- "Seemingly unstoppable, look at the power in the flipper, the speed across the arena floor, the style, the control, the aggression, it's got the lot, and that's why Chaos 2 are our worthy top seeds!"
- — Jonathan Pearce, reviewing the seeds at the start of Heat A of Series 4
Chaos 2 was a competitor robot from the UK robot combat game show Robot Wars. Built by Ipswich mechanic George Francis and competing in Series 3-6 and both series of Robot Wars Extreme, Chaos 2 was one of the most famous and successful robots in the show's history. It won eighteen consecutive battles in the domestic UK Championships, as well as the domestic championship titles of both Series 3 and 4. It is the only robot ever to win two series of the show.
Chaos 2 was the most successful pioneer of the rear-hinged flipper, winning the 'Best Engineered' award in Series 3. Like other famed competitors Razer and Hypno-Disc, it inspired several imitators which emulated its concept of using CO2-powered pneumatics for the flipper mechanism. A number of robots which took inspiration from Chaos 2 went on to become successful in their own rights, including Spawn Again and Bigger Brother.
Aside from its multiple championship victories, Chaos 2's biggest claim to fame is being the first competitor to flip another robot out of the arena. Dispatching of six robots in this way, Chaos 2 held the record for most victories with this method until its retirement.
- "...the first robot ever to flip another out of the arena: Fire Storm the victim, on Chaos 2's march to the Series 3 title. Since then they took Series 4, surviving a few near misses along the way, to beat the very best, take on House Robots, and nearly destroy them, and time after time flip opponents over and out. Chaos 2: a role model for Robot Wars!"
- — Jonathan Pearce reviews Chaos 2's history in Series 6
A previous machine, known simply as Chaos, also competed in Series 2 and made the heat final before being retired in favour of Chaos 2.
Versions of Chaos
- "Ever since helping Rex to build Recyclopse, I wanted to harness the power of Recyclopse's tongue in a more effective way. By hinging the flipper at the back (instead of the front), you only have to poke a small part of the front blade under your opponent to be able to chuck them."
- — George Francis
Chaos
Chaos from Series 2
Chaos was a small wedge-shaped robot with polycarbonate and chequer-plated armour and armed with a titanium flipping arm on the front. The flipping arm was powered by a cylinder made out of the nose gear from a McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II fighter jet, while the robot also used two of the wheels and the Sinclair C5 motors from its predecessor, Robot The Bruce. Team Chaos opted to switch to two-wheel drive and free-mounted castors in order to make Chaos highly manoeuvrable and better to steer than Robot The Bruce, while still having a high top speed and retaining its predecessor's power. The robot had home-made speed controllers.[1]
Chaos took three months to build, and during construction the original chassis had to be rebuilt because of the insufficient torque provided by the two motors, two drive chains and two wheels at low speeds. The problem was solved by gearing down the robot by means of a counter shaft placed in the gearbox.
Chaos proved nimble and strong, its highlight from its Series 2 run being the first and only robot to pull Dead Metal into the pit during the Tug of War trial. However, on Chaos 2's official website, George Francis admitted that the robot had a tendency to tip itself forwards while flipping, the flipping arm was not powerful enough, and that it often had problems getting the arm underneath opponents due to its narrow size.
- "It's main problems were lack of power in the flipper (bore of valves & pipework too small), tipping forwards when flipping (front wheels not far enough forwards) and difficulty in getting the weapon under the opposition (flipper too narrow, or driver not good enough, or both!) It was powered by 2 Sinclair C5 motors, it was fast, manouverable and powerful, it's just the weapon that didn't work as planned!"
- — Chaos 2 website[2]
Chaos was also left unable to self-right after the team forgot to add a pair of rounded plastic plates to the back, costing it in its Heat Final against Mace.
Several of Chaos' parts, including its wheels and castors, were also later used for the construction of Chaos 2.
Chaos 2
Chaos 2 from Series 3
Chaos 2 between Series 3 and 4
Chaos 2 was a compact, two-wheel drive dual-wedged robot armoured in aluminium and polycarbonate, powered by a pair of lawnmower motors and armed with a powerful high-pressure pneumatic flipper. The flipper was powered by a liquid CO2 fire extinguisher and twin pneumatic rams expanding at 570/1, and was powerful enough to act as a self-righting mechanism and to toss robots over and out of the arena. Chaos 2 was the joint pioneer of the rear-hinged flipper, along with Facet, and proved a major influence on several robots which subsequently adopted this weapon type. It also boasted superb traction, a low centre of gravity at the rear - although its ground clearance at the front was much higher - a zero turning circle and a top speed of 20mph, although this was quoted as 12mph in several Robot Wars publications. Chaos 2 was designed to correct the mistakes made with the original Chaos, such as the narrow flipper blade and the inability to self-right.
- "The Third Wars, I realised I was gonna have to do something a bit different. The drive system on the old Chaos was very good, it was very fast, very manoeuvrable, I could outmanoeuvre most people, but the weapon didn't have enough power and it was too narrow, it was very difficult to get the sharp point under somebody, so I went for a wider, a much wider blade. Very similar drive system, but with a much wider, more powerful weapon."
- — George Francis on the Ultimate Warrior - Chaos 2 DVD
Series 4 appearance
Chaos 2 in the arena during Series 4
The robot was painted black with the flipper plate and side armour in light grey, and the logo painted red on the flipper cover. It also featured small plastic sections on the sides and top to prevent it from getting stranded when it was flipped, and to allow it to roll onto its wheels or back. The robot featured a gyroscope to help stabilise the robot[3], and had home-made speed controllers like its predecessor. Firetrace Pyroflex automatic extinguisher tubes to prevent serious damage by flames[4],. Chaos 2 cost only £250 to build, and used several parts from Chaos, including the wheels, castors and differentials.
- "Most of the parts came from our local scrapyard. Its not a car breakers yard, its one of the more general types that takes in almost anything metal, including old industrial machinery etc. (great for pneumatics, chains, sprockets etc.). The Fire Extinguisher bottle and valves etc were kindly donated by our friendly local Fire Extinguisher shop. I didn't buy my motors, a friend scrounged a couple of spares from a lawnmower factory, so I've no idea where you buy them from. The Go-Kart parts are from a friend of a friend who used to race them, so I don't know where to buy those from either."
- — George Francis on the Chaos 2 website[5]
Chaos 2 in the arena during the first series of Extreme
Side view of Chaos 2 for Extreme
The only modification made to Chaos 2 for Series 4 was a new set of covers[6]. After winning Series 3 and 4, Chaos 2 was rebuilt[7] for Series 5 and Extreme 1 with improvements to its flipper and armour. Titanium was used for extra plating beneath the outer polycarbonate armour and a new titanium flipper plate, while the flipper received new larger diameter rams, new valves and a larger CO2 canister. The batteries were also replaced with smaller ones in order to accommodate the bigger rams.[8] From Series 5 and in some of its Extreme 1 matches, an extra piece of titanium was also added to the rear polycarbonate panel above the gas canister to prevent it from being punctured by axes and crushers.
Chaos 2 in Series 5
Official photo of Chaos 2 in Series 5
While its flipper proved substantially more powerful from Extreme 1 onwards, Chaos 2 suffered from a tendency to flip itself over when it fired its weapon, requiring a large amount of CO2 just to self-right. It also had a tendency to leak gas which further depleted the weapon's supply, which cost it against Bigger Brother and Dantomkia when it ran out completely, and was prone to failure if it was damaged. Chaos 2's shape also prevented it from self-righting properly when it was low on CO2, its high ground clearance lead to it being easily shoved around from the side, and the polycarbonate armour proved especially fragile. It was also at least sixteen kilograms lighter than almost all other opponents in Extreme and Series 5-6, putting it at a further disadvantage.
Official profile for Series 6
Chaos 2 in Extreme Series 2
Despite all of these shortcomings, the only noticeable modification made to Chaos 2 in Series 6 was the addition of treaded tyres, as George Francis could not financially afford to make any more substantial changes to Chaos 2. The original wheels were also used in Series 6 and Chaos 2's final appearance in Extreme 2, where its flipper, armour and chassis sustained tremendous damage from Razer, 13 Black and Mr Psycho.
Qualification
Chaos at the Series 2 auditions, with its original chassis and minus armour
As with other Series 2 competitors, Chaos attended the auditions in order to secure a place in the competition. Although it succeeded in entering the main series, the robot itself was rebuilt with a new chassis ahead of filming (see Versions of Chaos).
Chaos 2 would also enter Series 3 through this method, although it would earn automatic entry into every other series it entered in due to its seeding and status as a championship-winning robot. Nevertheless, it continued to appear at qualifiers for later series to perform demonstrations for the audience, alongside fellow renowned UK competitors Razer and Hypno-Disc.
Robot History
Series 2
- "Hopefully we can either lift them or spear them with the ram."
- — Mick Cutter on Chaos' weapon
Chaos after missing the ramp
Chaos entered Heat B of the Second Wars, seeded sixth in recognition of Robot the Bruce reaching the Grand Final of the previous series. It started quickly in its Gauntlet run, but drove into a fence, recovering straight away and choosing the centre route. It knocked down the barrels, but drove past the ramp as it pushed past the barrels.
- "Spinning rather crazily, it's a nippy robot."
- — Jonathan Pearce as Chaos makes an error and tries to correct it
Chaos reaches the end zone
It quickly reversed and tried again, driving up the see-saw successfully. However, Sergeant Bash blocked its way. Chaos backed up and rammed Sergeant Bash away to cross the end zone. It ducked to one side to avoid Dead Metal, who rammed into the end wall. Chaos had completed the course, and finished second on the leader-board, behind Tantrum which finished in a faster time.
- "I hadn't finished the robot very early before filming, so I hadn't done much driving practice and I got myself in a muddle to start with, but I sorted that out, got past Sergeant Bash, seemed OK."
- — George Francis on the Ultimate Warrior - Chaos 2 DVD
Chaos qualified for the Tug of War Trial, where it was chained up to Dead Metal and tasked with attempting to survive being pulled into the pit.
- Philippa Forrester: "What we want to see is Dead Metal in the Pit of Oblivion. I'm not meant to say that. Can you do that?"
- George Francis and Mick Cutter: "So do I, so do I. I hope so. We'll give it a good go."
- — Prior to Chaos' run
Chaos drags Dead Metal further towards the Pit
It immediately yanked the chain, overpowering Dead Metal's pull and dragging him steadily towards the pit as the House Robot swerved and attempted to hang on. Eventually, Dead Metal hung over the edge, and with one final tug, Chaos successfully pulled him down.
- "This is a battle of pride here, because Chaos is doing enough, surely, to go through anyway. But it wants Dead Metal in that Pit! It wants Dead Metal submerged, in the smoke! CAN HE PULL DEAD METAL IN? HUMILIATION FOR THE HOUSE ROBOT! That's what they wanted! Made their day!"
- — Jonathan Pearce, as Dead Metal falls.
The only competitor to defeat Dead Metal, Chaos finished first on the leader-board. Chaos proceeded to the Arena stage, facing Wheelosaurus in its Semi-Final battle.
- Philippa Forrester: "Now, Peter's described the battle as Beauty and the Beast. What do you think?"
- Mick Cutter: "We're definitely the beast when it comes to performance, but we think the robot looks quite good. It's just a matter of finding the weak point on his robot and doing business"
- — Pre-match talk
Chaos attacks Wheelosaurus
It tipped Wheelosaurus onto its side straight away, but this had no effect because of Wheelosaurus' design. Chaos's weapon also had no effect when it tried to flip, so Chaos backed away for another charge.
- "...had got lots of spikes all over the outside of it, which had me worried for a while, I thought if I ram it hard I'm going to stick one of those spikes through me, so I had to be a little careful with it."
- — George Francis describes fighting Wheelosaurus on the Ultimate Warrior - Chaos 2 DVD
Dead Metal slams Chaos and breaks the walls
The two robots cautiously approached one another, and when the two made contact, Wheelosaurus turned away. Chaos pushed Wheelosaurus into Sergeant Bash, and Wheelosaurus was attacked by the flamethrower. Matilda and Shunt caught Wheelosaurus and began to inflict punishment on it, slicing through the wheels and axing the motor compartments. Wheelosaurus had become immobilised, and Shunt helped Matilda ram it into the angle grinders. Meanwhile, Chaos danced around Dead Metal, with the House Robot chasing it around the arena before ramming Chaos into the wall, which bent the entire section of the wall out of place. Chaos escaped and dodged Dead Metal during the end of the match, slamming into Dead Metal a few times as it did so, dislodging his back panel as 'cease' was called.
- Craig Charles: "At one stage, though, it looked like Dead Metal was about to give you a full lobotomy, didn't it?"
- George Francis: "I think he's got it in for me after we pulled him into a pit."
- Craig Charles: "But hey, one more fight and you're through to the series semi-finals. Are you feeling confident about the next one"
- Mick Cutter: "We are now yes, that one was a bit - we didn't know where to hit him. But now it's out of the way, we'll give it a good go."
- — Interview after the battle
In the Heat Final, Chaos fought against Mace.
- "We've just given the robot a good check over to make sure that nothing's come loose or broken, and charged the batteries up for the next round!"
