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"Ref Bot is a fine, upstanding member of the House Robots team. He's responsible for refereeing fights, breaking up deadly embraces, counting out immobilized robots, putting out fires and (if necessary) showing yellow or red cards. No underheand dealings, no carnage - nothing will slip past this unflinching referee."
Robot Wars: The Ultimate Guide on Refbot

Refbot was a non-combative House Robot that was introduced in Series 4 of Robot Wars. He appeared in every series thereafter until Series 7, including international versions and both series of Robot Wars Extreme, and was intended to enforce fair play into the arena. His primary roles were to separate competitor robots if they became locked together, extinguish fires and prevent House Robots from attacking competitors outside of their CPZs. He also swept away debris from the arena at the end of each battle and pushed immobilised robots to a point where they could be collected by roboteers, taking over the roles previously assigned to Shove.

Before Refbot’s introduction, the House Robots would often interfere with battles, causing excessive damage to competitors, immobilising them and taking them to arena hazards as soon as they entered a CPZ, or even freeing them if they were stranded or locked together. The latter contradicted their antagonistic characterisation, with Refbot being purposefully conceived as a non-antagonistic House Robot to resolve potential concerns about confusing the show’s audience.

From 2001 onwards, a timer and a set of cards were added to Refbot, allowing him to count out competitors that were not moving and signify their elimination with a red card, and give warnings to House Robots or competitors that broke the rules.

Between Series 6 and 7, it is known that Refbot was often driven by Mike Franklin of Team 101[1][2].

"Was made redundant from my job at Dr. Martens just at the right time! Had been chatting to the Show SFX supervisor Chris Reynolds a few weeks before about how to get into the industry! So quick phone call and there I was, working on a show called Mechanoids"
— Mike Franklin on joining the Technical Crew before becoming the driver of Refbot

Design[]

"It had been highlighted, there was a need for a robot that was seen as being unbiased, so when robots were tied together, or go stuck together … in the past the House Robots had gone in to free these robots. Now that was seen by viewers at home as being a bit confusing "Well, why is that robot being nice?", so we built Refbot."
Chris Reynolds on the creation of Refbot[3]
Refbot Before Series 4

Refbot as he appeared in Series 4. Note the lack of a countdown board and lights

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Front view of Refbot in Series 4

Refbot was a humanoid-looking, two-wheeled robot designed to resemble a robotic referee. He was painted black, white and red with his centre body painted in black and white stripes to resemble a referee’s shirt, with his head featuring two titanium-mounted white LED ‘eyes’ to help his onboard camera get a clearer view[4], and a small appendage resembling a headset microphone. Although not designed for combat, Refbot featured several pieces of equipment which were essential to his role, including a front bulldozer plough and a pair of rear scoops on the rear, as well as a CO2 fire extinguisher on his right arm. The front plough was used to separate robots that had become stuck together, or free competitors that were stuck on part of the arena. The two rear scoops were designed to look like the soles of his feet, making Refbot look as if he is kneeling down, as wrestling referees do, and were intended for pushing robots out of the arena between battles[5]. The fire extinguisher was intended to put fires out, or at least keep it under control until the whole fire crew arrived. Series 4 was the first series where the arena was in an enclosed box, so a mobile fire extinguisher was needed in the arena[6]. The fire extinguisher was fitted on a small backpack on the back of Refbot's body, with the nozzle removed, and an electric solenoid valve attached in its place to control the extinguisher[7]. For Series 4, his left arm also featured a pincer grip which was intended to help separate robots which had become stuck together, or to grab competitors to pull them to the arena exit.

Refbot was powered by a 24 volt battery[8] and an electric motor with a high-torque system[9], giving him a top speed of 7mph. His head was articulated, allowing it to move up, down and side-to-side. His arms could also lift up and down.

