Episode 3 Robot Wars

Fighting robots represent probably one of the biggest challenges

in engineering because there is no perfect design.

40 robot fighting teams are about to take on one

of the most intense engineering challenges in the world.

Advice I'd give to roboteers entering the arena is don't panic

and try not to die.

To design, build and battle heavyweight fighting robots

to compete for the ultimate prize.

Through chaotic group battles and fierce head-to-heads,

new and veteran teams of robot engineers

must push their reinforced war machines to the limits.

Their robots are harder, faster, stronger,

designed for one thing - total destruction in pursuit of victory.

This is Robot Wars, where metal goliaths meet rubber jellyfish,

and brains really are mightier than brawn.

There are teams of all ages from across the country and beyond,

who bring their handcrafted robots here to fight,

from those outlandish designs

to robots too dangerous to turn on outside of our bulletproof arena.

Last week, Eruption flipped the competition time after time

to earn their place in the grand final alongside

the brutally powerful Aftershock.

Tonight, eight more robots compete for their chance at the title.

We start with two group battles.

The top four robots from this stage go through to a mini league,

fighting each other once for points,

with the top two battling it out at the end of the show.

Only one can go through to

the grand final.

The robots in our first group battle are...

Last series, Jason excelled with the axe.

But one too many brushes with spinners zombified Thor

before the end of the competition. For this series,

he's back with a fresh design and plans to be even more powerful.

Your axe looks bigger.

Well, the axe is the same size, but the machine itself is smaller.

OK, and what about tactically, what is the plan?

I'm just going to wait for a minute and let them all do their thing

and then I'm going to pick on one of them that's not expecting it.

Are the hazards part of your plan

or are you just going to go straight in?

I like the idea of the rogue robot, I really do, I think that's great.

Yeah, I think I might press that button and see what we get.

OK. Please give it up for Thor. Good luck.

Tauron is packing a 20kg vertical spinning bar.

It is the team's robot building debut and they tell us

it has only taken them ten years to get around to it.

Let's hope it is worth it.

Have you tried a smaller weight class? Have you attempted anything?

-You've just gone straight in at this level.

-Of course not.

Yeah, never built a robot before, start in the deep end.

-There you go.

-And your day job, you test video games.

-I do.

So you're presumably, your thumb control will be pretty good.

Oh, yeah, I'm a bit of a gamer,

so I've certainly got a lot of experience,

like controlling sticks with my thumbs, and, yeah,

we will see what happens. We are just going to see.

Last year, MR Speed Squared destroyed Chimera I,

taking out its unprotected car tyres.

This time the team have a new design,

complete with the defensive wedge for spinners,

upgraded drive, and of course improved wheels.

Now, weaponry, let's talk about that.

Yeah, we've got the great big Hardox claw on the back.

Idea is we go and ram them,

that thing is going to come over with some force

and hopefully go through it.

Is there anything that may go against you?

Just being untested in battle, I think that is biggest thing.

This year, it is our own custom-made, two-stage drive system,

which in a battle is a bit untested.

Good luck. Give it up for Chimera. You especially.

-APPLAUSE

-I like the signage.

Last series, the Concussion team were on the other side of

the bulletproof glass cheering others on.

Now, as competitors, this group of engineers have opted to

sacrifice armour to add weight to their powerful drum.

Still untested in battle, this could be a rude awakening.

Now, Concussion is your first appearance here. What does it do?

It spins the front drum at about 6,000 rpm.

It should give them a nasty lick

and hit them out of the arena - hopefully.

Are you confident, by the way? Your first time here.

Yeah, I mean, we've never done any fight anywhere,

so complete rookies.

-So this is the first-ever fight?

-Ever.

Apart from a big piece of oak, but, yes.

OK. Oh, you took out a tree. Congratulations.

The best of luck.

Ladies and gentlemen, Concussion.

APPLAUSE

Our teams head to the arena for this all-important group battle.

Taking us through each destructive detail, it's Jonathan Pearce.

Thanks, Dara and Angela.

Each battle tonight will take place over three minutes

unless competitors are immobilised or flipped out of the arena

or are pushed down the pit of doom.

The arena also contains four deadly hazards and the House Robots

who are no longer forced to reside in their corner patrol zones,

but they're freed by the competitors pressing the arena button.

The Doom Dial decides at random to open the pit

or activate the rogue House Robot.

They can travel anywhere in the arena

to dish out damage on unwitting competitors.

Our judges, Professor Noel Sharkey, Dr Lucy Rogers

and Professor Sethu Vijayakumar,

are here to adjudicate if there is no clear winner at

the end of three minutes,

marking robots on their control, damage and aggression.

The teams are warming up in the arena.

From Northampton - Thor.

Thor's axe goes from 0-90mph in less than a second

and inflicts one and a quarter tonnes of force on its victims.

Builder Jason has designed this version of Thor

to be lower and flatter to get underneath its enemies.

From Bedfordshire - Tauron.

Father and son Tom and Tim built Tuaron in the garage.

For their first-ever robot they've got some impressive statistics.

The 20 kilo horizontal spinning bar spins at 3,000 rpm

and has a top speed of 10 metres per second.

From Bolton - Chimera 2.

Chimera 2 has a hardened steel wedge and a new drive,

which has doubled the top speed to 10mph.

Last year, the team had car tyres for wheels, it was a mistake,

this time they have high density polythene wheels

designed to flex when hit.

From Wool - Concussion.

Concussion has a 6,000 rpm spinning drum

with a top speed of 137mph and is made from carbon steel.