- — Mick Cutter, confident before the Heat Final
Mace pushes Chaos into Matilda
Both machines met in the middle of the arena. Mace was first to get its lifting arm under its opponent, but Chaos reversed and turned away, so Mace turned around for another attack. The two robots clashed head-on, with Chaos getting its flipping arm under Mace this time. It flicked Mace up, but Mace merely bounced onto its wheels. Chaos backed away, but as Mace closed in, Chaos drove close to Matilda in the PPZ. Mace took advantage and pushed the seeded robot straight into Matilda, which pushed Chaos away and flipped it over with the tusks. Chaos fired its flipping arm in an attempt to self-right, but it became stranded on its back.
- "At this point I realised that I'd forgotten to screw two pieces of plastic on the back, that I was not supposed to be able to rest there. However, I forgot the bits of plastic, that's the main reason for the very glum look on my face after losing that one! The robot was not supposed to sit up like that!"
- — George Francis on the Ultimate Warrior - Chaos 2 DVD
Mace uses its flails to cause further damage to the eliminated Chaos
Chaos was left helpless as Mace damaged its armour with its flail. With Chaos immobile, the House Robots came in. Shunt accidentally re-righted Chaos while hammering it with his axe, allowing Chaos to dart away across the arena. It soon found itself trapped by Dead Metal and Matilda, and Matilda flipped it over onto its back again.
- "Chaos immobilised, well, risen from the dead, it would seem! But has Chaos got enough time to come back? Now Matilda flips it on end! And the damage had been done by Mace in the first place."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Sir Killalot pits Chaos
During the ending credits, Sir Killalot proceeded to pick Chaos up with his jaws, carrying it around the arena before dropping it into the pit.
At the end of Series 2, Chaos was nominated for the 'Best Engineered' award but lost out to The Mule.
Series 3
- "As we came into the arena to receive the trophy and George lifted it above his head, I felt really pleased for him, he put an enormous amount of effort into getting Chaos 2 to that kind of a level, and it was a great emotional moment."
- — Ian Swann, Ultimate Warrior - Chaos 2 DVD, referring to Chaos 2 being crowned the Series 3 champion
Chaos 2 began its first championship-winning campaign in Heat E of the Third Wars, where it faced newcomers Crocodilotron in the first round.
- "Better than Cassius last year they reckon, so they've got a lot of living up to do!"
- — Philippa Forrester in The Pits, during Chaos 2's very first televised introduction
Chaos 2 flips Crocodilotron
At the start, both robots charged at each other, but Chaos 2 swerved before Crocodilotron could reach it. Crocodilotron tried to turn around, but it drove into the top arena wall by Matilda's CPZ as it tried to do so. Chaos 2 was in close pursuit, and with Crocodilotron seemingly stuck, it easily got under its opponent and flipped it over. Crocodilotron was stuck on its back against the arena wall, and Matilda came out of her CPZ as Chaos tried another flip, pushing past Crocodilotron and bumping into Chaos 2.
Chaos 2 tosses Crocodilotron into the corner
- "Oh, don't just TALK ABOUT IT! Oh Crocodilotron, do something!! Look at that power, from Chaos 2, in that high pressure flip... AND AGAIN! Magnificent stuff!"
- — Jonathan Pearce as Chaos 2 flips Crocodilotron, then flips it again
Chaos 2 reversed away, whilst Crocodilotron, which was now on its side, opened and closed its jaw in a vain attempt to self right. Chaos 2 drove under it again, and flipped it into the corner.
- "This is a real weapon - one of the most powerful we've seen in Robot Wars, and it simply flipped Crocodilotron up and over. You're talking 85 kilos here, simply tossed up in the air like a broken twig."
- — Jonathan Pearce comments on Chaos 2's flipping ability
Chaos 2 flips Matilda up
Crocodilotron could not self-right, no matter how much it fired the jaw, so Chaos 2 stood back. When Matilda tried to use her chainsaw to cut into Crocodilotron, Chaos 2 drove at her side and tried to flip her. Chaos 2 only lifted her a little because the flipper was not under Matilda properly, but this caused the chain to slip off the chainsaw. The other House Robots went after Chaos 2, with Dead Metal chasing it away from Matilda. Shunt came in to push Chaos 2, followed by Sgt. Bash, which got side-on at Chaos 2 and pushed it around, before Chaos 2 escaped as Sgt. Bash drove into Shunt. It drove to the side of the arena, but this allowed Sgt. Bash to pin it against the wall. Sgt. Bash allowed Chaos 2 to get free, and Chaos 2 tried to get under Dead Metal, which was attacking the immobile Crocodilotron.
Sgt. Bash and Shunt trap Chaos 2
Dead Metal reversed, dragging Crocodilotron with it to push Chaos 2 back, and it retreated. Chaos 2 chased after Sgt. Bash, which dodged it and Chaos 2 drove into the arena wall, where it appeared to become stuck. In the last few seconds, Shunt held it against the arena wall, while Sgt. Bash used its pincers on Chaos 2's flipper. Shunt held it in place until Cease was called. Nevertheless, Chaos 2 was declared the winner, and went through to the second round.
- Philippa Forrester: "The flipper is quite incredible! Is it stronger than Rex's one from last year?"
- George Francis: "Yes, it's got two rams this time, Rex only had one last year."
- Philippa Forrester: "This is fantastic, we're very impressed. Leave the House Robots alone!"
- George Francis: "I was alright until I had a go at the House Robots, but this is Robot Wars, I've got to have some fun, haven't I?"
- — The post-battle interview
Chaos 2 faced Sonic in Round 2.
- "I noticed one of their chains was hanging off while they were queuing up to go in to the fight, so we all sort of dived in and helped them fix it. Having helped to repair Sonic, we then threw them all around the arena and beat them!"
- — George Francis on the Ultimate Warrior - Chaos 2 DVD
Chaos 2 flips over Sonic the first time
Both robots drove towards each other, but both turned away before they could reach their opponent, trying to get in the best position to attack. Sonic turned around, but turned straight onto Chaos 2's flipper, so Chaos 2 quickly turned it over.
- "...a lot of admiring glances for Chaos 2 in the pits, and that's why!"
- — Jonathan Pearce as Sonic is flipped
Chaos 2 rights Sonic
Chaos 2 got around to the other side of Sonic, and flipped it back onto its wheels. Sonic retreated towards the top corner of the arena, turned around and drove to the top of the arena, where it briefly stopped. Chaos 2 came in, and tried to get under Sonic and flip it, but Sonic was able to turn of the flipper and escape. However, it drove into Matilda in doing so. Matilda reversed to let Sonic go, and Chaos 2 chased it as it escaped the CPZ.
- "I'd love to see the Chaos 2 flipper against Matilda you know, or any one of the House Robots."
- — Jonathan Pearce, who would have his wish fulfilled in the Final
Chaos 2, about to flip Sonic over again
As Chaos 2 closed in, it tried to get in the best position to flip, but as it turned, Sonic got its front blade under Chaos 2's side and pushed it. The two span around together, until Chaos 2 reversed to get off Sonic's blade. It drove at Sonic's front and flipped it over again. On this occasion, Chaos 2 stood back and left the beaten Sonic idle. The House Robots attacked and pitted Sonic, and Chaos 2 proceeded to the Heat Final.
- "You were toying with him like cat with a mouse, you flipped him over, then you flipped him back, then you flipped him over again, it was almost cruel to watch!"
- — Craig Charles to the Chaos 2 team after the battle
In the Heat Final, Chaos 2 was drawn up against the lifter of The Big Cheese.
- "Really for the first time, in this heat, in danger, Chaos 2!"
- — Jonathan Pearce, as Chaos 2 is lifted at the start of the battle
The Big Cheese topples and pins Chaos 2
Both robots started tentatively, until The Big Cheese got in underneath Chaos 2 and lifted it up onto its side, only for Chaos 2 to land back onto its wheels and drive off The Big Cheese's top. Chaos 2 tried to get under The Big Cheese's side, but drove at the wrong angle so failed, before backing away fro another charge. As The Big Cheese close in, it span around its opponent and tried to get under the front corner. The Big Cheese turned to fight, but this allowed Chaos 2 to get its flipper properly under its opponent and flipping it clean over before it charged the Somerset machine towards the wall and flipped it back over. Both robots retreated over the Flame Pit, only for The Big Cheese to lift Chaos 2 over onto its back. When The Big Cheese reversed, Chaos 2 righted itself using its flipper and spun away. Chaos 2 then drove The Big Cheese into the wall and flipped it over again.
- "Driving underneath Big Cheese and flipping him up and over this time. And let me tell you, The Big Cheese weighs as much as an adult! That's the power of this little machine, Chaos 2!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 checks as The Big Cheese tries to self-right
The Big Cheese tried to leaver itself back onto its wheels with its lifting arm. However, The Big Cheese's arm could not open far enough for it to self-right, and it was eliminated before being attacked by the House Robots. Chaos 2 stayed away as Sir Killalot re-righted The Big Cheese, before the latter lifted Sgt. Bash onto his side, causing his rear armour and propane gas bottle to fall off. Team Chaos watched on in amusement as The Big Cheese toppled over in the process, with Chaos 2 advancing to the Series Semi-Finals following its victory.
- "That was a really great fight. He had us over a couple of times, I thought he was going to squash us at one point, we got to show off the self-righter, and came round the back and turned him over, from which he couldn't self-right, so we won!"
- — George Francis on the Ultimate Warrior - Chaos 2 DVD
In the first round of the Semi-Finals, Chaos 2 fought newcomers Trident.
- "With top speeds of 20mph, it will cause "chaos too"! Exceptionally quick, magnificently controlled by George Francis, in his third series of wars."
- — Jonathan Pearce is full of praise as he introduces Chaos 2 to the Semi-Finals
Chaos 2 dispatches Trident with a well-timed flip
Chaos 2 drove at Trident, which started driving towards its opponent, then turned away as Chaos 2 closed in. Chaos 2 got its flipper under Trident's behind, and flipped it, but Trident landed on its wheels, as the blade was not properly under it when Chaos 2 flipped, as Trident had tried to turn off the flipper. Chaos 2 and Trident then lined up again, and Trident's axe blow missed. Chaos 2 attacked with more success, getting under Trident's front and it up and onto its back.
- "Oh, again! And over goes Trident immediately! This is the most powerful flipper in Robot Wars at the moment."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 puts Trident on the flame pit
Chaos 2 then flipped Trident onto the flame pit, and the House Robots closed in. Chaos 2 span in victory as the House Robots attacked Trident, and it was through to Round 2 of the Semi-Finals.
- Philippa Forrester: "You were in there, flip, did your job, and out again."
- Jonathan Pearce: "Short, sharp and sweet for Chaos 2."
- — After the battle
In the second round, Chaos 2 faced Mace 2, in a rematch of the Series 2 Heat Final between both robots' predecessors.
Mace 2 lifts and rams Chaos 2
Mace 2 started slowly, moving forward a little then stopping as Chaos 2 charged in. Chaos 2 charged at Mace's front, but drove up the lifting arm, so quickly turned off. Both robots tried to get their flipping weapons under their opponent, and it was Chaos 2 that got in the first flip, flicking Mace up but not over. Mace drove to the top of the arena, then turned to fight again. The two robots clashed head-on, but neither could get their flipper under the other, so they turned around for another attack. The two turned and re-positioned, but found themselves with the flippers at each others side, rather than under the opponent. After a brief spin together, Chaos 2 drove away, before charging at Mace 2's front. However, it drove up the lifting arm again, and reversed away as Mace tried to flip.
Chaos 2 flips Mace 2
Chaos 2 sped past Mace 2, then tried to get under it again, but when it tried to flip, the flipper was not under Mace 2 properly, so it missed. This gave Mace the opportunity to get the lifting arm under Chaos 2, lift it and push it back. Chaos 2 was able to turn itself off, and after backing away for another charge, got behind Mace and flipped it. Mace was tossed forwards, but landed on its lifting arm, so fell back onto its wheels. Mace tried to get away, but Chaos 2 was too fast, and soon got under the front of Mace and flipped the robot over.
- "This time up and over! Star light, star bright! The star of Mace is out of sight!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Mace 2 tried to use its lifter to self-right, but was unable to do so. Chaos 2 flipped Mace 2 one more time in an attempt to re-right it, but was unable to do so, and Mace 2 was attacked by the House Robots before being thrown by the Floor Flipper. Chaos 2 was through to the Grand Final.
- Craig Charles: "What's your strategy going to be in the final then?"
- Ian Swann: "More of the same really, just hit 'em and flip 'em really!"
- — After the battle
In the Grand Final, Chaos 2 was drawn against Fire Storm in the eliminator.
- "The competition's getting stiffer! ... It's getting stiffer every time, yes! Very good robot."
- — George Francis
Chaos 2 flips Fire Storm over
Both machines charged at each other, but Fire Storm swerved away, before turning to face Chaos 2. Chaos 2 tried to get under its opponent, but Firestorm turned away before it could flip, so the flip missed.
