- "Mo-mayhem, mo-carnage, Mobot!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Mobot was a robot that exclusively competed in the seventh series of Robot Wars. It brought a fairly innovative weapon and style of locomotion to the show, but was ultimately thrown out of the arena by Thermidor 2 in its only battle.
Design
Side view of Mobot
Mobot was a large, bulky, cutoff wedge made from aluminium with a steel chassis. Its weapon was a 23 inch spinning blade mounted underneath the body, weighing around 20kg and spinning at 45mph at both ends. This essentially made Mobot an early pioneer of the "undercutter" spinner, used to great effect by robots such as PP3D in the future, and was designed to target the lower end of robots, potentially including their wheels underneath their chassis, and leading wedges. The robot was armoured in alloy, although its petrol engine was flammable, and its own team captain described Mobot as "cannon fodder".
Mobot's drive system was somewhat of a one-off in the British series of Robot Wars, using only one primary tyre to power the robot, in combination with castor wheels at the front. The robot was invertible, and thus the top end of the machine replicated the same setup of one powered wheel in partnership with two castor wheels. This style of locomotion did not provide Mobot a great deal of manoeuvrability around the arena, but was nevertheless capable of moving the machine.
Robot History
Series 7
- "We're cannon fodder...I've got a bucket to take it home in"
- — Matthew Corrall
Mobot participated in Heat J of the Seventh Wars. In its first round battle, the newcomers were placed up against three veterans; the number 14 seeds Thermidor 2, 8645T 2 and Mighty Mouse.
Mobot is rammed by Mighty Mouse
Mobot is thrown out of the arena by Thermidor 2
In the battle, Mobot went after 8645T 2, but could not do any damage with its blade. Mighty Mouse then came in at speed and rammed Mobot, while Thermidor 2 removed 8645T 2 from the action by flipping it onto its side, from which the latter couldn't self-right. Thermidor 2 then slid beneath the sluggish Mobot and threw it head-over-heels over the arena side wall, eliminating it from the competition. Ultimately Thermidor 2 and Mighty Mouse progressed, while Mobot was retired.
- "Thermidor, trying to grapple and grasp Mobot, and toss it out!"
- — Jonathan Pearce
Results
| MOBOT - RESULTS | ||
| Series 7 | ||
| The Seventh Wars - UK Championship Heat, Round 1 | ||
| Heat J, Eliminator | vs. 8645T 2, Mighty Mouse, Thermidor 2 (14) | Eliminated |
Wins/Losses
- Wins: 0
- Losses: 1
Series Record
Official Series 7 photo
| Series | Mobot Series Record |
|---|---|
| The First Wars | Did not enter |
| The Second Wars | Did not enter |
| The Third Wars | Did not enter |
| The Fourth Wars | Did not enter |
| The Fifth Wars | Did not enter |
| The Sixth Wars | Did not enter |
| The Seventh Wars | Heat, Round 1 |
| Series 8 | Did not enter |
| Series 9 | Did not enter |
| Series 10 | Did not enter |
Trivia
- Mobot was the second robot in the UK series to run primarily on one wheel for drive, after The Darke Destroyer.
- Along with Topbot, Mobot was one of the first robots in Robot Wars to intentionally use an undercutter spinner design.
- The phrase "Mobot" would later become associated with British Olympian Mo Farah, whose victory pose was named the 'mobot' in reference to his name and robotic pose.