"This gives Refbot human appeal and lets viewers know where his attention is focussed."
— Robot Wars Magazine on Refbot's articulated head[10]
Refbot s5

Refbot from Extreme 1 onward

Refbot EX2

Refbot in Extreme 2

From Series 5/Extreme 1 onwards, an electronic countdown board was added to Refbot’s chest, which enabled him to count out defeated robots after they had become immobilised for thirty seconds. He would count the final ten seconds, starting from zero and counting up until it reached 10, with a buzzer sounding in the last few seconds of the countdown.

"In the fifth year, it was decided that really, we want a way to count robots out. So we want him to be able to have a counting device, from one to ten, so that if a robot looks as if it's stopped, it had ten seconds - if it moves in those 10 seconds, it can carry on, if it doesn't move in those ten seconds, it's out."
— Chris Reynolds on the introduction of Refbot's counter

First introduced in Extreme 1, the countdown would be slowed for Series 5 and some Extreme 1 battles onwards, and would remain that way for the rest of the original series’ run. In some battles, such as the Extreme Vengeance fight between Tornado and Stinger, the countdown board was also used to signal the end of battles themselves, which usually lead to judges’ decisions.

Refbot counts out raging reality

Refbot counts an immobile Raging Reality out

Sometimes, Refbot’s counter did not function properly when he counted out competitors, leading to glitches which caused it to show the wrong numbers, which attracted humorous responses from Jonathan Pearce from time to time. When Refbot was left unable to count out a defeated robot – either through his counter not working, being immobilised by competitors or being incapacitated by arena hazards – the judges were usually called to evaluate and confirm the robot’s elimination in his place.

Refbot S7

Refbot in a Robot Wars Newsletter

Also in Series 5/Extreme 1, Refbot’s pincer grip on his left arm was replaced with a set of three lights in the shape of the Robot Wars logo. Each light varied in purpose – green (top), would light up to signal the start of battles, while yellow (left) and red (right) were used in a similar fashion to a football referee's yellow and red cards; the yellow card was used to warn a House Robot to return to a CPZ if he or she ‘misbehaved’ and attacked a competitor while outside a CPZ or before they were counted out, while the red card was shown if the House Robot ignored this warning – forcing it to remain in its CPZ for the remainder of the match – and at the end of the 10-second countdown when a competitor was counted out. In Series 7, Refbot’s red light was also used to signal the elimination of robots that had failed to enter the arena, which happened to Thunderpants in Heat E and Flippa in the second round of the Annihilator.

Robot History[]

Series 4[]

"The programme makers decided that for Series 4 they needed a house robot who was impartial to what was happening in the arena, after several unexpected scraps between contestant bots and house robots in Series 3. The BBC Visual Effects department built Refbot at short notice and he made his first appearance at Robot Mayhem in July 24, 2000."
— Robot Wars Magazine on the introduction of Refbot[11]
CraigCharlesRefbotIntroS4

Craig Charles introduces Refbot in Heat A

Following an official public debut at the 2000 Robot Mayhem event[12], Refbot made his first televised appearance in Series 4, Heat A, heralded by a small introduction from Craig Charles. The first battle he was seen in was the first Round 1 Melee, between Chaos 2, Indefatigable and Atomic, and he would go on to be used in almost all of the battles for the rest of the classic series, including all the international versions.

"And here to keep the House Robots in line is a new addition to the pack. Here’s Refbot. He’ll be breaking up the fights, reining in the House Robots, and bringing order to the chaos of the warzone!"
— Craig Charles introduces Refbot in Series 4

The only exceptions in Series 4 were the Sumo Basho and Pinball Warrior tournaments, where he was not needed, and he was not used in Round 1 of either the Northern nor the Southern Annihilator. Notably, in these two battles, only two House Robots were in the CPZs, rather than the usual 4.

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Refbot tries to extinguish Reptirron, but Milly-Ann Bug pushes it away

After being in the background for the battles of Heat A, Refbot's first notable moment came in Heat B, where he used his fire extinguisher for the first time on television. In the second Round 1 melee, Reptirron's fuel tank had been set alight by Sgt. Bash, and Refbot came in to put out the fire, though as he did so, Milly-Ann Bug pushed Reptirron away from him, then got in the way when Refbot tried driving around it to put out the fire. Pussycat attacked Milly-Ann Bug, forcing it to drive away, leaving Refbot to put out the fire.

