Robot Wars: The Third Wars/Heat D

Heat D of Robot Wars: The Third Wars was the fourth of sixteen heats which determined the Semi-Finalists of Robot Wars: The Third Wars. The episode featuring Heat D was originally broadcast on January 7, 2000 on BBC Two.


 * Heat D became the first instance of a robot team overturning a judges decision, with Ultor doing so in the heat final.
 * Heat D was comprised entirely of robots new to competitive robot combat - Bumblebot had not fought in the main competition, and Milly-Ann Bug had been eliminated before the Arena stage in Series 2.
 * One of the debuting robots was Sir Chromalot, who would become famous for its debut. Team members Steve Merrill, Steve Smith and David Whitehead arrived in a limousine in tuxedos, proclaiming the arrival of Sir Chromalot.
 * The "Sir Chromalot tradition" was established in this heat, with the defeat of Sir Chromalot by Big Brother in Round 2.
 * Sir Killalot nearly achieved the first Out of the Arena when he spun Shell Shock on his lance.
 * Both Big Brother and Grim Reaper went on to at least one semi final, but with different machines.

Sir Chromalot vs Shell Shock
Sir Chromalot immediately forced Shell Shock onto the spikes, then into Matilda. Matilda pushed Shell Shock away. Sir Chromalot then forced it into Sir Killalot, who threw Shell Shock through the air, breaking the axe. Sir Chromalot tried to push Shell Shock into the pit, but then stopped moving. It started up again, but the House Robots closed in and shoved it down the pit. However, the judges ruled that this was unfair interference, and controversially voted that Sir Chromalot should go through.

Winner: Sir Chromalot

Big Brother vs Grim Reaper
Grim Reaper had the faster start, but Big Brother pushed it into Sgt. Bash and then towards the pit. It then escaped and drove up Big Brother's wedge, leaping into the air. Grim Reaper charged at Big Brother, but one of its wheels fell off. Big Brother then stopped working and Sir Killalot came in and flipped Grim Reaper over. The judges decided that Big Brother had won.
 * Winner: Big Brother

Bumblebot vs Milly-Ann Bug
Bumblebot fired its axe once, but then it stopped. Milly-Ann Bug seemed too quick and pushed Bumblebot around the arena. Milly-Ann Bug tried to push Bumblebot into the pit, but overstepped the mark and fell in itself.

Winner: Bumblebot

Flipper vs Ultor
Both robots had a gentle start. Ultor hit Flipper with the axe once and then Flipper seemed to stop. Ultor was then bounced by an arena spike, but didn't flip over. The House Robots closed in and Shunt dug it's axe into Flipper several times, then flipped it. Ultor axed Matilda a few times. Dead Metal sliced into Flipper's side, nearly ripping off a chunk of armour. Ultor got flipped by the arena spike, but had already won.

Winner: Ultor

Sir Chromalot vs Big Brother
Before the battle, the Sir Chromalot boys performed a little dance on the arena floor. Big Brother drove at Sir Chromalot and pushed it round for a while. Sliding underneath Sir Chromalot, Big Brother flipped it over with the wedge. The House Robots came in: Shunt and Dead Metal both caused damage to Sir Chromalot. Dead Metal finally dropped Sir Chromalot in the pit.

Winner: Big Brother

Bumblebot vs Ultor
Ultor drove underneath Bumblebot, whose axe seemed to be immobile. Ultor pushed it a bit towards Sgt. Bash. Bumblebot got away, but then its axe tumbled lifelessly to the ground. Ultor shoved them into Dead Metal, who sliced off the axe head. Bumblebot was left with a long, useless pole sticking out the front. Ultor pushed it towards the pit, but the pole prevented them from going in. Sir Killalot lifted it out of the pit, before Shunt came in and shoved it back down. Killalot lifted it out again and dragged them over to the flame pit, ripping off one of it's front casters in the process.

Winner: Ultor

Big Brother vs Ultor
Both robots started steadily, until Big Brother's mace got caught on Ultor axe and Ultor was able to drag Big Brother around. It escaped and pushed Ultor around, until, suddenly, the mace fell off. Now Big Brother only had the wedge on the front as a weapon. It shoved Ultor onto the floor flipper, causing it to bump into the air and escape. Ultor axed Big Brother a few times, before getting flicked up by an arena spike. The battle went to the judges.

Winner: Ultor

However, later on, in the pits, the Ultor team said they felt the judges were wrong, so they let Big Brother go through to the semi-finals.

Heat Winner: Big Brother

Special Event
Between Round 1 and Round 2 of each heat, a Special Event or Trial took place. For Heat D, it was the second Pinball Warrior run, featuring Crusader.

Score: 90 points