It also boasts a custom wiring system, laser cut components,

polycarbonate armoured panels and rather fetching LED under lighting.

That's the teams, here's the House Robot. He'll come down on you

like a tonne of titanium tipped bricks. It's Shunt.

Roboteers, standby.

Three, two, one, activate.

Here we go.

Look at the spinning drum of Concussion.

That is Thor with that mighty axe.

A little bit of a bash there.

And what is Tauron doing?

Hello, Tauron! What are you doing?

Not a lot.

Chimera 2 have got themselves caught on the floor spikes.

-That's it.

-Keep going. Keep going.

Tentative battle, this, but it is intriguing nonetheless.

These are good-looking competitors and they're driving sensibly.

And he's attacking Chimera 2 there, Thor.

That's interesting that he has gone after Chimera 2.

Jason obviously thinks he's the strongest opponent

and needs to get him out of the way.

Don't do it, don't do it.

Fully invertible, Concussion, can run both sides up.

Thor in there again. Chimera 2 with a piggyback.

Concussion seems damaged, but still mobile.

Looks like Chimera 2 is in trouble.

Now Thor goes in on Concussion.

Chimera 2 has gone.

Concussion is moving, but only on one wheel.

I think Jason here is just trying to drive Thor in,

trying to get used to the controls on the modified robot.

Taruon! What happened to you, Tom and Tim?

Oh, deary, deary me.

Chimera 2 are out and not happy.

Well, there's Thor angling for the attack.

Concussion dodging away from Chimera 2.

They got themselves on the spikes.

Testing first battle for our robot.

Thor and Concussion through.

OK, Thor, I thought we were going to have to go in

and resuscitate you for a moment. What happened?

The driver is a little bit sluggish, it's very cold,

so I'm just wondering if the chemistry in the battery is not very

-happy because of the temperature.

-OK.

So, we'll try and... I'll put them down me trousers or something.

Give it up, please, for Thor.

Good luck in the head-to-head.

Concussion, you were right in the middle of a lot of scraps,

and you put Chimera out.

-That was our plan.

-We just went all out with the weapons,

we knew that was our strongest point,

so we just wanted to show what it can do in the first round.

Fantastic. And now a series of head-to-heads.

-Yeah.

-Congratulations to Concussion.

-Thank you.

Concussion and Thor return victorious to the pits.

For Jason, new Thor has left him with cause for concern.

It was not driving right,

so I need to work out what's going on.

I think I've got a battery issue.

It's a different story for Concussion who are amazed at

the debut performance of their robot.

But the team are learning that the stresses experienced in battle

are in a different league to

the tests they performed before the competition.

One of the windings has burnt out on one of the drive motors.

We've never pushed him quite that hard.

We've thrown him about in a car park

and pulled a car or two, you know,

never against everyone else trying to rally against you.

The four robots in our second group battle are...

From Brentwood in Essex,

this brand-new robot has been built by a team of students.

They have developed an experimental retracting spinner

the likes of which we've never seen before on Robot Wars.

This is a project you've done for school, isn't it?

Yeah, so it's an engineering project, we wanted to test

our skills and see what we could create.

It does a thing that other robots aren't doing.

Yes, so before we get up to speed, our blades are contracted

and then we get up to 400 rpm, the blades come out.

Show me the way in which the blades contract.

Look at this beautiful model.

Look at that. That is fearsome.

Obviously it will go the other way cos otherwise things will slide off.

You have a little smooth part, is that going to do anything?

So we have teeth on our actual metal weapons,

so they will slice and hopefully grind at the other robots

or we can stab them with the point.

Ladies and gentlemen, give it up for Expulsion.

APPLAUSE

Heavy Metal also has some unique weaponry,

including a 360 degree rotating arm.

However, despite having various weapons at their disposal

the team's main concern are their huge wheels.

-What have we got with the armour?

-The armour is called Raex steel.

It's not very thick, but we'll just take our chances.

Usually alarm bells when there's exposed tyres,

-but there's no rubber, as such, on these tyres.

-No.

They should provide plenty of grip. They are replaceable as well.

-Do you have spares of these?

-No.

LAUGHTER

Also known as Mr Speed Squared, the robot has evolved from last series.

This family team hope their robot's giant spinning ring

can dish out the damage.

There is also a lot riding on this performance for team captain Pete.

What's this, by the way, about you would propose to your

long-term girlfriend if you DON'T WIN Robot Wars?

If we don't win Robot Wars, yeah,

I'm afraid I'm going to have to marry her, actually. Ellie.

-OK. But what happens if you do win Robot Wars?

-I'm off the hook.

-What?

-That's why I have been working so hard on it.

-Is she here?

-She'll be in the audience, yes.

-OK, grand.

So she'll be cheering against you in hoping that you finally commit.

Yes, which I should do cos she's a great girl.

Craig Danby returns with Foxic.

Redesigned and rebuilt from the ground up, it may look cute,

but we've been promised it can cause some serious damage.

-Your fox is a little fiercer this time.

-It is.

Well, a lot of people have these bits underneath the robot

that kind of hang down,

so I am hoping I can get underneath somebody,

hook onto them, drag them around the arena, open the pit,

drag them into the House Robots, set them on fire.

Right, that sounds like kind of dirty tactics.

-Look, this is a war.

-This is war. Give it up, please, for Foxic.

-APPLAUSE

-Good luck.

Time then to see what they're made of.

Go easy on them, Jonathan.

Where is the fun in that?

Four new robots, two places left in the head-to-heads left.

The roboteers are arming up in the arena.

