- "A modification of Small Torque and All Torque from the past, has a spinning disc, is the lightest but quickest here, now that is fighting talk!"
- — Jonathan Pearce introduces the original Fighting Torque
Fighting Torque was the name given to two separate robots entered by Team Torque in Extreme Series 1.
The original pyramid-shaped Fighting Torque competed in the Mayhem but was defeated by Atomic 2. However, Atomic's withdrawal allowed Fighting Torque to later re-enter the competition, competing in the Annihilator but now doing so with the brand-new hippo-themed robot built for Series 5, retaining the name Fighting Torque for consistency but otherwise being an all-new competitor, losing in Round 1 after sustaining damage from Disc-O-Inferno.
The second machine was later seen in Series 5, under its originally intended name of Hippobotomus, taken from the robot's obvious resemblance to a hippopotamus. The robot fared no better in terms of results, losing in the first round to fifth seed Stinger.
Versions of Fighting Torque[]
Fighting Torque[]
The original Fighting Torque
The original design of Fighting Torque was a pyramid-shaped robot wearing a kilt with a spinning disc on a moving arm as its weapon. A skull decorated the top of the robot. Fighting Torque had an extremely high centre of gravity, which caused it to topple over easily. Cartoon buttocks were hidden underneath the robot's kilt.
Hippobotomus[]
Official photo of Hippobotomus
- "Robot Wars veterans, we've seen them before with Small Torque, All Torque and Fighting Torque. It's a new shape design... and a new name - Hippobotomus"
- — Jonathan Pearce introduces Fighting Torque/Hippobotomus in the Annihilator
This robot was in the shape of a yellow hippopotamus and retained the cutting disc on moving arm weaponry of the original robot but was much less hardy. It was made mostly from salvaged parts; its shell was a plastic hippo sand pit, and its wheels came off a skateboard. This robot had a 2cm ground clearance and looked quite fragile, and performed poorly, losing in the first round of the Annihilator.
Etymology[]
Hippobotomus adopts the Fighting Torque name in the Annihilator
The name Fighting Torque was a pun based on the phrase "fighting talk". This kept in line with the rest of Team Torque's pun-based names, such as All Torque and Small Torque.
The name Hippobotomus was a pun based on the hippopotamus animal which the robot resembled, integrating the term 'bot', as in robot. The word hippopotamus contains the letter A, but the robot's name replaced this with another O.
The Team[]
- Main article: Team Torque
Richie McBride and his children with Hippobotomus
Fighting Torque was entered by Team Torque, experienced Scottish roboteers who had competed since the Second Wars. Richie McBride captained the team, and was joined consistently by his son Alex McBride. In the Mayhem in Extreme, Richie McBride was also joined by Robin Iddon, who had competed with the team in Series 2 and 3, while in Series 5, Richie's daughter Ellen McBride was part of the team. Ellen McBride notably cried after her robot was defeated in the Fifth Wars, but her brother Alex encouraged her to prod the Stinger team with a cardboard mace as an act of revenge.
Qualification[]
For its opportunity to qualify for Series 5, Hippobotomus fought at the Glasgow leg of the 2001 Live Event tour. Its only known battle from the event was a head-to-head qualifier against newcomer Corkscrew, which was not permitted to use its full-body spinner. Despite the latter condition, Hippobotomus still took major damage to its sandpit armour, chunks of which were ripped off by Corkscrew's attacks. Corkscrew would go on to win the fight, but Hippobotomus received a discretionary place in the televised Fifth Wars regardless.[1]
Robot History[]
Extreme 1[]
- Julia Reed: "Alex, previously in the wars, has done a bit of conspiring with other teams in this situation. Are you gonna be ganging up with anyone?"
- Alex McBride: "No, because we're tough enough to take them all on!"