- "Both quick, nippy, great manoeuvrability"
- — Jonathan Pearce on the two robots
Chaos 2 hurls Fire Storm out of the arena
As Chaos 2 tried to get under Fire Storm again, Fire Storm was turning on the spot but did not drive away. It did manage to knock Chaos 2 away whilst it was trying to get under the Durham machine, but Chaos 2 drove around it, got the flipper under the side and flipped it over. Fire Storm did not attempt to self-right, Chaos 2 pushed the inverted Fire Storm towards the wall and threw it out of the arena, the first time this occurred in the show's history.
- "What a way to go! I don't think there's any doubt about that George Francis, what happened to them? Well, that was over so quickly, and we've never seen it before, out of the arena, out of touch...and out of the final! Chaos 2 delightful, Fire Storm derailed and deranged."
- — Jonathan Pearce after Fire Storm goes over the side wall
George Francis revealed to the presenters after the battle that he did not intend to flip Fire Storm out, instead expecting to slam it into the side wall. Nevertheless, Chaos 2 was just one battle away from winning the title. In the Final, Chaos 2 faced the destructive flywheel of series newcomer Hypno-Disc.
- "He has demolished so many people, he's got me worried, it's "Can I flip him before he wrecks me?"!"
- — George Francis on Hypno-Disc
Chaos 2 started quickly, circling round Hypno-Disc in an attempt to flip it.
Chaos 2 on top of Hypno-Disc
Chaos 2 claims the title
- "The disc against the flipper, the speed of Chaos 2, the best two robots in the series have survived. The cream has risen to the top!"
- — Jonathan Pearce at the start of the battle
Eventually, Chaos 2 followed Hypno-Disc towards the wall, and fired its flipper, but bounced onto the top of its opponent's disc, temporarily stopping the disc with the flipper as it tried to close. Both robots separated, with Chaos 2 buffeting against Hypno-Disc as it attempted to get underneath its opponent. Eventually, Chaos 2 succeeded in getting underneath Hypno-Disc from the front, and flipped it onto its back; without a self-righting mechanism, Hypno-Disc was eliminated instantly.
- "Chaos 2 has won the final, flipping Hypno-Disc! The fears have proven true for the Hypno-Disc boys. Chaos 2 came in, got underneath the disc, ironically; flipped up and over, and Chaos 2 are the worthy winners of Robot Wars - the champions. Crowned, as Hypno-Disc lies battered and beaten."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 celebrates its win by flipping Shunt...
...and Matilda
While the House Robots attacked Hypno-Disc, Chaos 2 celebrated its victory by flipping Matilda and Shunt onto their sides, and was declared the Grand Champion of the Third Wars.
- "Chaos 2 wants more toying with the House Robots and destroying them! This is great fun! But they will be back, of course, and revenge will be in their hearts for the champions in the next series!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 later entered the First World Championship, and faced the Czech Republic representative Killerhurtz in the first round.
- "Builder George Francis is a Robot Wars Veteran. He's got the knowledge, and the hardware!"
- — Praise from Jonathan Pearce during Chaos 2's introduction
Chaos 2 approaches Killerhurtz
Killerhurtz did not move at the start of the battle and Chaos 2 attempted to take advantage as it got its flipper under its opponent, but Killerhurtz suddenly sped away before Chaos 2 could flip. Killerhurtz attempted an attack with its axe but missed Chaos 2 and hit the arena floor instead. The two robots then reversed side by side, before Killerhurtz spun around on the spot. Killerhurtz drove at Chaos 2's side and fired its axe, but missed again. Chaos 2 slipped underneath Killerhurtz briefly, before both robots danced around each other for a short period.
Chaos 2 avoids the axe of Killerhurtz
- "This is very, very active, here, at the moment now."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 then drove into Killerhurtz's rear, before both robots met side by side again, with Killerhurtz missing with its axe as it reversed away. As Killerhurtz moved away from near Sgt. Bash's CPZ, Chaos 2 found itself caught on a set of arena spikes. Chaos 2 reversed away from trouble, weathering another Killerhurtz attack as it did so, but then drifted near Shunt's CPZ, before reversing again, and slamming into the arena wall.
A combined attack from both Shunt and Killerhurtz results in Chaos 2's gas canister being punctured
- "And now, Chaos 2 is between Shunt and Killerhurtz, and again, has to get out of the way of those two mighty axes."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Killerhurtz axed into Chaos 2's flipper, holding it there to allow Shunt to carry out further damage. An axe blow from Shunt pierced Chaos 2's gas bottle, evident from a sudden burst of gas flying from the back of the robot. However, this did not seem to take any power from the flipper, demonstrated when Killerhurtz drove away and turned for another attack, Chaos 2 was finally able to escape the CPZ, get underneath the Czech competitor, and throw it over against Shunt and the arena wall.
Killerhurtz flails around on its back after being flipped by Chaos 2
Normally Killerhurtz would have been able to self-right, but the chain that helped power its axe had come off when withdrawing it from Chaos 2, causing it to be stuck in the "fired" position. As a result, Killerhurtz was left stuck on its back and cease was called, sending Chaos 2 through to Round 2.
Here, Chaos 2 faced fellow English competitor, Razer.
- Philippa Forrester: "Have you got any problems we need to know about, though?"
- Ian Swann: "It's Razer!"
- — Pre-battle interview
Chaos 2 gets in with an early flip on Razer
Both robots clashed in the centre of the arena, before Razer tried to get its crusher into play, but Chaos 2 reversed away. Razer pursued Chaos 2 towards a set of arena spikes, but drove over Chaos 2's front blade, allowing George Francis to flip Razer. Razer landed back on its wheels however, as it bounced off the arena wall.
- "Chaos 2 nearly flipping Razer up."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Razer manages to catch Chaos 2, taking advantage of its vulnerable gas bottle
Both robots moved for position, before Chaos 2 reserved into the arena wall next to Dead Metal's CPZ. As Chaos 2 moved away from the House Robot, it backed up onto Razer's front, allowing Razer to crush into the rear, piercing Chaos 2's gas bottle in the process as it pushed it against the arena wall.
- "Razer already puncturing once again! The CO2 gas canister in the main engine compartment has gone. And with it, has the power of the weapon gone also?"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Dead Metal slices into the flipper of Chaos 2
Razer continued to crush Chaos 2, plunging the claw into the back of Chaos 2 again. Razer then dragged Chaos 2 into the reach of Dead Metal, which used its saw to slice into Chaos 2's flipper, whilst Razer attacked Chaos 2's back end again. With the flipper left unable to work from the earlier attack from Razer, Chaos 2 broke free from Dead Metal and deliberately reversed into the pit of oblivion to avoid any further damage.
Chaos 2 reverses into the pit
- "It's the first time I've seen a robot commit suicide!"
- — Philippa Forrester
At the end of the Third Wars, Chaos 2 also received the 'Best Engineered' award, and its Heat Final battle with The Big Cheese was voted 'Battle of the Series' by the judges during the Grand Final.
- "George Francis and Ian and little Richard Swann's reincarnation from the second wars capturing everyone's imagination. Small but penetratingly powerful, Chaos 2 proving a force to be reckoned with, that's for sure."
- — Jonathan Pearce reading through the Best Engineered nominees
Series 4
Chaos 2 returned for the Fourth Wars as the reigning champion, competing in Heat A.
- "The only thing we've changed is my beard in a desperate attempt to look young!"
- — Ian Swann before the first battle
In its first round eliminator, it faced two newcomers in Indefatigable and Atomic.
Chaos 2 turns Indefatigable over
Chaos 2 started by charging at Atomic, but dodged the flipper by steering round its front, past its side, before Atomic could flip. Chaos 2 turned around and got at Atomic's side, missing with a flip. It turned to get under Atomic's front, but Atomic's blade got under Chaos 2, so Chaos 2 reversed away, bumping into Indefatigable. Atomic had mistimed their flip, but it did manage to push Chaos 2 towards the wall briefly before Chaos 2 escaped. Chaos 2 targeted Indefatigable, but Indefatigable drove away when Chaos 2 bumped into it in an attempt to get under and flip it. Chaos 2 went back after Atomic, getting under its side and flipping it onto its side.
- "In goes Chaos 2! And up goes Atomic, on its side!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 thrusts Atomic into the camera
Atomic righted itself with one flip straight away, but appeared to break down, its flipper stuck open and the robot motionless. After flipping Atomic, Chaos 2 chased after Indefatigable, flipping it onto its side just as Atomic was self-righting. With no srimech, Indefatigable was immediately considered immobile. Chaos 2 went back after the immobile Atomic, getting behind it and flipping it up.
- "Now Chaos 2 going after Atomic once again. This is needless - both of them are through, but George Francis loves to create some Metallic mayhem. Oh yes! "I am the boss of the arena! Do not take me on! I am the champion! I'll have you on later in the series, and this is what I can do to you, don't ever, EVER forget it!""
- — Jonathan Pearce, thinking what George Francis would say
Chaos 2 throws Atomic over
Chaos 2 pushed the immobile Atomic against the side wall, and flipped it against a camera that was filming it, before flipping it by the flame pit, then flipping it onto its back by the arena wall. Meanwhile, Sgt. Bash was attacking Indefatigable, torching it with its flamethrower, grabbing it with its pincer, and pushing it into the corner.
Indefatigable is flipped out of the arena
When Sgt. Bash left Indefatigable, Chaos 2 rushed into the CPZ, flipped it against the arena wall then flipped it over the wall to end the battle.
- "Can't gain anything from this, George Francis, except sheer delight! Oh, out goes Indefatigable! Not in the arena anymore, Indefatigable, over and out!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
In the second round, Chaos 2 was drawn up against another newcomer, Medusa 2000.
- "...one of those robots that just kept coming back for more, we kept throwing them around, and it just kept coming back for more."
- — George Francis on the Ultimate Warrior - Chaos 2 DVD
Chaos 2 tries to launch Medusa 2000 from the arena
Chaos 2 charged straight at its opponent and tried to flip it, but Medusa 2000 turned away, so Chaos 2 missed when it fired the flipper. Medusa 2000 escaped and both robots turned to charge at each other head-on. After charging into each other, Chaos 2 got its flipper under its opponent's front and tossed it over. Medusa 2000 failed to get away, so Chaos 2 got under it and rammed it to the arena wall and tried to flip it out, but it bounced off the wall and stayed into the arena, landing near Shunt's CPZ.
- "Medusa 2000 on the back foot already, and very nearly out of the arena!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Medusa 2000 stuck on its side
Medusa 2000 started moving again, and charged at Chaos 2's front, but its inverted wedge front meant that it drove straight over Chaos 2's front, falling off the side and landing on its side, where it briefly became stuck. Chaos 2 drove into it, knocking it over as it passed. As Medusa 2000 landed right-side up, Chaos 2 sped in again and got the flipper under once more, easily flipping it over. Chaos 2 then got behind Medusa 2000, pushed it to the top arena wall, and tried to throw it into the arena entry gate. Medusa 2000 was fortunate enough to fall back into the arena again, but was in Dead Metal's CPZ. It tried to escape, but the House Robot pinned it against the top arena wall, so Chaos 2 came in again, and flip its opponent against the wall, flicking Dead Metal up a little as it did so.
- "Medusa 2000 hopelessly outclassed at this level."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 backed off, and Medusa 2000 escaped. Whilst trying to avoid Chaos 2, Medusa 2000 reversed straight into the pincer of Sgt. Bash, who crushed one of its rear tyres. Sgt. Bash kept hold of Medusa 2000 and pushed it forward, and Shunt axed it, before the two of them placed Medusa 2000 on the flipper. Chaos 2 positioned its beaten opponent on the flipper properly, and it was thrown. Landing back right-way-up. Medusa 2000 was moving properly, but the House Robots continued to attack, with Sir Killalot lifting it up and dragging it to the pit, where it was dropped. Here, it missed its initial flip, but quickly threw Medusa 2000 onto its back and nearly flipped it over the wall, but instead flipped it into Shunt's CPZ. Chaos 2 knocked Medusa 2000 onto its side before flipping it again and nearly sending it over the front arena wall. Medusa 2000 backed into Sgt. Bash's CPZ, having its rear wheel crumpled by Sgt. Bash's pincers and becoming immobilised instantly. Chaos 2 helped nudge Medusa 2000 onto the Floor Flipper, before allowing the other House Robots to continue attacking Medusa 2000 and for Sir Killalot to dump the latter into the pit.
- "Well, Flip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah, Flip-A-Dee-A! When the reigning champ's in the arena, you get out of the way!"
- — Craig Charles, misquoting the song from Disney's "Song of the South"
In the Heat Final, Chaos 2 fought Atomic again.
Chaos 2 dispatches of Atomic
Chaos 2 rammed into Atomic from the activate, with Atomic firing but missing with its own flipper. Chaos 2 slipped underneath Atomic threw it onto its back. Chaos 2 gave Atomic no respite, tossing it over and over from its back to its wheels, and the frame visibly shook from the impacts.
- "...already Chaos 2 on the attack, thrusting and throwing Atomic, and again, and again. Roly-poly. And what can the Bebbs and Paul Francis do about that?"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 flips Atomic onto Sir Killalot
Chaos 2 threw Atomic against the arena wall, but was unable to repeat its success from against Indefatigable. It became evident, when Chaos 2 accidentally flipped Atomic back onto its wheels, that Atomic was immobile. Chaos 2 flipped Atomic to Sir Killalot, flipping it onto his claw, then flipping it on top of the House Robot. Sir Killalot came out to push Chaos 2 away, and when Chaos 2 reversed away, the House Robot sliced into Atomic's chassis with its claw. Sir Killalot dragged the beaten machine onto the floor flipper, which threw Atomic. Chaos 2 made some final flips, but the battle was won.
