Robot Wars: The Third Wars/Heat J

The Third Wars - Heat J was one of the heats that made up the Semi-Finals of Robot Wars: The Third Wars.


 * Centurion and Weld-Dor, very similarly designed machines, both fought through Round 1 but fell in Round 2 by breaking down beside the same wall.
 * King Buxton's prongs broke in both of its victories.
 * The famous 101/King Buxton rivalry was addressed here, with 101 defeating King Buxton to make the score 1-1.
 * This episode was filmed on Amy Franklin's birthday.

Newcomers
Centurion From Essex
 * Team Members: Ray Tait, Matthew Tait & David Whorlow
 * Weight: 79.3kg
 * Dimensions: 0.95m x 1.33m x 0.82m
 * Power: 2 x 750W Electric Motor
 * Weapons: Axe and Ramming/Lifting Forks

Eric From East Sussex The Iron Mask From Yorkshire
 * Team Members: Ian Nicholson, Mike Hammerton & Bruce Nicholson
 * Weight: 80kg
 * Dimensions: 0.52m x 1.25m x 0.80m
 * Power: 3 x Electrical Motors
 * Weapons: Hydraulic lift/jaw
 * Team Members: Chris Sievers & Tait Sievers
 * Weight: 77.2kg
 * Dimensions: 0.49m x 0.96m 0.49m
 * Power: Electric Motors
 * Weapons: Axe

Overkill From Somerset Weld-Dor From Belfast
 * Team Members: Lawrence Burke, James Yule & Lawrence Burke Jr.
 * Weight: 77.6kg
 * Dimensions: 0.53m x 1.16m x 0.80m
 * Power: 2 x motors and starter engine
 * Weapons: Ramming fire axe and chainsaw
 * Team Members: Phelim Lundy, David Brown & Ryan Crilly
 * Weight: 76.9kg
 * Dimensions: 0.79m x 1.14m x 0.74m
 * Power: 2 x wheelchair motors
 * Weapons: Pneumatic lift & axe

Veterans
101 From North Hampshire
 * Team Members: Mike Franklin, Amy Franklin & Paul Johnson
 * Weight: 79.5kg
 * Dimensions: 0.27m x 1.00m x 0.75m
 * Power: Electrically powered
 * Weapons: CO2 powered ram with spike

Excaliber From Wales King Buxton From Essex
 * Team Members: Anthony Lockwood, David Martin & Wayne Martin
 * Weight: 84.1kg
 * Dimensions: 0.92m x 1.08m x 0.76m
 * Power: 3 x starter motors
 * Weapons: Steel axe & pneumatic ram
 * Team Members: Simon Harrison, Phil Brett & Steve Monk
 * Weight: 77.9kg
 * Dimensions: 0.25m x 1.03m x 0.76m
 * Power: 5 x Electric Motors
 * Weapons: Lifting/Ramming Spikes

Centurion vs Excaliber
Centurion swiftly crossed the arena and ran into Excaliber. Excaliber axed through Centurion's armour easily, pinning it in place temporarily. Centurion pushed Excaliber into the side wall, and the latter's axe caught on the wall. Centurion then tried to attack with its own axe, but missed and Excaliber escaped. Centurion whirled away, and Excaliber's axe appeared to be stuck in the downwards position. Centurion darted past, but briefly became stuck on the spikes. Excaliber turned sluggishly around, and Centurion, now free, attacked it from behind and wedged its lifting forks beneath it. Excaliber's axe had recovered, but it was unable to hit Centurion behind it, and it was pushed onto the flame pit. Killalot pushed Excaliber across the arena and against Bash, who bathed Excaliber in flames. Centurion prevented Bash from attacking Excaliber, but darted away before the Sergeant could turn on it. "Centurion thought about having a little dig at Sergeant Bash and wisely turned away."

- Jonathan Pearce

Centurion pushed the apparently immobile Excaliber into Sergeant Bash, and Excaliber axed Bash, piercing Bash's armour. Killalot came across and pushed Excaliber against the side wall, and Centurion started attacked with its axe. Excaliber used its own axe to block, and the axes locked together. "Ah, axes locked! I don't think we've ever seen that before in Robot Wars - axes locked together like that."

- Jonathan Pearce

Centurion left off Excaliber and the silver machine was unable to move away. This cued the House Robots to attack, although only minor damage was done by Matilda's chainsaw before cease was called. "There is life in the axe blade, but nothing much left in Excaliber."

- Jonathan Pearce

Winner: Centurion

101 vs. Overkill
Overkill pushed beneath 101 initially, but 101 easily drove off; its tracks nearly always remained on the ground, allowing it to keep traction. Overkill pushed underneath one more time, this time more successful as it pushed 101 around and nearly into the pit, with only 101's track system allowing it to duck to one side like that. Overkill stopped dead beside the pit, and 101 rammed it from behind. Overkill came back to life and sped into Dead Metal's CPZ, before promptly stopping again. "Now Overkill, has it gone into overdrive, I wonder, and burned itself out? What's happening here? Not a great deal of movement of Overkill."

