Semi-Final 1 of Robot Wars: The Fifth Wars was the first of two Semi-Finals which determined the Grand Finalists of Robot Wars: The Fifth Wars. Each Semi-Final had three initial battles, with a Losers Melee to decide which defeated robot would receive a second chance. The three first round winners and the winner of the Losers Melee would then pair off to decide which two robots would progress to the Grand Final. The episode featuring Semi-Final 1 was originally broadcast on May 22, 2002 on BBC Choice and repeated on October 18, 2002 on BBC Two.
Competing robots
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|---|---|---|
| Bigger Brother (winner of Heat I) | ||
| Weight | 99kg | |
| Dimensions | 0.91 x 0.8 x 0.8m | |
| Power | 2 x 750W electric motors | |
| Weapons | Pneumatic flipper | |
| Strengths | Powerful weapon | |
| Weaknesses | Limited CO2 supply | |
| From: Brighton | ||
| Team Members: Ian Watts, Joe Watts & Ellie Watts | ||
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|---|---|---|
| Chaos 2 (seeded 1st, winner of Heat A) | ||
| Weight | 83kg | |
| Dimensions | 0.9 x 0.71 x 0.38m | |
| Power | 24V electric motor | |
| Weapons | Pneumatic powered flipper | |
| Strengths | Unbeaten in competition | |
| Weaknesses | Limited CO2 supply | |
| From: Bramford, Ipswich | ||
| Team Members: George Francis, Ian Swann & Richard Swann | ||
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|---|---|---|
| Razer (seeded 4th, winner of Heat K) | ||
| Weight | 96kg | |
| Dimensions | 0.39 x 1.06 x 0.66m | |
| Power | 2 x 24V electric motors | |
| Weapons | Crushing ram | |
| Strengths | Reigning World Champions | |
| Weaknesses | Reliabilty of motors | |
| From: Bournemouth | ||
| Team Members: Ian Lewis, Simon Scott & Vincent Blood | ||
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|---|---|---|
| S3 (winner of Heat C) | ||
| Weight | 100kg | |
| Dimensions | 0.65 x 0.9 x 1.32m | |
| Power | 2 x 24V Electric Motors | |
| Weapons | Snatching Jaws & Vertical Disc | |
| Strengths | Destructive Weapon | |
| Weaknesses | Large Turning Circle | |
| From: Donisthorpe, Swadlincote, Leicestershire | ||
| Team Members: David Banker, Pete Allsop, Ian Pritchard | ||
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|---|---|---|
| Spawn Again (seeded 13th, winner of Heat G) | ||
| Weight | 79kg | |
| Dimensions | 1.25 x 0.85 x 0.5m | |
| Power | 12V electric motors | |
| Weapons | High powered flipper & spike | |
| Strengths | 4 Wheel drive | |
| Weaknesses | Comparatively light | |
| From: East Tilbury | ||
| Team Members: Darren Ball, Graham Warner & Luke Jackman | ||
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|---|---|---|
| Wild Thing (seeded 9th, winner of Heat E) | ||
| Weight | 100kg | |
| Dimensions | 0.43 x 0.94 x 0.65m | |
| Power | 750W Electric Motor | |
| Weapons | 2 Bladed Spinning Disc | |
| Strengths | Speed & Control | |
| Weaknesses | Vulnerable Tyres | |
| From: Ash | ||
| Team Members: Nick Adams, Isabelle Adams, Jake Adams | ||
Round 1
Bigger Brother vs S3
Bigger Brother nearly throws S3 out of the arena.
- "Two robots that have both impressed me immensely so far."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Bigger Brother drove straight at the body of S3, getting its body underneath the part that separated the blade from the arena floor. It began to push it aside, but S3's disc came into contact, and Bigger Brother was thrown away from it. S3 was unable to gain purchase before Bigger Brother recovered and slammed into it, almost flicking it out of the arena. The attempt beached S3 on the arena wall, activated the pit, and almost made an investigating Dead Metal descend into oblivion. S3 was flipped free, its disc tearing the pit release button away from the wall.
Bigger Brother pits S3
- "The pit release button has been depressed, and also hanging on by a thread! What are you two doing out there to our arena? Concentrate on each other!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Bigger Brother flipped S3 over, and pushed it into the pit, winning a hectic battle in less than a minute.
- "I thought you were going to take the arena wall down at one point, as well. But what a bit of driving, he couldn't get you out, so he opens the pit - PISH - and you're in it!"
- — Craig Charles to The 1 Law Associates
Winner: Bigger Brother
Chaos 2 (1) vs Wild Thing (9)
Chaos 2 flips Wild Thing
Chaos 2's first close call
Chaos 2 and Wild Thing spun in circles around each other, but the reigning champion had the first flip, hurling Wild Thing away, but Wild Thing's design meant it could very rarely be flipped straight over, so it landed on its wheels. Chaos 2 very quickly launched another attack, charging Wild Thing into the side wall and almost hurling it out. Although it was unsuccessful, the attack did knock the pit release button off the wall. Chaos 2 flipped Wild Thing again, but threw itself onto its back in the process. It self-righted onto Wild Thing's wedge, but managed to pull off the wedge and flip Wild Thing again, this time causing its opponent to land on its back. Wild Thing self-righted, and the two machines drove around each other, with the pit descending off its own accord, with the pit release having been torn off.