- "Chaos 2, to me, seems stronger than ever stronger, speedier than ever before, and deadlier than ever before. What a machine."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 was through to the semi-finals, where it first faced the seventh seed and fellow Series 3 Grand-Finalist Steg 2.
- "A very strong flipping robot, I believe he'd had a good look at ours and copied some of our ideas."
- — George Francis describes Steg 2 on the Ultimate Warrior - Chaos 2 DVD
Steg 2 flips Chaos 2
Both robots started slowly, with Chaos 2 closing in, and Steg 2 moving away. When Chaos 2 drove at Steg 2's front, Steg 2 fired its flipper but missed. This allowed Chaos 2 to get under the side and flip Steg over. Steg 2 was able to self-right, but Chaos 2 charged it broadside on and flicked it. Steg 2 reversed into Chaos 2 and fired its flipper, but was not underneath the clearance of the reigning champions so missed. Steg 2's flipper temporarily failed to fall back into place, and Chaos 2 got under the back of Steg 2 and attempted a flip, but only knocked Steg 2 up a little. Chaos 2 tried another flip, but the flipper missed because it was not under Steg 2, before Steg 2 hurled Chaos 2 on its back, but it self-righted straight away.
- "There he (George Francis) is at the controls. An amateur physicist - loves his astronomy, loves his photography, and takes a snapshot of Chaos 2 in trouble! Only momentarily, though."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 uses Steg 2's flat sides to its advantage
Chaos 2 then threw Steg 2 over once more; it self-righted, but Chaos 2 continued to pressurise Steg 2 and tried to force it over the arena wall, before bundling it into Shunt, with the seventh seed taking damage from an axe blow from the House Robot. Steg 2 was noticeably slower now, and Chaos 2 flipped it over, using its open flipper to slow the motion down and strand Steg 2 on its side. Steg 2 fired its flipper, but it failed to knock itself back onto its wheels. Sgt. Bash nudged Steg 2 onto the floor flipper, which tossed it. Before the House Robots could attack, cease was called.
- "Came down to a very close contest, in the end we had a bit more gas than he did."
- — George Francis on the Ultimate Warrior - Chaos 2 DVD
In the second round, Chaos 2 faced series newcomer, Tornado.
- "This is an interesting one, it'll run both ways up, so it could be quite difficult to dispose of, if I keep him moving, he might run out of batteries or burn the motor out or something. ... Preferably over the fence, if possible."
- — George Francis
This battle was actually fought three times, with the third attempt being the only one to be televised. In the first attempt at filming the battle, the arena became damaged, so the fight was restarted from a neutral position. During the second version of the fight, Chaos 2 was pushed into Shunt's CPZ by Tornado, and an axe blow caused Chaos 2 to lose its drive chain, but Tornado also lost a drive chain at the same time, and the Judges declared the battle a draw. Both machines were fully repaired ahead of their third consecutive encounter.
- "Our final televised fight for Series 4 was against Chaos 2. Except that it was the fourth of the semi for us, as we had to fight Chaos 2 three times! The first fight was stopped as the arena got damaged, in the second we pushed Chaos 2 into Shunt's CPZ and Shunt axed them, they lost a chain, but so did we and the judges called a tie."
- — Team Tornado[9]
Chaos 2 flips Tornado
Tornado initially dodged its opponent and drifted near the flame pit as Chaos 2 pursued. Tornado then charged at Chaos 2 and narrowly avoided a flip from its opponent. Both robots circled each other, before Tornado drove straight at the front of Chaos 2, which flipped it. Tornado rammed Chaos 2 three times in quick succession, and Chaos 2 flipped it on its third charge. Tornado retreated, but Chaos 2 got under it and flipped it to the side wall, then flipped it again, stacking it against the arena wall.
- "This is Chaos 2 trying to flip Tornado out of the arena, and succeeding! That's what he lives for, George Francis, and again he's pulled it off! If you don't first succeed, try, try, try again. Out go Tornado in style! Blown out of the arena!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 flips Tornado out
Chaos 2 carefully took position and flipped Tornado out of the arena for an immediate KO and a place in the Grand Final.
- "After throwing them around a bit, we left them perched up against the fence. Ian said "That's it, we've won, leave him there", and I thought "Nah, I just have to throw them over, it's too tempting a target""
- — George Francis' thoughts of the fight with Tornado
In its second successive Grand Final, Chaos 2 faced the thirtieth seed Stinger in its eliminator. The innovative thwackbot design proved concerning for Team Chaos.
- Julia Reed: "Have you faced a robot like this one?"
- George Francis: "Not quite like this, no. This'll go both ways up, it's got a very nasty weapon that spins around quite quickly!"
- — Pre-battle interview
Chaos 2 flips Stinger
Chaos 2 started by swerving around Stinger, before getting under Stinger and tossing it into the air. Chaos 2 held back as Stinger span on the spot, then tried to ram Stinger towards the arena wall, but Stinger spun itself away from Chaos 2's flipper, causing Chaos 2 to miss its flip, then sped away. Chaos 2 followed, but when it got close enough to Stinger to flip, Stinger drove clear. Stinger charged at Chaos 2, but missed with the mace, then reversed when Chaos 2 tried to get under it and flip it. Stinger made another attack at Chaos 2, and though the mace did hit its opponent, this gave Chaos 2 the chance to flip Stinger up the arena. Chaos 2 chased Stinger towards the top of the arena, missing two flips as it did so, before backing off for another charge when Stinger started spinning again. Chaos 2 went after Stinger again, but when it closed in, it did not attack, as Stinger was spinning, and Stinger landed a blow on the reigning champion. Chaos 2 drove around Stinger, driving into Matilda's CPZ, reversing out straight away. It made another charge, but Stinger hit it as it charged, causing it to drive straight into Matilda's CPZ again. As Chaos 2 tried to escape, Matilda lifted it with the tusks. Chaos 2 reversed away from the House Robot, but as it did, it suffered damage from the rotating Stinger, with the back panel of Chaos 2 sent flying off, leaving the inner mechanics exposed.
Chaos 2 fights back after losing its back cover
- "As they go into Stinger here... look, the back plate comes off! That's what Kevin Scott said he'd do - knock the back plate off, and George Francis now knows that the very innards of Chaos 2 are vulnerable and exposed. They went into the CPZ, which wasn't good control, and also, they've left themselves now vulnerable to attack."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 came back with a flip, and rolled Stinger into the arena wall. Stinger drove away, then turned to attack Chaos 2. When Chaos 2 tried to get the flipper in, Stinger span away, hitting Chaos 2 with the mace. Chaos 2 tried getting under again, but Stinger span again, so Chaos 2 merely pushed past it. Chaos 2 tried to get under again, but before it could flip, the spinning Stinger hit Chaos 2's side, knocking itself off the flipper.
- "Surely not another major surprise here. Are both the favourites, the seeds, to crash out? Chaos 2 has a lot of work to do, because if this goes to the Judges, they will mark on damage, style, control and aggression, and Stinger; very aggressive, have caused the damage. Chaos 2 needs to get under, and have a couple of flips."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 forces Stinger into the grip of Dead Metal
Chaos 2 turned around for another attack, receiving two hits from the mace as Stinger whirled around on the spot. Stinger tried swinging the mace as Chaos 2 tried to get in a good position to flip, but Chaos 2 dodged the blows, then got under a wheel and flicked Stinger up. Stinger span again, hitting Chaos 2, so Chaos 2 waiting until it stopped spinning to chase after it. Chaos 2 rammed Stinger to the arena wall, but Stinger turned off the flipper as Chaos 2 fired the flipper, causing it to miss. Chaos 2 then flipped Stinger into Dead Metal's clutches. Chaos 2 lifted Dead Metal up as it grabbed Stinger, which actually allowed Stinger to slip out of the House Robot's clutches. Chaos 2 gave Dead Metal another flick, as Stinger retreated.
- "This is a good drive, here, by Chaos 2 - digging in deep!"
- — Jonathan Pearce as Chaos 2 finishes strong
In the last 10 seconds, Chaos 2 got under Stinger, but only flipped the mace up. Stinger continued spinning, so Chaos 2 kept its distance until "Cease" was called. Both robots were mobile at the end of the battle and the decision went to the judges. They decided that the two robots were equal on style, damage and aggression but Chaos 2 was ahead on control and was therefore awarded the victory.
- George Francis: "Close! Don't get much closer than that!"
- Craig Charles: "I say, in the two wars you've had, you've never had a Judges' decision before, that's how, sort of awesome your robot has been! But that one went down to the wire, didn't it?"
- George Francis: "We met our match there, yeah!"
- — Post-battle interview
In the Grand Final, Chaos 2 fought the nineteenth seed Pussycat.
- "Now that's a very good robot! He, in fact, did the most damage to my robot that I'd ever taken in any one fight!"
- — George Francis on the Ultimate Warrior - Chaos 2 DVD
Chaos 2 throws Pussycat over
Chaos 2 charged after Pussycat, which moved away, before turning and scratching Chaos 2 with the blade as Chaos 2 missed a flip. Chaos 2 backed off for another charge, and was able to get under Pussycat and flip it up twice in quick succession and flip it onto its side.
- "Aggressive work, here, from Chaos 2 - learning its lesson from a nervy battle against Stinger."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Pussycat sends a strip from the back of Chaos 2 flying
Pussycat rolled back onto its front, and Chaos 2 narrowly missed with another flip. Both robots spun around, locked side by side, until Chaos 2 managed to flip Pussycat over, and followed that up with two more flips. After a third flip, Chaos 2 temporarily became wedged in on the floor flipper. Pussycat managed to sneak in behind Chaos 2 and ripped a strip off of the back panel. Pussycat drove up the front of Chaos 2, which now had a noticeably bent flipper blade. Pussycat continued to ram and nag Chaos 2, but its blade had stopped. It then fell onto its side, and because its blade was no longer working, Pussycat took a long time to self-right.
- "Both of them limping - war-weary. Veterans of battle, after battle, after battle scar."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 holds Pussycat against the wall
Chaos 2 finished strongly, as it attempted, but failed to flip Pussycat out of the arena, before forcing Pussycat into Shunt's CPZ. Pussycat escaped and both robots survived to the end of the battle. The judges decided that Chaos 2 had won on all four criteria and had retained the Robot Wars UK Championship, making it the first and only robot to complete a title defence in the UK series.
- "When we finally beat Pussycat, I was incredibly relieved, overjoyed, ecstatic almost, about having won it a second time!"
- — George Francis on the Ultimate Warrior - Chaos 2 DVD
As well as the main series, Chaos 2 also competed in the Northern Annihilator, alongside Suicidal Tendencies 2, Killerhurtz, Spikasaurus, Stinger and Dominator 2.
- "Top seeds for the main competition, here it'll create "chaos too"!"
- — A pun from Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 flips Killerhurtz and Spikasaurus
Chaos 2 flips Killerhurtz
In the first round, all six robots drove towards the top left side of the arena. Dominator 2 used its axe to clamp down on Chaos 2, which had reversed onto it, but was flipped over by Suicidal Tendencies, which overturned itself in the process. Chaos 2 missed a flip on Suicidal Tendencies, who in turn pushed back Stinger and Spikasaurus. Chaos 2 charged the length of the arena and slammed into Suicidal Tendencies' side, but again failed to flip it. Killerhurtz used its axe to penetrate Spikasaurus whilst Dominator 2 did the same to Chaos 2, axing through the top armour. Chaos 2 broke free as Stinger came in for an attack, before trying to flip Killerhurtz and Spikasaurus together, but only managing to separate them. Chaos 2 tried another flip and managed to lift Spikasaurus, only to be buffeted by Stinger. As Stinger got itself caught in Chaos 2's flipper, Killerhurtz and Spikasaurus, still caught together, spun around each other. However, one of these spin-attacks caused Killerhurtz to drive up Dominator 2's bi-wedge, overturning itself and releasing its grip from Spikasaurus. Killerhurtz tried to self-right, but intervention from Dominator 2, who snagged its axe head with its own weapon, and then Spikasaurus ramming into it, meant it was only able to right on the second attempt, with Spikasaurus providing some assistance as Chaos 2 flipped Suicidal Tendencies over.
- "Axe to axe, metal to metal, bash and crash! Smash! What is happening out there? The hopes and dreams about to be scuppered of one in the annihilator!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Dominator 2 axes Chaos 2's flipper
Chaos 2 pressures Killerhurtz in the CPZ as it struggles to self-right
Chaos 2 flipped Stinger away, before flipping up Killerhurtz, but not getting it over. It tried carrying Killerhurtz to the arena wall, but dropped its target and got its flipper stuck on the wall, allowing Dominator 2 to axe it. However, the Cambridgeshire based machine accidentally freed Chaos 2. It managed to land a blow on the champion's flipper, only to be flipped aside.
