Battlebots 2018

[Rakaydos]

So how much spinner damage could be avoided if you could get a solid ram PAST the fastest moving end bit of the spinner, before the other end came around?

I'm thinking something like the "Speed Racer" jump actuators (modded into downward spike lances against non-spinners) where the bot can get up a good speed toward the enemy, jump over the spinner's edge, and be a 150 lbs cannonball against the axel of the spinner. Even if you miss, landing near the center of the weapon minimizes the impact energy, and meanwhile the spinner gets almost the same net recoil.

Balance may be an issue. If there's mass budget, perhaps some kind of reaction wheel system?

[Traab]

The thing is, spinners tend to be going several times a second. You arent getting through that without taking a solid smash. The standard strategy that can potentially work is ramming the spinner with a non vital part to stop its spin, then get back in there before it can ramp back up to speed. It does work from time to time, but too many spinners are really really fast to rev up unless they took damage. *EDIT* My bad, reread your post. Something like that COULD work, but would require really really good aim and timing. And seeing battlebots, it doesnt seem likely to happen. Even the best drivers tend to miss a lot before landing solid blows with aimed weapons. Bronco misses his toss a lot, the hammer bots are constantly smacking the ground instead of the opponents, grabbers are missing the grab, etc. Launching yourself would also be a bad idea because shock damage from landing is what kills a lot of enemies.

[tomandtish]

Yeah. As I commented earlier, once Minotaur lost their spinner, they tried the "ram your fist with my face" strategy.

It actually seemed like it might be working. Tombstone's spinner was getting more out of alignment and Minotaur didn't really seem to be taking anything but cosmetic damage. And then they got hung up.

Of all the fights I've seen, that's the one I most wish i had seen go the distance rather than ending the way it did. Tombstone actually took more visible damage, and I'd really have loved to see what happened if Minotaur had knocked out that spinner.

But yeah, there are few bots that can take the hits long enough to disable the spinner. Duck might be able to, since it is built around that basic strategy.

[Traab]

I wonder if one of the hammer bots got the timing right, they could bend tombstones blade? Just knocking it into the ground to smash into it would likely cause all sorts of problems (as anyone whose lawnmower hit a buried rock would know) It doesnt take much, those blades have to be VERY carefully balanced to spin at those speeds and not fling itself all over the place. But that would depend on both luck, and surviving long enough to give it a few tries. Neither of which are likely against tombstone :p

[Rakaydos]

I wonder if one of the hammer bots got the timing right, they could bend tombstones blade? Just knocking it into the ground to smash into it would likely cause all sorts of problems (as anyone whose lawnmower hit a buried rock would know) It doesnt take much, those blades have to be VERY carefully balanced to spin at those speeds and not fling itself all over the place. But that would depend on both luck, and surviving long enough to give it a few tries. Neither of which are likely against tombstone :p

The problem is that usually a hammer is just a fractio of the mass of the hammerbot, whereas a spinner puts as much mass into the spinner as they can spare. Near the tip of the spinner, the blade slides out from uder the hammer before it can be deflected much (andt then the other end comes around and smashed the hammer), and a hit near the center just doesnt have the leverage to deflect the blade significantly. (That's why my thought was to turn a whole rambot into a max weight hammer aiming at the inner area)

[Traab]

Which way does tombstone spin? I ask because, maybe, just maybe, a dual weapon bot would be effective here. Put a spinning blade on one side thats rotating the opposite direction. The sheer torque of the impact might wreck tombstones only weapon while leaving his opponent with a second weapon to fall back on. We HAVE seen his spinner get messed up after all, that amount of strain on it could be just what it takes to do the job.

[Rakaydos]

Which way does tombstone spin? I ask because, maybe, just maybe, a dual weapon bot would be effective here. Put a spinning blade on one side thats rotating the opposite direction. The sheer torque of the impact might wreck tombstones only weapon while leaving his opponent with a second weapon to fall back on. We HAVE seen his spinner get messed up after all, that amount of strain on it could be just what it takes to do the job.

