The Third World Championship

The Third World Championship was the third of three special Robot Wars championships in which robots from all over the world competed against each other, representing their respective countries. The third World Championship was broadcast as part of Robot Wars: The Seventh Wars and was originally broadcast on Five on March 28, 2004. It was the last episode of the original Robot Wars series to be broadcast on TV before it was rebooted in 2016. The championship was hosted by Craig Charles, the pit reporter was Jayne Middlemiss and commentary was provided by Jonathan Pearce.


 * As the final episode of Robot Wars to be aired before its 12-year hiatus, this marked the last appearance of many robots, such as Tornado and Sergeant Bash.
 * This was also the final episode to feature Craig Charles and Jayne Middlemiss.
 * This was the fourth time a controversial battle involving Storm 2 occurred. Interestingly, it was said that this battle was a grudge match against Supernova from the first round of Heat I of the Seventh Wars.
 * The only other grudge match was between Storm 2 and Tornado with the same result albeit Ansgar was also in the fight.
 * Incidentally only Tornado and Ansgar had competed in the The Second World Championship.
 * This episode was released on DVD with Jetix Magazine issue 18.
 * An error occurred during the Dutch qualifier-Jonathan Pearce stated that Gravity had defeated the 13th seed 13 Black. 13 Black was actually seeded 7th
 * The 3rd World Championship Heats featured robots from as many nations as in the 2nd World Championship
 * Including the Qualifiers, a record 13 nations were represented in the 3rd World Championship

Format
The championship featured 12 robots from around the world, representing their respective countries. Before the championship, seven qualifiers were held to decide which robots would qualify for the tournament. Five other robots were given automatic places in the tournament. The robots were drawn into four heats, featuring three robots each, in which the four robots would compete in a single melee battle. One robot from each heat progressed to the semi-finals, with the two winners of the semi-finals moving onto the final.

Qualifiers
During The Seventh Wars, before the World Championship began, seven qualifying battles were held to decide which robots would join the five automatic qualifiers in The Third World Championship. The five automatic qualifiers were: Tornado (European Champion), PulverizeR (Dutch Champion), Typhoon 2 (Seventh Wars Grand Champion), Storm 2 (Seventh Wars runner-up and highest-placed robot from England) and Rawbot (which was given an automatic place in the championship as Zeus had to pull out after breaking down before the qualifier).

Mechaniac (AUT) vs Supernova (SRI)
The robots came together and Mechaniac attempted to flip Supernova but only managed to lift it slightly off the ground. Mechaniac then drove straight into the CPZ, where it was picked up by Sir Killalot and carried across the arena. Sir Killalot lowered Mechaniac onto the ground and Supernova charged at it with the spinning disc which bounced off the shell and sent Supernova flying. Supernova attacked Mechaniac, before the Sri Lankan representative was flipped by Mechaniac's flipper. Supernova then attacked Mechaniac again and sent the back panel flying off the machine, leaving the mechanics exposed. "And now the very guts of Mechaniac have been laid bare."

- Jonathan Pearce

Repeated attacks from Supernova dislodged Mechaniac's batteries and left it immobile. Cassius Chrome then punched Mechaniac's batteries which then shorted out the electronics and started an internal fire. There was no life left in Mechaniac and it was counted out by the Refbot.

"Marks out of ten for flying, eight. Marks out of ten for competitiveness... minus six."

- Jonathan Pearce after Mechaniac was tossed by the floor flipper

After being thrown by the floor flipper, Sir Killalot speared Mechaniac's open back end with his lance, shorting the electronics out again. Sir Killalot dropped Mechaniac in the pit, leaving Supernova the winner and the first robot to qualify for the World Championship.

Winner: Supernova

Spartacus (USA) vs Flippa (USA)


Flippa did not start at all and Spartacus was able to grab it and push it around the arena at its own pace. Then it pulled Flippa towards the floor flipper and backed into the pit release button before pushing its opponent into the pit of oblivion. "Flippa is the using the i'll let you pull me around a bit tactic, and then dump me in the pit tactic. And, that's the end..."