- "The object, boys, is to destroy each other! I wonder if Dominator 2 will rue that little bit of friendship"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Killerhurtz is almost thrown out of the arena
Dominator 2 removes the back panel of Chaos 2 as Killerhurtz punctures the flipper
Chaos 2 turned on Killerhurtz again, managing to flip it over. Killerhurtz tried to right itself, but the first attempt failed and it was too close to the arena wall to manage a second attempt. Chaos 2 pushed Killerhurtz into an unoccupied CPZ and tried to flip it out of the arena, but its flipper appeared to have lost too much power to achieve this. Eventually, Killerhurtz was able to right itself with some help from Chaos 2, but was still stuck in the CPZ and under pressure from the double British champion. The remaining four robots were battling near the other side of the arena. As Chaos 2 and Killerhurtz left the CPZ, Dominator 2 rushed out to attack them, reaching Chaos 2 first, which in turn allowed Killerhurtz to drive at Chaos 2 and axe its flipper twice. Dominator 2 landed an axe blow on Killerhurtz before turning on Chaos 2. Dominator 2 eventually broke away to attack the other three robots, who were still fighting their own battle, but Killerhurtz would not let go.
- "And suddenly it's the Chaos, top seed, reigning UK champions, who are up against it!"
- — Jonathan Pearce as the tables turn
Killerhurtz and Dominator 2 axe Chaos 2
Shunt bulldozes the immobile Chaos 2
By now, both Sgt. Bash and Shunt had gotten involved, with the latter axing Killerhurtz. As Dominator 2 axed Spikasaurus, Killerhurtz and Chaos 2 were pushed into the CPZ where the other robots were, causing Dominator 2 to attack Chaos 2 again, landing numerous blows on its rear perspex armour and eventually tearing it off, whilst Killerhurtz wrenched the champion's flipper open trying to free its axe. It eventually succeeded and rammed underneath Chaos 2, whilst Dominator 2 turned on Suicidal Tendencies. Killerhurtz shattered the perspex from Chaos 2 still stuck on its axe. Shunt axed Killerhurtz before doing the same to Chaos 2, making a hole right through its flipper. Stinger landed a few blows on the rear of Chaos 2 with its mace, before doing the same to Shunt as the house robot pushed the UK champion aside. By the end of the round, Killerhurtz had run into the arena wall whilst Dominator 2 clutched hold of Stinger, but Chaos 2 was fully immobilised and eliminated as a result.
- "Well, that was an Annihilator round and we got annihilated...we are vulnerable to axes and we got hit by just about every axe in the house"
- — George Francis after the first round
After winning the award in the Third Wars, Chaos 2 was nominated for the 'Best Engineered' award for the Fourth Wars, but lost out to The Steel Avenger.
Extreme 1
- "If you know anything about Robot Wars, you'll already know who we are"
- — George Francis introducing his robot to Robot Wars Extreme
Chaos 2 fought in several competitions throughout the first series of Robot Wars Extreme, competing in the All-Stars Tournament, The Second World Championship, Challenge Belt, Flipper Frenzy, and International Mayhem.
It first appeared in the All-Stars Tournament, drawn up against X-Terminator in its first round battle.
- Julia Reed: "This is the draw from hell!"
- Marlon Pritchard: "Well, we think it's a good draw, because they're the championship leaders, and we're going to take them out!"
- — Confidence from the X-Terminator team
X-Terminator pushes Chaos 2 into Shunt
Chaos 2 charged straight at X-Terminator in the opening seconds and flipped it as the latter fired its axe. X-Terminator self-righted, but Chaos 2 was ready and waiting, so X-Terminator landed on Chaos 2's flipper, and Chaos 2 flipped it again. After both robots separated, Chaos 2 charged into X-Terminator again, but missed its flip as X-Terminator instantaneously struck its flipper and back panel; the attack caused Chaos 2's flipper to stick open for the remainder of the battle. Chaos 2 hesitated as it attempted to close its flipper, but X-Terminator capitalised on its weapon malfunction by piercing holes through its flipper and back covers.
- "X-Terminator has sensed that something is wrong with the all-powerful Chaos 2"
- — Jonathan Pearce makes no attempts to hide Chaos 2's favoured status
Chaos 2 flips X-Terminator
With X-Terminator's axe head embedded in its back cover, Chaos 2 dragged X-Terminator across the arena, ramming into Shunt in the process. Chaos 2 dodged an axe blow from Shunt as both competitors broke free, its flipper finally resetting into position after another axe blow from X-Terminator. Seconds later, Chaos 2 threw X-Terminator onto its back again; this time, X-Terminator's axe was jammed, which left them unable to self-right and they were counted out by Refbot. Shunt and Matilda attacked and re-righted the defeated X-Terminator, with Chaos 2 finishing the battle by throwing X-Terminator onto Matilda's flywheel.
- "Nearly lost that one, something wrong with the exhaust power there, the flipper got stuck up."
- — George Francis after the battle
In the Quarter Finals, Chaos 2 faced Wheely Big Cheese, in a Grudge Match from its Series 3 Heat Final against the latter's predecessor.
- "It's a very good robot, so it'll be a very tough fight, but we'll do our best"
- — Ian Swann on fighting Wheely Big Cheese
Wheely Big Cheese reverses into Chaos 2
Chaos 2 flips Wheely Big Cheese into the CPZ
As it had against X-Terminator, Chaos 2 charged straight at its opponent. Wheely Big Cheese was buffeted upwards but Chaos 2 missed with its flipper. It reversed for another attack, and this time succeeded in flipping Wheely Big Cheese. Wheely Big Cheese reversed into Chaos 2, buffeting it as well, but then drove onto its opponent's flipper and was flipped over. Chaos 2 quickly reversed away before easily getting underneath Wheely Big Cheese and flipping it again. Wheely Big Cheese was unable to get underneath Chaos 2, who flipped it again, before performing the same pattern again, with Wheely Big Cheese looking extremely sluggish in response. This allowed Chaos 2 to drive under its side, adjust itself and push it towards the arena wall, but it failed to flip it out of the arena, instead flipping Wheely Big Cheese into the CPZ, where it was attacked by both Dead Metal and Shunt.
- "Think that's easy to do? The Cheese weighs 99 kilograms, just think about that. It's 1 metre 32 long, it's nearly a metre wide, it's huge"
- — Jonathan Pearce tries to put Chaos 2's power into perspective
Chaos 2 is lifted limply by Wheely Big Cheese
Chaos 2 flips Wheely Big Cheese
This assault left Chaos 2's flipper stuck on the arena wall, but Wheely Big Cheese failed to take advantage and flip it. Chaos 2 escaped, as Shunt nearly pushed Wheely Big Cheese onto its side. The flipper took a while to close, but once it did, Chaos 2 suddenly drove on top of its flipper. However, Wheely Big Cheese's weapon seemed very slow to respond, which allowed Chaos 2 to drive off before it could open all the way up. The two drove at each other's sides, but each missed a light flip. Later, Wheely Big Cheese backed into Chaos 2, but drove onto its flipper again, and Chaos 2 flipped it. Wheely Big Cheese quickly escaped, now moving faster than earlier, but as it rammed Chaos 2 from the side, it was unable to flip due to its flipper not being closed properly. Chaos 2 was able to flip Wheely Big Cheese over again, although it appeared to have lost some of its flipper power, and it pushed Wheely Big Cheese into Shunt. A combination of the two robot's lifting weapons, plus Shunt's axe, knocked the Cheese onto its side, but it recovered and drove away just as Cease was called.
- "Competitive, but I thought they were both a little nervy"
- — Jonathan Pearce
A unanimous judges' decision gave Chaos 2 the victory. In the Semi-Finals, Chaos 2 was drawn up against Tornado, in a rematch of their Series 4 Semi-Final encounter.
- "...This could be a whirlwind victory for them if Chaos 2 get too close to the 15 kilo spinning disc on Tornado. On paper, it should still be Chaos 2, I'm not too sure."
- — Jonathan Pearce before the fight
Tornado slips under Chaos 2
The battle started quickly, and Chaos 2 immediately tried to flip Tornado, but missed. The resulting flip not only overturned itself, but also caused its flipper to lock, as it had done against X-Terminator. Tornado quickly took advantage and pushed into the nearest arena wall. The slams eventually knocked Chaos 2 back onto its wheels, but Shunt was quick to exit his CPZ and use his axe on Chaos 2. Tornado got to Chaos 2's side and pushed it around the arena, into another CPZ. Chaos 2's flipper eventually reset, but it missed another flip and jammed open again. Forced to retreat, Tornado caught up with it and pushed the champion onto its side, before pushing it into the angle grinders.
- "This could be a huge upset!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 flips Tornado onto the arena wall
Finally, Chaos 2 was able to launch an attack, flipping Tornado over, but this had no effect on the invertible Tornado, and Tornado pushed Chaos 2 into Dead Metal's CPZ. Chaos 2 tried to flip Dead Metal away from it, and was able to hold him off the ground to prevent him from using his saw, but Tornado blocked its only escape path. Eventually, however, Dead Metal fell off of Chaos 2, and managed to use his saw on it before the champion escaped. Chaos 2, its flipper still stuck open, chased after Tornado, but Tornado pushed it into another CPZ. Tornado ended up following into the CPZ as well, and despite being the aggressor, Dead Metal attempted to grab Tornado rather than Chaos 2. Chaos 2 then used its flipper, managing to catch both machines, the result of which left Tornado stuck on the arena wall.
- "Well, this is interesting, because the whole tide could have turned!"
- — Jonathan Pearce as Tornado is stuck on the wall
Tornado shoves Chaos 2
Tornado shreds the flipper of Chaos 2 as battle ends
Chaos 2 tried to flip Tornado out of the arena, but missed, and Dead Metal grabbed hold of it, cutting into its bodywork whilst Shunt axed the beached Tornado. Eventually, Refbot managed to free Tornado from the wall (much to the displeasure of the crowd) and it escaped. Chaos 2 managed to flip it again, but its flipper seemed to be weakening, and Tornado launched another attack, knocking Chaos 2 onto its side, and Tornado pushed underneath it. The two finished the battle with a head-on collision, with Tornado's drum causing a few sparks to fly. The judges were called to make a decision, and they gave the victory to Tornado. This eliminated Chaos 2 from the All-Stars Tournament.
- "They've beaten us before, so it's revenge for us"
- — Andrew Marchant, after the battle
As one of the four Semi-Finalists of the All-Stars Tournament, Chaos 2 represented the United Kingdom once again in the Second World Championship, which was also broadcast as part of the first season of Robot Wars: Extreme Warriors.
- "It's dominated the British roboteering scene."
- — Jonathan Pearce on Chaos 2, reviewing the line up for the group battle
In its first-round battle, also broadcast during German Robot Wars, it faced Italian robot Mastiff, German entry Ansgar and US Series competitor Manta.
- "We haven't seen any of them running yet, but Manta looks quite dangerous. ... Very low to the ground and a nice big spinning weapon on the front. Looks nasty!"
- — George Francis on his opposition
Chaos 2 flips Mastiff
At the start, Chaos 2 targeted Mastiff, getting its flipper under the Italian robot and flipping it over onto its front. Chaos 2 came in for another flip, but Mastiff self-righted away from the UK champion. Whilst Ansgar and Manta fought on the other side of the arena, Chaos 2 got under the side of Mastiff and flipped it again, with Mastiff doing a somersault before landing on its wheels. Chaos 2 drove past Mastiff for another charge, and Mastiff turned into the pit release button, opening it. It tried to reverse away, but span on the spot and bumped into the wall. As it tried to get away, Chaos 2 came up behind it, got the flipper blade under it. Mastiff appeared to have broken down, so Chaos 2 was free to try and push it into the pit. However, its first charge was not lined up properly, so it flipped Mastiff onto its back and lined up for another push. After reversing for a charge, Chaos 2 rammed into Mastiff and tried to flip it into the pit, but in doing so it accidentally pushed Mastiff away and drove in itself.
- "Oh, what a major surprise! One of the favourites for the world championships, they're out!"
- — Jonathan Pearce as Chaos 2 pits itself
Chaos 2 takes an early exit
Chaos 2 was soon joined in the pit by Mastiff, which was pushed in by Manta, the American robot going through to the next round after attacking and immobilising Ansgar. Needless to say, Chaos 2 was eliminated early from the Second World Championship.
- "I was trying to show off, I was trying to tip the other one into the pits and missed it!"
- — George Francis admits his mistake
Chaos 2 also fought Tornado in the Challenge Belt, the second encounter between the two in the same series.
- "This is a grudge match, this is a Challenge Belt challenge...it's all in one"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 launches Shunt
Tornado got off to the faster start, getting around Chaos 2's side and pushing it straight into Dead Metal's CPZ, just as it had in the All-Stars competition. It escaped as Dead Metal seemed to simply be spinning on the spot, and drove at Tornado, briefly getting underneath but failing to fire the flipper. After a bit of dodging, Tornado hit Chaos 2 hard on its right side, pushing it straight into Shunt's CPZ. Almost immediately, Chaos 2 flipped Shunt away, nearly throwing him out of the arena, before pursuing Tornado again.
- "You're nagging me! Get out of my face, man!"
