Chris] Donald Hutson
looked to be in control
until a plume of smoke
popped out of Lock-Jaw.
Its weapon was ineffective
from that point forward,
but the veteran was able to
push on through to the closing bell.
Let's go to Faruq,
who has the decision.
The results from
the judges are in.
The winner by
unanimous decision is...
Lock-Jaw!
[audience cheering]
Donald Hutson, congratulations.
Donald, I know you
are a proud, proud man.
You didn't get a W last season.
How nice is it to get
back in the winner's circle?
Well, you know, it's a
bit overdue, isn't it? Yeah.
[audience cheering]
Donald, it seems like
those are the kind of fights
that you really
love to be a part of.
What did you learn
about your robot?
Well, I thought the
robot performed well.
It took a heck of a beating
from some pretty serious hits,
and it feels really good for my whole
team, myself, to actually get a win.
And we're gonna plan to
keep it going, aren't we?
- Yeah.
- Yeah, we will.
[applause]
Congratulations on the win to
Donald Hutson and Team Lock-Jaw.
Thank you so much.
Well, Kenny, Donald
Hutson you may exhale.
It is it's got to be
so nice for him
just to get back there with a W.
[Kenny] Absolutely.
This is a huge
confidence booster
and with a world class bot like
Saw Blaze next on the schedule.
This opening win also gives
Donald some breathing room.
[Chris] And for
Malice, despite the loss,
they showed off
some nice durability.
[Kenny] Yeah, but weapon
reliability remains an issue.
At some point that
becomes inexcusable.
And up next for them is
the rookie bot emulsifier
who looked pretty
impressive last week.
Look, the season is young,
but this loss to Lock-Jaw
could come back to haunt Malice.
[Chris] Hey on deck.
It's a rookie robot
pushing the{\i0}BattleBots limits
with an 80 pound weapon Triton
and its havoc wreaking horizontal blade
makes its debut against
the Canadian flipper Lucky.
That's next, when we
return onBattleBots.
[audience cheering]
All right. We are
back on BattleBots.
And up next, it is a
rookie bot in Triton
taking on a true veteran
Mark Demers team.
Lucky, a bunch of really fun good
dudes from up north in Canada.
The hard-nosed pneumatic flipper
Lucky is coming off its best season yet,
earning the 25th seed in
World Championship VI,
before bowing out
in the round of 32.
Kenny, how does this
squad take the next big step?
[Kenny] Well, Mark is
bringing back his secret weapon
world class RC
driver Matt Olsen.
Matt was a revelation last year
in hisBattleBots
debut against Tantrum.
He had the eventual champs on
the ropes but was overly aggressive,
allowing Tantrum
to turn the tide.
With the year of robot
combat under his belt.
We'll see if Matt can find the
balance of aggression and patience.
And step one tonight, they'll have
to deal with a rookie bot in Triton.
They're captained
by Bradley Hanstad.
He was part of the team
Deep Six a season ago.
Deep six, of course, featured a 100 pound
weapon that was so violent and unpredictable
thatBattleBots said, "Yeah, let's
make 80 pounds the limit okay."
[Kenny] That's right.
And Bradley said,
"Fine, I'll make Triton's
weapon 80 pounds then."
This bot hits as
hard as Deep Six.
But the horizontal setup should
give the robot more stability.
Bradley built Triton in his
small one bedroom apartment
here in Las Vegas.
He's ready to unleash it
here against the Canadian.
Wait, till you see this weapon.
Let's get you all set
for this fight, Faruq.
[audience cheering]
In the Red Square
from Las Vegas, Nevada,
the son of Poseidon
that totally disregards
his tour will responsibilities.
It's Triton!
[audience cheering]
[Chris] There we go.
Bradley Hanstad, bring it up to
rear here and Team Triton is out.
What you are getting, dude
that weapon is enormous.
[Kenny] That thing
is just awesome.
[Chris] I'm not seeing
much armor, Kenny.
[Kenny] Well, listen, when
you have an 80 pound weapon,
you're clearly not too
concerned with defense.
Triton's basically a
voided out tombstone.
It wants to hit you
early and hit you hard.
They don't plan on going
three minutes with Lucky.