Doesnt he have a reversable blade motor? So whatever direction he feels like that match.

[Z3ro]

Best way to take out tombstone is break his fist with your face. Watch some of his old fights, or his fight with minotaur, glass cannon is right. Get a thick front wedge and just smash it into him like when biteforce beat him in 2015. Not sexy, but effective.

[tomandtish]

Best way to take out tombstone is break his fist with your face. Watch some of his old fights, or his fight with minotaur, glass cannon is right. Get a thick front wedge and just smash it into him like when biteforce beat him in 2015. Not sexy, but effective.

In fairness, the Biteforce battle doesn't really count. Ray had destroyed Tombstone by showboating against Bronco. Literally, guts were all over the ring because he kept going in for extra hits after Bronco was obviously done and the back force blew him apart. Ray indicated that he had jury-rigged repairs for that fight, and they didn't hold. Despite not taking any serious hit he overheated, and lost his weapon. Prior to that he'd actually started making gaps in Biteforce's wedge.

It's why you see a lot less showboating from Ray in Season 2 and this season. He cost himself the shot in season 1.

Don;t get me wrong, i agree it's probably the best way to take him out. I'm just not sure Biteforce is the best example of that. Ray lost the weapon because of poor repairs, not because of Biteforce's action.

[Traab]

Yeah that is generally the most likely way to stop a spinner, hit it with your least vital parts and halt the spinner, then keep up close so they dont rev back up. It even works on a lot of them. But there are a few that are just SO strong that generally speaking, you are going to break first. They dish out so much damage with that first solid hit that even if it DID wreck the spinner, chances are the damage is already done. Best bet is to be the second opponent after the first one used this method and caused damage to the spinner in some fashion. :p

[tomandtish]

Which again goes back to seeing Duck against Tombstone. Duck has taken some massive shots, and the only reason it lost a fight was Bronco throwing it out of the ring. I'm really curious to see how the face/fist strategy works there.

[tomandtish]

Incidentally, I'm not sure why there is suck a delay in the airing, but the next episode is scheduled for 8/3. Anyone know why there's such a long wait?

[Topaz]

Incidentally, I'm not sure why there is suck a delay in the airing, but the next episode is scheduled for 8/3. Anyone know why there's such a long wait?

Shark Week break.

[tomandtish]

Well, after a few weeks off, Battlebots is back. Tonight? The Desperado tournament. 8 bots competing for the final Sweet 16 spot.

Interesting how they did this. Based on their own word, 8 bots "who felt their chances of making the Top 16 were in jeopardy threw their hat in the ring". So it's optional and an owner decides how they want to participate? And different matches for different people? Gemini only had one fight so far this year (loss) Same for Gigabyte. Others had lost more (Lockjaw was 1-2). And Double Dutch had two WINS and no losses going into this. So why didn't Gemini get more chances to prove itself before having to dive into this tournament? Why is Double Dutch in here given it has a better record than any of them? And this is how they are determining the first of the 16 spots?

Also, because they are doing the whole thing in one shot, we won't be watching all of the fighting.

Spoiler: Gemini v. Lucky

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The dual bot (spinners) versus a smallish flipper/wedge. This starts out painfully, as Lucky is flipping Gemini bots all over the ring. But after about 10 flips Lucky’s flipper gets stuck. However, while Gemini gets some hits and does some damage, they also end up ramming each other and both damage their spinners. It’s become a pushing match. One Gemini gets disabled, but it goes to the judges.

Gemini’s biggest problem is neither bot has the weight to be significant. Lucky seems to lack power and a reliable weapon. Gemini also seems to be very hesitant in driving, and probably lost points there. The judges’ decision is unanimous for Lucky.

Spoiler: Lockjaw v Kraken

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Lockjaw is normally a solid bot with a drum spinner, but seems to have had bad luck this year. Kraken uses piercing jaws to grapple.

At the start Kraken almost immediately gets a chomp on Lockjaw, but no real damage done. After the release, Lockjaw starts banging Kraken around the room with the spinner, getting several good hits. But with just under a minute Kraken gets knocked upside down. With no self-righting, they are counted out.