- — Jonathan Pearce, speaking on Chaos 2's behalf
Chaos 2 flips Tornado
Tornado shunts Chaos 2
After being pushed into the far arena wall, Chaos 2 backed away. Tornado followed, but drove onto Chaos 2's flipper, and was flipped over. This had no effect on Tornado, as it was invertible, so it simply pushed Chaos 2 back, only to be flipped again. After a little dodging, it attempted to get around Chaos 2's side and eventually found its target, pushing the double-champion straight into Dead Metal's clutches. The house robot cut into Chaos 2 with his saw, and Chaos 2 tried desperately to flip Dead Metal away, but the house robot persisted in its attacks. Dead Metal eventually backed away, and Shunt landed an axe blow, which did little damage. However, despite being given some room to escape, Chaos 2's right wheel appeared to have locked up and it was unable to escape the CPZ. Shunt eventually tried to attack it again, and in the commotion, Chaos 2 managed to flip the house robot onto his side. Still unable to move freely, Chaos 2 could only flip Shunt again as he struggled to right himself.
- "This is all very splendid for George Francis, but I don't think he's point-scoring here"
- — Jonathan Pearce on Chaos 2's attacks on Shunt
Chaos 2 overturns Shunt
Chaos 2 is counted out
Eventually, Dead Metal entered the CPZ and grabbed Chaos 2 from behind. He cut into Chaos 2's side with his saw, until Tornado suddenly slammed into its opponent, then the house robot. Dead Metal was able to force Chaos 2 towards the floor flipper and despite firing flipper, the champion's damaged drive was evident, and Refbot counted it out.
- "A flip or two, but flipping heck! Chaos 2 has been beaten again! That is sensational! Well, the king is dead, "Long live the king" perhaps?"
- — Jonathan Pearce as Chaos 2 is counted out
Immediately afterwards, Dead Metal placed Chaos 2 on the floor flipper. The UK champion landed on its side, but as it landed, and the battle was over. Chaos 2 had failed its challenge for the Belt.
- George Francis: "But did you see the way I fought back even when one wheel got stuck?"
- Craig Charles: "You were like a wounded animal in the corner!"
- — After the battle
Chaos 2 also fought in the one-off Flipper Frenzy, alongside Thermidor 2, Bigger Brother and Wheely Big Cheese.
- "It wouldn't be a flipper competition without Chaos 2, would it?"
- — Julia Reed to George Francis
Chaos 2 and Bigger Brother flip Sgt. Bash into the air
Chaos 2 attempts to throw Sgt. Bash out of the arena
However, rather than attack their opponents, the robots decided to attack the House Robots. Chaos 2 started by slowly approaching Sgt. Bash, followed by Thermidor 2. As Sgt. Bash came out, Chaos 2 got behind him, whilst Thermidor 2 faced Sgt. Bash's front. The two competitors flipped together, but Thermidor 2 had the flipper in the wrong position, so knocked the House Robot's armour up a bit but did not flip him. Chaos 2 on the other hand had the flipper under Sgt. Bash properly, flicking him up in the air. Sgt. Bash landed on his wheels and reversed away, but as it tried to turn, Bigger Brother got under him and turned him onto his side.
- "Look at this, Thermidor, straight in, up goes the flipper, Bash flies! Chaos 2 wanted some of the action, and Bigger Brother too for that matter, and there goes Bash, toppled by Bigger Brother! Already we can see the power of these pneumatic flippers."
- — Jonathan Pearce, reviewing the replay
Matilda throws Chaos 2 back with her flywheel
Chaos 2 on its side, after the joint attack from Matilda and Thermidor 2
With Sgt. Bash taken out, Chaos 2 opened the pit. After a little scuffle with Thermidor 2, Chaos 2 attacked Sgt. Bash again, getting under the claw and flipping him towards the wall. Bigger Brother and Chaos 2 got their flippers under Sgt. Bash, and flipped him together. Chaos 2 flipped Sgt. Bash against the wall, leaving it leaning right-side up against the wall. Thermidor 2 flipped Sgt. Bash, causing it to fall back, but its back panel was left hanging off on impact. Before the House Robot could escape, Chaos 2 got behind him, knocking the back panel back in place, before flipping him over, leaving him leaning by his flamethrower against the wall. In an attempt to get Sgt. Bash out of the arena, Chaos 2 flipped him again, but could only lift him a little before Matilda, who had taken out Wheely Big Cheese, came charging in, ramming Chaos 2 aside. Matilda blocked the competitors from attacking Sgt. Bash, and Refbot pushed the three competitors back. Chaos 2 tried to flip Refbot, but its flipper was not under properly, so it merely flicked him up a little. The flip caused George Francis' machine to fall onto its back, and it struggled to self-right. This allowed Matilda to reverse into it with the flywheel, throwing it onto its side as Thermidor 2 tried to intervene with its flipper.
- "Thermidor, the Thermidor team look at this...with a little flick, not on Matilda, but on Chaos 2!"
- — Jonathan Pearce perceives Thermidor 2's intervention as an attack on Chaos 2
With Chaos 2 stranded against the wall, it ultimately lost the Flipper Frenzy to Thermidor 2, with both Bigger Brother and Wheely Big Cheese having also become immobilised.
- Craig Charles: "George, it was supposed to be a test of who had the mightiest flipper in Robot Wars, and you all just ganged up on the House Robots!"
- George Francis: "Well, you put that many flippers in the ring at once, what do you expect, we want to be the first to get a House Robot over the fence. Didn't quite make it."
- — Craig Charles discovers the plot
Chaos 2 also fought in a one-off International Mayhem battle, where it fought Belgian robot Philipper and Dutch competitor Alien Destructor; both of the European entries planned to team up against the double UK champions.
- "One against Chaos, is impossible."
- — Frank Laan justifies the teaming-up for the International Mayhem
Chaos 2 flips Philipper into the air
In this battle, George Francis competed without Ian and Richard Swann, and the robot was showing damage from previous battles. Chaos 2 and Philipper charged at each other at the start, and Philipper got its lifter under Chaos 2, pushing it back. However, Chaos 2 turned to get its flipper under Philipper, and flipped the Belgian representative. Philipper bounced onto its wheels, but Chaos 2 kept in close, trying to get under the Belgian robot. After backing away for another attack, Chaos 2 drove at Philipper's front, but Philipper got its flipper under Chaos 2's side, so Chaos 2 used its flipper to get off. Chaos 2 tried to get under Philipper's side, but failed to do so as Philipper was turning against it, so Chaos 2 missed its flip. Philipper got its lifter under Chaos 2 again, but Chaos 2 reversed away in time, before charging at Philipper and flipping it again, sending it rolling onto its wheels.
- "Chaos 2, great frontal assault, look at that for power! And the silver fish goes swimming in the big pool of Robot Wars Extreme, against the big fish, Chaos 2, a shark amongst robots."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 tosses Philipper onto Alien Destructor
As Chaos 2 pushed Philipper towards the arena wall, flicking it up with the flipper as it did, Alien Destructor finally entered the battle and shoved Chaos 2 away, ramming it into the wall and allowing Philipper to escape. However, Chaos 2 quickly caught Philipper and flipped it on top of Alien Destructor. Chaos 2 then flipped Alien Destructor, righting Philipper in the process. Dead Metal came out of his CPZ and seized Alien Destructor and pushed it onto the flames. Chaos 2 flipped Alien Destructor up, still in Dead Metal's grip and on the flames.
- "Maybe Dead Metal is saying 'hang on, two against one, I'll even up the score', but George Francis and Chaos 2 I don't think will need any help."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Philipper pushed Chaos 2 back onto the flames, but Chaos 2, despite visibly losing power to its flipper, tossed Philipper onto its back. The weaker flip meant that Philipper did not tumble back onto its wheels, and was immobilised. Alien Destructor, having escaped Dead Metal, rammed into Chaos 2. After crashing into the side wall, Alien Destructor rammed Philipper, trying desperately to save its Belgian partner from being counted out by Refbot. This was futile, and Refbot began to count Philipper out. Philipper tried in vain to self-right, but its lifter was not powerful enough to do so before Refbot's counter hit ten. Dead Metal grabbed Philipper and cut into it, whilst Alien Destructor sped around, trying to find a good place to attack Chaos 2. Time ran out, and a judges' decision ruled easily in favour of Chaos 2.
- Craig Charles: "Are they catching up with us?"
- George Francis: "Definitely, yeah"
- Craig Charles: "Oh God, it's like the World Cup, we'll be losing everything, I can tell!"
- — Craig Charles and George Francis discuss the competitiveness of the international robots
Series 5
- "Reigning champions, ranked number 1, Chaos 2 returns to the arena tonight, in their quest to become champions for the third time in a row! A phenomenal flipper, that can toss over 100 kilograms out of the arena, and as we know, that's George Francis' party trick"
- — Philippa Forrester at the start of the Heat
As the defending champions for the second successive series, Chaos 2 began its Fifth Wars campaign by fighting newcomer Storm Force in the first round.
Chaos 2 flips Storm Force
Storm Force initially tried to keep away from Chaos 2, but when the reigning champion closed in, it fired the flipper. However, it had fired too soon, since Chaos 2 was not on the flipper, so it merely flipped thin air. Chaos 2 had its flipper under its opponent, and hurled Storm Force onto its back with one flip.
- "Is Chaos 2, the reigning champion, unbeatable? Storm Force, the first to test the powerful flipper - even more powerful they tell us these days - of Chaos 2, and there we can see the champions are back, and mindful of the business it had!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Smoke pours out from Storm Force
Storm Force's barrel shape allowed it to roll back onto its wheels. Chaos 2 quickly got under Storm Force's side and threw it through the air once more, causing it to bounce heavily on its wheels, before rolling it once more. The two-pronged attack resulted in something exploding in side Storm Force, and it began to emit smoke.
- "In trouble internally. Chaos 2 already has this eliminator in its grasp."
- — Jonathan Pearce as Storm Force begins to smoke
Matilda catches Chaos 2 with her flywheel
Chaos 2 lined up another attack, getting underneath the side of Storm Force, but didn't flip it. This was only temporary respite, however, as Chaos 2 came in and thrust Storm Force over several times, before tumbling it into Matilda's CPZ. However, just as the House Robot closed in with its flywheel, Chaos 2 flipped Storm Force up and out of the way, taking a direct hit from the flywheel instead, causing the first seed to beat a hasty retreat.
- "And I just wonder...OH YES! Whether Matilda could cause some damage to Chaos 2, because George Francis, you were lingering too long in there. Didn't reverse away from peril and you got yourself stung!"
- — Jonathan Pearce as Chaos 2 takes a hit from Matilda
Although Storm Force was able to escape Matilda's CPZ, its drive motors burnt out and it was unable to move, despite its weapons still working to good capabilities. Chaos 2 was able to flip Storm Force broadside until it landed on the pit, which Chaos 2 then activated, leaving Storm Force to sink into oblivion.
In the second round, Chaos 2 faced fellow series veteran The Steel Avenger.
- "Hit 'em and flip 'em as usual!"
- — Ian Swann's tactics
Chaos 2 hurling The Steel Avenger
The Steel Avenger started by dodging and keeping away from Chaos 2, before turning to fight. Chaos 2 got its flipper under The Steel Avenger's front, and as The Steel Avenger landed an axe blow, Chaos 2 threw it over with the flipper. As The Steel Avenger tried to self-right, Chaos 2 got under the side and tossed it across the floor again. The Steel Avenger managed to right itself, and The Steel Avenger charged at Chaos 2. Chaos 2 dodged its opponent's first charge, but The Steel Avenger tried again, driving at Chaos 2. However, it missed its axe blow, and Chaos 2 flipped it over again. The Steel Avenger failed to self-right as Chaos 2 held it in place with its open flipper, before giving The Steel Avenger another flip.
- "Another buffeting and a bashing from Chaos 2. Brilliantly controlled as ever by George Francis."
- — Jonathan Pearce as Chaos 2 dominates proceedings
Chaos 2 and The Steel Avenger come together
The Steel Avenger fired its srimech arms as it was flying through the air, causing it to become stuck when it landed on its top. This allowed Chaos 2 to get in and flip it, knocking it onto its wheels. The Steel Avenger charged at Chaos 2 again, but Chaos 2 dodged as it had done before, then got under The Steel Avenger again and flipped it. The Steel Avenger self-righted quickly, then tried to dodge Chaos 2. Chaos 2 did manage to get its flipper under The Steel Avenger's back, but only succeeded in flicking it up a little.
The Steel Avenger axes Chaos 2
The Steel Avenger fled, closely followed by its opponent, before turning to attack Chaos 2. It landed an axe blow on the flipper, before being flipped over again. It self-righted straight away, but Chaos 2 was waiting, and The Steel Avenger self-righted straight onto the flipper, and was flipped again, this time landing on its wheels. Once again, it kept away from Chaos 2 for a short time, before turning to attack, but Chaos 2 flipped it before it could fire the axe. This time, The Steel Avenger used its axe to self-right.
- "That 2cm ground clearance is the Achilles heel... Chaos 2 can get in underneath, and if it can get that flipper underneath The Steel Avenger again, that close to the arena side wall, the Avenger could be out!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 flips The Steel Avenger out
Chaos 2 and The Steel Avenger's battle moved into an unoccupied CPZ. The Steel Avenger charged against Chaos 2, which flicked it up and onto its side. The Steel Avenger self-righted, but landed straight back on Chaos 2's flipper. Chaos 2 then charged into the side wall and flicked The Steel Avenger onto the corner. The Steel Avenger teetered, and then fell out of the arena, landing on one of the studio lights.