- Jonathan Pearce

Winner: Spartacus

Crushtacean (RSA) vs Topbot (IRE)
Topbot tried to spin its disc up to speed, but Crushtacean was too fast and came towards it. Crushtacean quickly grabbed hold of Topbot and pushed it into the CPZ, but it escaped. Topbot attacked the side of Crushtacean with its spinning disc but it did no damage. Topbot then drove into the arena wall, taking chunks out of it, and Crushtacean grabbed hold of it again and pushed it around the arena. Crushtacean then pushed Topbot into the pit release button. "They've nudged it [the pit release button], they've bent, they've broken it. Broken our tyre. Topbot, get down the pit for doing that."

- Jonathan Pearce as Topbot is pitted.

The Irish representative was then shoved down the pit, handing the place in the World Championship to Crushtacean.

Winner: Crushtacean

Riptilion (NZL) vs Hard (BEL)
"Well he's [Riptillion] so large that we think it might be quite difficult to flip him over"

- Jan Huyan before the fight

After a few attempts, Hard got underneath Riptilion and tried to flip it over but it didn't quite manage to flip it all the way over. Hard continued to get underneath Riptilion and pushed it around the arena, trying again unsuccessfully to flip it. Hard then repeated this tactic many times, all failing to tip over Riptillion. Hard then pushed Riptilion into the CPZ where it was attacked by Cassius Chrome and Growler. "They could've done with a maori chant or two out there..."

- Jonathan Pearce as Riptillion is counted out

After these attacks, Riptilion appeared to be immobilised, was counted out by the Refbot and was thrown on the floor flipper.

Winner: Hard

Ansgar 3 (GER) vs I Bot One Beta (GER) vs Reaper NP2 (GER)
Reaper NP2 attacked Ansgar 3 but did no damage, before Ansgar 3 came back and attacked Reaper NP2 with its spinning blade, immobilising it. "I think Reaper's been stopped dead in the water"

- Jonathan Pearce noting the immobile Reaper NP2

The Refbot then counted it out, before being thrown by the floor flipper. After landing, it had its crumpled shell dented by Shunt. Ansgar 3 then pressed the pit release button and attacked I Bot One Beta, leaving the octagonal robot only able to go round in circles. Another attack from its spinning blade left I Bot One Beta immobilised as well before being nudged into the pit of oblivion along with Reaper NP2 who was pushed in by Shunt.

Winner: Ansgar 3

Terror Turtle (CAN) vs Snake Bite (SUI)
The battle started very slowly with both robots pursuing each other. Snake Bite attempted to catch Terror Turtle but the turtle outmanoeuvered it. Both robots then turned away from each other until Shunt almost axed Terror Turtle as the Canadian robot had strayed into his CPZ. Snake Bite was having problems catching Terror Turtle as it drove up Snake Bite's wedge, but it escaped the crusher. Snake Bite suffered a blow from Terror Turtle's disc which made a small slice in the rear armor and almost cut through Snake Bite's hydraulic cables. Terror Turtle then drove into the wedge of Snake Bite and was pierced with ease by the Swiss robot's crushing weapon. "Oh, Terror Turtle's driven straight into the crushing beak of Snake Bite, and there, you can see the damage..."

- Jonathan Pearce

Snake Bite continued to pierce the shell of Terror Turtle and the turtle's shell was starting to fill with holes as if it were made from tin foil. "Crumpled... Canadian... catastrophe"

- Jonathan Pierce as Snake Bite heavily damages Terror Turtle's armour

Snake Bite crushed its opponent once more before finally pushing the pit release button. The Swiss robot was hesitant at first, but eventually plucked up the courage, dropping the Canadian robot into the pit of oblivion.

Winner: Snake Bite

Gravity (NED) vs Scraptosaur (NED) vs Tough As Nails (NED)
Tough As Nails immediately employed its usual tactic of pressing the pit release button. It then grabbed Scraptosaur with its claws and quickly pushed Scraptosaur straight into the pit of oblivion, taking the Dutch Grand Finalist's hopes with it. "Now there is a form line here, Scraptosaur actually beat Gravity in the Dutch Robot Wars, but goes out of the World Championship eliminator straight away!"