Spoiler: Matches not shown

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Gigabyte beat Double Dutch, and Valkyrie beat Hypothermia.

Spoiler: Semi-final one

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Lockjaw v. Valkyrie Lockjaw went with lighter vertical disks and added a heavier wedge. Valkyrie also switched to a heavier bar spinner. Will be interesting to see if their changes work.

Lockjaw comes straight at Valkyrie. Two0three hits and Valkyrie’s spinner breaks (actually breaks). Valkyrie can’t get moving well because the remainder of the spinner messes up the movement, flipping it into the air. (The same strategy we think MIGHT work against Tombstone). A few more hits, and Valkyrie stops moving and is counted out.

As noted, this shows that the “break your weapon with my face” strategy is actually valid against even horizontal spinners.

Spoiler: Semi-final 2

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Lucky v. Gigabyte Lucky is a flipper bot in the style of Bronco, but not as powerful or reliable. Gigabyte is a full-body spinner that had its top removed in an earlier fight. Both bots are going to hop[e their reliability is better than previous fights.

They crash a few times, with Lucky trying to keep it close. But Gigabyte gets knocked over AND loses their self-righting bar. Gigabyte can’t demonstrate controlled movement and is counted out.

Spoiler: Desperado Final

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Lockjaw v Lucky They bang a few times. Lockjaw does a good job of pushing Lucky around the ring, and while Lucky does get a flip or two in, it is all lockjaw. It takes a while, but Lucky eventually loses controlled movement and is counted out. Honestly, a fairly dull match.

I'm pretty sure I don't like this, but thoughts?

[keybounce]

I just saw the science channel repeat (Discovery's was earlier), and the two battles that were summarized on Discovery were in full on Science.

I am disappointed in that a bot with 2 wins, no losses, felt a need to go into this battle for a chance at the finals, claiming that wins against weak robots would not be sufficient.

But ... Seeing a top-notch bot basically wipe out the competition? I wanted to see a contest between 8 lesser-tier robots, not 7 lesser and 1 top-tier.

[tomandtish]

Well, let's see...

There were 55 bots entered this year. For the sweet 16, 1

Spoiler: Tournement rules 2018

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8.0 Tournament Format
This entire section has been revised for 2018
8.1 Contestants
The contestants in the Tournament are initially composed of:
a) 48 Entrant Teams
b) Multiple “Backup” Teams

8.2 Activity Types
The Tournament consists of the following types of activities:
1. Fight Card.
2. Championship Rounds.
3. Other possible formats.
Each is described below.

8.3 Fight Card
The Fight Card is used to determine new rankings for the BattleBots. It works as follows:
a) Entrant and Backup Teams will each compete in up to four Matches.
b) Matches can be in One-on-One or Rumble format.
c) The Producer determines the match-ups, based on the existing rankings
d) The results of the Matches will be used to calculate new rankings, described farther below.

8.4 Championship Rounds
The Championship Rounds use a standard single-elimination, 4-round format with One-on-One Matches.
Selection criteria for participating Teams are described below in paragraph 8.7.
8.4.1 Round 1 (“Sweet 16”)
This first round will consist of 8 Matches between 16 Teams.
8.4.2 Round 2 Quarter Finals (“Great 8”)
The 8 winners of Round 1 will compete in 4 Matches.
8.4.3 Round 3 Semi-Finals (“Final Four”)
The 4 winners of Round 2 will compete in 2 Matches.
8.4.4 Tournament Finals “Championship Match”
The 2 winners of the Semi-Finals will compete for the Tournament Championship.

