[automated voice speaking] robots, activate.
[audience cheering]
hi, everybody, and welcome once again to battlebots.
It is the show that combines ingenuity and brutality
in a beautiful display of robot combat.
I'm chris rose, joined by ufc legend.
He is the master of the front kick.
I'm just happy to say he's my sidekick. That'd be kenny florian.
I can also show you a roundhouse kick if you want.
Ah, hard pass, pal. Hard pass.
We have reached, by far, the biggest and most important night we've had all season
because at the end of the night, the battlebots world championship
tournament bracket will be revealed.
And this year, more than any other, the margins in the rankings
will be so slim that even some top-tier teams may miss out
on a chance to compete for the giant nut.
[kenny] I have my bracket ready to fill in.
I can't wait to see how this tournament shapes up.
But first, we got a jam-packed slate of qualifying fights to get to.
This is the absolute last chance to impress the selection committee.
We've got eight, count 'em, eight one-and-one teams on this card,
who know their performance tonight could be the difference
between a high and a low seed,
or even determine whether or not they make the tournament.
[kenny] that's right. Look no further than end game versus hypershock.
Both teams are one-and-one and the winner will no doubt
punch their ticket to the round of 32.
But while end game is looking to lock up a top seed,
hypershock is fighting for their tournament lives.
[chris] the stakes are also sky-high for tantrum,
as it faces off with gamma 9,
as well as sawblaze who meets the junkyard bot, rusty.
[kenny] again, with one-and-one records, everything comes down
to their performances in these final fights.
An impressive knockout means their tournament stock could soar.
A disappointing loss, well, that could spell disaster.
[chris] and we'll see one of the most dangerous one-and-one teams tonight
in the main event,
as whiplash takes on valkyrie.
I've waited a long time to see this one.
Whiplash and valkyrie are both very evenly matched,
both in bots and drivers. I really can't pick a winner here.
I will say this though.
You don't want it to come down on the judges
and rely on them for a win.
[chris] for more on this match-up,
let's go down to the third member of our team, jenny taft.
Valkyrie and whiplash have a bit of history.
When I asked leanne about what it's like
going up against the vasquez family,
she said, "this one's hard for me because really, they're like family."
oh, and matt vasquez has had a transmitter in his hand since he was a baby.
The plan for whiplash is really three words,
driving and box rush.
They have a 45-pound wedge attached to their lifter
and they fully expect to send valkyrie sailing.
[chris] thanks, jenny. And we'll see that match-up later tonight.
But right now, buckle up,
because to kick things off
we've got a showdown between two undefeated teams
that could very well decide the number one overall seed.
It's jake ewert's hydra versus alex hattori and uppercut.
[kenny] yeah, this is a fight between two of the most powerful weapons...
-[kenny] oh, my goodness. -[chris] my gosh.
[kenny] ...And two of the most aggressive drivers in battlebots.
Get ready for a slug fest, chris.
-A lot to fight for tonight. You ready? -Yes.
-Faruq, take it away. -Let's do it.
Ladies and gentlemen, it's robot-fighting time.
[cheering and clapping]
in the blue square, when it flips you, you'll be going, going, gone.
And when you hit the ground, you'll make this sound,
boing, boing, bong.
It's the bot that died ya, it's hydra.
[audience cheering]
[chris] hydra has not lost a qualifying round match-up
in the last two seasons.
And it's become the premier flipper in the sport.
Against a bot with as much punching power as uppercut, kenny,
do you think they'll play it more conservatively or not?
[kenny] well, they've got to be careful, chris.
They're gonna have to get under the flanks of uppercut
to attack without getting destroyed.
And jake knows, one wrong move and it's over.
After the heat he took from using that bike rack against huge though,
I do think he wants to remind people
how dangerous hydra really is.
In the red square, this bot's got more hits than billie eilish.
It's the real deal, you're just a side dish,
sing a song about the fight that it's fought 'cause one thing's for sure,
it's a bad bot.
Duh, it's uppercut.
[audience cheering]
[chris] knocked out gemini, where it punted one of the twins
all the way across the battlebox,
and also k.Oed its fellow mit bot, sawblaze.
Kenny, that spinner has been absolutely vicious this year.
[kenny] it really has, chris. That spinner just transfers kinetic energy so efficiently.
They don't have the greatest turning radius, though.
So I'm curious how that will affect this fight.
And you see that great battlebox replica down there.
That's a functional nuisance bot that they'll use
during the fight to try and distract hydra.
[audience members] whoo!
Going up against uppercut tonight, my confidence level is a low 30%.
It's gonna be a tough match. He's been just whipping people left and right
with that big old spinner. I wanna get underneath one of the wheel sides.
I don't want to touch the spinner or get him close to that.
So I'm gonna aim for a corner, flip that,
and then hopefully they die after a few flips,
and I don't have to, you know, keep monkeying around them.
I mean, I'm not very confident going in but that's good.
That way I stay scared and I stay, you know, alert.
Up next, we're fighting hydra.
Excited just to be in the arena with the whyachis.
We've never fought a whyachi bot before.
I hope it's just a spin of that blade,
get to the side of the arena and just keep pointed towards them.
Hydra's a really, really, really good robot.
So we're hoping that we can survive flying through the air a few times if we have to.
[automated voice speaking] robots, activate.
[chris] wow. We are not used to hearing jake ewert lack confidence.
For more on this, let's bring in our bot whisperer, pete abrahamson.
All right, pete, what's got jake so worried about this match-up?
Well, one of the issues that hydra has is they have very thin armor.
I mean, even though it's titanium, it is fairly thin,
and very vulnerable to cutting.
Now if you look at uppercut,
they're not going with that fist that they usually have,
they're actually going with the bar, that's incredibly sharp,
designed for cutting.
Hydra's biggest goal here is to get under the weapon, below uppercut to make a flip.
[chris] all right. Thanks, pete.
Sounds like jake has a small margin of error here against alex hattori.
[automated voice speaking] blue team, ready?
[audience cheering]
[automated voice speaking] red team, ready?
[audience screaming and cheering]
[electronic noise]
[chris] uppercut, hydra.
The number one seed in the tournament could be on the line.
[buzzer sounds]
[audience chanting] fight, fight, fight.
[chris] let the bot battle begin.
Hydra getting stuck on the floor a bit.
Trying to face off-- whoa! The first big flip.
[kenny] got right underneath uppercut there.
This match is going to come down to the battle for low ground, chris.
[chris] hydra, cool, calm, collected to start.
Uppercut a little out of control here.
-[kenny] that is not-- -[chris] whoa!
[kenny] see you later, battlebox.
[chris] uppercut still up on one wheel,
and hydra keeping its distance.
[kenny] yeah, jake does not wanna engage that robot upside down like that.
He wants to attack the base.
[both] whoa! Whoa!
[chris] hydra sends uppercut into the stratosphere
and it lands directly on that spinning weapon.
It looks to be okay though.
[both] whoa!
-[chris] another one. -[kenny] jeeze!
[chris] uppercut scrambling for space,
hydra just stalking him like a shark.
Whoa, uppercut's slipped--
it slams into the side of hydra. Its first of the match.
[kenny] as long as uppercut's weapon is spinning, chris,
they have the potential to end this fight with one shot.
They are knockout artists.
[chris] no doubt about it, but they are behind on the scorecard in this fight.
As you see, uppercut gets hung up in the kill saws there.
Alex hattori continues to probe for the right angle of attack.
[kenny] whoa! Beautiful timing by hydra.
[chris] textbook flip by hydra and jake ewert. And again!
-[kenny] oh. Uh-oh. -[chris] whoa!
[chris] hydra wants to finish this thing.
[kenny] uppercut just rocked itself on the screws there, chris.
It may be hurt.
[chris] wow. Another big shot.
[kenny] hydra is just so low to the ground, chris.
They are dominating this fight right now.
[chris] and it looks like uppercut's weapon may be out of commission.
[kenny] but look at that, caught again in the kill saws.
Now it's in the screws!
And those screws will reverse themselves.