"The Refbot, just cooling the flames down on Reptirron."
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot puts out Reptirron's fire

However, once the fire had been put out, Sgt. Bash grabbed the immobile competitor with his jaw, pulled in into his CPZ and set fire to it again. After Reptirron was put on the floor flipper and thrown, Refbot would put out the fire again.

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Refbot extinguishes Diotoir

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Refbot extinguishes Small Torque's internal fire

Refbot would use his fire extinguisher regularly across the series. In the next Heat, he would put out Diotoir when it was set alight by Sgt. Bash after being flipped over, the first of many occasions where Refbot would have to put out Diotoir's burning fur. In Heat I, Small Torque's internals caught fire during its battle with Eric, and after the battle, Refbot put the fire out.

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Refbot extinguishes Killertron's burning boxing glove

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Refbot spins on the spot with his extinguisher going

He also put out Killertron's burning boxing glove after it was set alight by Sgt. Bash in the Celebrity Special.

"Meanwhile the Refbot in there with his fire extinguisher to mop up!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot extinguishes Killertron's burning boxing glove

In the War of Independence, Ghetto-Bot's internals caught fire after it was pushed onto the flame pit by Mortis, so Refbot put out the flames. Unusually, before putting out the flames, Refbot aimed his extinguisher away from Ghetto-Bot, started firing and span around on the spot, before aiming it at Ghetto-Bot and putting out the flames.

Matilda remains

Refbot puts out Matilda's internal fire

Most notably, he would put out Matilda's burning insides at the end of the Southern Annihilator. Razer crushed into her back to celebrate after winning the final, then pushed her onto the flame pit with the help of Sir Killalot and Sgt. Bash. Matilda's internals caught fire, and Sgt. Bash pushed her off the flame pit. Refbot then used his extinguisher to put out the flames.

"...and the Refbot taking one last lingering look, will this be the last we ever see of Matilda I wonder?"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot puts out Matilda's internal fire

As well as having a fire extinguisher in the arena, Refbot's other main function was to help competitor robots that were stuck, either with another competitor, or in the arena.

"The Refbot, coming in. Can nudge two robots apart if the Refbot adjudges it's got to a stalemate, that's what it's in there for."
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot pushes Vercingetorix and Spawn of Scutter apart in Heat L
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Refbot pushes Shadow of Napalm and Dominator 2 apart

The first time he pushed competitors apart came in Round 2 of Heat E, during the battle between Dominator 2 and Shadow of Napalm, where Refbot would have to push the competitors apart three times. First, whilst axing Shadow of Napalm, Dominator 2 drove at its front, but drove onto Shadow of Napalm's wedge, causing it to get stuck, and Refbot had to push Dominator 2 free of Shadow of Napalm. Dominator 2 pushed Shadow of Napalm down the arena and axed it, but its axe was seemingly stuck in the front, so Refbot pushed the two to try and separate them. Dominator 2 was able to get its axe free, but by pushing the two, Refbot had actually pushed Dominator 2 further up Shadow of Napalm's wedge, and it could not get off. Shadow of Napalm reversed a little, but Dominator 2 was still caught on the front, so Refbot pushed Dominator 2 off of Shadow of Napalm, allowing it to get free and drive away.

"In comes the Refbot to have a closer look."
— Jonathan Pearce throughout the series, whenever Refbot came in to separate two competitors
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Refbot pushes Berserk 2 free of The Creature

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Refbot pushes Inverterbrat and The Creature apart

In the next Heat, in the Round 1 melee between Berserk 2, Inverterbrat and The Creature, all three competitors became stuck together when Inverterbrat got under The Creature's side and lifted it up, but its lifter became jammed open, pinning itself off the arena floor, and The Creature could not get free as its wheels were lifted off the floor. Berserk 2 also became stuck at the same time, as it had driven onto The Creature's lifting tusks as Inverterbrat had lifted The Creature, meaning Berserk 2's wheels were also lifted off the floor. Refbot pushed Berserk 2 off of The Creature's tusks, then drove between The Creature and Inverterbrat and pushed the two apart.