8.5 Other Possible Formats
At Producer’s discretion, other types of competition formats may be included in the Tournament. Some
format possibilities are:
1. Bounty One-on-One.
2. Tag-Team.
3. Round-Robin.
4. Grudge Match
5. Exhibition

8.6 BattleBot New Rankings
New rankings for each BattleBot at the Tournament will be computed based on performance in the Fight
Card Matches.
8.6.1 Ranking Factors
Multiple factors are used to compute the new rankings. Some of these are:
a. Average number of wins
b. Average Knock-Outs
c. Average time to Knock-Out
d. Highest “Knock-Out Against” time
e. Judge’s scores

8.7 Championship Rounds Selection
The Producers will select the 16 Teams for the Championship Rounds.
8.7.1 Selection Criteria
The selection criteria include, but are not limited to:
a. New Robot rankings
b. Safety considerations
c. Team/Robot History
d. Robot design and capabilities
e. Robot appearance and/or originality
f. Robot functionality
g. Entertainment value of the Robot
h. Entertainment value of potential Matches
All decisions in regards to selections will be final and not subject to challenge or appeal.

8.8 Championship Replacement Team Selection
BattleBots Inc. reserves the right (but not the obligation) to select a Replacement Team for any Round of
the Tournament in which there is not an equal number of Robots due to Forfeit or Disqualification.
Selection will be based upon the criteria defined above in [8.7.1], but can also include other factors at the
Producer’s discretion.
Typically, BattleBots Inc. will choose a replacement Team from one of the Teams that lost in the
immediately preceding round of the Tournament, but reserves the right to select from any of the Backup
Teams. For example, if one of the semi-finalist (Final Four) Teams cannot compete, the replacement Team
might be selected from a Team eliminated in the Quarter Finals.

8.9 Prize Structure
There are prizes for all BattleBots that compete in combat at the Tournament. In addition, there will be
trophies awarded to Teams based on their BattleBot’s design and operation.
8.9.1 Tournament Prizes
The Tournament shall award cash prizes as follows:
Win $ Lose $
Exhibition Matches TBD TBD
Fight Card Matches TBD TBD
Sweet 16 TBD TBD
Quarter Finals TBD TBD
Semi-Finals TBD TBD
Finals TBD TBD

In addition, the Tournament Championship winning Team will receive the Giant Nut Trophy.
Producer, BattleBots Inc. and Network reserve the right to make changes to the total prize pool amount
and/or the prize pool allocation prior to the commencement of the Tournament.
8.9.2 Design Awards
A Giant Bolt Trophy will be awarded to certain artistic, innovative or otherwise exceptional BattleBots
regardless of their performance in the Tournament.
The awards are designated and determined as follows:
Most Destructive Robot
The Judges as a group will decide this Award winner.
Best Designer
The winner for this award will be decided by a poll of all of the Entrant and Backup Teams. The Robot
with the most votes wins. In case of a tie, BattleBots will make the tie-breaking vote.
Founder’s Award
This award will be decided by BattleBots Inc. Officials.
No Robot will be eligible for more than one Design Award.

When it comes to ranking, note that they 1) Don't apparently list all the possible options and 2) don't say HOW specifically these things are weighed. So there seems to be a fair amount of subjectivity.

[tomandtish]

New episode tonight. In the opening commentary they even said that the selection committee would determine the remaining 15. So yeah, your record is only part of the story.

Spoiler: Rotator (2-1) v. Skorpios (2-0)

Show

The dual horizontal spinner against the vertical saw. Incidentally, Rotator is a palindrome, and its style is basically a palindrome as well. Skorpios took some serious damage in their last fight, but did win.

Skorpios comes out aggressively, slamming into Rotator and pushing them around. This apparently backfires, as their saw stops working pretty quickly. It still seems like Skorpios has an advantage, as they are pushing Rotator all around the ring and definitely winning on aggressiveness … until one solid hit by Rotator takes the saw completely off Skorpios. Skorpios continues to try and push Rotator around, but that is the defining moment. It goes to the judges and Rotator gets the win.

Spoiler: Ultimo Destructo (2-1) v. Witch Doctor (1-1)

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WD has had some significant reliability issues this season. They are normally an elite bot but haven’t shown it this season. They remove the wedge this fight. Ultimo Destructo has 2 wins, but against poor competition. They are going with a flipper. We will see what happens….