Let's see if it's able to spit out uppercut or if this thing is over.
Oh, somehow uppercut is back. Oh!
Unbelievable! Hydra again!
Hydra just staying on with the full-core press right now, chris.
[chris] and it is crunch-time for uppercut.
They need to make something happen
if they wanna keep that perfect record intact.
[kenny] this is a nice opportunity for hydra to get another flip in.
[chris] uppercut desperately trying to get that weapon back up to speed.
Hydra pivoting to track their movements,
ready to pounce when they choose to engage here.
[kenny] hydra needs to run out the clock.
-Under 30 to go. -[chris] oh! Look at that!
[kenny] huge mistake by jake ewert there.
I think uppercut may have hurt hydra.
[both] whoa!
[chris] alex hattori with a desperate attack.
Come on now.
[chris] every time uppercut tries to get in and catch a bite,
it goes flying through the air.
[kenny] oh! Another beautiful flip by hydra.
[chris] an amazing performance by hydra
in a fight that ends up going the distance.
[buzzer sounds]
[audience cheering]
[chris] so this one goes to the judges,
who are judging this in three different categories,
damage, the most heavily weighted, up to five points,
three for aggression, and three for control.
All three judges are former battlebots participants,
derek young, lisa winter, and jason bardis.
That's how I wanted to finish that one.
[chris] kenny, what did hydra have to be worried about?
[kenny] I mean, there was no question, they dominated the fight.
I mean, the one question I have is if they're gonna honor
all the free air mileage they got on air hydra.
[chris laughs] hydra dominated the battle for low ground,
took out uppercut's weapon but uppercut stayed aggressive
and that should earn them some points with the judges.
[kenny] it doesn't matter how powerful your weapon is,
if you're up in the air, you can't do any damage.
Hydra was just brilliant tonight.
[chris] it was a good one. Let's send it to faruq with the decision.
The results from the judges are in.
And the winner by unanimous decision...
Hydra!
[audience cheers and claps]
good job, guys, good job.
-[chris] jake ewert. -Just the one side.
[chris] jake ewert.
Did we just watch the number one seed go to work?
Uh, I sure hope so.
I mean, that was a lot better fight
than having a big, huge attachment from last time.
So it feels a lot better getting a win this way than it does the other way.
Would you say you're extremely comfortable driving hydra at this point?
Uh, definitely. I mean, I was afraid during the huge match
because the big, giant arms, I had to be 100% on my game to not get hit.
I mean this one here might have been little bit easier.
Because they had a solid frame underneath them,
I could pretty much flip on any spot of the bot
and I didn't have to worry too much about it.
Jake, based on your bot's performance during the regular season,
how disappointed would you be if you don't get that giant nut?
Uh, it's gonna be bad.
Worse yet is if I lose in the first round
of tournament, like we have during the whyachi curse.
We haven't done it yet,
so I better be the first one to do it.
All right. Well, jake, congratulations,
an amazing regular season,
and way to cap it off in style,
against upper cut.
Thank you, guys.
It's been a great little run for us here.
-Sure has. Good job. -Thanks.
-[all cheering] -[bell dinging]
you are not a part of this selection committee correct?
I am not, no.
But you have hydra
as the top dog heading into this thing.
-I mean, how do you not have, right? -Right.
At the number one seated at this point?
And how about uppercut?
They got sent airborne
something like seven times,
and still went to full three minutes, chris.
They are not a team you wanna see in the tournament.
This is a rematch
I wouldn't mind seeing down the road.
We just might see it.
Comin' up.
It's give me fuel.
Give me fire! As sawblaze
looks to take fan favorite rusty back to the garage.
And don't forget,
we are driving towards the big reveal
of our 2020 world championship bracket.
Find out who's in and who's out,
later tonight on battlebots.
-[people shouting] -[crowd cheering]
we are back on battlebots
and up next, we've got a david versus goliath matchup.
It's dave eaton and rusty versus
jamison go and sawblaze.
And while they are both one and one,
these are really two different
classes of robots, kenny.
Let's start with sawblaze.
[kenny] yeah, jamison go of course a familiar face here at battlebots.
Sawblaze is a perennial contender for the giant nut.
The only reason he's one and one right now
is because his schedule landed on a nearly
literal landmine by facing uppercut in his last match.
Oh, my goodness!
Oh my gosh! Woah.
I don't think there's ever been
a bigger explosion in the battlebots.
But, you know what was maybe most impressive about that fight?
Jamison go's bot kept fighting after that.
Truly one of highest quality bots
in the field from a building perspective, chris.
[chris] and speaking of build quality,
rusty is on a little bit of a different spectrum.
Well, rusty is kinda your
junk bot mixed with an art bot.
But, one man band builder, dave eaton
has embraced that.
And how can you not love it?
I mean rusty just has
so much personality, chris.
It's a long shot.
But, if dave eaton can poke sawblaze in the same spot
that caused them to detonate,
who knows?
One thing I do know
is that rusty is never gonna give up hope.
[kenny] this matchup should be a whole lot of fun.
All right, faruq take it away.
[intense music playing]
in the blue square,
from hebron, illinois,
this bot is far from dusty,
it's rusty!
[crowd cheering]
koed sporkinok,
and then got knocked out by beta.
But, folks, he's havin' the time of his life.
[kenny] yeah, you know, dave really is
making the most of his first season here on battlebots.
He built rusty from recycled parts
that dave found on his parents' farm.
But this bot can move, chris.
And despite what it's made out of,
it's surprisingly durable. It can take a punch.
Just ask beta.
In the red square, from cambridge, mass.
It's the head of the class,
sawblaze!
[crowd cheering]
[chris] well, jamison go told us
he had two serious repairs to do
after that uppercut fight.
I mean, a bomb basically went off inside
of sawblaze. So, no surprise there.
[kenny] yeah, they had to get a number of parts
custom made to rebuild this bot
and jamison told us,
his team has just been taking things
minute by minute since that fight.
But, this team has some of the smartest
and most capable engineers
in this competition, chris.
I think sawblaze will be ready to rock.
Today, I'm fighting sawblaze
and I've been up all night thinking about it. [chuckles]
I'm switching up the strategy that I used against beta, which did not work.
[scoffs]
and I'm gonna go right at them this time.
I know he's gonna try to get me up on the dust pan.
My plan is to let him do that, actually,
'cause once I'm on top of him, rusty has a short throw
and he's got a pretty tight reach with that hammer,
and once I'm on top of him, I should be able to get down
into the pieces I need to get at with that air hammer.
I think he's gonna go the distance against sawblaze.
Rusty looks like he's some sort of overhead
pecker drill bot.
So, we've put on some of our vertical defenses there
and we also put on our saw blade
for their steel frame and armor.
I don't know too much about what rusty looks like on the inside.
I think if we make enough cuts in random places, we'll hit something good.
Any opponent, no matter what they look like,
we take them seriously.
We're gonna go out there and totally tear him up.
[crowd cheering]
[automated voice speaking] robots activate.
[crowd cheering]
[kenny] chris, notice sawblaze has their true saw tonight
rather than their hammer saw.
You know what that means.
Sparks are gonna fly.
Bring it on!
[automated voice speaking] blue team, ready?
[automated voice speaking] red tea, ready?
-We got the flash, we got the burn. -We got the burn!
Let's go.
[crowd chanting] fight, fight, fight!
[chris] let the bot battle begin!
Here comes rusty and there goes rusty.
Sawblaze laid into the junkyard bot straight away!
[kenny] doctor jamison go
performing a little surgery there.
[exclaiming in pain]
ah, this reminds me I've got a dentist's appointment next Tuesday.
Oh gosh!
[kenny] oh, I think sawblaze may have gotten
into the weapon arm of rusty with that saw, chris.
[kenny] oh, and here it is
sinking it's teeth into rusty's treads. Yum, yum, yum, yum!
That saw spins at 250 miles per hour.
Hey, kids, hide your eyes.
Now, sawblaze takin' him for a little Sunday drive into the screws,
and rusty is on his side.
Oh, no!