RefbotpushesSpawnofScutter

Refbot pushes Spawn of Scutter and Vercingetorix when Vercingetorix's axe becomes stuck

In Heat L, during the battle between Vercingetorix and Spawn of Scutter, Vercingetorix's axe became stuck in the top of Spawn of Scutter. Spawn of Scutter pushed Vercingetorix across the arena, and into the bottom arena wall, but Vercingetorix's axe remained stuck until Refbot came in, getting under Spawn of Scutter and pushing it against the wall, allowing Vercingetorix to pull its axe free.

Refbot180

Refbot forces Knightmare and Plunderbird 4 apart. Note that his head is backwards.

In the other Round 2 battle, Knightmare drove up Plunderbird 4's wedge, and became stuck, as its wheels were lifted off the floor, leaving the robot beached. Plunderbird 4 had broken down on one side, and could not reverse to get out from under Knightmare, so Refbot had to push the two competitors apart.

"You see now, the Refbot coming in to separate the two robots because they were going nowhere!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot pushes Knightmare off of Plunderbird 4
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Refbot pushes Dominator 2 free of Pussycat's blade

Towards the end of the battle between Pussycat and Dominator 2 in Round 2 of the Semi-Finals, Pussycat's spinning disc became caught Dominator 2's armour, so Refbot pushed against Dominator 2's side until it came free of the blade, and Pussycat could reverse away.

RefbotpushesVercingetorixawayfromwall

Refbot pushes Vercingetorix away from the arena wall

Refbot would also help robots that were stuck in the arena floor or on the side wall, so that they could continue fighting. In Heat L, Vercingetorix had lost drive on one side, and was pushed against the arena wall by Spawn of Scutter. With Vercingetorix unable to get away from the wall, Refbot pushed it away from the wall and into Spawn of Scutter so the two competitors could continue fighting.

"Refbot coming in, adjudging whether or not they are immobilised."
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot pushes Vercingetorix away from the wall.
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Refbot pushes Spikasaurus free of the arena wall

In the Final of the Northern Annihilator, Spikasaurus was ramming Dominator 2, forcing it into Dead Metal, but Spikasaurus then crashed into the arena wall, and one of its front spears punctured the arena wall. It tried to reverse out, but the spear was caught in the wall, so Refbot had to push the side of Spikasaurus to free it.

RefbothelpsDominator2fromwall

Refbot helps Dominator 2 get off of the arena wall

If one competitor's attack on its opponent lasted too long, Refbot would push them apart. For example, In the first Semi-Final, towards the end of the battle, Firestorm 2 flipped Dominator 2 over and rammed it against the arena wall, where it kept it pinned. Because the rules do not count pinning as a way of immobilising an opponent, Refbot came in, pushing between Dominator 2 and Firestorm 2 and pulling Dominator 2 off of the wall, though after he reversed away, Firestorm 2 pinned Dominator 2 back against the wall again and held it there until time ran out.

RefbotpushesWildThingasitattacksHypnoDisc

Refbot pushes Wild Thing as it attacks Hypno-Disc

In the second Semi-Final, towards the end of the battle between Wild Thing and Hypno-Disc, Wild Thing pinned Hypno-Disc against the wall. As it kept it pinned there and would not let go, Refbot came over, pushing against Wild Thing's side to try and force it to let Hypno-Disc go. Wild Thing reversed, but pinned Hypno-Disc against the wall again before it had a chance to get away. Refbot pushed against Wild Thing's side again, pushing it out from underneath Hypno-Disc, allowing Hypno-Disc to reverse away from Wild Thing.

