- "A beautiful beast. Its royal, red, angry colours, matched by nasty looking pneumatic claws."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Red Dragon was a heavyweight robot which competed in Series 3 of Robot Wars. It lost its only fight against Raizer Blade after breaking down, and did not return for any future series.
Design[]
Side view of Red Dragon
Red Dragon was an unusually shaped robot that resembled a dragon. Its steel shell - described as "scales" - was scavenged from a local scrapyard. In terms of weaponry, Red Dragon featured a hybrid of pneumatic claws - which were powered by a CO2 cylinder - and a lifter. Each side of the robot also featured a self-righting mechanism powered by a linear actuator, still a relatively new concept at the time of Series 3. Red Dragon was primarily driven by two large tyres, and also featured additional castor wheels at the front.
An additional feature that was highlighted by Philippa Forrester during Red Dragon's introduction in its heat was a 'lead' that was used to 'take it for walks' outside of the arena.
The Team[]
The team with Red Dragon
Red Dragon was built by a Sunderland-based team made up of the Armstrong family. Guitar shop owner Tom Armstrong captained the team and drove Red Dragon, and he was joined by his son Tom Armstrong Jr.. Another team member, Steve Armstrong, was listed on the statistics board, but he was absent during filming. The team were the only representatives of Tyne and Wear in the original run of Robot Wars, with even the reboot having double the representatives via TR2 and Vulture.
Robot History[]
Series 3[]
Red Dragon competed in the first heat of Series 3, where it was drawn against veteran team Raizer Blade in the first round.
Raizer Blade drives at Red Dragon
At the start, Red Dragon got off the mark slowly, as the faster Raizer Blade crashed into it. A side-on attack from Raizer Blade then followed, as it pushed Red Dragon around and onto the Floor Flipper. Red Dragon attempted to back into space, but another Raizer Blade slam knocked Red Dragon near to Sergeant Bash.
- "Red Dragon trying to spin away. Can't bring those claws into operation yet, and Raizer Blade certainly looks the more manoeuvrable and clever machine out there."
- — Jonathan Pearce
Red Dragon finds itself on the arena spikes
Red Dragon pushes back at Raizer Blade
Red Dragon managed to move away, but further pressure from Raizer Blade forced Red Dragon back towards Sergeant Bash and onto the arena spikes. Raizer Blade was next to taste the spikes, as it moved onto them after Red Dragon had escaped the arena hazard. Red Dragon then mustered a drive of its own, as it nudged Raizer Blade towards the CPZ, where its opponent then drove into. As Raizer Blade was put under pressure from Sergeant Bash and Sir Killalot, Red Dragon backed away and lined up another drive. However, as it arced towards Raizer Blade, Red Dragon suddenly stopped moving next to the Floor Flipper. The House Robots quickly pounced on Red Dragon's immobility, with Sergeant Bash damaging Red Dragon with his claw, before Sir Killalot skewered Red Dragon up into the air with his lance.
Red Dragon about to be pitted by Sir Killalot
Sir Killalot then spun Red Dragon around, before carrying it towards the Pit of Oblivion, where he dropped Red Dragon to its elimination from The Third Wars.
- "Red Dragon is simply tossed into the air, and will soon be finished off. Flailed around like a loose leaf in autumn. And the red leaf of autumn colours of Red Dragon will be seen no more. Into the pit of oblivion and bye bye to you."
- — Jonathan Pearce as Sir Killalot pits Red Dragon
Following the battle, hissing could be heard coming from the robot in the pits and Philippa Forrester feared the robot was going to explode.
Results[]
| RED DRAGON - RESULTS | ||
| Series 3 | ||
| The Third Wars - UK Championship Heat, Round 1 | ||
| Heat A, Round 1 | vs. Raizer Blade | Lost |
Wins/Losses[]
- Wins: 0
- Losses: 1
Series Record[]
| Series | Red Dragon Series Record |
|---|---|
| The First Wars | Did not enter |
| The Second Wars | Did not enter |
| The Third Wars | Heat, Round 1 |
| The Fourth Wars | Did not enter |
| The Fifth Wars | Did not enter |
| 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 |
Gallery[]
Outside Robot Wars[]
Red Dragon in October 2019
The internals of Red Dragon as of July 2023
Red Dragon was not repaired after its only appearance on Robot Wars, and remained in its builder's garage for over twenty years. In October 2019, Tom Armstrong posted an intact Red Dragon on eBay, at a desired cost of £1,378. However, the robot was unsuccessfully sold. After several relistings until April 2020, Red Dragon still remained unsold and its page was subsequently removed.[1]
Red Dragon under Team Ironclads' ownership
Red Dragon at RoboNerd Lite in August 2024
In July 2023, Red Dragon resurfaced in another eBay auction, this time at a lower starting bid of £1,000 with Tom Armstrong providing photographs of the robot's internals. Once again, the robot was not sold despite its subsequent relistings offering lower prices. In November, Red Dragon was finally sold for £500.
On 17 August 2024, nine months after its selling, the buyers of Red Dragon were revealed to be Team Ironclads, who brought the robot to RoboNerd Lite later that day.[2]
Trivia[]
- Red Dragon was the only robot from the county of Tyne and Wear to compete in the original run of Robot Wars. Tyne and Wear would later produce the third place finalist of Series 8, TR2.
- Red Dragon's team was one of five teams in UK Robot Wars to feature two people with the same name, the others being Overkill, Leveller 2, Beast and Team 13.