- Jonathan Pearce as Scraptosaur is pitted instantaneously

Tough As Nails then chased Gravity around the arena and grabbed it, but Gravity escaped and flipped Tough As Nails once. This was no problem for the invertible Tough As Nails though and it grabbed Gravity again and pushed it into the pit with Scraptosaur. "...and then this freak [Tough As Nails] comes in and puts us in the pit!"

- WJ Dijkstra after the fight

Winner: Tough As Nails

Spartacus (USA) vs Hard (BEL) vs Supernova (SRI)
At first, Spartacus and Hard appeared to be ganging up on Supernova. Supernova hit both of them with its spinning disc, immobilising Hard and damaging Spartacus' body. This impact thrusted Supernova onto the flame pit, but it escaped again. Supernova hit Spartacus again, which not only broke the drive for one of Spartacus' wheels, but also knocked Supernova out. Refbot counted out Hard, who was still firing its flipper but without any forward momentum. Once Hard was deemed immobilised Dead Metal sliced into the back of Hard, creating a shower of sparks which spewed onto the arena floor. "You can flick your flipper as long as you like, but you need to move across the arena floor"

- Jonathan Pearce commenting on Hard's still active flipper

Refbot then proceeded to count Supernova out, only for the Sri Lankan machine to suddenly start again when the count got to 2. "Is anyone going to survive this?"

- Jonathan Pearce commenting on the lack of mobility from all three robots Supernova hit Spartacus again, whilst Hard was taken to the familiar drop zone where it was pelted with several computer monitors. Hard's flipper was still working, as it tried to flip one of the falling computer monitors, but it had already been counted out. Just before Spartacus was counted out Supernova entered another spasm and could only twitch. As the count was finishing Spartacus spun around and whacked Supernova's flywheel. "One of them's been counted out and I've a funny feeling it's Spartacus"

- Jonathan Pearce predicts which robot was counted out.

At the very end of the fight, Supernova clipped Spartacus again, as did Dead Metal's claws, which caused its armour to come off completely.

Winner: Supernova

PulverizeR (NED) vs Snake Bite (SUI) vs Crushtacean (RSA)
Crushtacean instantly pressed the pit release button, then started attacking PulverizeR. PulverizeR attacked Crushtacean with its flywheel, doing no damage and actually stalling the weapon. The Swiss entry was then shown immobile (the tyres was covered in oil at the start off the fight), having stalled almost as soon as it entered the arena. "It seems to me that Snake Bite is already a beaten machine."

- Jonathan Pearce

Crushtacean rammed PulverizeR into the arena wall several times, before Refbot counted Snake Bite out, and Dead Metal attacked the fallen robot, creating a shower of sparks. Snake Bite suddenly started moving again as the tires had finally dried out and (seemingly unaware that it was out) attacked Crushtacean and PulverizeR. The judges gave the match to Crushtacean.

Winner: Crushtacean

Ansgar 3 (GER) vs Storm 2 (UK) vs Tornado (UK)
Predictably, Storm 2 and Tornado ganged up on Ansgar almost right from the start, whose spinning blade didn't appear to be working. The two slammed Ansgar into Growler's CPZ, the arena side wall, the flame pit and finally the pit itself, with the German machine powerless to attack due to its stalled blade. "This is really what we wanted to see, in this heat - Tornado and Storm 2."

- Jonathan Pearce

Afterwards, the two British machines pushed each other around the arena. At one point, Tornado pushed Storm 2 into Dead Metal's pincers, who bruised the strong titanium armour, but no damage to the exposed wheels. Upon exiting, Storm 2 lifted up Tornado with its lifter and carried it to the arena wall. A well controlled drive by Storm 2 slammed Tornado into the arena wall, knocking it upside down and almost out of the arena. This impact almost thrust Storm 2 upside down as well. "This is gonna go to the judges, and I wouldn't like to be in their shoes, will it be Tornado or will it be Storm 2..."