From Staffordshire - Foxic.

Foxic's wedged-shaped head is made of hardened steel,

it can lift 300 kilos.

Foxic is quick with a top speed of 22mph,

for super pushing power.

From Essex - Expulsion.

Expulsion has a 5mm spinning disc

which has 10mm spikes hidden inside.

The team of students say the biggest weakness is

Expulsion's lack of self-righter.

From Leicestershire - Heavy Metal.

The Denny family have produced a robot with

a 360 degree rotating weapon arm.

The team say their robot has unique weaponry which can be swapped

in seconds, their arsenal including a spinner and a large drill.

From Worcestershire - MR Speed Squared.

Last series, this family team was plagued with technical problems.

This series, their unique rim spinner has a radius of over a metre

and weighs a huge 35 kilos.

When team captain Peter isn't building robots,

he is a consultant cardiologist.

Have to have a hobby, I suppose.

In the corner patrol zone, recently awarded the World's Angriest Robot

by the readers of Giant Angry Robot magazine - it's Sir Killalot.

Roboteers, standby.

Three, two, one, activate.

Watch for the driving skills of Foxic here.

Down goes the arena release button,

which sends the pit of doom down and then Foxic drives in

and underneath on a good attack.

MR Speed Squared - it is a more powerful machine this time around.

You can see the whirring blade up to speed.

We can see Expulsion getting a nudge from Heavy Metal there.

Foxic doing its damage.

Looks cute, but it can go through a wall, I'm told.

And Expulsion in on the spikes.

-Get out there!

-I can't move.

Oh, MR Speed Squared looks wobbly here.

I wonder if it is so powerful it is uncontrollable.

And Foxic has been flipped. Can he self-right now?

It doesn't look like it.

MR Speed Squared back under control, comes in for the attack.

It's OK now.

And sending Expulsion surely out.

Heavy Metal is moving.

MR Speed Squared...

Oh, lack of driving ability.

A bit naive.

Heavy Metal and MR Speed Squared through.

-What just happened?

-We're dead.

Good attack by Foxic, in underneath Expulsion.

Heavy Metal taking damage from MR Speed Squared there,

but they are both through.

MR Speed Squared rotating, looks improved until then.

They sustained damage by that.

I mean, what happened?

The self-righting arm, the lifting arm, didn't fire for some reason.

-Bring him back, please.

-I will.

-I mean, that went well.

-Yeah.

-No problem.

-Some fixing to do.

A little bit of fixing to do.

We're looking at you, Dad.

We'll take the wheel off, you fix it.

I mean, you are through to the head-to-heads.

-Oh, thank you very much.

-Yay! Well done.

MR Speed Squared, happy with how it went?

I think so, it's the first time we've tried this one out

and a few things to learn from.

-The way it kind of...

-Had a bit of a shaky...

Gyroscopic procession, yes. Yes.

I was going to say wobbly,

but by all means use the term "gyroscopic progression" instead.

They go through. Ladies and gentlemen, MR Speed Squared.

MR Speed Squared and Heavy Metal return victorious to the pits,

through to the head-to-heads.

They now have two hours to work on repairs before their next fight.

MR Speed Squared are happy with the first battle,

but need to diagnose the internal damage caused by

that impact with the arena spikes.

If it's going to be a slog to get it going again...

Whether the robot will still function we don't know yet.

We'll find out in a minute.

Although still mobile at the end of the battle, Heavy Metal

has also taken damage, and on close inspection it is worse than feared.

A bit more damaged than I thought.

There is a lot of dents.

The arm is all bent and that is stuck in there.

I think the axle shifted.

It could be serious, really serious.

With the group battles over, the surviving robots are...

Our first head-to-head is between...

Concussion's burnt out motor was irreparable,

so they already have to switch to a spare.

I am doing the second of our spare motors

cos the weld that was done on our other spare motor

is like the Andes and we can't get our chain around it,

so we're going to have to get this rewelded,

and I'll stand there with him and make sure it's nice and tidy.

Jason has traced the fault he felt was impeding his arena rampage.

The issue was just this little wire here that had come off,

so throw that away and I have replaced it.

But that small fault has cost him dearly

and could ultimately lose him the use of the weapon.

It's only bent because I missed

and the movement stopped suddenly on this point.

And I've got a bit more power in it now, so I've turned it around

and it should bend it back the other way. Can't keep doing that

cos it will fatigue and crack and drop off or fly off.

For seasoned roboteer Jason, Thor is a labour of love,

So, after many iterations,

could this version be approaching perfection?

I'm Jason from Northampton

and my robot is Thor.

Part of being a builder is demolition,

and that is what I'm bringing to Robot Wars.

The new version of Thor is sleeker, lower, it's actually faster,

more powerful and more relentless.

The weapon can deliver 1,250 kilos of force

in less than 250 milliseconds.

How would I best described Thor?

Relentless, savage and powerful.

For team Concussion,

building robots was a dream that led them into the world of engineering.

My name's Tim, I'm the captain of Dorset Roboteering Team

and our robot is Concussion.

We've got Sam, he's the mechanical design expert.

We've got Nick, he's the guy who's good with computers

and electronics. And we've got Carl, our driver.

He keeps cool under any amount of pressure.

It is our first-ever robot in any weight category.

We have gone straight in at heavyweight.

What makes Concussion stand out is a really powerful drive system

and a tenacious weapon.

The feeling of winning Robot Wars would be almost second to none.

It is what we have wanted for a long time.

We've wanted to be there, be involved, but to win,

it's a whole other level.