- Jonathan Pearce

Dead Metal seized Overkill and cut into the back of the machine. 101 pushed itself in and freed Overkill from the side wall, allowing it to dart behind Dead Metal and escape the CPZ. Overkill and 101 fought again, with 101 driving up and onto Overkill's wedge several times, but the chainsaw of Overkill was either not working or stopped every time 101 came into contact with it. Overkill made another lunge for the pit, but again 101 drove off at the last second. Overkill had a quicker recovery on this occasion, and pushed 101 into Sir Killalot. However, 101 merely drove out from underneath Sir Killalot's lance, undamaged. "Look, no purchase of the lance there on the bodyshell of 101. Again, the tank tracks simply threw of Killalot's lance, and we haven't seen that too often in Robot Wars."

- Jonathan Pearce

Despite its aggression, pushing 101 back into Sir Killalot, Overkill broke down beside Bash's CPZ. 101 slammed into it, pulling flecks of armour off, and Killalot attacked, flipping Overkill with its lance. Killalot then ran over Overkill, crushing it with its huge weight. Cease was called.

Winner: 101

The Iron Mask vs Weld-Dor
Both robots moved forward slowly, but nothing more than nudging happened until Weld-Dor lowered its forks. Weld-Dor briefly got beneath The Iron Mask, but the silver robot retaliated by pushing Weld-Dor back with its pushing power. The Iron Mask's axe was unable to strike Weld-Dor due to its size and proximity. Weld-Dor then slipped one fork underneath The Iron Mask's "chin" and pushed it into the side wall, neutralising The Iron Mask's weapons and wheels simultaneously. "And I thought this might happen, that the iron mask at the front of the robot of the same name might cause problems, and might be impaled, and that's whats happened, on the spike of Weld-Dor."

- Jonathan Pearce

Weld-Dor pulled The Iron Mask off the side wall and dropped it, allowing it to escape. The Iron Mask returned and suffered an axe blow from Weld-Dor. The Irish machine ended the match by lifting The Iron Mask and rolling it on its back, immobilising it. Strangely, cease was called immediately. "Well, I'm not too sure about exhilarating, but Weld-Dor go through, The Iron Mask gone."

- Jonathan Pearce

Winner: Weld-Dor

Eric vs King Buxton
Eric and King Buxton met in the centre, with King Buxton darting off to one side and pushing Eric. It quickly lost purchase on the smooth sloped side of Eric, and Eric dodged away. King Buxton charged, but Eric activated its lifter and pulled King Buxton into midair, blocking the charge. Buxton pushed into Eric, but lost the tip of one of its prongs in the process. "Ooh! King Buxton's lost one of the tips to its front rams there. Somewhere on the arena floor is a steel tip."

- Jonathan Pearce

It attacked again, but drove up the side of Eric, who opened its lifter to keep Buxton suspended. Eric flipped King Buxton up, but King Buxton retaliated by pushing Eric almost into the pit. Two of King Buxton's wheels were suspended over the pit, and when Eric attempted to pit it, it freed Buxton and reversed itself in. "Eric towards the pit - oh goodness me! And King Buxton is left teetering on the brink of oblivion! And Eric - oh no! - has backed itself down into the pit! King Buxton spun away and Eric went down."

- Jonathan Pearce

Winner: 'King Buxton

Robotic Soccer
Heat J was the final qualifier for the Robotic Soccer tournament, between The General and Spectre.

Winner: The General

101 vs Centurion
The battle's start was very quick, with each robot trying to face its weapon towards the opponent. Centurion was the first to achieve this, and used its lifting prongs to lift 101, but 101's tracks remained on the ground, and it simply drove off the prongs. Centurion then lifted 101 and pushed it into the arena wall, where it was caught by Bash briefly. 101 escaped and Centurion managed to lift it again, this time skewering its prong against the track. However, with one track still on the ground, 101 merely drove off. 101 slammed into Centurion, who finally lifted enough of 101 of the ground to prevent it from moving. "Centurion, again with the eagle showing clearly, turning away, like some first world war tank slamming against another here."

- Jonathan Pearce

Centurion shunted 101 into the side wall, but 101 re-entered the battle, dodging Centurion's axe, and pushed it towards Bash. Centurion dodged Bash, spun around and passed 101, with 101's automatic spike firing and pushing Centurion away. 101 was briefly impaled on the arena spikes but managed to steer away from trouble by using its track to steer around in a circle. Centurion pushed 101 into Bash's CPZ, but the House Robot was outside his zone and did not arrive before 101 escaped. Meanwhile, 101 took command of the battle by pushing Centurion into the side wall. "Ray Tait wants to go and work for NASA, the space agency. Well, hardly a performance out of this world, for either of these robots so far."