- Jonathan Pearce

Again, the judges were called upon, and Storm 2 was the robot chosen.

Winner: Storm 2

Typhoon 2 (UK) vs Rawbot (SWE) vs Tough As Nails (NED)
Before the fight even started, Team Typhoon had used their last set of batteries for the Middleweight Championship of Series 7 (although Typhoon 2 was claimed to be suffering from "technical difficulties"), which forced Typhoon 2 to withdraw from the competition. This action surprised Jonathan Pearce, who expected Typhoon 2 to do well as the recently crowned champion "Absolute stunner. Typhoon 2, recently crowned UK Champions, withdrawing late on because of technical problems."

- Jonathan Pearce

This left Tough As Nails and Rawbot to fight alone. The fight didn't last very long, as Tough As Nails instantly grabbed Rawbot, who had a problem with its control box and left it immobilised right from the start. The Dutch robot repeated its patented tactic and slammed Rawbot into the pit release button and pushed Rawbot towards the pit. Several shoves later and the Swedish robot was in the pit. "Just watch for Tough As Nails in these World Championships, could go all the way."

- Jonathan Pearce as Rawbot is pitted

At the end of the fight Refbot could be seen spinning round in a victory dance.

Winner: Tough As Nails

Supernova (SRI) vs Crushtacean (RSA)
Crushtacean charged right at Supernova, which resulted in it damaging itself. For the rest of the battle, it found itself unable to move freely around the arena. Supernova hit Crushtacean again, knocking the bolts that held the claws away and rendering it immobile. "And you know, I think that first assault by Crushtacean on Supernova did the damage, I think they did themselves in!"

- Jonathan Pearce

Sir Killalot picked it up and placed it on the floor flipper, the resulting flip damaging the claw even further.

Winner: Supernova

Storm 2 (UK) vs Tough As Nails (NED)
Storm 2 drove straight into Tough As Nails' pincers and used its 18 horsepower drive to literally bulldoze Tough As Nails around the arena and into the arena wall, where one of Tough As Nails' tyres broke off. "Storm 2 again, quite happy to be in there."

- Jonathan Pearce as Storm 2 uses Tough As Nails' pincers to dictate the battle

Storm 2 drove into the pincers again and edged Tough As Nails towards the pit where, after a major struggle, the Dutch machine finally fell in. "Tough As Nails, argh, on the brink of oblivion, just holding on, and finally drops."

- Jonathan Pearce as Tough As Nails desperately tries to hang on while over the pit of oblivion

Winner: Storm 2

Supernova (SRI) vs Storm 2 (UK)
This was a rematch from the 7th wars, where Storm 2 had immobilised Supernova in Round 1. Storm 2 drove straight at Supernova and got underneath it, the disc doing no apparent damage. The two charged at each other, but missed. They tried again, but the two robots were deflected. Storm 2 slammed Supernova into the arena wall, where the Sri Lankan machine spun off it. Supernova drove back at Storm 2, but missed, with one wheel going up Storm 2's wedge. However, this threw Supernova out of balance, and it crashed, side on, into the arena wall. "Look at that, churning up the arena floor!"

- Jonathan Pearce as Supernova's disc grinds into the surface

Supernova was unable to right itself, whilst Shunt, for no apparent reason, shoved Storm 2, back side up, against the grinder. Eventually, Refbot freed Supernova from the wall, and a few seconds later, Supernova freed Storm 2. "And, I think y'know, Supernova may well have knocked Storm 2 back into the battle, why on earth did they do that!"

- Jonathan Pearce as Storm 2 is finally put back on its wheels

Storm 2 charged at Supernova again, but because it was upside down, it only caused itself damage. Cease was called and the judges had to make a decision. However, after watching the replay, they decided that Supernova had been immobilised on the arena wall for much longer than the 30 seconds allowed, and thus the fight should have ended. As a result, Storm 2 were given the victory.

Third World Champion: Storm 2