In the CPZ, the nicest, 300kg robotic triceratops I know -

Matilda.

And for this guy, every move is a pincer move.

It's Dead Metal.

Three, two, one, activate.

Will Jason's bent arm drop off?

Did he shove his batteries down his trousers?

That's what I want to know.

There is the arena button.

The House Robot goes rogue.

Dead Metal enters the arena and pins Concussion.

They are OK, just about.

But their custom-made machine...

can it get that drum up to 6,000 rpm,

with that mighty top speed of 137mph?

Not greatly damaging Thor.

Thor faster, lower, more powerful, but smoking.

Jason's machine smoking.

Gets away. Has learned to control it at speed.

Goodness me.

Oh, that's not smoke! That is CO2 venting!

It means he won't be able to use his axe!

Look at this for a fight.

They are wedged on the floor of the arena.

This one might go to the judges.

Concussion can't move.

This is a battle to the very death.

Concussion can't get out of there.

They are spinning, there is the button again which means...

this time it's Matilda.

Oh, Matilda has done us in!

Concussion wedged by Matilda.

That means Thor can come in with that mighty axe.

Slam, bam.

Oh, Dead Metal in there as well.

But poor Concussion.

The are almost out of it

because they are stuck in there.

They can't drum... Can they get away? Oh!

They flip Thor with the mighty power of the drum.

What a turn up. What a turn up.

What a battle that is.

One of the best we've seen this series.

Stupid, Jay.

Jason is gobsmacked.

Cease.

Brilliant stuff.

Well, they awoken from their Concussion.

And Jason looks absolutely distraught

because Thor was on the attack.

It might have been smoking,

but Concussion got stuck in there and couldn't get out.

Something came off Thor, I think.

That's when Matilda went in, tried to do her grisly best.

But look at this.

The power of the drum - it's all about the drumbeat.

For Jason, a bad split-second decision cost him the match.

His upgraded axe is now proving less than reliable.

Being stupid, went in for a bit of a nudge just to try and sort of

finish him off, and I went flying

and then I couldn't turn myself back over.

Concussion scraped the win,

but the teething problems for this first time robot are worsening.

Happy with the weapon and the drum...

we're not too happy about the drive because we're pushing it too hard

and it has blown all our controllers and motors at the minute.

The rules are clear - if you can't deliver a working robot for

the next fight, you'll lose your place in the competition.

Next into the arena...

MR Speed Squared's earlier fears about the internal condition of

their machine have proved to be unfounded.

We thought when we first got it off

it was going to be completely screwed,

like everything was just slack.

But then we just took it apart, reassembled it,

got all the adjustment sorted out

and now it is good to go.

No such luck for opponents Heavy Metal who are still smarting from

the damage sustained in their last fight.

This was an interchangeable part, like a grabbing arm.

It got hit by Mr Speed Squared

and it just went all into the side like that.

We had to free it all up, cut it out.

I've put another arm on, a different style of arm.

One of our main concerns, obviously, it's the wheels,

they are very exposed. One good hit from a spinner and it's curtains.

Last series, MR Speed Squared turned heads

with their outlandish new design.

This innovative machine has great potential.

But have they ironed out the complex engineering issues?

We're Team Forsey.

We're from Worcestershire and our robot is Mr Speed Squared.

It's a family team, I'm the dad and I've got my two sons with me.

Jake the driver, he's a computer programmer, an IT technician.

My son Sam is a motorsport engineering student.

There's many, many hours of work gone into Mr Speed Squared.

If it gets destroyed I'll be quite upset.

Mr Speed Squared is a ring spinner.

360 degree offence,

360 degree defence.

If you touch it you will be ripped to pieces.

If Mr Speed Squared works as it should

then nobody will want to fight us.

Opponents Heavy Metal are no strangers to destruction.

Their two-tone machine certainly looks like it means business,

but can it deliver?

My name is John Denny, I'm the captain of the Heavy Metal team.

In my team I've got my son John,

he's the driver,

my daughter Tasha and my wife Cath.

My day-to-day job is a crash tester. I crash cars.

From that job I think I bring a natural like for destruction.

My son is still at college

and my daughter and my wife both work for a fast-food restaurant.

The robot is a wedge shape, two large wheels, totally invertible.

You can throw it around all around the arena,

it will come straight back at you. It's unstoppable.

The most impressive technical aspect is probably the rotating arm.

My ultimate goal in the competition is obviously to win it.

Compared to us, all the other robots are lift music.

We are Heavy Metal.

In the CPZ - Sir Killalot and Shunt.

Roboteers, standby.

MR Speed Squared against Heavy Metal.

If the disc of MR Speed Squared is functional,

I think Heavy Metal could stand to lose their wheels here.

Yes. Come on.

Three, two, one, activate.

"Good to go."

That's the way MR Speed Squared described themselves.

But that's a very good attack by Heavy Metal.

Big whack on MR Speed Squared.

Get him! Get him!

But they're in underneath Heavy Metal, who can flip them,

certainly bash them onto the arena wall there.

Keep going! Hit him again!

Screams for John Jr, the Heavy Metal driver,

to hit MR Speed Squared again.

And he is in underneath the circular machine.

Back off!

I can't really see much life in that full body spinner.

It's not moving.

It can get up to 1,000 rpm, but, Peter,

you are heading down the aisle.

I just can't tell what's happening either.

If it continues like this, mind you, Ellie might not want you.

Inadvertently they hit the arena button.

They can spell, our audience, it's remarkable.

Every day in every way they are getting better and better.

Heavy Metal in underneath MR Speed Squared.