In the Blue Square
from Ottawa, Canada,
the bot that will beat
you black and Labatt blue.
It's Lucky!
[audience cheering]
[Chris] Oh, Canada.
Yes. Sweaters for everybody.
[Kenny] I love this look.
[Chris] A career record
of six and 11 for Lucky,
but their poutine, on their
best faces this season, Kenny.
[Kenny] Yeah, you know, despite
that tournament bid last year,
Lucky is a perfect example
of a team that needs to deliver
a quality performance here
at World Championship VII
in order to stake its claim
in next season's field of 50.
There are hundreds of
young engineers hungry
to grab your spot in this sport.
Win, remain relevant.
That's the goal.
Triton is designed to have one
of the hardest hits in the sport.
It has a good drive system so
we can push around in theory,
but it's all about that weapon,
and that's what we're bringing.
In order to win this fight
we just need to spin up.
And if we keep spinning,
that means Lucky's dying.
Sorry, eh.
Triton is a new machine, but
the team is very experienced.
They are known for
packing a really big punch.
Our plan is get on them.
Try to get that blade
running into the wall.
We want to stay
right on top of them,
be really aggressive
in their face,
and just keep on them
deflecting that energy.
[robotic voice] Robots activate.
[audience cheering]
[Chris] Kenny, bots
with oversized weapons
have a tendency to damage
themselves as much as their opponents.
[Kenny] Lucky,
clearly has that in mind.
I mean, check out the size of that
front wedge. Looks like an armored car.
They want to get under
Triton, knock it off balance
and dish out a 11,000 pounds of
force with that haymaker flipper.
[Chris] Hope he bought some
extra insurance for this one.
[audience cheering]
[Chris] Let the bot battle
begin. Triton spinning up.
And Lucky gets underneath
and pops it in the air.
Put that big front wedge
to work right out of the gate.
[Kenny] Triton. A little
wild here to start, Chris.
[Chris] The Canadians using that
wedge, kind of like a snow plough
ramming Triton into the screws.
[audience cheering]
[Chris] Looking to
deliver Triton into the teeth
of those screws, Triton escapes.
Now Bradley Hanstad
looking for space, spin back up.
Kenny, do you hear the sound
of that weapon, by the way?
[Kenny] It is nasty.
[Chris] Oh, big blow.
Triton lands a power shot.
Gonna get something going here.
[Kenny] Watch for
that whip around action.
[Chris] Oh, nice
call Kenny Florian.
Oh! This one blasted
backward after that collision.
That was nice.
[Kenny] But the Canadians
right back in the mix, Chris,
that big front wedge is the
perfect counter for Triton to play.
[Chris] And also doing a
great job of tracking, right.
Preventing it from getting
around to the back of Lucky.
That's good work.
Oh, another classic
blow by Triton.
[Kenny] Team Triton's inexperience
showing with the driving in this fight
[Chris] And look at Lucky,
trying to flip it out of here again.
Oh, they're underneath. Oh,
nice work. Put it right on its side.
Lucky, making it look easy, dropping
this anchor right where they want it.
It's the chef's kiss.
[Kenny] What a beautiful little
finesse flip there by Matt Olson.
And Matt's just
gonna leave him there.
[Chris] Here comes the
countdown. Lucky backs away.
Battles to gain the champs pass
for new life and a fight last season.
But no, not this time.
Team Lucky's gonna
move to 1 and 0.
[audience cheering]
[Chris] Kenny, how
impressed for you
that Lucky was able to keep its
opponent from really doing any damage,
even with an 80 pound weapon?
[Kenny] Yeah, this was the combination
of a great defensive configuration
and excellent driving
from Matt Olson.
[Chris] And Lucky did a
great job of staying squared up
with that big front wedge.
[Kenny] No doubt. And when you're
talking about a spinning weapon
as big as Triton, that is a lot
of energy to keep under control.
It only has those two small wheels as its
primary points of contact with the ground.
Bradley Hanstad gonna need some
more stick time to tame this beast.
Hey, Mark. Congratulations.
I know you love sending
your opponent up into the sky,
but I was super impressed
with that, with that wedge in front.
You like the gentle
touch right at the end.
That was wasn't really big,
but it did the job, you know.