Sawblaze, that's nice, lends a helping hand and then says, "I'm gonna drill into you."
[kenny] look at the way sawblaze
controls the action with that big front plow.
He's just giving rusty a tour of the battlebox.
[chris] has sawblaze had enough?
And the answer is, no! Ow!
[both exclaiming]
holy smokes!
Right into the back side of rusty.
But look at rusty, he's still working.
[kenny] rusty is a tough bot.
Uh-oh.
-Oh! -Oh, jeez!
[chris] oh my gosh. Look at the slices in the side of rusty.
-This is getting dark -oh, god!
[kenny] oh, now sawblaze is burning him.
Oh! A nice shot there by sawblaze.
[chris] allow me to introduce you to the driver's deck.
And allow me to introduce you to the screws.
Oh, man. This is the meanest house tour ever.
[kenny] rusty's still moving. This is unbelievable.
-He's still going. -Ha, ha, ha.
Shades of the energizer bunny, kenny,
he keeps going and going and going.
[kenny] man, that is one tough bot.
[chris] is this gonna be it?
Rusty's on his side now.
[kenny] jamison wants to keep the fun going.
Ah, I've got nothing.
[chris] he wants to cut the salad bowl.
[kenny] is that what he wants?
[chris] yes, rusty, back in action.
Now the foam riser gets in on the act.
If it's not the saw, it's the hammer.
[kenny] I'm gonna be really impressed if rusty's able to move after this.
-Oh gosh! -It would be a victory,
even if he went... If he went the full three minutes,
it would be a victory, chris.
Kenny, you thought you were sore after a heavy lift day.
-Oh, man! Look at that. -Unreal.
-Pretty sparks. -Fireworks.
Bunch of 'em. Lots of 'em.
Welcome to the welding station.
-Oh. -Rusty's still moving, chris.
[chris] that bot is tough,
refusing to throw in the towel.
Wow.
And with under ten seconds to go, ladies and gentlemen,
this one's gonna go the distance.
And rusty's saying,
"I never went down, jamison.
You never got me down, jamison."
-[all applauding] -that was awesome.
[chris] unbelievable.
[crowd chanting] rusty! Rusty!
-Good job. -Rest in peace buddy, rest in peace.
Rock 'n' roll guys. [laughs] oh, man.
Ah, kenny, if you're related to rusty,
-I would suggest everybody turn away. -[kenny] oh, man.
Sawblaze, of course with those
front forks, able to get underneath
rusty repeatedly,
bullying him around the battlebox, again and again,
and got that saw involved,
causing sparks all over the battlebox, chris.
[chris] I mean, he just kept cutting and cutting. Holy smokes.
I hope that sawblaze at least administered
some sort of drugs before performing the surgery.
[kenny] I mean, rusty got cut up, he got pushed around,
he got lit on fire,
and he was still moving. He went the full three minutes.
That to me is a crazy accomplishment.
The results from the judges are in.
The winner by unanimous decision is...
-Sawblaze! -[crowd cheering]
[chris] well, congratulations to team sawblaze.
Jamison go, kind of an appropriate
last name because there was no stopping you tonight
against rusty. Why'd you keep going?
Ah, we're talking to the builder in the beginning of the match.
He's been looking forward to this fight.
He's all for just having fun and going at it.
So, you know, we kept going. Didn't wanna leave him stranded.
He came all this way to battlebots. Let's put on a good show, right?
Jamison, assuming you do make it into the round of 32,
how dangerous is your bot?
Well, I think we've got two lethal weapons
we demonstrated tonight. We have the hammer saw, which we used in our first fight.
Definitely, some ko potential there.
And then this blade it can go through a lot of steel pretty quickly.
So, I hope that our opponents are walkin' up their top armor
and sayin' "I wonder if I've got enough."
very good, jamison. Congratulations.
Thank you.
[chris] so, for team sawblaze, it's all systems go,
heading into the tournament.
And we bid a heartfelt goodbye to dave eaton and rusty.
What a debut season from the little bot that could.
I'm sure his mom will just be happy her
popcorn bowl made it back to the farm in one piece.
Comin' up, the rise of team tantrum
has been one of the surprise stories of the season.
And a win tonight, could launch them into the top 32.
The giant gamma 9 stands in their way.
That's next, on battlebots.
We are back on battlebots
and up next, a huge fight for at least one of these two teams.
That would be tantrum, lead by aren hill.
They check in at one and one,
so, if they win this tonight, two and one
the selection committee is really gonna look deep into their resume.
And for years, aren hill has just been known as the guy
who had his fist caught off that was stuck in the battlebox,
thanks to tombstone.
But, this year, he's writing a different script.
Absolutely, I would give him my mib award,
-most improved bot award. -Ah!
He looks great out there. Even in the loss,
he was doing fantastic. He was winning that fight against valkyrine.
And kinda pooped out at the end there.
But, in his victory
that vertical dish spinner looked vicious.
Taking on gamma 9 and curtis nemeth,
he's been around this sport for an awfully long of time.
Still kind of searching for that elusive first win
since battlebots came back on the air.
It hasn't happened. But, he has to feel good about
the performance that he put forward against chomp.
[kenny] definitely. He took some big hits
and was able to go the full three minutes with chomp,
eventually losing in a judge's decision.
But it was a much better performance from him
than we've seen in previous seasons.
-[crowd cheering] -[chris] both drivers are
already set up behind the glass,
locked and loaded inside the battlebox.
[automated voice speaking] blue team ready?
[chris] there is curtis nemeth,
he's trying to play spoiler to aren hill's season.
[kenny] yeah, they could possibly keep
the one and one tantrum out of the tournament, if they win tonight, chris.
[automated voice speaking] red team, ready?
[chris] aren hill and tantrum pretty much playing for their playoff lives.
[kenny] look, we saw a top-tier bot, gruff, lose
to a severely outmatched extinguisher last week,
and that may have cost them a spot in the tournament.
Tantrum needs to handle their business here.
[man] go tantrum!
[crowd chanting] fight! Fight! Fight!
[chris] let the bot battle begin!
[kenny] look at the contrast between these two bots, chris.
Tantrum, speedy and compact.
Gamma 9, slower but a lot larger.
[chris] you can hear the [imitates engine noise] of tantrum's disc firing up.
Yeah, nice little shot to the behind
and pulverizer, that's a 100lb hammer.
Tantrum has gamma 9 pinned
and delivers a nice straight arm jab.
Dude, we have no traction, dude.
[chris] gamma 9 having some serious control issues here.
[kenny] tantrum trying to chip away at the side armor of gamma 9.
Doing a good job of getting underneath him, getting some damage.
[chris] got the wheel guard there.
[man] coming back, and...
[kenny] some good shots to the undercarriage of gamma 9.
So far, winning the battle for low ground.
[kenny] there, you see it again,
able to get those front forks under gamma 9 at will.
[chris] gamma 9 looking for some space to reset.
[both hosts exclaim]
[chris] bullrushes tantrum but aren hill with some good defensive driving there.
You can hear that weapon firing up yet again.
Tantrum looking to get into position to land another shot,
maybe take out a wheel here.
[kenny] yeah, they're trying to get a bite with that punching disc.
[chris] lining up.
[crowd exclaims]
[chris] oh, is he going to take him coast to coast?
Oh, what a shot!
Very magic johnson-esque.
[kenny] aren hill is putting on a driving clinic here.
Tantrum is so fast, so agile, and aron has this bot on a string.
[crowd and hosts exclaiming]
[kenny] a huge hit right into the screws.
It's is a great example that you don't have to be a massive bot to be effective.
Tantrum doing a great job of really bullying the larger bot here.
[all exclaiming]
[chris] can gamma 9 self-right... It can!
[kenny] excellent job of self-righting there by curtis.
[chris] gamma 9 showing off some impressive durability in this fight.
I'm not sure they scored a single point, kenny.
It has been all tantrum since the opening battle, and here it is again.
Driving about twice its size into the screws.
And, now, more pieces of gamma 9 are coming off in the battlebox.
[kenny] I'm not sure that lifter can take any more damage.