And Witch Doctor is BACK! This match was brutally short! Witch Doctor hit Ultimo Destructo 2-3 times, and Ultimo Destructo was literally split in half. Sparks were coming out from under it after the first hit. This took 54 seconds, and there was 15 seconds before they made first contact and another 10 for the actual count out.

Spoiler: Overhaul (1-1) v. War Hawk (1-1)

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Overhaul uses that lifting grabber. War Hawk is a vertical spinner, and also has a mini bot.

In the first few seconds, you almost think Overhaul is out. War Hawk gets in solid hits and pieces of Overhaul are flying. Then War Hawk gets grabbed a few times and nearly flipped, and suddenly it is a back and forth. War hawk seems to have some maneuverability issues, but…

Holy crap! The mini bot gets under Overhaul and actually stops him dead in his tracks! It actually causes fire to come up from under Overhaul! War Hawk is able to get a solid hit in because of it. And this then happens again a few seconds later! This goes to the judges. It’s a unanimous decision for… War Hawk!

I have to admit, it was the most effective use of a mini bot I’ve ever seen. It was arguably more effective than the main bot! Like watching R2D2 take on an Imperial Walker!

Spoiler: Chomp (0-3) v. Warhead (1-0)

Show

OK, let me be honest. Here are two bots that I think are both overrated (esp. Chomp). But we will see what happens. Warhead is using the dinosaur head configuration (so fire). We will see if Warhead can move Chomp around. I assume Chomp will spend a lot of time on its side.

Both bots crash together and activate their flamethrowers. No real damage. On the positive side, Chomp is staying upright when it uses the hammer. But Warhead does figure out that they can grab Chomp’s hammer and move Chomp around.

But this fight is actually not that impressive. Warhead can hold Chomp but not do that much. Chomp has made contact a few times but no noticeable damage. When it goes to the judges, I assume Warhead will get it… and they do on a unanimous decision.

Please stop saying Chomp is a great bot. it just isn't.

Spoiler: Gemini (1-1) v. Sharkoprion (1-1)

Show

OK, so Gemini was in last week’s tournament because they thought they couldn’t make the sweet 16… but now they are still in this as well? Sigh…

Anyway, Gemini is the 2 bots with horizontal spinners while Shark is a vertical spinner and about 5 feet long.

There’s not much happening for a while, then Shark actually knocks a piece off one of the Gemini bots with its tail. Gemini has a friendly fire incident, and Shark gets another hit, and this goes to the judges. On a split decision it goes to Sharkoprion.

This was interesting to watch only because Sharkoprion is such a long bot. But neither design is actually that great from a fighting perspective. Sharkoprion is too long to be really effective, and Gemini’s two bots are each too light.

Spoiler: Tombstone (2-0) v. Whiplash (2-0)

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Whiplash’s driver has been saying they think they can outdrive Tombstone. OTOH, Ray has said he’s going to be destroying other bots again (returning to season 1 mentality?), so there’s definitely smack surrounding this match. Both bots have been very effective this season.

Whelp, that didn’t last long, although it looked promising for about 15 seconds… Whiplash tried the ramming straight into Tombstone, and while Tombstone did go flying a few times and was trapped against the wall once, pieces kept flying off Whiplash. And eventually too many pieces were gone.

Again, if you can’t take out the weapon or the tires you are gonna lose to Tombstone. And Whiplash lost.

[tomandtish]

New Episode (#13)

Spoiler: Red Devil (2-1) v. Valkyrie (2-2)

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Vertical saw versus horizontal spinner. Red Devil has a better record than I would expect, although the saw has never been THAT effective a weapon. Valkyrie lost an extra match in the Desperado tournament. They are running the spinner extremely low to the floor (maybe ½ inch clearance).
I will say it looked like Valkyrie moved out a split second early, and it hits Red Devil first. A few more hits and Devil’s wedge is bent. Another hit and Devil’s tread comes off … and moves around the ring on its own? (Queue demonic possession jokes). The tread is running around by itself while Devil is still moving around… although not doing anything else. Valkyrie pushes Devil around and cuts off a few chips, but it goes to the judges. Valkyrie gets the decision.