[Chris] So, Mark, how
did you end up getting
that robot on its
side perfectly?
I thought it was fantastic.
I think we were taking
some damage there,
maybe damaged
our power a little bit,
and we just had just enough
to get him up on the side.
I think we were sticking
after they bent us
that we're sticking on the
wedge on the front a little bit.
And like I said, "Just enough to
get them where they can't move."
So, we'll take it. Got a
little lucky. We'll take it.
All right. Well, congrats,
Mark. Great start to the season.
[audience cheering]
So luck be a lady tonight.
Team Lucky off
to a strong start.
Next up, the Canadian squad will
look to flip Kraken like a pancake.
Then it's Shreddit
Bro! And finally, Cobalt.
And with Triton 80 pound weapon,
but if you can't
land that huge shot,
doesn't matter how
much you weigh, right?
Yeah. That's right.
But the weapon did stay
active for the full fight.
If Bradley can master the controls
and keep Triton facing forward.
This bot is one to watch.
Well, I know their next
opponent, Copperhead,
is definitely watching
because snakes don't blink.
Get it, Kenny.
All right.
Well, coming up, will hometown hero
Jackpot go home with all the winnings.
Or will Skorpios sting
deliver a debut victory?
Find out next
here on BattleBots.
[audience cheering]
We are back on BattleBots
World Championship VII.
Up next, we've got the
blue collar bot jackpot
taking on a bot
that's blue Skorpios.
Let's start with Jackpot, who
had very little distance to travel
because they are based right here
in Las Vegas led by a local plumber.
Jeff Waters now in his third
season. And guess what?
He's never lost a single
fight in the regular season.
[Kenny] Well, even
more impressive,
he's done that on
a shoestring budget,
spending only a few
thousand dollars on Jackpot.
Some of these teams
spent closer to a 100 grand.
But the secret sauce
is that 22-inch disk,
which extends nine inches
past the front of the chassis.
It hits hard.
It gives them an
incredible reach advantage.
Going undefeated
in the qualifiers
two seasons in a
row is no accident.
[Chris] They're
taking on Skorpios,
led by the dynamic husband and wife
duo of Zach Lytle and Diana Tarlson.
They won a bounty
a few years ago,
but they've never made
it out of the first round
of the world
Championship tournament.
Kenny, has this team peaked?
[Kenny] Well, if you asked Zach
and Diana, the best is yet to come.
They believe they've finally
fixed the weapon reliability issues
that have plagued them
and listen Scorpios is a tank.
In fact, they have more wins by
judge's decision than any other team.
If they can keep
that weapon going,
this could be their year
for a run at the Giant Nut.
That's right.
It's something like it's like
a, this is like the stinger.
This is getting really strange.
- We're not very good with our hands.
- Faruq, save us.
[audience cheering]
In the Red Square
from Las Vegas, Nevada.
Insurance, insurance,
life insurance.
You'll need it against Jackpot!
[Chris] Yes, the local
team ready to deal
with some pain
in your direction.
An unblemished record
in the regular season
and you dress for
success, Kenny.
[Kenny] Yeah, but this year might
be a little different with four fights
and what looks like
a tough schedule.
Those big forks on Jackpot's
front will be key tonight, though.
If they can win the ground game,
that weapon reach will cause
a lot of problems for Skorpios.
In the blue square from
Lafayette, California.
When your honeydew
list is just k*ll, k*ll, k*ll.
It's Skorpios!
[audience cheering]
[Chris] Oh, Zach and Diana
they always come out with so
much passion, so much energy.
All right.
Talk me through what they're
working with tonight, Kenny.
[Kenny] Well, they're not
going with their typical plough.
This is a new
front armor set up,
specifically designed
for vertical weapons.
It's meant to get under
opponents and deflect blows.
Skorpios has lost almost
every match against Berk's.
They're hoping
that ends tonight.
[audience cheering
and applauding]
We put all our effort
into our new lifter
ground game self-righting
hybrid system that we got going on.
I feel like the way Jackpot
is gonna win this fight
is going to be either
going right up that ramp
and getting that hammer
saw knocked out immediately
or get to one of the wheels
or cut the mobility down.