- "This is furious, fast, frenetic action in the Robot Wars Semi-Final arena!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 caught Wild Thing and flipped it three times in quick succession, again almost managing to hurl it out of the arena, but not quite. Wild Thing was caught by Dead Metal and attacked. Wild Thing escaped, and was flipped by Chaos 2 again.
- "Semi-Finalists in Series 3, beaten by Panic Attack.Semi-Finalists in Series 4, beaten by Hypno-Disc. Semi-Finalists in Series 5, will they be beaten by Chaos 2?"
- — Jonathan Pearce
However, as the pair drew near to the pit, Wild Thing very nearly pitted Chaos 2 - the rear wheels actually descended into the pit, but Chaos 2 pushed back.
Chaos 2 wedges Wild Thing beneath the angle grinder
Chaos 2's second very close call
- "Wild Thing nearly had Chaos 2 in the pit! Look at that, right on the lip, and George Francis dug in! And the motors burn! And Chaos 2 pushed back! Just surviving, George Francis!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 pushed Wild Thing back into Dead Metal's CPZ, and Shunt joined in the attack on it. Dead Metal had pinned itself on top of Wild Thing, but Wild Thing escaped, only to be pushed into an angle grinder by Chaos 2, and flipped. However, upon recovering, Wild Thing used its lifting arm to get beneath Chaos 2, lifted it, and pushed it towards the pit. Chaos 2 was tipped over the edge, so far that the smoke bombs fired pre-emptively in anticipation.
- "How did they stay out? How did they survive another onslaught?"
- — An incredulous but ecstatic Jonathan Pearce
Wild Thing pushed Chaos 2 into Dead Metal's CPZ, and Chaos 2 flipped Dead Metal out of its way. Time finally expired, and the match went to the judges, who ruled in favour of Chaos 2.
- Craig Charles: "Wasn't that the best fight you've ever been in?"
- Nick Adams: "From up here, it was fantastic, and I hope it looked great from the audience, but it was marvellous. It went the whole distance, and towards the end, I thought we were getting the upper hand."
- Craig Charles: "Towards the end, I thought you were the stronger robot, I thought you were starting to push them around, you were almost getting them into the pit, the flipper had lost its power, he was on the ropes, it was about survival!"
- — The post-battle interview. George Francis also agreed that it was the best fight he'd ever been in.
Winner: Chaos 2
Razer (4) vs Spawn Again (13)
Razer crushes Spawn Again
Razer pushes Spawn Again into the pit
Razer's scoop immediately allowed it to get beneath Spawn Again, pinning its flipper down with its crushing weapon. Razer cut through the flipper, and pushed Spawn Again into the side wall. Spawn Again showed no signs of being able to move away, and Razer attacked it from the side, piercing through the flipper, and then piercing holes into Spawn Again's sides.
- "Semi-Finalists of Series 3 with the Scutters Revenge machine, Semi-Finalists with Spawn Of Scutter in Series 4, and to me, Spawn Again are going to fall at the same hurdle."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Spawn Again finally showed signs of life, and made aggressive moves, but Razer pushed it towards Shunt, and, unable to take pressure from both robots, Spawn Again was unable to prevent Razer attacking and causing the flipper to collapse inwards. Bash joined in next, using its pincers to slice the steel plate at the bottom of Spawn Again's flipper, but Spawn Again finally escaped and darted to the other side of the arena. It turned to face Razer, but the flipper had broken.
- "No flipper! Confirmation from the Spawn Again team that the weaponry has gone!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Spawn Again ran into the pit release, and broke down immediately beside it. Razer came in and pushed Spawn Again down into the pit.
- "Well, what can we say, I can't believe the thing was still running after that!"
- — Darren Hayden-Ball
Winner: Razer
Losers Melee
Wild Thing (9) vs Spawn Again (13) vs S3
- "God knows what this is going to be like, it's going to be absolute chaos in there - in fact, I think that's the one robot that's not in there!"
- — Philippa Forrester
Spawn Again, immobile, whilst Wild Thing activates the pit
Wild Thing and S3 fight. Note the damage on Wild Thing
The three robots darted around each other repeatedly, and S3 launched the first attack by slashing Wild Thing with its disc. Spawn Again then got beneath S3, but did not flip it over, and then lost the flipper blade soon after. S3 attacked Wild Thing, using its disc to propel it onto its side against the wall. Spawn Again closed in, meaning that Wild Thing could not pull away from the side wall. However, all three robots relented and moved away from the side wall. Wild Thing pushed Spawn Again across the arena, and S3 cut into its rear, before striking its sides. The impact sent Spawn Again flying a few feet away, and immobilised it.
- "Spawn Again, momentarily silenced and stilled."