That really has been the tactic of this battle.

And into Shunt, into the CPZ.

Down comes the big spike of Shunt

to pierce that dodgy armament.

Run away.

Run away and keep running, MR Speed Squared.

Do not go in the pit.

That's basically sound advice.

Dodge the pit.

That's what they are trying to do.

MR Speed Squared are very close to it.

Doesn't matter that they went in afterwards,

they pushed MR Speed Squared in first. A win for Heavy Metal.

Cease.

Good work all the way through by Heavy Metal there,

pushing MR Speed Squared onto the floor flipper,

into the CPZ, punishment sustained by the House Robot.

Oh, and it was a penetrative punishment, too.

They tried to evade, but down they went.

Heavy Metal are jamming.

Well, I'll be honest,

even if I didn't seen the fight, I heard the cheering.

Did it not start, what happened?

-After that first ram into the wall it just stopped running.

-More fights

to come, so hopefully you can still get points on the board.

You get nada out of this one

because everything goes to this team.

CHEERING

MR Speed Squared are taking stock of the collective damage

caused by both Heavy Metal and Shunt.

Shunt got his axe in here,

which has bent our sprocket down onto the motor,

so it's locked solid.

And we can't fix it until we can get this off, if we can get it off.

We just had it welded on to make sure it didn't come off.

Although Heavy Metal's exposed wheels were their biggest concern,

they may actually have been the key to their success,

giving them the grip to dominate MR Speed Squared.

There was a lot of... The tyres came off,

-the little tyre things we've got.

-They've got to go back on,

but we want to straighten all those up as well.

We've got quite a lot of dents,

so to get that maximum movement on the ground

we want to make sure all of them can touch the ground to do it.

So...just get a hammer out.

After the first two head-to-heads,

Heavy Metal and Concussion both have three points.

Thor and MR Speed Squared are on zero.

At its heart, Robot Wars is a celebration of what can be achieved

with creativity and engineering.

Something head judge Professor Noel Sharkey is passionate about,

particularly when it can be used to fix problems in the real world.

Now, we see a lot of destruction from our robots in there,

so to think that robots are potentially going to save

the planet is a stretch for some, I think.

Well, I don't know if they will complete save it, but a really

important role for robots

is climate change and food production.

At the minute there's a lot being developed. For instance,

there are robots going in and repairing coral reefs

and going under the polar ice caps collecting data about melting.

And what about food production?

Yeah, well, that's very important.

The ones I like best are the swarm robots.

And they go out and they drill holes in the ground and plant seeds.

And they are working on robot bees for pollinating,

-so it's all looking very good.

-Which is a massive problem.

-That's right.

And we see a lot of kids down here,

getting into robots, to build for Robot Wars,

but there's a whole world opening up

in terms of the applications and the industry.

Yeah, this is all about fighting robots.

In actual fact, it's developing engineering skills,

and if we are going to solve these sort of problems,

we need an awful lot more engineers.

I like to think that we're at the forefront

and may be responsible for saving the planet.

-Yeah, maybe.

-What do you think?

We may be at the back front of saving the planet.

Well, either or, that will do.

Thank you so much, Professor Noel Sharkey. Thank you.

Next into the arena are...

This is a big opportunity for

both teams, as the winner will go

top of the leaderboard.

With their wheels repaired, Heavy Metal are ready.

Opponents Concussion are having no such luck,

needing to replace not just their burnt out motors,

but speed controllers, too.

No! Idiot!

With their deadline looming,

the pressure is on to deliver a working robot to the arena

or forfeit their place in the competition.

What is the signal going to be like to the speed controllers, Nick?

-Are you going to be ready just to go straight in?

-Yeah.

I'm just going to plug it in.

With seconds to go before they're disqualified,

the team put the lid on the robot, load up and head to the arena.

Let's get there, let's get there.

Can the hastily reassembled Concussion

prove deadly to Heavy Metal?

Or will John Jr's driving skills keep Heavy Metal's wheels intact

and out of trouble?

In the arena, the mighty, bighty, fighty - Dead Metal.

And Matilda.

Don't forget, they're are not very experienced,

-so you should be able to run rings around them.

-Right.

Three, two, one, activate.

Concussion only know one tactic -

all out attack and dominance.

That is their mantra.

And we love that.

Something came off Heavy Metal there.

There are bolts flying.

Bits of metal... Heavy Metal here taking some punishment.

Concussion top of the... Oh!

INDISTINCT CHAT

Well, we knew the tyres were exposed.

We now know Heavy Metal cannot move.

It can spin and spin sluggishly,

and I think it can't even spin any more.

You can see the drum of Concussion spinning.

Heavy Metal is going to be counted out.

Concussion is moving.

Mobile.

Great win. Great win.

Cease.

Really good.

Off goes the wheel out of the arena.

What will they be like when they don't have drive problems?

And a very good three points for Concussion.

Heavy Metal's luck with their exposed wheels has finally run out.

It took a massive hit on the wheel and it's sheared the axel off.

It's the one we've welded previously.

It's just going to need welding again.

It's a weak point on the robot.

Concussion, victorious again, take the lead.

This winning run is forging strong unity within the team.

These guys here, like, I get over excited.

Sam goes off and does his thing, but these two stay calm

and they know exactly where everything is at every point.

So, yeah, fair play to these guys to get it running.

Thor and Mr Speed Squared

are next up into the arena.

For each of these teams, winning here

is essential to stay in the running.

Performing his final checks, Jason has found a new problem with Thor.

I seem to have a problem with the drive with one of the wheels.