We cut some weight out of
the robot to bring in our mini bot,
which I feel like is going to be a
game changer against Skorpios.
What makes Jackpot so hard and
Jeff, such a tough builder to beat.
Robot's got massive reach.
So you're gonna hit the
blade before you hit him.
This is how he took so many
people by storm in his rookie year.
Trying to figure out how to
deal with that is relatively tricky.
We could k*ll just
about any horizontal.
We've proven that to death.
In the off season, we
developed a new type of armor
that's going to be our
answer to the vertical spinners,
and we cannot wait
to test it out tonight
and show it off in our
fight against Jackpot.
[robotic voice] Robots activate.
[Chris] Okay, Jackpots
tournament exits
were due to a lack
of a self-righter.
- Problem solved, Kenny?
- [Kenny] Yeah.
They've actually added a
lifting mechanism to the forks.
Jackpot's raising them
now. We'll see if it pays off.
[Chris] And there's
their mini bot, Ace
out of the sleeve
and onto the table.
[robotic voice] Red team, ready?
[audience cheering]
[robotic voice]
Blue team, ready?
[audience cheering]
[Chris] Let the
bots battle begin.
Oh, man, both weapons
up to full speed already.
Skorpios shows Jackpot its side.
Zach Lytle playing
with fire there.
[Kenny] Skorpios runs the mini
bot now taking on the big boy,
pushing Jackpot towards the
upper deck that's a big time shot.
Now hovering with
the hammer saw.
Oh, he splits the
aces, but uh-oh,
we got a fire coming
out of Skorpios now.
[Chris] Yeah. Skorpios
is burning up already,
but they've got a
great hit on Jackpot.
And I don't think that
self-righter is working right now.
[Kenny] I don't think
anything is working.
Hey, you just heard
Jeff Waters there.
That new self-righter they
were hyping is not working.
Skorpios doing just
fine. The smoke is clear.
And the countdown has started.
Skorpios trying to chase
after the little mini bot.
Can they get him?
Yes!
Skorpios get mini
KO, the major KO.
And win number
one of this season.
Oh, there's the
fire from Jackpot.
The boys from Vegas going
down in flames in fight number one.
[Chris] Kenny, some shaky
driving from Zach Lytle early,
but once he got Skorpios
pointed in the right direction,
it was game over for Jackpot.
[Kenny] Yeah, and Skorpios is so
well known for its defensive capabilities
that front wedge and
those forks in particular
is really what won them the battle
here against Jackpot in my opinion.
[Chris] Skorpios dropping
the hammer saw their
jackpot finally added a
self-righter this season
but here in fight number
one came up snake eyes.
Zach and Diana, Congratulations.
That is a great way to
jumpstart your season, right?
No kidding. Oh, my God!
I think that's as good as
that could have possibly gone.
[audience cheering
and applauding]
So, Zach, what did
you guys do right?
It worked.
We, we...
This is our brand new
vertical armor to finally
have a solution
for the verticals.
It went right under
it, fought the forks
like it was supposed to,
and it let us get that critical hit.
And we know the reach
Jackpot has is super scary.
And we have a lot of juicy
bits that stick out of our frame
that a lot of previous
verticals have hit.
So we had a plan
to hopefully not.
I had to control
myself a lot more.
It was really hard. I couldn't
just swing like I wanted to.
I had to actually wait.
And you know what?
Sometimes when you wait
for that good hit, it works.
[audience cheering
and applauding]
Zach and Diana, congratulations
and good luck
in your next fight.
- [Diana] Thank you.
- Thank you.
Viva Las Vegas!
[audience cheering
and applauding]
[Chris] Hey, if you're
Zack and Diana,
pulling off a dominant win
against a vertical spinner
has got to feel fantastic.
[Kenny] Yeah, that's a
big monkey off their back.
But they've got some
gorillas on their schedule
in Sawblaze and Ribbot
tough road to the tournament.
And as far as Jackpot, hey, that's
what a regular season loss tastes like.
You go back in the pits, you revamp
and you try to get a W in your next fight.
It's that simple.
All right. Coming up next,
it's our high flying finale.
Jake Ewert is determined
to bring the Giant Nut
back to the Whyachi
clan with his flipper Hydra.