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Refbot intervenes when Firestorm 2 breaks the rules in the Tag Team Terror

In the Tag Team Terror, the House Robots were allowed to intervene if the competitors broke the rules, as only one member of each team was supposed to be fighting at any one time. Refbot intervened when Firestorm 2 when it came out to help Scorpion. Plunderbird 4 was pushing Scorpion towards Bigger Brother, when Firestorm 2 suddenly charged out of the Red Zone, ramming into the back of Plunderbird 4. Refbot came over, driving behind Plunderbird 4, forcing Firestorm 2 to reverse, and Refbot chased it as it turned, driving into it as it drove back to the Red Zone.

"Are they disobeying rules immediately? If you do, the House Robots will penalise you! The Refbot coming, and saying "Get back Firestorm! Get back into your red area!""
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot cautions Firestorm 2
RefbotinpushesP4outofbluezone

Refbot pushes Plunderbird 4 out of the blue zone

Also in the Tag Team Terror, during the Play-Off, Plunderbird 4 was lying immobile in the Blue Zone, so Refbot pushed it out towards the arena centre, though this did nothing to start it again, and it merely lay there for the rest of the battle.

However, sometimes when Refbot tried to separate competitors that were caught together, he was unsuccessful. In Round 1 of Heat D, Mazakari became caught on Mortis' lifting arm, when it got caught in one of the gaps in the disc. Refbot pushed against Mortis to try and get it free, but couldn't, so he backed off. Mortis continued being caught on Mazakari for the rest of the battle.

Despite Refbot being conceived as a neutral House Robot, whereas the other House Robots were antagonistic, the other House Robots were sometimes used to free competitors. For example, Shunt gave Killerhurtz a push when it had its axe caught in Eric in Heat I. Dead Metal pushed Spikasaurus free when its spears were stuck in the wall near his CPZ in Heat J. Matilda used her tusks to flip Frenzy's axe out of the floor when it became stuck during its battle with Detonator in the War of Independence, and Sir Killalot used his claw to separate Spikasaurus and Killerhurtz in the Northern Annihilator when Spikasaurus' spears were caught in Killerhurtz.

SgtBashtoastsMedusa2000

Refbot watches Sgt. Bash roasting Medusa 2000

Refbot was also useful in getting alternate camera angles, as he did not have to stay in the CPZs for most of the battle like the House Robots did, so he could follow the competitors around and get close up views of the battle. Shots of Refcam were first used in the battle between Chaos 2 and Medusa 2000 in Round 2 of Heat A, a clip that would later be used in the show's opening.

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Berserk 2 drives into Refbot

Despite not being restricted to a CPZ, Refbot had to stay away from the competitors whilst they were fighting and could not intervene unless a robot was stuck or a breach of rules occurred. Most times, if the competitors came towards him as they were fighting, Refbot would move away. Occasionally, a competitor would accidentally drive into Refbot. For example, Berserk 2 drove into him whilst driving away from Tornado after it rammed it into the bottom arena wall in their Round 2 battle in Heat F. Refbot tried to drive away as Berserk 2 drove towards him, but Berserk 2 was too fast. V-Max also drove into Refbot whilst it was trying to escape Hypno-Disc in Heat P, and Thermidor 2 drove into him trying to get away from Pussycat in Semi-Final 1.

TornadopushesKaterKillerintoRefbot

Tornado pushes Kater Killer into Refbot

However, some competitors actually intentionally drove at Refbot, such as when Tornado rammed Kater Killer into him in Round 1 of Heat F. Similarly, in the Northern Annihilator, Spikasaurus was ramming Suicidal Tendencies, with its spikes in the side of its opponent, and pushed Suicidal Tendencies into Refbot.

RammsteinramsPanicAttackintoRefbot

Rammstein rams Panic Attack into Refbot

Panic attack vs refbot

Panic Attack lifts Refbot

Most notably, in the War of Independence, Rammstein was pushing Panic Attack, and pushed it into Refbot. Refbot turned away from the competitors, but Rammstein got at Panic Attack's side and pushed it by Refbot, and Panic Attack actually attacked Refbot, the first time a competitor ever did so intentionally and directly. Panic Attack got its forks under the side and tried to lift him, though it was only able to lift him up a little before Rammstein rammed into its side, causing it to drop Refbot and forcing it to go back after its opponent.