And it's...very stiff.

Stress levels are rising for Jason.

Meanwhile, MR Speed Squared are still patching themselves up

after their brush with Shunt.

With the battle rapidly approaching, team captain Pete

is forced to employ some precision engineering techniques

to straighten the weapon motor sprocket.

That's better. Much better.

Both these teams are fighting for their robot's lives in

the competition.

A bad defeat now will dent more than their machine.

In the corner patrol zone, the king of carnage - Sir Killalot.

And Dead Metal.

Three, two, one, activate.

Can Mr Speed Squared deliver some payback here?

In comes Thor. He's had problems with the axe arm.

He couldn't self-right because the CO2 vented in the last one,

but everything seems to be OK now.

He's had drive problems in one of the wheels.

But Thor looks back to its best now.

And with the precision repairs,

MR Speed Squared hit their machine with a hammer.

Now they're being hammered.

And they're out.

Cease.

Out of this one anyway.

Victory in this battle for Thor.

Oh, so disappointing.

Look at Thor's drive.

His drive is like next level.

So much drive, on the attack straightaway.

Bash!

Crash. Smash!

And in underneath with the wedge. Down came the axe again.

A battering.

Turns out getting hit in the head is probably

-the greater problem for you.

-Yeah.

-No, that's true. Our battery's packed up, basically.

-Oh, really?

And was it the fact that he came in very close to you

-and just hammered you on the head with an axe?

-I don't think so.

-It can't have helped.

-Yeah.

The results will have to fall your way,

but there's still a chance you can get through into the final,

so don't give up just yet.

-Equally, you're not there fully yet...

-No, I know.

..because of the last defeat,

but this was definitely a step in the right direction.

It was, yeah. Well pleased. Robot's much better than it was.

So at the end of that,

no points, but still in the game for MR Speed Squared

and three points for Thor.

Defeat at the hands of Thor seems to have deflated

the MR Speed Squared team.

Unable to form a plan of action,

the boys have turned to soup as they mull over their predicament.

Jason meanwhile is delighted Thor is finally living up to expectations.

Oh, that was better.

The smile's back. Happy with that.

Drive system is working as it should be.

I think the axe is on fire as well, so, yeah.

With only two head-to-heads to go, the scores look like this.

At the bottom of the table is MR Speed Squared with zero.

Heavy Metal and Thor both have three.

But in the lead and definitely through to tonight's final,

it's Concussion with six.

Next to fight, drum meets disc as

Concussion take on MR Speed Squared.

Having rewired their power supply after their fight with Thor,

MR Speed Squared are in the test arena

trying to get their disc into action.

We just done what we should have done before,

test the disc before we go into the arena and it's not working.

Unable to start the disc, the team try to diagnose the problem.

So what has changed between the first fight and this fight?

We got rammed into the disc a lot harder.

Yeah.

It is the friction.

Their next opponents, Concussion, are aware of the issues,

but won't be making any concessions in the arena.

It didn't look like their weapon was going, so...

..just going to go hell for leather at them, I suppose, really.

MR Speed Squared's ground-breaking design is proving tough to fix.

Things are going from bad to worse for the family team.

It's died.

Yeah, it wasn't me, it stopped.

It's a battery problem.

MR Speed Squared have done what they can to get their machine running,

replacing batteries and reducing the tension on the spinning disc.

It's their last chance to get points on the board,

but up against league leaders Concussion,

will they be lambs to the slaughter?

Concussion's place in the final is secure, but their chance of

making it to the grand final in one piece could be dashed

if that MR Speed Squared disc is working.

Oh, it's totally out of control!

Oh, like a whirling dervish, like a mad thing out there.

Well, it was absolutely buzzing, it took them right out of control.

It's not working now, so Concussion can come in.

Open the pit. Go on, open the pit.

They will have to rely on driving skills, pushing power.

The arena button signals the pit to go down.

Concussion will try and manoeuvre them towards that pit.

Slowly, slowly, slowly.

Well done, MR Speed Squared, for getting away there.

Keep going. Keep on him.

He fits peacemakers, you know, Pete Forsey, the cardiologist.

He's trying to keep them a pace ahead of Concussion.

But now they are in the grip of Dead Metal.

A bit of slice and dice, which is always nice.

Get away, get away, get away! Oh, just... No, no, no, not there!

This is wearing me out.

Concussion in again on the attack.

I don't think they can get much damage caused on MR Speed Squared

because of that...

That blade acting as armament, actually.

It is stopping the drum of Concussion

really causing too many problems.

This is tentative, a bit of a nudge,

a bit of a shove here and there.

Oh, they are in there again.

Don't let him go! What are you doing, Dead Metal?

Ah, go on, Killalot.

Stop. Go, go!

No, he can't get away from Killalot. No, no, no.

Killalot is mean and merciless, just about perfect.

And away goes MR Speed Squared.

The writing is on the wall.

Concussion has been hit and dented, but it has been a very good machine

and very nearly got itself on the precipice there.

When you consider that the armament of Concussion could be a weak spot,

they have done well, really, to dodge any sort of

massive punishment throughout this heat.

Oh, is that smoke? Is that smoke?

-Something is on fire.

-Something is on fire in Concussion.

And this could be hugely significant for later on.

And MR Speed Squared

could be this battle winner

because they are still mobile.

Concussion just about.

Well, they have worked tremendously hard, MR Speed Squared,

to get a machine back into the arena.

It is now a little bit of a push.

The Concussion drum is still working.

You can see that MR Speed Squared have no weaponry, to be honest.