But first, he's got to take down
Miami's own Victor Soto and Rotator.
Let's take a closer look
at tonight's main event.
Semifinals, Hydra, Tantrum.
You want to talk
about Tantrum, huh?
[Chris] Oh, nice flip from a
Hydra. Oh, nice job there.
Here comes Tantrum
targeting Hydra's weapon.
Honestly, I didn't
get beat last year.
[Chris] Tantrum scored some
damage points with that shot.
Whoa! What a
finishing shot by Hydra.
It'd be fine to lose and
lose because they beat you.
We have a split decision.
[Jake] But not because the
judges gave them the win.
- Tantrum!
- Yeah!
For this season I got
to come in and dominate
because I can't let the
judges steal it from me.
So I'm looking for knockouts
every step of the way.
[Faruq] It's Rotator.
Last season, in round of 16,
we faced off against Tantrum.
[Chris] Victor Soto dishing
out the punishment now.
[Victor] But we got knocked
out in the last 10 seconds.
[Chris] Whoa.
[Faruq] A remarkable shot
by Tantrum as they move on
to the round of 8.
It's, this is the third time
now we got knocked out
by the eventual champion.
We've just got to
break that cycle.
We don't want to
be the gatekeeper.
We want to be the guy
who's getting to the end.
This year, we ended up
making a brand new Rotator
from the ground up,
using these new motors
that are more powerful, lighter.
Total powerhouse.
I think the Rotator
fight is actually
gonna be a fairly tough matchup
because he just doesn't
go out, in a KO like ever.
I'm gonna have to go
with my heavy wedge.
Because for me to get
a lot of flips in on him,
I'm gonna have
to take a lot of hits.
[Kenny] Rotator
continuing its all out as*ault.
HYDRA's a very challenging
robot just because Jake
is very fearless
in using the flipper
and he'll flip it even if
our spinners right over it.
We don't want a lot of
armor pieces that Jake
can catch with his flipper.
So we're gonna reduce a
lot of weight on the robot.
And that's also gonna make
Rotator a little more nimble,
if we've got everything down.
I think we have a very good
chance of knocking out HYDRA.
[Chris] Oh, I felt
that in my stomach.
[Jake] People fear HYDRA
because I will
go in and I will flip
into anything at this point
and people know that.
They should be scared.
[Victor] Every year we
come in with the mentality
of going all the way
to get the Giant Nut.
It doesn't matter
who's in front of us.
We want to take them down.
Victor, I'm coming for you.
[laughter]
[audience cheering]
[Chris] Jake, you were
clearly a man on a mission
who wants to send Rotator
on a mission to Mars.
Kenny, what's the latest
on Victor Soto's robot?
[man] Uh, needle nose.
But guys, guys, what's
the scope. Come on.
[man2] ...right around here.
[Kenny] Well, we saw
Rotator having issues
earlier and look at this.
Victor Soto is literally
right outside the arena,
desperately working
on that radio transmitter.
[Victor] Got it.
- Don't pull it up.
- No, no.
Hold on. I got it, Carl.
Here, Carl. Will you please...
[Kenny] Unreal. This
fight is only minutes away.
Can Rotator make
the starting bell
for this crucial main event?
We'll have our answer,
next onBattleBots.
[Chris] We continue
on, here on BattleBots.
And Kenny Florian,
it's time right now
for our main event.
Now, before the break,
we saw Captain Victor Soto
in panic mode,
scrambling to get Rotator
ready to roll for this match.
[man] Yeah, I got it. Hang on.
[Chris] But there
is a welcome sight.
The bot is being
wheeled into the arena.
Now, we don't know
yet what type of shape
Rotator is in, but we do
know it's scheduled to face
the preseason fifth ranked
robot here at WCVII, HYDRA.
HYDRA, of course,
the hydraulic flipper
led by the one and
only Jake Ewert
as part of team Whyachi.
He is a perennial favorite
to win the Giant Nut.
But last season, his
deepest tournament run
yet was derailed
in the semi's after
what was an
incredibly controversial
judge's decision, Kenny.
Tantrum!
[cheering]
[Kenny] Yeah, and
we heard him earlier.
Jake still feels like
the judges got it wrong,
and he's not alone.