- Craig Charles: "If you win the UK championship 3 times, I think we have to give you something to keep forever, don't we or something?"
- Ian Swann: "Philippa please!"
- — After the battle
Team Chaos with the studio light
After the battle, George Francis received a broken studio light with a note of complaint from the producers, as a joke in reference to Chaos 2 throwing The Steel Avenger onto the light.
- "Presented to George Francis and Chaos 2 in memory of all the lights you've busted, and just to say, do it again, and you die."
- — The message on the light, read by George Francis
Chaos 2 advanced to the Heat Final, where it faced S.M.I.D.S.Y., the 24th seed.
- "...look at the might and power of Chaos 2! Can anything stop this? S.M.I.D.S.Y., start a-shaking and a-quaking!"
- — Johnathan Pearce, whilst reviewing Chaos 2's run to the Heat Final
Chaos 2 throws S.M.I.D.S.Y. straight away
Both robots charged straight at each other, and Chaos 2 flipped S.M.I.D.S.Y., tossing it up the arena. The invertible S.M.I.D.S.Y. charged straight back after being flipped, but drove onto the flipper, allowing Chaos 2 to easily flip it again. S.M.I.D.S.Y. then drove up the front of Chaos 2, and although S.M.I.D.S.Y. was positioned favourably for a flip, Chaos 2 decided against it. Instead, after a couple of failed attempts to push its opponent, Chaos 2 rammed its opponent towards the arena wall, and with one powerful flip, hurled S.M.I.D.S.Y. up against the wall, throwing itself into the air as it did so. Chaos 2 positioned itself for a second Out of the Arena flip, but did not get the flipper under S.M.I.D.S.Y. properly because it was at the wrong angle, so it threw itself over instead.
- "They've flipped themselves over! Are we going to see an almighty shock here?"
- — Jonathan Pearce as Chaos 2 puts itself into danger
Both robots immobilised at the same time. Notice Chaos 2's damaged flipper panel, which prevented it from righting properly
Chaos 2 attempted to right itself three times, but it couldn't self-right because S.M.I.D.S.Y. had damaged the flipper. Chaos 2 only vented gas, rocking back and forth without landing on its wheels. Both robots were unable to move, and cease was called early.
- "We could be seeing, here, one of the greater shocks in Robot Wars history! Unless S.M.I.D.S.Y. have been immobilised... I think George Francis has been immobilised... What happens now? The judges will have to decide!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
According to Andy Pugh of the S.M.I.D.S.Y. team, S.M.I.D.S.Y. fell down from the wall after 30 seconds had elapsed, and proceeded to pit Chaos 2. As this had occurred after 30 seconds, however, this was ignored, and so the battle was restarted. Also, Team Chaos was permitted to repair the damage S.M.I.D.S.Y. had done to the flipper before the rematch.
- "Well, what a turn-up! Both robots obviously immobilised at the same time - the judges have instantly called for a rematch!"
- — Craig Charles
S.M.I.D.S.Y. is pinched by Sir Killalot
A more cautious S.M.I.D.S.Y. sped around Chaos 2 rather than making frontal assaults, driving over the flipper but getting off it before Chaos 2 could flip. The third time it did this, Chaos 2 tried to flip but missed, allowing S.M.I.D.S.Y. to get beneath Chaos 2's ground clearance, but when it pushed Chaos 2 fell off, due to the position and angle of S.M.I.D.S.Y.. Chaos 2 flipped S.M.I.D.S.Y., but the invertible merely turned around and charged back at Chaos 2. Chaos 2 flipped S.M.I.D.S.Y. over, then flipped into Sir Killalot, who sliced S.M.I.D.S.Y. with its large pincer. S.M.I.D.S.Y. appeared to stop moving, and Chaos 2 positioned it against the side wall once again.
- "Killalot gets out of the way, wisely, with Chaos 2 in this sort of mood! Is it inevitable? A retreat, the onslaught, and there they go! Chaos 2 march on!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 finally throws S.M.I.D.S.Y. out of the arena
S.M.I.D.S.Y. was finally hurled out of the arena and Chaos 2 was through to the Semi-Finals again.
- George Francis: "That's the emotional rollercoaster that is Robot Wars."
- Craig Charles: "You're through to the series Semi-Finals, are we going to have heart attacks all the way now?"
- George Francis: "Almost certainly, yeah!"
- — Post-battle interview
In the first round of its third consecutive Semi-Final, Chaos 2 faced Wild Thing.
- "Our first Semi-Final fight was against Wild Thing. It was terrific, it was the best fight I've ever had!"
- — George Francis on the Ultimate Warrior - Chaos 2 DVD
Chaos 2 flips Wild Thing
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 rammed Wild Thing into the side wall, knocking the pit release button off the wall as it hit the wall, and almost tossed Wild Thing out. Although it was unsuccessful, Chaos 2 flipped Wild Thing again, but threw itself onto its back in the process. It self-righted onto Wild Thing's wedge, but reversed off the wedge and flipped 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 descended off its own accord, the pit release having been torn off.
- "This is furious, fast, frenetic action in the Robot Wars Semi-Final arena! They turn, they twist, they manoeuvre."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2's first close call with the Pit
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. However, as the pair drew near to the pit, Wild Thing very nearly pitted Chaos 2 - the rear wheels actually went into the pit, but Chaos 2 pushed back.
- "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 wedges under Wild Thing near the angle grinder
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 under Chaos 2, lifted it, and pushed it towards the pit. Chaos 2 dangled over the edge, so far that the smoke bombs fired preemptively in anticipation. However, Chaos 2 did not fall in, and Wild Thing prematurely backed off, thinking Chaos 2 was about to fall in, allowing Chaos 2 to escape.
Chaos 2's second close call with the Pit
- "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 ran out, and the match went to the judges, who ruled in favour of Chaos 2.
- "Frantically wiggling the sticks! ... Will power!"
- — George Francis when asked by Craig Charles how he kept Chaos 2 out of the pit
In the second round, Chaos 2 fought against fellow flipper-wielding robot Bigger Brother.
- 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 turns Chaos 2 over
Bigger Brother had the first flip, tossing Chaos 2 onto its back. Chaos 2 tried to self-right, but Bigger Brother blocked it, and Chaos 2 fell back on its back. It successfully self-righted on the second attempt, and chased after 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 throws Bigger Brother into the air
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 Bigger Brother self-righted again. It escaped Chaos 2's flip, and drove over towards the flames.
Bigger Brother ends Chaos 2's reign
As Chaos 2 pursued it, Bigger Brother manoeuvred to the side, got under Chaos 2, and flipped it over. Chaos 2 tried to self-right, but its CO2 supply had run low, and it was unable to get back onto its wheels, despite several attempts. To ensure that Chaos 2 could not self-right, Bigger Brother reversed into the back of Chaos 2, and pinned in place. Finally, Chaos 2 gave up, and Refbot counted it out.
- "George Francis knows, his reign here as British champion is about to end. Sensational!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
The beaten Chaos 2 is backed into the pit
After Chaos 2 was counted out, Bigger Brother reversed Chaos 2 towards the pit, and pushed it in. With this, Chaos 2 was eliminated from the Fifth Wars, its reign as UK Champion finally coming to an end after an eighteen-battle winning streak in the main competition.
- 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
Series 6
- "Fighting tonight, 2 time UK champion, Chaos 2! Which, even though it was stripped of its title last year, by Razer, is still one of the feared robots in the world! I mean, going into the warzone's bad enough, without knowing there's a good chance you're going to get flipped right back out again, although that's what this lot [the audience] want to see!"
- — Craig Charles' introduction for the Heat
Despite George Francis stating that he would consider building a successor after its loss to Bigger Brother, Chaos 2 entered the Sixth Wars as the fifth seed, fighting Iron-Awe 2, Mighty Mouse and newcomers Destructosaur in its first-round battle.
- "I don't like big axes, so Iron-Awe's a worry...the other one has a big hydraulic cutter at the front, which would make a nasty mess of the flipper if it gets hold of it"
- — George Francis expresses concerns about Chaos 2's first-round opponents
Chaos 2 and Destructosaur are both overturned
At the start of the battle, it drove forwards, then turned around, aiming at Destructosaur. As Destructosaur drove into the arena centre, Chaos 2 drove around it and got its flipper under it, whilst Iron-Awe 2 got its flipper under Destructosaur's other side. Chaos 2 flipped the newcomer over, but turned itself over in doing so. Chaos 2 was able to self-right straight away, but Destructosaur had been axed by Iron-Awe 2 whilst it was being flipped, preventing it from rolling onto its wheels.
- "They can self-right, and in splendid fashion!"
- — Jonathan Pearce as Chaos 2 self-rights
Chaos 2 flips Iron-Awe 2 out of the arena
As Chaos 2 drove up the arena, Iron-Awe 2 started spinning on an CO2 vent, so Chaos 2 charged at it, pushed it to the arena side wall and flipped it out.
- "And meanwhile, Iron-Awe have gone! Look at that for an attack by Chaos 2 - and yet another robot is flipped out of the arena completely by George Francis and the flip-ability factor of Chaos 2! So many robots are modelled on his design. Chaos 2; sleek, mean and a very damaging machine!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
A victorious Chaos 2 pursues Mighty Mouse
Chaos 2 then chased Mighty Mouse around the arena, with both nudging Destructosaur - which was still stuck on its back. Chaos 2 continued to pursue Mighty Mouse, causing it to roll over at one stage after bumping into it. Mighty Mouse did a good job dodging the former champion, though at one point it briefly beached itself on Chaos 2's flipper, which was no longer working.
- "Boo, Chaos 2 - boo! Don't you touch our little mouse!"
- — Jonathan Pearce as Mighty Mouse is pursued by the seed
Meanwhile, Destructosaur was counted out by Refbot and tossed by the Floor Flipper, allowing Chaos 2 to progress along with Mighty Mouse. In the second round, Chaos 2 faced a Series 5 Heat Finalist, Crushtacean.
- "Quietly confident George will do the same, but it does run both ways up, so that could be a problem for us."
- — Ian Swann, asked by Philippa on how he felt about fighting Crushtacean
Chaos 2 and Crushtacean balance on their sides
Chaos 2, partway through freeing itself from the angle grinder
Chaos 2 started by charging straight at Crushtacean, which went straight over the flipper. After jostling for position, both machines locked head on with each other. Chaos 2 then used its flipper, but because of the size of Chaos 2 and the width of Crushtacean's claws, the attack from George Francis' machine left both machines balanced on their sides. Crushtacean landed on its tyres first, and was able to drive Chaos 2 back towards the arena wall. Chaos 2 then flip Crushtacean away, but only lifted the crab a little, and though it did get away from its opponent's claws, it overbalanced, leaning forwards and bounding back, landing on an angle grinder which it was propped up against.
- "Ooh, Chaos is on its side! This really would be a turn-up for the books!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 tried to get down from the angle grinder with a flip, but was still stuck on its side, with the flipper sticking out. After a pause, it closed the flipper and got itself down with another flip. Chaos 2 got under Crushtacean's front again, but it could only flick its opponent up a little. It got under the front again, but when it tried to flip, Crushtacean's claws prevented the flipper lifting it up, causing Chaos 2 to overbalance forwards.
- "What a great fight this is! Digging down on the front spikes of Chaos 2 to gain purchase on the arena floor."
- — Jonathan Pearce as the two machines lock horns again
The two machines lock horns again
Crushtacean drives into the pit
Crushtacean rammed Chaos 2 against an angle grinder, but Chaos 2 pushed back and was was able to turn Crushtacean over with its next attack, and pushed it towards the pit button. Crushtacean turned away, before driving at Chaos 2 again, but Chaos 2 flicked it away, then flipped it over into Sir Killalot's CPZ. Crushtacean quickly escaped, and activated the Pit Release bumper. As the pit opened, Chaos 2 got under Crushtacean, but Crushtacean escaped. As it moved away, it appeared to have lost control, swerving and spinning around, before reversing itself down into the pit, leaving Chaos 2 as the winner.
- "George was saying how much he hated the pit, 'cause he's driven into it himself, and now it was my turn!"
- — Ian Visser, remembering Chaos 2's losses in the first two World Championship
The Heat Final saw Chaos 2 fighting against newcomers Dantomkia.
- Philippa Forrester: "What's the worst thing that can happen apart from losing?"
- Richard Swann: "Losing and getting smashed up."
- — Richard Swann before the Heat Final
Chaos 2 launches Dantomkia into the air
Both machines struggle to self-right
Both machines drove towards each other, but then stopped, trying to get in the best position to flip. Dantomkia charged at its opponent, but drove up onto Chaos 2's flipper, allowing it to flip Dantomkia towards the arena wall, before the two machines engaged front on. Chaos 2 arched around, arena-wall side of Dantomkia, which subsequently allowed Dantomkia to push Chaos 2 back towards an unoccupied CPZ. After its rear touched the arena wall, Chaos 2 activated its flipper, which overturned Dantomkia over onto the edge of the CPZ, while also overturning itself. As Shunt charged in, both machines attempted to self right. Chaos 2 found its efforts disrupted by the House Robot, while Dantomkia was only able to fling itself onto the arena wall until Sir Killalot came across and nudged the yellow and black machine, which allowed it to finally edge back down onto the arena floor.