- — The pre-Mayhem interview
Fighting Torque made its debut in the eighth episode of the first series of Robot Wars Extreme, where it competed in a Mayhem battle in order to qualify for the second Annihilator It was drawn up against recent Semi-Finalist MouseTrap and Heat-Finalist Atomic 2 and was seen as an underdog going into the battle. In the pre-battle interview, Julia Reed referenced how Alex had previously planned for Small Torque, the team's previous entry, to team up with Splinter to defeat the seeded Centurion, although Alex confirmed he had no intention of doing so this time around
Fighting Torque's secret is exposed
- "Well, looking at it, Fighting Torque is a braveheart to go in there against these two, Atomic and MouseTrap"
- — Jonathan Pearce, seeing Fighting Torque as the underdog
In the battle, Fighting Torque initially held back from the action, firing its weapon whilst Atomic 2 and MouseTrap quickly engaged, although this caused its skill decoration to become dislodged. After Atomic 2 quickly flipped MouseTrap over, it turned its attention to Fighting Torque, resisting an attack from its weapon and flipping it onto its back. Fighting Torque tried to fire its weapon, which resulted in it falling onto its side, dislodging its kilt and exposing the cartoon buttocks.
- "And now the assault on Fighting Torque, which is immediately sent crumpling to the ground! We could see up underneath the kilts as well, and it was none too pleasant!"
- — Jonathan Pearce as Fighting Torque is flipped for the first time
Fighting Torque is toppled
Following this, Atomic 2 re-righted both of its opponents, with Fighting Torque being the second to recover. It was slammed into from behind by a pursuing MouseTrap, before slowly moving away towards the arena wall and lingering near the Flame Pit, leaving Atomic 2 to flip over MouseTrap again. Eventually, though, Atomic 2 left MouseTrap to be counted out and engaged with Fighting Torque once again, missing an attack with the spike, although Fighting Torque's kilt raised once again. Fighting Torque landed an attack with its saw arm, but caused no damage, before meeting Atomic 2 head on, deflecting its flipper. Another front on collision between the two saw Atomic 2 lifting up Fighting Torque twice in succession, causing its kilt to fall off, before Fighting Torque was forced into the angle grinder, nearly toppling it over. As Atomic 2 backed away, Fighting Torque was slow to respond and it was flipped over onto its side once again by the former Heat-Finalist.
- "And away he goes! Over and, I think for Fighting Torque, not the high road, but the low road to oblivion."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Fighting Torque was counted out shortly after MouseTrap was thrown by the Floor Flipper and, as Dead Metal attacked the former Semi-Finalist, Sir Killalot placed Fighting Torque on the Flipper as well. However, due to Fighting Torque being set far back on the Flipper, it was thrown upwards and landed back on its wheels. Fighting Torque quickly drove away, only for Atomic 2 to flip it over once again. Dead Metal finished the fight by pushing Fighting Torque onto the Flame Pit, confirming its loss.
- "Sprung up into the air! A bit of a highland spring there, and off and underway, with a highland fling, flung and down they come. In comes Killalot, away goes Fighting Torque! They're on their side. The kilt's about to be set on fire, I think. Oh, what a sad end, for Fighting Torque"
- — Jonathan Pearce, reviewing Fighting Torque's floor flipper throw and its demise
Following this loss, Fighting Torque was retired and converted into Hippobotomus for The Fifth Wars. However, Atomic 2 would later withdraw from the Annihilator after taking severe damage from Hypno-Disc, and as a result, Team Torque were reinstated into the Annihilator in its place. The team entered using Hippobotomus, which was renamed Fighting Torque for the duration of the event for consistency. Here, it faced former champion Panic Attack, seasoned competitors The Steel Avenger and Napalm 2 and Fourth Wars debutants Disc-O-Inferno and Spirit of Knightmare, the latter of which had also been reinstated into the Annihilator.
- Julia Reed: "What is your fighting talk, team?"
- Richie McBride: "We might be called Fighting Torque, but in the arena, we're gonna be all action."
- Julia Reed: "OK. Alex, who are you going for first?"
- Alex McBride: "Napalm, because their armour is so weak."
- — First round tactics revealed
Fighting Torque is rammed by The Steel Avenger
In the first round, Fighting Torque initially held back, but approached its opponents as they met at the left-hand side of the arena. It was rammed by The Steel Avenger and dodged an axe blow. Fighting Torque fired its weapon several times, but missed.
- "The Steel Avenger slamming in now to the Hippobotomus team, and away comes Fighting Torque, rocking and rolling. More activity and action than you see from a normal hippo."