That decision split the judges,
split the builders,
split the entireBattleBots
community.
But the loss lit a
fire under Jake.
He's not gonna leave his fate
in the judge's hands anymore.
He doesn't care about
the damage he takes.
He's going to be the
aggressor this season.
And it all starts
tonight against Rotator.
By the way, later on
in the regular season,
HYDRA will get a
rematch with Tantrum,
the current defending champion.
As for Rotator, last year,
it also got knocked out
of the tournament by Tantrum
that was in the round of 16,
and that loss spurred a
complete rebuild, Kenny.
[Kenny] That's right.
While it looks similar
to last year's robot,
the insides are more compact
and much more powerful.
The team shaved a full
second off the weapons,
spin up time and it
reportedly hits with a whopping
Victor wants to be
back in the conversation
for most destructive robot.
[Chris] All right. Well,
the report is that Rotator
has been given the
green light to fight.
So problem number one solved.
But now it's time for
final jeopardy, Kenny.
[Kenny] A robot that can launch
you into the stratosphere.
[Chris] What is HYDRA?
Ding, ding, ding.
And let's check out how
the career numbers stack up.
You can see it right there.
These are two of
the winningest bots
in the modern era.
[Kenny] Yeah. And the preseason
rankings say HYDRA is the favorite.
But don't sleep
on Victor's squad.
Rotator's been just as
deadly and has been just
as difficult to knock out.
You could see in
the KOA's category,
both teams have only
suffered three career knockouts
against them.
But this does also highlight
the power of Hydra's flipper.
It's currently tied with
Bronko for the most
knockouts by a flipper
bot in{\i0}BattleBots history.
[Chris] Two world class
teams, two of the top robots
on the planet.
Let's do it.
Faruq.
[Faruq] Ladies and
gentlemen, are you ready?
[crowd cheering]
It's time for the main event!
In the red square after you meet
this next bot, you'll
need a real spin doctor.
That's what I said, now.
To save you from its blades,
that spin like a helicopter.
That's what I said now.
It's the king that
k*lled two princes.
I know, you know how
with its razor sharp spinner.
That's what I said now.
Give it up for Rotator!
[Chris] There he is.
Miami's own Victor Soto.
He's looking cool,
calm, and collected.
You would ever know
just a few minutes ago,
this team was struggling
to even make it to the arena.
And Kenny, it looks like
they're running upside down.
[Kenny] Stranger
things have happened.
They've got that 40
pound blade on top
instead of their
standard under cutter.
HYDRA is very well
armored for low attack,
so Victor wants to
focus on the more
vulnerable spots up top.
[crowd cheering]
[Faruq] In the blue square,
remember that old video game,
NBA Jam, where you could jump
from half court and
still put down a slam?
I always thought that was merely
an optical illusion until
I saw this bot launch,
people that high.
Now it's a logical conclusion.
Boom Shaka Laka, he's on fire.
It's HYDRA!
[crowd cheering]
[Chris] Jake Ewert
pushing it out and yeah,
playing to the crowd already.
Although I think he
kind of likes playing
the role of villain too.
He absolutely does.
But he's a very lovable villain.
We were just talking
about Rotator's top cutter.
Jake's betting his
AR500 top armor plate
can hold up to it, if it can.
He won't have any
hesitation going flip hunting.
[crowd cheering]
[Chris] Kenny. Despite
HYDRA's controversial
exit last season, Jake
did receive some criticism.
A lot of people felt
he would plop HYDRA
right in the center of the
box and just wait around.
[Kenny] And there's an argument
to be made on both sides.
Some people call that smart.
Others call it poor
sportsmanship.
Either way, if you just sit
there against a powerhouse
like Rotator, you're
asking for trouble.
Perfect.
[robot voice] Robots activate.
[Chris] All right.
Two preseason top
Whoever prevails
adds a massive W
to their resume.
Can Victor Soto return
to most destructive form?
Will Jake's warpath to
the Giant Nut begin tonight.
We're gonna find out,
when BattleBotscontinues.
[Chris] We kicked off
the night talking about
the thousands of
pounds of gear teams
brought to make it through
this unprecedented season.
And you can see with
one look back at the Pits.
We weren't kidding.