He's been able to self-right a couple of times and now, gamma 9 is feeling it.
-He's rocked, chris. -[chris] oh, yeah, he is.
Tantrum has gamma 9 pinned and looking to drop a bomb.
Oh! Wow! That's gotta hurt!
[kenny] tantrum has put it all together tonight, chris.
They've been efficient and effective,
with both their speed and their weapon.
[chris exclaiming]
[kenny] oh, there goes some armor, just flung across the battlebox, that was sick!
[chris] and tantrum's trying to get it under the pulverizer for one last pounding.
Can they finish the job and record a knockout here?
-[referee] ten! Nine... -[kenny] the countdown has started!
-[referee counting down] -just over ten seconds remaining they might
-just beat the clock! -Five! Four!
-Three! Two! One! -They're gonna do it, chris!
[referee] that's a knockout!
[kenny] with one second left tantrum gets the knockout.
Wow! What a performance by aren hill and his team from tantrum.
Excellent fight.
That is how it's supposed to be.
[chris] tantrum was just racking up the hits from the get go, kenny.
[kenny] yeah, he sure was. These are two bots that weigh exactly the same,
250lbs, but they look so different,
tantrum, so compact, so low to the ground,
able to get underneath gamma 9 repeatedly.
Tantrum has one of the most unique weapons in the competition,
that punching vertical disc.
And they used it to perfection doing a lot of damage to gamma 9.
[chris] yeah, you could see he was just throwing gamma 9 over and over
and to curtis niemen's credit,
kept popping back over and taking more until the very last second of this fight.
[crowd cheering]
aren hill, you dominated this fight.
Was it extra special to get the knockout with one second left?
It was, um, the robot's finally doing exactly what we want it to do.
We had a lot riding on this fight, getting the two to one,
really hoping that gives us a good seed.
Does that mean that you're 100% confident
you're on to the round of 32?
If I was on the selection committee, yeah.
Why?
I would say, speaking schedule-wise,
I still think we'd beat valkyrie to repeat ourselves
and they've been doing pretty well, so that was a good fight.
And then after that two great knockouts.
Aren, if you were to grade tantrum
at this stage of the season, what would you give it?
Um, I'm still going to give it, like, a b-, it can always be better.
Hey, aren, congratulations, job well done.
At two and one, perhaps, we'll see you in the round of 32.
-Thank you. -[crowd cheering]
so, kenny, as we know, not all two and one records are created equal,
so, does tantrum make the tournament?
[kenny] I would 100% say yes.
They're exciting, they're dangerous,
and they're peaking at just the right time.
[chris] well, we'll get our answer
when the 2020 world championship bracket is revealed later tonight.
But, up next, we've got new zealand's own end game
facing off with hypershock.
Both teams are one and one and are ready to lay it all on the line
for a victory in their third and final match.
Do not go anywhere.
We are back, on battlebots,
and, kenny, you might want to buckle up for safety on this one.
We have two one and one teams about to throw down
and both know exactly what's on the line for them here.
Let's start with end game
which is probably looking at the schedulers and saying [growls]
"we don't like you very much at all!"
kenny, they've had maybe the toughest schedule of any bot this season,
they kicked it off with a monumental win over tombstone,
but got knocked around by bloodsport in their second fight.
A win tonight could do wonders for their seeding.
[kenny] yeah, we won't know exactly what the selection committee is thinking
until later, but I know the end game guys think
they can still lock in one of the top four seeds here.
They're probably in either way,
but if they lose, their first round matchup
is going to be against a top tier team.
[chris] now, on the flipside, kenny,
I'm not sure that will bales and hypershock are a lock to make the tournament
just yet.
[kenny] yeah, in typical will bales fashion,
hypershock was not exactly "ready-to-go" in their first fight
and they got completely dominated
by gruff's dual cannon flamethrower there.
They bounced back against mammoth
but, you know that super masculine [growls] you just did, chris,
well, that's how hypershock makes me feel.
I know they can do some damage in the tournament,
they just need to prove it.
Okay, so you didn't like my grunt, let me hear yours.
Nah, I'm good.
-You're not a grunter? -[grunts]
-how's that, that's good? -That means let's let faruq take over.
In the blue square, last christmas this bot ripped you apart,
broke you so bad, you couldn't start.
This year it's back to destroy
and take you straight to hell.
Happy holidays from end game.
[crowd cheering]
[chris] well, jack barker and nick natey's bot needed a ton of work
after that bloodsport loss, kenny.
How're they feeling right now?
[kenny] these guys are pretty confident, chris.
They believe that they have the better weapon here
but they know how aggressive will bales can be
and they're hoping those wedgelets on the front
filter hypershock right into that disc.
[chris] nick natey told us, "listen, I don't know
how in the world we can beat tombstone and not be in the top 32."
but these guys aren't content with just an invite,
they want a high seed,
they want to take the giant nut back to new zealand.
In the red square, last year they weren't in sync
and they fell in a giant rut,
but this year they're looking one direction towards the giant nut,
they're going to mmmbop the competition
and show that experience rocks and say,
"bye, bye, bye" to all those new kids on the block.
It's hypershock.
[chris] yes, hypershock. The newest boy band around.
It's got the looks of a star
but they need to show that they're more than just a one-hit wonder this season.
How are they feeling going into this match, kenny?
[kenny] well, you know, they're really excited about this fight.
If they beat end game it confirms that they're an elite team.
And will's going to need to attack the flanks here
but he's got to be careful because he does not want
to get clipped by end game's weapon.
We know they like to drive fast so we're going to try and play it like a tank.
We'll try and sit somewhere on the field and just point at them the whole time
and wait for them to drive into our big weapon.
We're quite happy to go weapon-to-weapon with hypershock.
We know we've got a better one.
Even with a loss to hypershock we might still have a very good shot at round of 32
but there's no way we're going to leave that to chance.
So, tonight we're fighting end game.
Uh, big, scary vertical spinner,
and those little floppy wedgelets, I think they have little spikes in front now.
I don't want to get hit, I really don't want to get hit.
'cause they hit hard.
So, we're gonna drift around and take our time and do the whole jerky-boy thing.
And, um, and be more patient for the right hit.
I think we might have the self-righter working.
Maybe. If we don't then we're hosed.
[automated voice speaking] robots, activate.
[chris] we heard will bales mention he's worried about hypershock's self-righter.
Not something you want to be thinking about
heading into a fight against a vertical spinner, kenny.
[kenny] no, it's not.
That means every move, every attack from will
needs to be that much more precise.
Small margin for error here.
[chris] can hypershock take down one of the most powerful weapons in the sport?
Or will end game show the selection committee
that they deserve to be a top seed?
We will find out when we return
on battlebots.
[chris] welcome back to battlebots
where we have the kiwis' end game,
ready to square off against will bales and hypershock.
[crowd cheering]
[crowd chanting] fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!
Oh, man.
[chris] let the bot battle begin!
So much for the patience hypershock was talking about.
They're now on their head, can they self-right?
[all exclaim]
[chris] what a shot by end game,
there goes a piece of hypershock.
Oh, gosh, and end game's putting up on the screws, it does.
[kenny] oh, man.
[chris] can hypershock get its way off?
[kenny] chris, their self-righting mechanism is stuck in the open position
and that thing is caught up in the glass.
[chris] I don't think there's anything hypershock can do, kenny.
They are wedged, spinning the wheels, mashing the controller.
But I think it's game over.
What a shock by end game. Unbelievable.
There's no movement by hypershock, who is being counted out.
[referee] seven! Six!
[chris] an unbelievable shock by end game...
-Oh, jeez! -Hey, what the hell?
Hypershock is knocked out, winner end game.
Didn't move.
[chris] end game makes quick work of hypershock
and almost takes us out in the process.
Jeez!
This thing hit me in the face. Wow.
-God! -Um, it's okay, I'm alive.
-Is that your lightsaber? -Dude.
Hey, obi wan.
[chris] fifty three seconds, kenny,
and it felt faster than that.
[kenny] chris, when end game wins, they win quick.