-Cease.

-Cease is called.

That's intriguing.

Didn't go to plan.

Yes, the blade is working right at the start.

It's brilliant, isn't it? Oh, dear.

It is like your dad dancing at a disco.

Yeah, he was like that, I can tell you, my dad.

The old blade is bent and warped, the nudge into Concussion there.

Concussion getting away,

not so MR Speed Squared, caught by Dead Metal in there.

Sustaining damage to circuitry and to armament.

Down with a crash and a slam, that won't have helped.

But they stayed on in there.

Remarkable, really.

The judges will be totalling up the scorers for control,

damage and aggression.

-It was a good battle.

-Yeah, we enjoyed that.

We had a bit of a spin at the start as well.

Like a little coin flip.

I mean, we did think briefly that it may be

curtains straightaway after that glorious little spin.

-But you pulled it back.

-Yeah.

Let's go over to Concussion. You were sailing through.

-The gremlins are back.

-Yes.

There was a little bit of steam out of the back at the very end.

-I think flames as well.

-Flames!

-Yeah, one of the motors is gone.

Oh, dear.

Their ring is just that height that we can't get to their main body,

so we were just chunking away.

It is just the worst height to try and get him.

It has gone to a judges' decision

and that decision was unanimous in favour of...

Concussion.

Good luck in the final.

So for MR Speed Squared the competition is over.

And for team captain Pete,

this now has some life-changing ramifications.

I said if I didn't win Robot Wars I might marry Ellie.

-A mistake.

-No, it's not a mistake.

It is something I have kind of, I don't know why,

but I've been putting it off a bit.

Probably because of bloody Robot Wars, actually.

I need to do that, really.

-ANGELA:

-So it's a happy ending for Peter and fiancee Ellie,

and the good news doesn't stop there,

as long shot Concussion have made it through to tonight's final.

However, they still require a working machine,

so the unreliable drive system could yet be their undoing.

We don't know what's gone wrong with our left-hand side drive.

Some strange goings-on.

It has been replaced already, so gremlins again.

That's the hardest we've pushed it.

Yeah, we pushed it to the max there.

So who will be their opponents

in the final?

It comes down to this last

head-to-head between Thor

and Heavy Metal.

Both teams have been struggling with major repairs

and mechanical setbacks throughout the competition.

Heavy Metal have proven a tough opponent to beat,

with an edge of speed and grip through those huge wheels.

But can they stand Thor's massive hits

now that he's finally up to full strength?

Another huge decider here at the end of this episode

because it is Heavy Metal versus Thor.

-How is it going to go?

-It could go either way, really.

-We're hopeful.

-Are you?

-Very.

Your driving has been excellent.

Your weapon, I think, has been not quite decisive.

It took some serious knocks in the melee.

It's not working too well. It's working, but not as it should.

How will you cope with the axe?

-We don't know.

-We'll tell you afterwards.

Have you given any consideration to this?

You know he's got an axe, he's Thor.

-We've not fought an axe before.

-Have you not?

-No.

Listen, I can only wish you the best of luck.

Give it up for Heavy Metal, ladies and gentlemen.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Jason, it is battle of the drivers.

We have seen John Jr over there doing an amazing job...

Yeah, he's a very good.

..with Heavy Metal, have serious armour there...

I have put the heavy hammer on, so it delivers a bit more power.

And the front is flat to the floor,

that should get straight under him.

OK. Please give it up for Thor.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

In the arena, it is the thoroughly malicious Matilda.

And Dead Metal.

Three, two, one, activate.

And Thor immediately getting in underneath Heavy Metal.

We knew that would be Jason's tactics. Down comes the axe.

Nice. Get his back. Go on. You got this.

Look at the arena floor -

it's absolutely littered with the little rubber feet

that are on the wheels of Heavy Metal to give it traction,

which means they can hardly move without skittering.

John Jr is doing a brilliant job, though.

Turns away again.

Oh, nearly lined up for an attack to come in behind Heavy Metal and flip.

And once again John Jr turns Heavy Metal away.

The weaponry electronically powered.

Oh, no!

Can move it 10 rpm, but it's going nowhere.

And Thor is in behind...

Oh, and then Thor hit the arena floor

and couldn't sustain the attack.

Couldn't drive home the advantage.

Goes onto the floor spikes.

Drove Heavy Metal into Matilda's rear.

And off comes the wheel of Heavy Metal.

And now stuck between Thor and Matilda.

And I'm afraid this Heavy Metal gig is about to end

with a slow dance towards the pit, unless Thor...

Really got into trouble from Dead Metal.

Cease is called. Thor is the winner.

Heavy Metal, game opponents, but a beaten opponent.

Oh, what's this from Matilda?

Oh, a really big hit.

Don't tango with the rear end of Matilda.

All out attack.

Thor using that front wedge to get in underneath.

I think the grabber is bent.

That's when the wheel came off, that's when Matilda came in,

that's where Heavy Metal were beaten.

Thor is victorious and will meet Concussion in the final.

Seasoned roboteer Jason is confident of his ability

to decimate his rival.

Concussion is a drum spinner and with the front-end that I've got

I think I can go straight underneath it

and then it's just a case of bludgeoning him to death.

-ANGELA:

-Concussion still have a huge electrical repair job

before they are ready to fight.

This fairy-tale story could yet unravel for the new team.

He's tough armoured, he's fast and he's got a strong overhead weapon.

But we've got a drum.

And it has given him a nasty lick before,

hopefully we can do it again. And we are going to point that thing at him

and hope he comes hell for leather.