[man] Everybody is just
so prepared this year.
The level of attrition
has been getting
higher and higher every season.
And this season everybody
just brought their A-game.
[man1] We have multiple weapons.
We can run anywhere
from 40 pounds
to about 55 pounds.
[man2] We came into the season
knowing that this was gonna
be something we had to do,
and so we were ready for it.
Four different
drum configurations,
we have different wedge
front configurations.
[man3] We have
a pit full of plastic.
We have all sorts of
different new plastics.
We're trying new stuff.
A lot of teams come
to us to get plastic,
to get our tools
for the plastic.
We've got lots
of spares with us.
So many attachments.
Winning at this level really
requires success in the pits.
We put a lot of time into that.
[Chris] Welcome back to
BattleBots World Championship VII.
We've got one of the
most disruptive horizontals
in the sport,
Rotator set to clash
with what may be the greatest
flipper of all time in HYDRA.
Kenny, this main event
has the full attention
of the teams back in the pits.
How do they see
this one going down?
[Kenny] Well, they
clearly don't see
this as much of a contest.
A whopping 75% think
Hydra will lock this up.
But listen, 60% of Rotators
wins have come by KO.
I'm expecting a
competitive match.
[crowd cheering and applauding]
[Chris] Uh, ladies
and gentlemen,
this is your host,
Chris Rose speaking.
Please stow your tray tables
and buckle your seatbelts.
This main event
is ready for takeoff.
[Kenny] Let the
bot battle begin.
Whoa, HYDRA gets hung
up on the BattleBot'sfloor.
Both bots looking
to win low ground.
HYDRA just misses
on the flip but catches...
through the flipper there.
That was nice.
Jake Ewert all over Victor Soto
to start the match.
[Chris] Rotator
up against the rail.
Breaks free and gets
right underneath HYDRA.
That's a good
sign for Victor Soto.
Those forks doing their job.
[crowd] Whoa!
[Kenny] And that's a big shock.
Oh boy.
Wow.
When Jake gets going.
He does not let up, Chris.
And Rotator is feeling it.
Whoa!
Wow.
Look at the lights there,
that's how high Rotator
went up in the air.
[Chris] That's always
been Jake Ewert's dream.
Rotator in serious trouble here.
[Kenny] HYDRA's got
it in the fourth quarter
and it's up three for more.
That tire on Rotator
is not really rotating
and it looks like it's
caught maybe on the rails
it's done for the day.
[Chris] Jake Ewert
never broke a sweat.
He looks like a
man on a mission.
[Kenny] The
countdown has started.
HYDRA off and running,
here in BattleBotsseason 7.
Two, one. Knock out.
[buzzer blaring]
[crowd cheering]
[Chris] Well, Kenny, we
know that Rotator was fighting
technical issues
coming into this match.
Did Victor's robot
look 100% to you?
[Kenny] You know,
it's hard to say.
The weapon never
really got up to full speed,
which is
uncharacteristic for a bot
as well built as Rotator.
But let's give HYDRA
due credit here.
Jake was all over Rotator
from the opening bell.
He won the battle for the
low ground and never let up.
HYDRA handled its business.
[Chris] What a display of
flipping power by HYDRA.
Eleven total flips in the match.
This one launched
Rotator 14 feet in the air.
HYDRA Airlines is
open for business, folks.
And tonight, business was good.
[Jake] Heck, yeah!
[Chris] Hey, Jake.
[Jake] I can hear you.
[Chris] Okay.
Eleven flips, did
you impress yourself?
It worked 100% this time.
So that's a start, I guess.
Uh-huh.
So, Jake, what is your
realistic goal this year?
Is it simply the Giant Nut
or the season is a failure?
I keep making it
one step further,
and I was semi-finals last year.
That means, what
are we gonna do?
Yeah, the Giant Nut.
I'm gonna get to that match.
That's the one I'm going for.
Jake, they say
reach for the sky.
You almost hit Rotator
up into the lights.
I know that's something
you've been looking for.
Honestly, he went a
little higher than I thought
he was on that one.
Yeah, he was... he was
quite a ways up there.
So that was pretty good.
It demonstrates that
the bot still works.
We're hopefully we
don't have the gremlins
we had last season and
we can just go forward
and just keep punting people.