[whoops] look at that shot.
I mean, that is just a brutal shot from end game.
Hit him in the right spot.
And then the follow up shot is the one that really did it.
The first one was devastating, it really hit him hard.
But then they just stayed right on hypershock.
They were very aggressive.
They waited for him exactly like they said they were going to do.
Just brilliant stuff from the team from new zealand.
[crowd cheering]
[chris] all right, nick, you should be all smiles, uh.
-Yeah. -Wow, um,
I guess your robot packs a powerful punch, huh?
Yeah. I think that might be almost the exact same place we put tombstone.
Just, like, a little bit further into the box, maybe.
So you finished the regular season at 2-1.
You've got wins over hypershock and tombstone.
Where do you think you should be seeded in the round of 32, nick?
Uh, I'd say pretty high up there.
A win against tombstone, and a win against,
uh, loss against bloodsport who is a 3-0 bot right now, so,
-it's not the worst thing to lose to 3-0. -Uh, yeah. [chuckles]
all right. So guys, as the, uh, we have a little bone to pick with you.
As the countdown was going on,
jack, you went over to clean up the mess
that hypershock left on the floor.
And look at this. You almost killed kenny.
I mean, come on, man.
Are you upset with our commentary
-from over the years, or what is it? -No.
Your commentary is fantastic.
I just wanted to shoot it towards the judges
to make sure they knew that, uh, we're doing some damage out there,
just in case it came down and did go to judges.
-Got it. Well, nick... -Also, it was in our square.
-Yeah, we had to clean up. -Right. Yeah.
Well, if you were shooting it for the judges, your accuracy sucks, pal.
Because you ended up being about 25 feet away from those,
and you scared the you-know-what out of florian.
-And just to let you know... -It's not easy to do.
He is a former mixed martial artist sort of guy.
So if you think the robots are scary, do not tick off this dude.
-Noted. -I don't think I'd want to get in the ring with him.
Very good.
Guys, congratulations on your 2-1 regular season.
-Thank you. -Thanks, guys.
[all cheering]
remember when the regular season started
and we asked about end game, like, guys you've just kind of
been hovering around 500,
when are you going to take that next step?
I think they have, this season.
Definitely. I mean, this team continues to get stronger.
They're learning a lot about their bot.
I think this was a tough matchup for them,
but they made it look easy.
So jack barker is a fantastic driver.
[chris] all right. We are inching closer to that
big bracket reveal at the end of the night,
but we still have six more teams
looking to show the selection committee exactly what they're made of.
Next up, it's smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
trying to put the squeeze on p1,
as the final night of the battlebots qualifying round continues.
[chris] we are back on battlebots. Up next,
we have a couple of teams on the outside looking in.
And certainly the most interesting looking robot
here this season, that would be smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee,
built by joe fabiani who lives up in new york city,
smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee hasn't had the battlebots debut they were looking for, kenny,
but that's not stopping joe from trying to get his bot
working to its full potential.
[kenny] yeah, they put in new motors
and upgraded their drivetrain after their last fight,
which should give them some more torque here.
Everyone wants to see this bot fully functional, chris,
so we get a true picture of what this novel design has to offer.
I'm hoping that's going to be the case this time around.
And with p1,
they're now captained by brandon zalinsky.
And similar to smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee,
it's been a mixed bag for them this season.
[man] oh, no! That's a real problem.
[chris] if this bot didn't have reliability issues,
kenny, it be a pretty solid machine.
[kenny] yeah, p1 is fast and has an incredible drivetrain, chris.
I like the low center of gravity in that wedge,
especially against an elongated design like smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
So let's see what they can do.
Let's see how it goes.
P1 and smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee,
join me, smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee, you're not doing it.
In the blue square, from new york city,
it's got an issue.
It's not you, it's smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!
[all cheering]
[chris] smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee, 14 feet from tip to tip.
Kenny, how do they attack a bot like p1?
[kenny] the key for them is going to be to try
and trap p1 in a corner, chris.
Smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee can't let p1 get a running start
and hit their more vulnerable center.
Well, let's see if those new weapon motors
and drivetrain I was talking about,
pays off for joe fabiani.
In the red square, from new hampshire,
pay attention and start the engine,
it's p1.
[all cheering]
[chris] p1 has a win over chronos
and a one-sided loss to copperhead.
How do they get that second win, kenny?
[kenny] well, they're gonna act like a battering ram
against smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee, chris. Looking for a box rush,
then trading space in another blitz.
Brandon zalinsky has competed against joe fabiani
in beta weight competitions,
so he should know how to attack smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee's oblong shape.
[all cheering]
my next fight is with p1, which has a very fast front hinged flipper.
They know how to control their opponent very well,
and we're worried about that.
Both the robots are going to be really, really fast going into this.
We'll hopefully drive around the arena a lot, use the space
and maybe nip their wheels which are exposed.
We have to stay on the move,
running away from them a little bit,
but also taking our hits where we can get them
and scoring damage points the whole time.
So against smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee,
I have a decent idea of how I want to attack him.
We ended up going with the horizontal armor just because
we didn't kind of really want to overthink it.
We should be able to get under him still
with the big front armor.
And it also means if we take a hit off the horizontal spinners,
we're not too concerned about it.
-[automated voice speaking] robots, activate. - [all cheering]
[chris] both teams looking for their second win here.
Kenny, do either of them have a legit shot at the tournament?
[kenny] well, loser is out. Winner has hope.
But it depends on their performance, chris.
Bots that make the tournament need to not only be dangerous,
but they need to be durable enough
to brawl for an entire 3 minutes.
Neither of these bots have proven it.
-[woman] all the best, guys. -You, too. Good luck.
[crowd chanting] fight, fight, fight, fight...
[buzzing]
[chris] let the bot battle begin.
[kenny] there's that box rush. P1 going right at smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
[chris] you're probably looking at that thing and saying,
"dang, that thing's big."
[kenny laughing] "now what do I do?"
-there you go. -[chris] woah! All right.
Wow! Woah, that is impressive.
P1 bench pressing smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
-Look at that. Oh, my gosh! -Oh!
[chris] what an amazing move.
It has put smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee way up the rail.
[kenny] uh-oh. Oh.
[chris] oh, how nice.
It knocked it down so it could play a little more.
Nice sportsmanship.
[kenny] that was an amazing move by p1.
That's the best tactic we've seen so far against this bot.
[chris] unbelievable. He's trying to do it again.
And he did. He put it up on the screws.
[kenny] wow!
[chris] oh, gosh!
Now p1 using that lifter to introduce
smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee to the screws.
[kenny] p1 just wants to destroy stuff, even if it's himself.
[chris] and this is far and away the best that smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
has moved in three fights, kenny.
[kenny] yeah, I'd say that smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee is much faster,
and p1 looks much faster as well, chris.
[chris] this is not necessarily what we expected,
but what a pleasant surprise, as p1 goes right over smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
Smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee trying to wrap itself around p1
and attack with those horizontal spinners.
P1 looks like it's struggling a little bit.
Almost caught and then taken for a ride.
[chris] gorgeous little jab there by smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
[kenny] smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee is definitely moving way better though, chris.
[chris] well, it got some rest. It had been out
before its previous fights.
Broke curfew a couple times. You know how those smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeees can be.
But it came to party inside the box tonight.
90 seconds left to go.
[kenny] look at this circle.
The old three stooges move.
Woo-hoo.
Whoo!
[chris] that was awesome.
[kenny] I like how p1 just went right at him.
You know, a lot of other bots have been confused as to how to approach him,
and they almost are too patient and too cautious against smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
[chris] smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee having serious drive and weapons issues now.
And here comes p1,
puts him on his back and gives him the old rodeo action, kenny.
Yee-haw!
[kenny] this is more wrestling match than robot fight.
Yes. Whoa.
[chris] there's 45 seconds left in this match.
But, oh, man, I want another five minutes of this.
[kenny] brandon zalinsky taking a page out of will bales' playbook.