- — Jonathan Pearce as Spawn Again shows little signs of life
S3 and Wild Thing's battle moved away from Spawn Again, who fired its flipper but was unable to move. Refbot counted out Spawn Again, as S3's disc hurled Wild Thing away again.
Sergeant Bash finishes off Spawn Again
- "We're down to two - Wild Thing and S3. Only one to survive."
- — Jonathan Pearce as Spawn Again is counted out
S3 struck Wild Thing, but Wild Thing pressed S3 against the side wall, stopping the disc, and then into Shunt's CPZ, where Shunt attacked both robots, and Wild Thing again caught itself on S3's disc and had damage inflicted. As Sergeant Bash pitted Spawn Again, Wild Thing slammed S3 into the side wall, and cease was called.
- "Spawn Again, refused to be born again! Its down to the judges to decide Wild Thing and S3!"
- — Craig Charles
On style and control, Wild Thing won, but the inflicted damage from S3 was so great that the judges ruled for it.
Winner: S3
Round 2
Chaos 2 (1) vs Bigger Brother
Bigger Brother flips Chaos 2
- Philippa Forrester: "It really is the battle of the flippers. Who's got the most powerful statistically?"
- George Francis: "I don't know. We're about to find out, I think."
- — Pre-battle interviews
Bigger Brother had the first flip, tossing Chaos 2 onto its back. As Chaos 2 self-righted, Bigger Brother impeded the path of its motion, and Chaos 2 fell back on its back. It successfully self-righted the second time, and ran for Bigger Brother, only to be flipped up on its side.
- "Chaos 2 are unbeaten in the last two series of UK domestic Robot Wars, but Bigger Brother for me, is by far the more aggressive."
- — Jonathan Pearce on Bigger Brother's strong start
Chaos 2 fell back on its wheels and flipped Bigger Brother over, and when it landed on its wheels, flipped it again. The third flip finally succeeded in getting Bigger Brother on its back, but it self-righted very quickly. Chaos 2 pushed Bigger Brother against the side wall and flipped it, but once more, Bigger Brother self-righted. It escaped Chaos 2's flip, and drove over towards the flames.
Bigger Brother consigns Chaos 2's reign to the RW history books
As Chaos 2 followed it, Bigger Brother manoeuvred to the side, got beneath Chaos 2, and flipped it onto its back. Now, however, Chaos 2's CO2 supply had run low, and it was unable to catapult itself back onto its wheels, despite attempting to do so.
- "George Francis knows, his reign here as British champion is about to end. Sensational!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Finally, Chaos 2 gave up, allowing Refbot to count it out. Bigger Brother reversed Chaos 2 towards the pit, and pushed it in.
- Jonathan Pearce: "History is made! Chaos 2 is toppled - George Francis out! Major, major shock!"
- Craig Charles: "What a sensational result! The two time and reigning champions Chaos 2 are out of the competition! The winner - Bigger Brother!"
- — The reaction
Winner: Bigger Brother
Razer (4) vs S3
Razer cuts into S3...
The two robots swiveled around each other as usual, but Razer was the one to attack, grabbing the wheel cylinder of S3, and avoiding the flywheel. Razer pushed S3 into Shunt, who axed it, and Razer crushed slowly through S3's armour. Pulling out of Shunt's CPZ, Razer raised its claw, and pulled S3 into the air with it.
...and carries it around it arena
- "The cylindrical body is held high. I've described this as a hammerhead shark - it is a mere minnow, gobbled up by the big fish that is Razer."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Razer held S3 over the flames, burning the rubber of its tires, before carrying it to Dead Metal, who carved long slashes in S3's rear armour. Finally, Razer released S3, and it frantically drove around, trying to attack. However, Razer caught it once more, pushed it into Dead Metal, and stopped the spinning disc. S3 was lifted nearly out of the arena by Shunt, Razer and Dead Metal, but finally escaped the clutches of Dead Metal. It was quickly caught again by Razer, who put the tip of its beak in the blade's holster in S3, and pushed it into the House Robots. As Razer carved into S3's back armour, the cease was called and the judges were consulted.
- "What a battle! However, both robots are still mobile, so for what its worth, we're going to have to go to the judges. If they make the wrong decision, ooh, I'm resigning!"
- — Craig Charles
The match was given to Razer, and it was put through to the UK final.
- "They haven't broken down, and they've fought their cause. And they've made the final, on Robot Wars!"
- — Craig Charles' sign-off
Winner: Razer
Trivia
- This Semi-Final signified the first time that Chaos 2 lost in the main competition, after eighteen consecutive wins.
- Razer's first appearance beyond the heats was in this Semi-Final.
- Bigger Brother's defeat of S3 is ranked equal 22nd in the Shortest Battles in UK Robot Wars, at 29 seconds.
- The battle between Razer and Spawn Again was a grudge match from The Southern Annihilator, where Razer defeated Spawn of Scutter in Round 2.
- Both of the robots which competed in the final battle of the series (Razer and Bigger Brother) came from this semi-final.Robot Wars: The Fifth Wars
Heats Finals Semi-Final 1 • Semi-Final 2 • Grand Final