Hey, Jake, you
know who you fight
in your next match?
Oh, probably that
champ, I guess.
Yeah. You get your shot
at Tantrum and Redemption,
when you lost to them last
season in the semifinals.
I'll just kick his a*s again.
[Chris] All right, Jake.
We look forward to
it. We'll see you then.
[Jake] Thank you. See you guys.
[Chris] Victor, it must be
the most helpless feeling
when you're just flying
through the air against
HYDRA, isn't it?
Yeah. Yeah. And it's not ideal,
but at least it looks like just
we got caught in a weird position.
Everything was still functional,
so we, you know, learned
from last season, improved a lot.
It's robust.
We just have a lot of
bugs to work out with.
All right. Well,
Victor, best of luck.
We'll see you
in your next fight.
Thank you.
[crowd cheering]
[Chris] Well, Kenny, no big
surprise that HYDRA came out
flipping at his
opponent left and right.
I'm just curious, is it
something you said?
Because I thought
he was trying to throw
Rotator over on our desk here.
I'm telling you, we almost
got hit with no doubt about it.
It was crazy.
[Chris] And looking
at the rest of the Jake
schedule, this was
a huge win for him.
[Kenny] That's right. No
gimmes for Jake this year.
And if you thought he
was aggressive tonight,
just wait until that
rematch with reigning
world champions Tantrum.
The past might get
unburied in that one.
[Chris] And for Victor
Soto and Rotator, I think
this is a loss that they
could certainly accept.
[Kenny] Yeah. HYDRA
has one of the highest
win percentages
in the sport's history.
No shame here.
If anything, the
team will be pleased
that they nearly
touched the ceiling
and walked away in one piece.
They've got a winnable fight
up next against Jackpot,
who we saw struggle earlier.
Tonight, big picture,
seven fights, six knockouts.
Cobalt proved they are still
one of the deadliest
verticals of the sport.
And how about Claw Viper.
[Chris] Holy smokes.
I'm happy this wasn't
in a school zone
in there would have been
pulled over for speeding.
And that thing
is incredibly fast.
[Chris] All right, Kenny,
at this point in the season,
we've already seen more than 80%
of the World
Championship VII field.
In your eyes, who's trending
up and who is trending down
through the first
round of fights?
[Kenny] Well, here's
my top 16 as of right now,
as well as where they were
ranked during the preseason.
Now, reminder, I am not
part of the highly exclusive
selection committee,
but I've got our current
world champions falling
outside the top five.
But you can't knock
them too much
for their hard fought
loss against Daniel Freitas
and the Brazilian Bull Minotaur.
Now, two teams
that really impressed
me in their first fights are
Riptide and MaDCatTer.
In week one. Ethan
Kurtz, One hit KO Glitch,
a preseason top ten team
that had only been beaten
once before that.
And then last week we
saw the gritty kitty absolutely
maul the 2020
runners up Whiplash.
Both teams are full of
college kids who look like
they did their off
season homework.
And guess what?
They'll see each
other in the box,
two weeks from today.
[Chris] Anybody that's
outside of your top 16
that's flying under the radar.
[Kenny] Yeah, I'd say Quantum.
They hadn't competed
here since 2019,
but the crusher bot looked sharp
in just about every possible way
in fight number one.
Next week, the boys from Britain
will take on the 1 and 0, Gruff,
which is one of the most
heavily armored bots in the field.
It'll be a good litmus
test to see just how sharp
Quantum's teeth really are.
And there are still
some exciting teams
making their season
debut next week too,
like the legendary
Hammer bot Beta
and one of the biggest
vertical spinners
in the competition, Monsoon.
Just an incredible
field this year.
[Chris] Well, lots of good
teams are sitting at 0-1
and they'll have
three more fights
to get things figured out.
But get this, in the
modern era every team
that has gone on to
win the championship
has started that
season with a win.
Well, we continue on
here with an amazing
season here on BattleBots.
Hope you had fun tonight.
Hope you had fun as well.
For Faruq and Kenny
Florian, I am Chris Rose.
We'll see you next time
here on BattleBots.
[crowd cheering]
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08x03 - Everyone Wants to Be the Hotshot
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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.