[chris] oh, yeah, grinding those bottom gears on those screws.
Oh, gosh!
Yes, another shot and smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee flips over.
Smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee inverted on the screws now.
You can see they lost one of their spinners in this whirlwind of action.
[kenny] could this be the end?
[chris] no more mr. Nice guy for p1.
-The countdown has started. -[referee] seven, six,
-five... -Oh, I think p1's had enough.
He said, "you know what, I had my fun, now I'll take my win."
[referee] one. Knockout!
-Winner p1! -[buzzing]
bravo. That was spectacular stuff.
Great fight.
Wow!
Kenny, how cool was this?
[kenny] this was awesome, you know.
And instead of just looking at smeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
and going, "what the heck is this thing, and what do I do?"
he's like, "screw it. I'm just gonna drive right through it."
and then pick it up, put it on my lifter,
and let's take it for a spin.
Shades of hulk hogan body slamming andre the giant there.
P1 stayed aggressive, kept the party going
and put on a great show for the crowd. Excellent fight.
[chris] so we'll have to wait and see whether p1 has
a strong enough resume to earn a bid to the tournament,
lot of competition this year.
All right, we now turn our attention to the main event.
These two teams both expect to hear their names called
when the tournament field is announced later tonight.
But they realize just how vital a win in this matchup
will be when it comes to securing an all important high seed.
Take a look.
Look at the sparks!
Are we shooting this on July 4th? This is awesome.
And the winner...
Valkyrie!
[chris] how good does it feel to be a part of one of the greatest fights
in the history of battlebots?
Oh, my god. Feels good. Feels really good.
It just seems that every year we kept having bad luck,
and it seems this year it's changing.
We're currently 2-0, which is crazy.
[chris] the driving skills of matt vasquez on full display.
You're only four losses in the last three seasons
are to teams like bite force, tombstone,
witch doctor, saw blade.
Do you love facing this sort of competition?
Oh, I absolutely love facing this sort of competition.
That's why we come here. We want to fight the best people.
We're 1-1 this season,
and now that we're going against valkyrie, that's another very tough opponent.
I'd go as far to say valkyrie as the most powerful
horizontal spinner in this tournament.
So that means taking off our spinner,
just running the lifter, and running an extra 20 pounds of armor.
We'll actually be using our sharpened tooth, mr. Cavity.
Their lifter arm is made out of plastic.
By having our sharper blade, we're really hoping
we're going to be able to just slowly slice through it.
Matt vasquez has been driving since he could hold a transmitter.
So I think my biggest concern with this fight
is not us dying at any point, but more of us getting booted out of the arena.
[chris] oh, whiplash is trying to flip him out of the ring.
[kenny] whiplash, trying to get him out of the battlebox.
We're definitely not gonna give them an inch.
Even if it goes to full three minutes,
we're gonna stay on them the whole time.
We need to make sure we win this fight,
we get a good ranking in the tournament.
That'll set us up to get a deep run.
Had you told me just a couple years ago
that we would be a main event
and taken as seriously as we are in this competition,
it's absolutely surreal. It's super exciting.
I am so happy we made a terrifying machine.
[laughs]
[audience cheering]
[chris] we are back on battlebots,
where the reveal of the 2020 world championship tournament bracket
is just around the corner.
But right now, it's the undefeated
british bombers beta,
looking to stay perfect against newcomers, grabot
kenny, beta is a world renowned hammerbot
and a fan favorite.
They are 2-0 this season.
And even though that hammer of theirs
has been upgraded to hit harder than ever before,
they've been pretty shy about letting it fly this season.
[kenny] yeah, they didn't fire the hammer at all
in their controversial win over rotator
and they only swung it a few times
against a pretty defenseless rusty, in their last fight.
They have drawn a lower tier team
for their third and final match tonight,
and the selection committee will be watching
to see if they continue to hold back.
If so, that could negatively affect their seeding
going into the tournament.
All right, and they're taking on a rookie bot named grabot,
led by ben davidson. Really good guy.
He and his wife, angel, have actually been foster parents
to 70 different children over the last 15 years.
This has always been a passion of his.
He decided to build a robot, and here he is,
and now he's got to figure out how to dodge the flying hammer
[kenny] yeah, grabot features two articulated arms with spring loaded fingers
designed to grab a hold of its opponents.
Unfortunately, there's not gonna be much
for it to clasp onto on the body of beta.
So, ben may have to play the wedge game.
Let's see how this one goes. Faruq!
In the blue square, from oxford,
they came from the uk to leave you koed.
It's beta!
[crowd cheering]
[chris] you know, beta in 2016 gave battlebots
one of its most amazing fights ever,
a loss against tombstone,
john reid...
He wants that giant nut...
[kenny] and I believe they're capable of doing it this season.
A better seed in the tournament
will make the path to the giant nut a little easier too,
which is why I think we finally see beta be aggressive
with that hammer tonight,
but to be 2-0 without using their primary weapon much
also speaks to the mobility and defensive design this bot has
and we don't talk enough about john reid's driving.
One of the best in this competition, chris.
In the red square from plymouth, wisconsin,
the biggest killer to come out of wisconsin
since fried cheese.
It's grabot!
[audience cheering]
[chris] grabot, a loser in its only other match to subzero
when it got knocked out.
But I think it looks pretty stout.
[kenny] I know they've heavily reinforced the top of that robot.
Let's see if it holds up against beta's hammer,
if we do see a fight.
[chris] we told you a little bit about ben davidson's family.
You'll notice young judah, who is one of ben's foster sons,
is along for the ride.
A remarkable experience for that young man.
So far in the season,
I've been excited to fight grabot.
It's a completely different type of robot.
It's also got a lovely flat top
so we can really pound it.
Its arms stick up in the air.
We don't want the hammer to hit the arms,
so, well, the strategy is to bully it into the corner.
What we really want to do is get two hammer's going on it.
The pit hammer and our hammer.
John is a legend in the sport.
It's like going up against childhood heroes.
I feel really good about it.
My first fight, I was not impressive at all.
I think we fixed a lot of the issues we were seeing.
So hopefully we're stronger and stronger after this,
once we get all that nailed down.
I want to win. I'm gonna try to scrape that together.
But this new version of beta is... It's not a joke at all.
Let's go!
[audience chanting] fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!
[chris] let the bot battle begin.
Uh-oh! Looks like grabot is havin' a little bit of a drive issue.
The beta...
Very measured start. Oh!
Just happened to go wedge on wedge there.
[kenny] yeah, beta, able to get underneath grabot.
Taking it for a little ride around the battlebox.
These are the hazards, those are the screws.
That's the corner.
[chris] it's lovely. It's a six bedroom house,
seven and a half baths.
It's very large.
Meanwhile grabot in a world of trouble here
and when is beta gonna fire that hammer?
That's what the people want to know.
[kenny] looks like beta's trying to line up
the perfect shot here.
[chris] I mean, might just want to get him in the corner
and just start pounding him.
Instead, the pulverizer does a big swing and a whip
on the beta hammer.
[kenny] man, is that thing fast.
-Here we go. -[both] oh!
[chris] oh, man!
Oh, gosh!
Anybody check the top of grabot?
How many holes are in it now?
[kenny] it's definitely bent.
You know what? I'm impressed that grabot was able
to handle those hits and keep moving.
[chris] absolutely. No question about it.
We're more than a minute into this fight.
Hammer! Get ready to hammer.
[kenny] it's driving much better, is grabot
[chris] john reid just trying to tee it up in the corner.
It looks like he used the rails and then fired that hammer.
[kenny] you know, beta gets a lot of its attention for its hammer,
but its wedge is very impressive as well.
Oh, my goodness.
-I felt that. -[chris] sure did.
That hammer is just ferocious.
Grabot now having no controlled movement,
it looks like... Oh, no, not again.
Don't do it, john.
John!
Oh! Nobody listens to me.
Oh, come on!
[kenny] oh, my goodness!
[chris] all right, it's smoking.
There, you big bully!
Oh!