Our finalists tonight could not be more different.

e have the first-timers, Concussion.

Built by Robot Wars fans whose love of the show inspired them

to try their luck.

Versus the battle hardened Thor,

with years of fighting experience under his rusty belt.

But only one can go through to our grand final.

Last series, Thor's agility, speed and accuracy

stunned the competition.

He came back this time with promises of a new improved robot

that was harder, faster and stronger.

But in this group battle,

Jason's new creation didn't live up to expectations,

failing to dominate his early head-to-heads.

Jason's wake-up call was against Concussion,

costing him valuable points.

That was stupid, Jay.

Since then Jason has worked

tirelessly to get Thor back up to strength.

The smile's back. Happy with that.

Now with his drive at full speed and his axe at full power,

can the all-new Thor claim a place in the grand final?

To do that you have to defeat newcomer Concussion.

This orange whirling dervish has astounded everybody

with its tenacity and brutal power in battle.

The Concussion team have faced relentless repairs time after time,

as those high-voltage drives burnt out in the heat of battle.

We're going to be bloomin' soldering

as we're walking into the bloomin' arena.

If they can avoid another battle bonfire,

could this be the fairy-tale ending for the boys

who went from fans to finalists?

Now, when these two met in their head-to-head,

Jason's showboating cost him the match.

Can Concussion get the best of Thor for a second time?

Three, two, one, activate.

Jason is a builder. His estimate was a bludgeoning victory.

Yeah, we all know about builder's estimates, Jason.

And Thor at the moment a bit cagey, doesn't want to go...

head-to-head with that spinning drum.

Wants to angle an attack to get its axe down.

And Jason so experienced at the controls.

He thought he had a bit of an edge there. He didn't.

Well, I can't see any great damage caused.

Is his axe not working?

Again, Jason might have gone a little cocksure there going in

and nearly got flipped.

That's what happened to him before.

A little bit overconfident perhaps.

Comes in with a side attack, on an angle.

Concussion holding the central ground.

Dead Metal awaits.

Concussion nearly pinned.

He's leaking gas.

Gas is venting from Thor.

Now, this is what happened before against Concussion

because when Concussion turned Thor over...

Jason lacked any sort of...

because of a lack of CO2 to self-right.

Down will go the pit.

This is a very tactical heat final.

And Concussion... is prowling and growling.

And again holding the arena central space.

There is no power in that Thor axe, it would seem.

Thor is in trouble

because it can't dish out punishment

unless there is something left in the weaponry.

And so the heat final goes on.

And he did have enough power to self-right.

He was holding it back.

Brilliant stuff from Jason.

Good attack from Concussion, on the side, over went Thor.

Would it suffer the same problem as before? No.

Good recovery.

"We are all grown-up kids living out our childhood fantasy,"

say the Concussion boys.

It's buckled him. It's buckled him good.

And that front wedge has buckled, they think.

And Concussion again the more aggressive.

The drum spinner may not be up to the maximum 6,000 rpm

and can't spin now

because Jason is using the Thor wedge to break that drum,

to stop that drum moving.

Now it will move again as it frees itself.

This is very tight.

I wouldn't want to be a judge if it goes all the way.

There's still power in the axe.

-He's up. Get him.

-It's going as fast as it can.

But can it move Thor?

-Don't jam him.

-Don't restart him.

-Pull back.

Like two heavyweights who have punched themselves out.

And that might have been a little bit of a fake from Thor there

because Thor is on the attack. Now on the flame pits.

It's not going to do Concussion's motors any good.

Cease is called after a brutal, abrasive heat final.

We could have won.

They might have won. Or has he won? Has he wasted an opportunity?

Doesn't look happy.

Thor flipped, came down.

But that was Concussion's tactic to draw Thor in.

You can see the CO2 venting again,

but very cleverly Jason kept enough in the tank.

And when flipped there, could self-right.

That's experience for you.

Well, that will count in his favour.

It is time for our judges to decide.

So after three minutes of these two fine robots running around,

smashing into each other,

there was no definite winner, it has gone to a judges' decision.

We are awaiting that result.

Concussion, this is your first time out, lads.

And you've gone all the way, this far anyway...

-Which we are super chuffed with.

-Yes.

We thought, we're happy to go out in the four-way,

but, no, we went through that. Happy to go out next time.

-No, we got that.

-OK, grand.

Now you're in the final awaiting the judges' decision.

Do you think you'll get it, do you think you've done enough?

We certainly hope so. We certainly hope we kept

the weapon pointed at Thor long enough.

Listen, it was a good fight.

Give it up for Concussion, ladies and gentlemen.

It was kind of a battle, the old guard against the newbies.

And the idea would have been that you schooled them,

-but it was much more even than that, right?

-It was, yeah, good machine.

Very, very good machine. It was like trying to get hold of a bar of soap.

I was trying to push them towards the House Robots or in the pit,

I just couldn't do it.

It was a close one. Give it up for Thor, please.

APPLAUSE

But we have received the adjudication, the results are in,

and the judges were unanimous.

The winner of this fight, the winner of this episode

and definitely going to the grand final is...

Concussion, ladies and gentlemen.

CHEERING

Well done, congratulations. Are you ready for the big fight?

-We are going to throw everything at it and get it ready, yeah.

-OK.

Well done. Very good. Well done, Concussion.

Hard luck to you, Thor.

Obviously there is the wild card,

you came back in the wild card last series, so you never know.

We'll be back next time, but for now that's all for from Robot Wars.

-Goodnight.

-Goodnight.

Coming soon on Robot Wars...