- "We've got some drama in that CPZ, I can tell you - Dantomkia OK, they're first up and away!"
- — Jonathan Pearce as a frantic period of action unfolds
Dantomkia crashes into Chaos 2
Chaos 2 falls to its signature attack, and is thrown out of the arena
Meanwhile, Chaos 2's flips became increasingly limp, and the situation was made worse for George Francis' team after Shunt repositioned Chaos 2 - leaving its back against the arena wall, and therefore allowing it no space to cleanly self right anymore. Dantomkia was able to come in with a drive on Chaos 2, slamming it into the arena wall. Chaos 2 continued its attempts to self right, but was unable to, and as Shunt left the CPZ, Dantomkia was able to line up a drive, press Chaos 2 up against the arena wall, and then flick it sideways and out of the arena.
- "And they're out, over and out, Chaos 2 have gone! For the first time ever that machine has failed to reach a series semi-final."
- — Jonathan Pearce as Dantomkia secures a famous victory
This not only marked the first and only time that Chaos 2 failed to reach the Semi-Finals, and the first time Chaos 2 had fallen to its own innovation of a KO via flip out of the arena, but also its last appearance in the main UK Series.
- Craig Charles: "The robots have advanced so much, and yet you seem to have stayed still a bit."
- George Francis: "Yeah, lack of time, effort and money. Think it's time for a new one now."
- Craig Charles: "You're the first seed to go out, the 5th seed. We all thought you were coming back to reclaim your title."
- George Francis: "I was hoping for that"
- Craig Charles: "So where did it all go wrong? Tell me."
- George Francis: "Well, better robot - better robot. A new breed of robots, you see."
- — Post-battle interview
Extreme 2
- "Chaos 2, shouldn't we be up to Chaos 3, 4, 5 even by now?"
- — Philippa Forrester
Chaos 2 made a final one-off appearance in the second series of Extreme, competing in the All-Stars Tournament. The Extreme 2 All-Stars was intended to be a tournament reserved for the Semi-Finalists of Series 6, but as Wild Thing could not take part for unknown reasons, Chaos 2 took its place.
- "No improvements, how costly will that be?"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Chaos 2 flips Razer
Chaos 2 holds Razer in place for 13 Black to tear one of its wings off
Here, it fought fellow former UK champion and former rival Razer and the double flywheel-wielding 13 Black in its first-round battle. Chaos 2 started by driving around 13 Black as it crossed the Flame Pit, then kept out of the action as Razer buffeted and grabbed hold of 13 Black. It made a run on Razer and 13 Black and tried to flip both of them, before flipping Razer a full 360 degrees over the floor and closed pit. Chaos 2 slammed side-on into one of 13 Black's discs, the disc ripping through its flipper cover, before continuing to nudge both of its opponents and attempting to flip them again, albeit unsuccessfully. The former two-time champion then got underneath Razer and shoved it into 13 Black, allowing 13 Black to tear off one of Razer's self-righting wings; however, Chaos 2 could not flip Razer over as its flipper suffered a CO2 leak from a previous attack by 13 Black. After pushing and driving around Razer, Chaos 2 was left immobilised following a side-on slam from 13 Black, which jammed its right-hand wheel and knocked its drive chain loose. Razer punctured Chaos 2's rear panel and lifted it as it was counted out by Refbot, the double World Champions smoking in the process.
- "...and the Refbot counting down and counting out; a sad, looking, Chaos 2."
- — Jonathan Pearce
The heavily-damaged Chaos 2, after being immobilised by 13 Black
Mr. Psycho holds the beaten Chaos 2 in his claw
Chaos 2 was placed onto the Floor Flipper by Mr. Psycho, before having its chassis bent by repeated attacks from his hammer. Mr. Psycho picked the inverted Chaos 2 up with his claw, and carried it towards the pit, before dropping it and pushing it down. This marked Chaos 2's elimination from the Extreme 2 All-Stars Tournament, and its last appearance in Robot Wars.
- "I wonder if that's the last time we'll see Chaos 2, in that format. Maybe the end of an era here?"
- — Jonathan Pearce, as Chaos 2 is pitted
Chaos 2 is pitted by Mr. Psycho
It was retired following this loss, after George Francis considered the damage inflicted by 13 Black, Razer and Mr. Psycho to be terminal.
- "It's had it basically!"
- — George Francis
Even so, Chaos 2 was extensively repaired later on, and restored to working condition for charity events, but Chaos 2 would never compete in Robot Wars again.
Results
| CHAOS - RESULTS | ||
| Series 2 | ||
| The Second Wars - UK Championship 6th Seed, Heat Final | ||
| Heat B, Gauntlet | Completed (2nd) | Qualified |
| Heat B, Trial (Tug of War) | Victorious (1st) | Qualified |
| Heat B, Semi-Final | vs. Wheelosaurus | Won |
| Heat B, Final | vs. Mace | Lost |
Wins/Losses
- Wins: 25
- Losses: 10
NOTE: Chaos' successful Gauntlet and Trial runs are not included
Series Record
| Main Series | Chaos 2 Series Record |
|---|---|
| The First Wars | Entered with Robot the Bruce |
| The Second Wars | Heat Final as Chaos |
| The Third Wars | Grand Champion |
| The Fourth Wars | Grand Champion |
| The Fifth Wars | Semi-Finals, Round 2 |
| The Sixth Wars | Heat Final |
| The Seventh Wars | Did not enter |
| Series 8 | Did not enter |
| Series 9 | Did not enter |
| Series 10 | Did not enter |
| Robot Wars Extreme | Appearances |
| Series 1 | Entered |
| Series 2 | Entered |
Outside Robot Wars
In between its appearances on Robot Wars, Chaos 2 attended several live events such as the Debenham Robot Rumbles, notably fighting Razer, Dominator 2 and Tornado numerous times with varying degrees of success. After its final appearance in Extreme 2, Chaos 2 was retired and underwent extensive repairs to bring it back to working condition. Despite not taking part in any further series or side competitions in Robot Wars, Chaos 2 continued to attend live events after its retirement, appearing at the World of Robots event in Dublin in 2003 and at one point fighting Lightning at an event in Manningtree in 2004, which was filmed for ITV Anglia's The Way We Are.[10] Chaos 2 last appeared at a Robot Rumble in 2007 as a static display, and is still in the possession of George Francis. As of 2011, it now resides in Francis' shed.
The original Chaos took part in the Bordon 1999 charity event, notably fighting Eubank the Mouse in one battle. [11]
Appearances in Merchandise
- "One of the great things about appearing on Robot Wars, is that you can get a toy made"
- — Ian Swann
- Chaos 2/Pullback
- Chaos 2/Minibot
- Chaos 2/Robot Wars: Metal Mayhem
- Chaos 2/Robot Wars: Arenas of Destruction
- Chaos 2/Robot Wars: Advanced Destruction
- Chaos 2/Robot Wars: Extreme Destruction (GBA)
- Chaos 2/Robot Wars: Extreme Destruction (PC/Xbox)
- Robot Wars: Ultimate Warrior Collection - Chaos 2
Trivia
Chaos 2 on a Robot Wars Magazine poster from Issue 8 of the original run
- "Chaos 2 is the first robot of mine that I did the majority of the mechanical construction on. I've always done all of the electronics on my robots, this year I've done most of the mechanics and pneumatics as well. Rex made the high pressure rams, some valve adaptors, and the wheel hubs. Obviously he also supplied most of the materials, lots of advice, fixed some gear wheels, and supplied loads of coffee!"
- — George Francis on the Chaos 2 website[12]
- Chaos and Chaos 2 were both built in Rex Garrod's workshop, which is also where Robot The Bruce was built.[13]
- According to George Francis, when interviewed in Issue 3 of Robot Wars Magazine, Chaos was "named after the principle the workshop works under!".[14]
- Chaos was the only robot to be victorious in the Tug of War trial against Dead Metal.
- Chaos was the first seeded robot to appear on the televised show, and as it fell in the Heat Final, was the first to be eliminated from Series 2.
- Chaos was the first robot with a rear hinged lifting arm to attempt to self-right on the show.
- Chaos was the only robot which was given the lowest seed in a series to not fight the first seed at some point in that series. (Suicidal Tendencies, who was seeded 32 in Series 4 fought Chaos 2 in the Northern Annihilator, which was part of Series 4)
- Chaos 2 is one of eight robots to win more than twenty battles in UK Robot Wars. The others to achieve this feat are Razer, Firestorm, Tornado, Pussycat, Panic Attack, Behemoth and Hypno-Disc.
- Chaos 2 was the first robot to win the UK Championship twice, and the only one to do so in Robot Wars. Terrorhurtz, Iron-Awe 5, Big Nipper and Eruption would later emulate this feat in FRA heavyweight competitions held in between both runs of Robot Wars.
- Out of the five robots to have won the UK Championship at least twice in Robot Wars and FRA heavyweight competitions, only Chaos 2 and Eruption have won the title twice in succession.
- Chaos 2 was the only one of the four Series 3 Grand Finalists not to defeat a team who previously won the UK Championship (counting Kevin Pritchard and Evil Weevil).
- Throughout Series 3, Chaos 2's statistics board referred to its weapon as a "CO2 powered flip up", rather than a flipper.
- Chaos 2 was nominated for the 'Best Engineered' award in Series 4 after winning in Series 3, but lost to The Steel Avenger. Along with Nemesis and Mortis, Chaos 2 is one of only three robots to be nominated for the award it won the previous year, and then not win it.
- Ironically, Chaos 2 and The Big Cheese, which met in the final of their Series 3 heat, were the only losing Heat-Finalists in Series 2 to reach that stage in the following series.
- Chaos 2 was one of six robots to be made into a die-cast figurine for the Robot Wars Board Game.
- Chaos 2 was never seeded lower than 5th for the UK Championship.
- Similarly, Chaos 2 had never been placed beyond the fifth heat.
- Chaos 2 was always placed in odd-numbered heats (5th, 1st, 1st, 3rd), and was always placed in the first of the Semi-Finals.
- Chaos 2 was one of three UK champions to win its title by knockout, the others being Panic Attack and Carbide.
- Chaos 2 was the first UK robot to self-right using a rear-hinged flipper.
- In the first battle of every UK series Chaos 2 fought in, one of the losing robots in the battle it was placed in never returned after it lost. These robots were Crocodilotron (Series 3), Indefatigable (Series 4), Storm Force (Series 5) and Destructosaur (Series 6).
- Both Chaos 2's first and final battles involved a robot with a crushing weapon - the first being Crocodilotron in Series 3, and the final being Razer in the Extreme 2 All-Stars.
- Both Chaos 2's first and last losses involved battles with Razer.
- Chaos 2 was the first competitor to flip Shunt over, doing so in the Series 3 Grand Final.
- Strangely, although Chaos 2's top speed was consistently quoted as 20mph in the TV series, it was always quoted as 12mph in other media, such as the various official guides.
- In 2003, Chaos 2 was made an inaugural member of The Combat Robot Hall of Fame, in recognition of its successes in Robot Wars and for being the first competitor to throw another out of the arena.[15]
- Both times Chaos 2 won the title, the 3rd Place Play-Off didn't happen due to one robot being too damaged.
Note the difference between the ground clearances, The Steel Avenger being 2cm off the floor with Chaos 2 being a lot higher than off the ground.
- Despite the guide books and Jonathon Pierce saying Chaos 2 had 0mm or 0.2mm ground clearance, Chaos 2 was shown to have a ground clearance of at least 6 to 10cm, 3 to 5 times higher as The Steel Avenger's ground clearance of 2cm.
Honours
| Honour | ||
| Only robot to be victorious in the Tug of War against Dead Metal | ||
| Honour | ||
| First robot to flip another robot out of the arena | ||
Nominations
- Best Engineered Award - Robot Wars: The Second Wars
- Best Engineered Award - Robot Wars: The Fourth Wars
References
- ↑ FAQ section of Chaos 2's website (archived)
- ↑ Team's section of Chaos 2's website, with a small section for Chaos (archived)
- ↑ Extra Technical Info section of Chaos 2's website
- ↑ Chaos 2 website (archived)
- ↑ FAQ section of Chaos 2's website (archived)
- ↑ Series 4 section on the Chaos 2 website (archived)
- ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/20120716230734/http://www.gt-electronics.freeserve.co.uk/c2/rebuild/rebuild.htm
- ↑ Chaos 2 website on the robot's rebuild for Series 5/Extreme 1 (archived)
- ↑ http://www.teamtornado.co.uk/rwfights.htm
- ↑ Calvertfilm's 2004 Robot Diary page (archived), with a brief report on Chaos 2 fighting Lightning in Manningtree
- ↑ http://robotwars101.org/events/1999/Bordon1999/
- ↑ FAQ section of Chaos 2's website (archived)
- ↑ Team's section of Chaos 2's website, with a small section for Chaos (archived)
- ↑ Robot Wars Magazine, Issue 3, pp.6-7
- ↑ http://runamok.tech/hall_of_fame.html
External Links
Chaos 2's official website (archived)
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