- — A bemused Jonathan Pearce as Fighting Torque gets into the action
As the other robots targeted Napalm 2, which was suffering from mobility issues, Fighting Torque landed a small blow on Panic Attack, but otherwise stayed out of the action, only briefly joining in when Spirit of Knightmare and The Steel Avenger pushed Napalm 2 into Sir Killalot's CPZ. It then approached Panic Attack as it lifted up The Steel Avenger, firing its weapon with minimal effect. Panic Attack then got underneath Fighting Torque's side and lifted it up, just as Disc-O-Inferno came in, glancing past Fighting Torque and landing a large gash on its side.
- "Panic Attack, trying to get underneath Fighting Torque with a little bit of a lift - look at the scratches and dents and scars on the hippo!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Fighting Torque was forced towards the Flame Pit by Panic Attack, until Spirit of Knightmare got underneath it and forced the Scottish machine off Panic Attack's lifting forks. Shortly afterwards, The Steel Avenger rammed Fighting Torque again and chased it around the arena. Fighting Torque was briefly sandwiched between The Steel Avenger and Disc-O-Inferno, but escaped with no damage. Fighting Torque then engaged further with Panic Attack and Spirit of Knightmare, with its head being destroyed off-camera in the process. It was shunted towards the Flame Pit by The Steel Avenger, by which point the top panel had been knocked loose and its weapon appeared to be broken.
- "Fighting Torque looks to be still competitive, but is it a danger to others? I don't know."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Disc-O-Inferno shears away Fighting Torque's side
Fighting Torque no longer appeared to be moving freely and, whilst most of the other robots ignored it, Disc-O-Inferno pushed it away from the Flame Pit, damaging its side. It then came in for another attack, spinning both itself and Fighting Torque around and immobilizing the latter. As Disc-O-Inferno turned back around, it landed a heavy blow on the front of Fighting Torque, breaking the front panel clean off.
- "Disc-O-Inferno with a SLAM on Fighting Torque! Is Fighting Torque mobile? Oh, I don't think so now! What's happened to the hippo!? Look at this...OH! Well, it was once a sandpit. Sand to sand, dust to dust, ashes to ashes, you've had your lot."
- — Jonathan Pearce as Fighting Torque is destroyed
Fighting Torque was left alone after this, and although Napalm 2 broke down shortly afterwards and Disc-O-Inferno was immobilized by Matilda following an attack by Spirit of Knightmare, Fighting Torque was counted out by Refbot as it was deemed to be immobile first. As a result, Fighting Torque was eliminated in the first round of the Annihilator. In the subsequent post-match interview, the team lamented on the fact that they were unable to get close enough to Napalm 2 to carry out their planned strategy.
- Craig Charles: "I think you suffered at the hands of Disc-O-Inferno there, didn't you?"
- Alex McBride: "Yeah."
- Craig Charles: "Yeah, but then again, not a very solid robot, yours, is it?"
- Alex McBride: "Well, not really, a plastic hippopotamus is not gonna really hold off against a spinning disc."
- Craig Charles: "Yeah, a plastic hippopotamus has got no chance in the Robot Wars arena, so, why did you build one?"
- Alex McBride: "(shrugs) Fun."
- — Discussions on Fighting Torque after the battle
Series 5[]
- "Hippobotomus, made out of a child's sandpit essentially, but this is Robot Wars, and we've seen giant upsets in the past"
- — Jonathan Pearce
In the first round of Heat C, Hippobotomus fought against fifth seed and Series 4 Grand Finalist Stinger.
Hippobotomus takes a hit from Stinger
Hippobotomus loses an eye
Little action of meaning took place in the opening seconds, with neither machine landing a significant blow on each other until Stinger connected with two side attacks on Hippobotomus. Stinger followed its first hits of the battle up with an overhead swing of its mace, but narrowly missed Hippobotomus' head. After backing over the Flame Pit, Hippobotomus was attacked by Stinger again, although this time the number 5 seeds could only connect with a glancing blow to Hippobotomus' rear weapon. In the next period of exchange between the two, Hippobotomus began to lose bits of its shell, with a strong swing of Stinger's weapon also shattering the left side of Hippobotomus' head.