Oh. Who's burning? Me?
-[chris] hey! -[kenny] that is insane.
[chris] that is unbelievable.
Under a minute to go.
Grabot is smoking in the corner.
[audience cheering]
grabot!
Just count 'em down, for god's sakes.
-[referee] nine, eight... -[chris] there you go.
Beta just wants to keep firing the hammer
even at our battlebots logo.
That's like t.O. Standing on the star logo in texas.
[buzzer sounds]
[kenny] wow!
[cheering]
[chris] kenny, what time is it?
[kenny] hammer time!
[chris] this is what we've been waiting for from beta.
[kenny] yeah, they finally let the hammer fly and you see the result.
It feels like they've been using the qualifiers as a testing ground
and being cautious along the way.
And that's going to hurt their seeding in the tournament.
But I think it'll be game on
against whoever they draw in the round of 32.
-[chris] if so, look out. -[kenny] that thing is ferocious.
[chris] john and gabriel.
Gabe's busy.
[chris] okay, john. Yeah, hi.
Were you toying with him, john?
[chuckles] wait.
We want to get a bit of practice driving.
We've got to get a feel for it.
So, we don't want to have it over in ten seconds.
Wanna get a feel, drive it around, hit a few things.
Just get experience with it.
So, john, what's your assessment of the weapon and the bot in general?
It is working beautifully.
Exactly as designed.
Really pleased with it so far.
It's about three times as powerful as the last time we were here.
Uh, just got the magnets that hold it down
which stop it jumping right up into the air.
And, uh, yeah, it's working well.
John, is the giant nut well within your grasp?
[chuckles] too early to say.
But it's looking pretty good so far.
John, great job.
-Thank you. -Congratulations.
[audience cheering]
[chris] okay, so beta is 3-0
and they finally showed the selection committee
what that upgraded hammer could really do.
We'll see how this performance affects their tournament seeding,
which will be revealed after our next fight.
It's whiplash and valkyrie in our final main event
of the qualifying rounds.
That is next on battlebots.
[chris] all right. We are back on battlebots
and are just moments away
from finding out who's in and who is out
of the world championship tournament.
We will reveal the bracket after this next fight,
which will be the final main event of the qualifying rounds.
And let's start with leanne cushing robot, valkyrie.
You know, they have been so close to the top 16.
Each of the previous two seasons, they said,
at the very least, that's their goal.
But so far, after going 2-0 and with a shot now
and a perfect regular season,
their confidence is at an all-time high.
[kenny] they're very confident right now,
and they also kind of feel like they're in a great spot,
that if they do lose, they still feel like they will get in the top 32.
So, they're not going to feel that pressure.
They're going to be driving nice and relaxed,
we're very good spot right now.
And so, too, is whiplash, even though they're 1-1.
Mattie vasquez is obviously their outstanding young driver.
They do want to get a win here
just because they want to be able to carry that momentum.
You'd rather go in at 2-1 and have a good seeding in the top 32
than be 1-2 like some other big name bots out there
and have to really fight your way back up.
Absolutely. I mean, matt and jason are always going to fight
with a lot of determination, a lot of pride.
And now I think valkyrie is the kind of team that gets a lot of respect.
Getting a win over them means something.
All right, let's see how it ends up.
Faruq, bring him out.
[audience cheering]
ladies and gentlemen, are you ready?
[all cheering]
it's robot fightin' time.
In the blue square...
Protect your neck.
It's about to get jerked.
Your hands gonna twist like they're watching miley twerk.
It's going to be a head-on collision when you face this destroyer.
And when it's all over, I hope you have a good lawyer.
This is whiplash.
[audience cheering]
[chris] in the last three seasons,
it's only losses are to tombstone,
witch doctor, bite force and sawblaze.
We know about the driving abilities of mattie vasquez
but what makes whiplash, the bot, so dangerous, kenny?
[kenny] well, it's designed for mobility.
It has a smaller chassis,
which helps matt make those sharper turns, chris,
and against a bot like valkyrie,
being nimble and being able to avoid big hits
is going to be crucial.
[all cheering]
[faruq] in the red square,
we all know how this song goes,
when it rides into battle.
It's the sound of warning your bot's about to rattle
with moves like lightning,
you don't want to lose sight of the dark horse from somerville
about to take flight.
[hums wagner's "ride of the valkyries"]
it's valkyrie.
[audience cheering]
[chris] koed tantrum and won a huge decision against rotator.
And what are they going with tonight?
[kenny] that's a blade they call mr. Cavity, chris.
It's got two teeth and a hollow interior,
as you can see there.
This weapon is designed to dig into thick armor.
And they like to use this against bulky wedges,
which is what whiplash is going with tonight.
[chris] we always talk about the driving skills
of mattie vasquez, but don't sleep on frederick moore,
the man in the hat.
He was spectacular in their last fight against rotator.
[kenny] yeah, he really is an excellent driver.
But, you know, leanne was saying,
they don't have a whole lot of experience
against great lifters like whiplash.
[chris] let's bring in the bot whisper, pete.
Uh, what do you think about just going with the lifter?
Well, they're definitely trading that
fifty pounds of spinning disk for armor.
That's what they went with to be able to get that big plow up their front
and going with the lifter because they think that
they're hoping they can get valkyrie
to balance up on end
and constantly sort of push over.
We'll see if that works.
[chris] okay. Thanks, pete.
[automated voice speaking] robots activate.
[crowd cheering]
[chris] all right, kenny. This is it.
The final matchup of the qualifying rounds.
Will it be whiplash,
or will valkyrie sail into the tournament
a perfect 3-0.
We will find out when we return on battlebots.
And the winner is...
-Whiplash! -[all cheering]
ever wonder what sets
matthew vasquez apart from all these other drivers?
Well, he's been driving robots
for 20 of the 21 years of his life.
And repeating a motion like this for that long
can actually make parts of the motor cortex bigger,
like an expert violinist.
This allows him to move his fingers
with better timing and precision.
[chris] yeah, whiplash doing a great job
of attacking with that weapon in the backwards position.
[jenny] that can help him pull off
some insane defensive maneuvers.
Oh. Look at that!
That's some tremendous driving right there.
[jenny] and some offensive ones, too.
[chris] nice move!
[kenny] and whiplash right back on top of him.
Throwing shots and pushing him into the screws.
[jenny] practice has literally made him perfect, so it's no surprise
matty vasquez is one of the greatest drivers in our sport.
[all cheering]
that's a good fight.
[chris] welcome back to battlebots.
We are mere moments away
from the final match of the qualifying rounds.
It is the vasquez family and whiplash
versus leanne cushing and valkyrie.
[audience cheering]
[crowd chanting] fight! Fight! Fight!
Let the bot battle begin!
Whiplash with a huge box rush on valkyrie.
-Oh! -What a counter shot.
Oh!
Whiplash says, is that all you got?
Another huge collision.
And here comes whiplash again getting underneath valkyrie.
And valkyrie's blades hit low to the battlebox floor.
Matty vasquez going right at leanne cushing's bot here
from the very beginning.
[kenny] and it looks like whiplash
may have already broken valkyrie's weapon, chris.
[chris] oh, that is big trouble for valkyrie,
as whiplash now looks to go to work with their lifter.
Maybe get valkyrie up and out of the box.
[kenny] incredible execution by whiplash
using the big wedge to break valkyrie's weapon.
And now it's time to play the control game.
Valkyrie at a huge disadvantage in that category.
[chris] whiplash, one of the most versatile bots in the field
and now giving valkyrie
the grand tour of the battlebox.
[kenny] introducing them to all the hazards.
-Woah! -[chris] oh, gosh.
Up by the screws, is it gonna go up, up and out?
Whiplash, just relentless with that lifter.
Valkyrie manages to escape,
and they're now scrambling to create
some serious space and reset here, kenny.
[kenny] I mean, they're trying,
but whiplash just isn't giving him the opportunity.
[chris] pete, what the heck can valkyrie do
since it's weapon isn't working anymore?
[pete] I don't know, and especially inverted like this,
they are not in a good position in there.