- Jonathan Pearce

Centurion became stuck on the arena wall, and despite 101's spike pushing it away, it could not move off the wall. Killalot and Dead Metal closed in, and Killalot's claw sliced Centurion's front, dislodging the lifting forks. Cease was called. "The Roman wars are about to come to an end here. Et tu Killalote. In for me, in for me, they've all got it in for me."

- Jonathan Pearce, referring to Caesar's assassination Winner: 101

King Buxton vs Weld-Dor
"Love and peace? I'll give them a few technical traumas unless they get it on here!"

- Jonathan Pearce, on the friendly working relationship between King Buxton and Weld-Dor

King Buxton and Weld-Dor both attempted to push their weapons against the other, and King Buxton drove up the side of Weld-Dor. It reversed off; dodging Weld-Dor's axe, and ran up it again, pushing it around. It took one axe blow doing this, but got its forks in a position to block the next. King Buxton pushed Weld-Dor towards the pit twice, driving up onto Weld-Dor on the second attempt. It then circled around and pushed Weld-Dor towards the flame pit, pressing its fork into the wheel arch. King Buxton mistakenly drove itself onto the flames by accident, but managed to make up for this by pushing and dragging Weld-Dor around the arena, its spike still lodged into the wheel arch. "That’s King Buxton dragging Weld-Dor across the arena for one purpose – to push it towards the pit. Towards the pit. Ooh, they’re trying – Simon Harrison there – just to turn Weld-Dor towards the pit."

- Jonathan Pearce

King Buxton attempted to push Weld-Dor into the pit, but failed to do so. King Buxton then dragged Weld-Dor back and revealed damage had been inflicted to Weld-Dor's left wheel, before ramming it into the side wall - ironically, the very same place where Centurion had been immobilised. Shunt then crossed the arena and rammed its snowplough into the pair, freeing King Buxton from the wheel arch. Weld-Dor seemed unable to move away from the wall, and King Buxton slammed into it, pressing it against the wall. King Buxton charged again, but Weld-Dor's lifter raised King Buxton, smashing its charge against the rounded body and bending one of the prongs completely out of place. Despite the offensive move, Weld-Dor had broken down, and the House Robots attacked. Killalot sliced through Weld-Dor’s axe and took away the weapon. "I don't know, but I think Weld-Dor here has been immobilised and it could be - moments ago, we saw a problem with the wheel on the left...oh look at Killalot! In with the pincers! Merciless! Off goes the ostrich feather. No weapons left then on Weld-Dor, and I’m sorry boys, very little hope."

- Jonathan Pearce

Shunt’s axe damaged the dome of Weld-Dor, and Killalot drilled into the shell, lifting it off the ground. Despite minor harassment from King Buxton, Killalot carried Weld-Dor around and placed Weld-Dor into the pit.

Winner: King Buxton

101 vs King Buxton
The robots moved off to a steady start, and 101 was the robot to push beneath King Buxton, and pushed it back until King Buxton drove off. King Buxton then met 101 and the cheap robot slid on top of Buxton, sitting on top. 101 managed to place part of its tracks on the ground, and drove off King Buxton easily. King Buxton was given trouble by the arena spikes, but quickly escaped and pushed 101 broadside into Matilda. 101 then drove into the single spike and was bumped, but met King Buxton again, kicking its opponent away with its automatic spike. King Buxton stopped briefly near the flame pit, but 101 kicked it over the flames and into Dead Metal. King Buxton took damage from the circular saws mounted on the wall, but ended up knocking the circular saw out of posiont. King Buxton escaped and rammed 101 broadside once more. "And there the circular saws on the arena wall, taking damage themselves and I think put out of play, the circular saw there."

- Jonathan Pearce

It lost its purchase briefly and ran into the side wall, but quickly recovered and slammed back into 101. King Buxton pushed 101 into the side wall after escaping Shunt, but 101 drove on top of King Buxton and positioned itself behind. 101 was now pushing King Buxton into the side wall. The two robots crashed into Shunt whilst battling around the arena, and King Buxton took a blow from the axe. Buxton escaped and ran back into 101, driving on top of one of the moving tracks, and being tussled by it before driving off. "Very very close this so far. A good old tussle, isn't it?"

- Jonathan Pearce

King Buxton drove onto one of the tracks, and sat there with smoke beginning to pour from the machine. Buxton had slowed down significantly by now, and time began to tick down. 101 and King Buxton both remained mobile at the end, and the match was decided by the judges.

101 was put through to the semi-finals.

Heat Winner: 101 "We're not anoraks, geeks or bores. We're just addicted, to Robot Wars!"

- Craig Charles' signoff