Honestly, the fact it goes to the judges says a lot about driving problems Valkyrie is having. This should have been over quickly once the tread separated, and the fact Valkyrie couldn’t close the deal indicates they won’t be going far.

Spoiler: Brutus (2-1) v. Gigabyte (1-2)

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Brutus uses the vertical spinner. Gigabyte is a full body spinner who has had some bad luck and keeps getting taken apart. If it has any advantage, it is that Brutus may have a hard time landing a solid hit.

They have their initial crash, and Gigabyte seems stunned. They then have a huge crash. Brutus’s spinner seems damaged. Brutus hits Gigabyte and knocks it flying, but the spinner isn’t moving.
After 8-9 hits, Gigabyte stops spinning, although Brutus did lose a piece. The Brutus does start up the spinner. It goes for the kill … and runs up onto Gigabyte and flips upside down. Brutus can’t move and gets counted out!

Goes to show you never know how it is going to go. The match was ALL Brutus until the last 20 seconds.

Spoiler: Bombshell (0-3) v. Bite Force (3-0)

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Bite Force is undefeated, and deservedly so. Bombshell is completely defeated, and has had some serious bad luck. Will they both have “perfect” records after this one? Both are vertical spinners.

Bombshell shows some movement issues coming out, and pays for it. Bite Force quickly knocks Bombshell upside down, moves it to the corner, and then knocks it out of the arena. Total elapsed time? 49 seconds. Bite Force is 4-0 and (other than Tombstone) is the bot to beat.

Spoiler: SOW (2-1) v. End Game (2-1)

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SOW is a nasty horizontal spinner. End Game is using a vertical spinner and is going with a very low-body set-up.

They move together in a HUGE crash (sparks everywhere). SOW flies onto the screws and into the screen (it shatters the inner layer of lexan), but is able to get off. End Game stays mostly in place, but stops moving. End Game is counted out. 43 seconds from start to finish.

That was basically two cars crashing into each other and seeing if either would drive afterwards. In this case SOW was the lucky car. No skill, just brute force.

Spoiler: Blacksmith (1-2) v. Minotaur (1-1)

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Blacksmith is the flaming slamming hammer. It has never actually impressed me that much as the hammer often came off last season. They’ve added forks in the front and allegedly improved the hammer’s durability. Minotaur is the drum spinner that is actually pretty solid. It actually did some damage to Tombstone in their match at the beginning of the season. They’ve actually turned DOWN the power on their spinner, to keep them closer to the ground.

They spend about 30 seconds circling, then began closing. Minotaur lands solid hits and is pushing Blacksmith all around the ring. Blacksmith gets a hit or two but no visible damage. At one point Blacksmith actually catches on fire from their own hammer. They do bang on each other for a while, but no one gets a solid kill shot and it goes to the judges.

I’d say Minotaur won based on aggression, control, and damage, and …. Looks like I’m right. Minotaur wins on a unanimous decision.

[Z3ro]

Bite Force is 4-0 and (other than Tombstone) is the bot to beat.

I'm really hoping for a Biteforce/Tombstone championship bout. Biteforce has been rock solid this season and I want to see how well they stand up against the punishment. Can't wait.

[tomandtish]

New Episode

Spoiler: Tombstone (2-0) v. Duck (2-1)

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Spoiler: Really, make sure you watch this one before reading this!

Show

Well, here’s the match a lot of us wanted to see. I’m disappointed this isn’t the main event. The reigning champ. The deadliest bot out there versus the master of “break your fist with my face”. Tombstone is undefeated. Duck only lost one match, when Bronco flipped it out of the ring. This is irresistible force against immovable object.