Ooh, they were almost locked on the handle there.
[chris] unbelievable as maddie vasquez continues to apply the pressure.
A minute, 20 to go.
The question is, kenny, can valkyrie even survive at this point?
[kenny] well, this is a resilient bot. Make no mistake about that.
Hi, girl.
[kenny] we saw this team survive three of the most violent minutes
in the history of battlebots
in their first fight against rotator.
-[chris] closing in and advancing... -Woah!
[chris] and another shot into the screws.
[kenny] uh-oh, valkyrie shedding bot parts
as it thrashes to try and stay alive.
Come on. Come on, man.
[chris] leanne cushing's bot hanging on for dear life.
[kenny] yeah, well, there's some intense hits
to start this flight, and I just think the stress
of all of those shots have destroyed
valkyrie's bot and destroyed that blade, chris.
[chris] if there was an actual referee
and this was like a boxing match,
this would've been finished long ago.
But because valkyrie can continue to move even in the slightest bit,
it has avoided the countdown to this point.
[kenny] you know, I think last season I think they would have
seen valkyrie basically inoperable.
At this point, the durability in valkyrie is just completely different,
so we have to offer kudos for that.
-These guys are tough. -[chris] yeah, but look at this.
Valkyrie back up on the screws.
Matty vasquez trying to finish the job.
They won't get the knockout,
but what an impressive performance by team whiplash.
-[man] whoo! -[buzzer sounds]
[all cheering]
whiplash, took him about a second to get across the box, kenny.
[kenny] what a shot by whiplash.
Just not messing around at all.
And again just going weapon to weapon
or I should say, wedge to their primary weapon.
That's why they made that change.
That's why they took away that vertical disc spinner and just said, "you know what?
We're just gonna armor up
and run our face right into that weapon."
[chris] pete, what impressed you most?
[pete] so even with all that armor they added,
take a look at the left side of whiplash.
That armor is cut nearly clean through.
That is why they added all that weight up there,
because they knew the damage that valkyrie could create.
And then there's matt just taking to town with the lifter.
God, he was good in this drive.
[chris] you got to give valkyrie some serious credit
for making it the full three minutes.
But in the end, whiplash just too, too much.
The results from the judges are in.
The winner by unanimous decision is...
-Whiplash. -[all cheering]
[chris] matt vasquez.
All right, matt vasquez, boy, that was picture perfect.
-Wasn't it? -Close to it.
There were a couple, like, the very first hit of the fight,
they hit us hard.
And I was like, okay, if they keep doing that,
this is gonna be bad.
So I just kept hitting him and hitting him
and trying not to let him spin up.
And it worked.
[kenny] I saw you take a big deep breath
after the judges rendered that decision.
Um, how satisfied are you with this win now?
We're very satisfied.
Uh, I mean, with judge's decisions,
you never know. They did a lot of damage to us,
but I think had their weapon not stopped spinning,
they would have won it.
But I think it totally could have gone either way.
Matt, when you lost your first match of the year,
there was no panic in your voice.
Did you know that you were going to be in this position?
Were you that confident?
Oh, I had no idea.
It was mostly not panicked because I was happy
we fought sawblaze in the qualifying fights,
not the tournament,
but, uh, yeah, we're going to try to keep it going.
And, you know, hopefully we'll make it in the tournament.
-Matt. Congratulations. -Thank you.
I'm gonna tell you. We will see you in the round of 32.
Yeah. Thank you.
Yeah, we're excited.
-Whoo! -[chris] really eventful night.
You had sawblaze taking care of fan favorite rusty.
You had valkyrie missing out
on a perfect regular season, but that's okay.
A lot of teams lose to whiplash.
So kenny, this is it.
We are just moments away from the big bracket reveal.
And I just want to say,
no matter who's in and who's out,
this was a season no one will forget here at battlebots.
And perhaps because of the effort it took just to make it here
to get to the qualifiers this year,
the tension between builders
to get into the tournament are even higher than usual.
They're saying, "okay, where am I?
Did I make the round of 32?"
kenny, let's check it out.
Okay, so here's how this works.
The selection committee has ranked the top 32 teams
based on their performance in the qualifying rounds.
The tournament field will be broken down into four groups,
each anchored by one of the top four overall seeds.
Those four teams represent the best of the best,
with the number one overall seed
being the favorite to win the giant nut.
Okay, let's kick things off in group number four
and reveal who is deemed worthy of the fourth overall seed.
The selection committee could have gone
a number of different ways here.
-Oh! -Oh, my goodness.
My gosh.
[chris] it's uppercuts.
A breakout season for the kids from m.I.T., kenny.
[kenny] uppercut was one of the most destructive bots in the qualifiers.
And after surviving tonight's fight with hydra,
we found out they're one of the most durable, too.
[chris] okay, now let's find out
who it will have to contend with
to make it out of this group.
Kenny, what catches your eye here?
[kenny] wow. Well, between beta's hammer,
the brazilian bot black dragon,
a 3-0 mad catter,
not to mention ray billings and tombstone,
we'll see what the rest of the groups look like.
But this one feels like the group of death to me, chris.
[chris] it does not look like an easy path for uppercut.
Next, let's travel over to group number three.
Ladies and gentlemen,
this year's number three overall seed is...
-Oh! -Oh! This fight is over!
-[chris] ...Copperhead! -[kenny] well deserved.
They went 3-0 during the qualifiers.
Their drum spinner has looked unstoppable
and they might just be
our most improved team this season.
[chris] let's see who they'll be battling in this group.
[kenny] kudos to mammoth for making it as the 30th seed.
Donald hudson's lock jaw is very dangerous
as a 14th seed, could see some upsets from him.
A lot of rising stars here as well, shatter!,
end game and rotator are all teams
that could make deep tournament runs.
[chris] rotator, of course, missed the tournament last year.
It has been a rough season, but even as a 22 seed,
they are as dangerous as anyone in the field.
Okay, so the bottom half of the bracket is all set.
Let's reveal the committee's choice
for the number two overall seed.
And it goes to...
-Woah! -What just happened?
[chris] ...Bloodsport!
[kenny] another undefeated team that has just been shredding bots.
What a leap they've made this season,
grabbing the two seed in their very first year in the tournament.
[chris] here's their competition in this group.
[kenny] well, you love to see gruff sneaking in at 31.
They'll give bloodsport all they can handle
in their opening round fight. The seven-26 match up,
sawblaze vs. Kraken, leaps off the page.
Those are two of the most durable bots in the field.
That's gonna be all-out war.
And, of course, last year's runner up,
witch doctor is ranked 23
this time around, they'll face skorpios.
Witch doctor finally has their weapon dialed in
and I don't think anyone would be surprised
if they were one of the last teams left standing.
[chris] and finally, let's move to group number one
for the moment we have all been waiting for.
The reveal of the top overall seed.
And again, this is the selection committee's highest-ranked bot.
And in theory, they will have the path of the least resistance
to the giant nut,
and that team is none other than...
-Woah! -Woah!
[chris] ...The flipper hydra, of course.
[kenny] 3-0 this season against a murderous row of competition
and their dominant performance tonight against uppercut
had to lock up that number one seed in the committee's eyes.
[chris] so there are only seven spots remaining, folks.
Let's see who grabbed them.
Great to see huge get a nod with a 25 seed.
They'll have a shot at revenge against the bot
that knocked them out of the tournament last year,
the eight-seed whiplash.
[chris] a lot of kinetic energy here,
with malice, gigabyte and valkyrie as well.
[kenny] absolutely. And how about hypershock staking in
with the final pick as the 32-seed?
Their prize is a date with hydra.
That number one overall seed is coveted for a reason.
I think that group is hydra's to lose, chris.
[chris] well, you never know.
In the tournament, anything can happen.
And for those at home, if you want to download
and fill out your very own bracket,
you can find one at battlebots.Come/bracket.
For faruq, our bot whisperer peter,
jenny taft back in the pits and my man kenny florian,
I am chris rose.
We'll see you next time for the first round
of the battlebots world championship tournament.