- "Bits of the sandpit flew off there! They were hoping to 'cement' a place in the next round, but I don't think that's going to happen now!"
- — Jonathan Pearce as Stinger damages Hippobotomus
Dead Metal cuts into the sandpit
Stinger comes under pressure from Sir Killalot in the closing seconds
Hippobotomus then managed to force Stinger back after weathering some more blows, but in its attack, Hippobotomus ended up driving itself into the CPZ, where Dead Metal sliced into the top of the sandpit and also knocked loose some extra padding. After escaping the House Robots' clutches, a shaken Hippobotomus spun around the arena and slammed itself into the arena wall. With time running out, Hippobotomus bumped into Stinger, which then backed in towards Sir Killalot. The House Robot then proceeded to grab Stinger by the axle, before dangling it over the arena side wall. Sir Killalot then turned around and placed Stinger down onto the arena floor again, as 'cease' was called. The battle was sent to a Judges' decision, who went in favour of Stinger, leaving Hippobotomus eliminated at the first hurdle.
A word of advice for Ellen McBride
After the fight, Ellen McBride was visibly upset about the grievous amount of damage caused to her team's robot. The crowd booed Team Stinger for making a little girl cry, so they made it up to her by giving her a cardboard prototype of Stinger's weapon, which Ellen used to prod Team Stinger after advice from her brother, Alex.
- Craig Charles: "You're [Stinger] seeded 5, which is a very high seeding, and, to be seeded 5 and then nearly come unstuck, by a children's sandpit"
- Kevin Scott: "It's a bloody good sandpit."
- Craig Charles: "It's not a bad sandpit is it?"
- — Team Stinger on Hippobotomus in the post match interview
Results[]
| FIGHTING TORQUE - RESULTS | ||
| Extreme Series 1 | ||
| Mayhem & Annihilator Sixth in Second Annihilator | ||
| Mayhem | vs. Atomic 2, MouseTrap | Lost |
| NOTE: Atomic 2 later dropped out of the Annihilator, and Fighting Torque was reinstated. | ||
| HIPPOBOTOMUS - RESULTS | ||
| Extreme Series 1 | ||
| Annihilator, Round 1 |
vs. Disc-O-Inferno, Napalm 2, Panic Attack, Spirit of Knightmare, The Steel Avenger | Eliminated |
| NOTE: In the Annihilator, Hippobotomus went under the name Fighting Torque. | ||
| Series 5 | ||
| The Fifth Wars - UK Championship Heat, Round 1 | ||
| Heat C, Eliminator | vs. Stinger (5) | Lost |
Wins/Losses[]
- Wins: 0
- Losses: 3
Series Record[]
| Main Series | Fighting Torque Series Record |
|---|---|
| The First Wars | Did not enter |
| The Second Wars | Entered with All Torque |
| The Third Wars | Entered with All Torque |
| The Fourth Wars | Entered with Small Torque |
| The Fifth Wars | Heat, Round 1 with Hippobotomus Entered with Bot Out Of Hell (Sloss) |
| The Sixth Wars | Did not enter |
| 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 | Mayhem with Fighting Torque Annihilator with Hippobotomus |
| Series 2 | Did not enter |
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Fighting Torque is one of only ten robots to début in Extreme 1 and then fight in one of the main competitions, not counting Typhoon. The others were 3 Stegs 2 Heaven, Axe-Awe, Comengetorix, Fluffy, NEAT Machine, Spawn Again, Sub-Version, The Executioner and Draven. However, its début was in a different model and name to the robot that fought in Series 5.
- Fighting Torque was the tallest competitor in Extreme at 1.75m.
- Fighting Torque and Terror Australis are the only occasions of two robots entering the same Wars under the same name.
- The team's introduction for Hippobotomus, seen prior to the first round of the Annihilator, seems to have been filmed as part of Series 5, but these introductions were only used for teams prior to the Heat Semi-Final; as a result, this makes Hippobotomus the only Series 5 competitor to lose in Round 1 of the main competition whose introduction was used in the show anyway (discounting robots such as Thermidor 2 which lost in Round 1, but had introductions filmed specifically for Extreme Series 1).
References[]
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