Tombstone gets up to speed quickly, and the first hit take a piece off of Duck. There’s a few more slams. Tombstone keeps slamming into Duck, who is doing a good job of taking it, but then Tombstone gets a wheel. Duck isn’t moving so well now. But Tombstone’s blade is noticeably out of alignment, and the hits don’t seem quite as solid as before. Duck is limping on three wheels. It’s still moving but not very well…

Duck hits Tombstone… And Tombstone stops MOVING!!! HOLY CRAP!! Did it work?!? The spinner is going but Tombstone is still! You can hear Ray saying “No, No”…

And then suddenly Tombstone starts moving again but the spinner stops. And Duck has lost another wheel. Duck is limping badly, and unfortunately limps right over the kill saws, where it loses yet another tire. With 3 wheels gone it can’t move and is counted out. And we see something we’ve never seen before… a visible sigh of relief from Ray.

Well, that’s as close as we’ve ever come to seeing anyone beat Tombstone in a straight up fight (at least in the reboot). Duck may be 2-2 now, but given their losses are to Tombstone and Bronco, I think they can hold their heads high (and hope to see them in the final 16). I WANT to see a rematch at some point.

Spoiler: Petunia (2-1) v. Yeti (2-1)

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Petunia is a crusher and Yeti uses a drum spinner. Yeti ditched the wedge, and is going total offense.

This is pretty much all Yeti. They keep hitting Petunia, knocking them back and around the ring. Pretty quickly they bend the beak of Petunia (so the crusher can’t penetrate even if they get a grip). Petunia can’t do anything, and pretty soon Petunia stops moving and is counted out. Solid Yeti victory that was never in doubt.

Spoiler: Monsoon (2-1) v. Axe Backwards (0-2)

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Monsoon has changed to a different bar, hoping to deal with reliability issues. Axe is an (almost) full body spinner of an unusual design (vertical, not horizontal). Unfortunatley they’ve had motor and battery issues. They’ve made adjustments, so let’s see if they make a difference.

Nope. This is all Monsoon. They push and bang Axe like money is owed. They has Axe on the screws in 10 seconds, smoking in 15, and the count-out starts almost immediately. 38 seconds from start to finish.

Spoiler: Warhead (2-0) v. Warrior Dragon (1-1

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Warhead is reverting back to their spinner configuration. Warrior has a flipper and body spinner configuration, although the flipper is tied to the spinner (if one isn’t working both aren’t working). Warrior is also using their mini-bot Meddler.

They come together with a big crash, and Warhead spins out of control. A second hit ….Warhead spins off into the side of the area… and breaks its spinner!!! About a third of the spinner goes flying away! Warhead is now really off balance and not spinning well at all!

But Warrior Dragon isn’t spinning and we haven’t seen a flip either. They seem to be trying to push Warhead, but not succeeding. Meanwhile Warhead keeps trying to steer itself into Warrior and bang the broken spinner into it. Warhead is also flaming Warrior every chance it gets. This ends up going to the judges.

I’m not sure how to call this. Warhead took more damage, but most of it was self-infliced. Meanwhile Warrior Dragon was completely ineffective at control, strategy, etc. I COULD see this going either way. The judges… come back with a split decision… for Warhead.

The decision doesn’t surprise me. Warrior Dragon couldn’t do anything despite the damage Warhead took, and that damage was self-inflicted. So Warrior doesn’t get credit for it. And they didn’t really do anything else. And if you look at team Warrior Dragon, they seem to know it while the results are being announced.

OTOH, I suspect Warhead is gonna have to go with the T-Rex configuration for the rest of their matches. I don't think that is gonna buff out.

Spoiler: Bronco (3-0) v. Sawblaze (3-0)

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Bronco needs no introduction, being the best flipper in the biz. Sawblaze is a sawblade/flamer with a great wedge. Everyone keeps screaming about the blade, but it actually wins as a wedge/ram bot. The blade and flame do minimal damage. But both teams are trying to maintain a perfect record.

On the initial clash Sawblaze generates some sparks off of Bronco. But Bronco gets in a flip. Then a second and a third. And Sawblaze has lost the weapon. Sawblaze closes and tries to push Bronco around but Bronco gets free. Sawblaze is also losing a tire. They push each other around some more and it goes to the judges, who give it to Bronco.

Again, Sawblaze had to fight this the way it normally wins, by pushing their opponent around. But they couldn’t do anything against Bronco, and the damage they took from flips meant Bronco was gonna win.