A picture included in Issue 7 of Robot Wars Magazine shows Mortis attacking Refbot with its axe, presumably from the War of Independence, but this moment was not included in the televised episode.[13]

MousetrapRefbot

MouseTrap gets stuck on Refbot

Refbot's most eventful episode of the series was Heat K. In Round 1, Tiberius was holding onto MouseTrap with its crusher, so Refbot tried to push them apart, pushing against MouseTrap, then against Tiberius. He pushed against MouseTrap, and Tiberius let go, but Mousetrap became stuck on Refbot's front. Refbot pulled it back, but it did not fall off. Refbot continued to reverse, and turned around to try and cause MouseTrap to fall off, but it remained stuck on the front, until Refbot gave it a push, which loosened it from the front, allowing Refbot to reverse out from under MouseTrap.

"MouseTrap, in the clutches of the Refbot! What is going on there? Referee’s not supposed to do that!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot drags MouseTrap around the arena with his plough
RefbotwarnsDeadMetal

Refbot warns Dead Metal not to attack Tiberius

Later in the same battle, Tiberius would not let go of Mousetrap when it had it pinned in the corner, so Refbot pushed against Tiberius a couple of times to force it to let go. Dead Metal tried to grab Tiberius, but Refbot pushed against him, so Dead Metal let go and reversed, allowing Tiberius and MouseTrap to escape the CPZ.

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Refbot pulls Little Fly away from the wall

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Refbot pushes Little Fly and MouseTrap apart

In the Round 2 battle between Tiberius and Little Fly, Tiberius became stuck in forward drive and had Little Fly pinned against the wall, so Refbot tried pushing them apart. Refbot got his front wedge under Little Fly, hooking underneath it, then pulled it away from Tiberius and the wall, then dropped it back to the floor. Shunt got behind Tiberius and axed it, and tried to pull it away from the wall, but this proved difficult as Tiberius was still stuck in forward drive, until Refbot gave Tiberius' front a little push, helping Shunt pull it back, though it would drive straight back into the wall when he let go.

He also pushed MouseTrap and Little Fly apart in the Heat Final. MouseTrap had Little Fly pinned down with the trap, and dragged it to the arena centre. As it would not let go, Refbot drove between the two, and pushed them apart.

KillerhurtzrunsintoRefbot

Killerhurtz runs into Refbot

Refbot did have some technical issues across the series. He was seemingly immobile in the Splinter v Killerhurtz battle in Round 2 of Heat I, as he did not move at all throughout the battle. Sgt. Bash reversed into him when he left his CPZ after Killerhurtz became stuck in forward drive, and Killerhurtz charged uncontrollably across the arena, hitting the arena wall and bouncing into Refbot.

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Refbot in the Hypno-Disc vs Pussycat battle, with his head back to front

In some battles, Refbot's head was mounted backwards, including the Heat L Round 2 battle between Knightmare and Plunderbird 4, the Semi-Final Round 2 battle between Pussycat and Dominator 2, and the Grand Final Eliminator between Pussycat and Hypno-Disc. In the Semi-Final battle between Pussycat and Dominator 2, Refbot's head was facing the wrong way for most of the battle, but towards the end, as he went to push Pussycat and Dominator 2 apart, he was able to turn his head around so it was facing front.

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Refbot's extinguisher goes off whilst freeing Killertron

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Refbot fires his extinguisher in the Tag Team Terror Final

On a couple of occasions, Refbot's CO2 extinguisher went off unintentionally. In Round 1 of Heat H, when Refbot came in to push Killertron free of Maverick when its axe was stuck in the top, some CO2 vented out of Refbot's extinguisher whilst he pushed Killertron, and a little more vented out as he reversed away. In the Tag Team Terror Final, his fire extinguisher went off after cease was called, even though Refbot did not have it aimed at anything, as he was staying away from the other competitors at the bottom of the arena.

Extreme 1[]

"Refbot is now fitted with a digital timer to countdown the time a robot is immobilised. If the House Robots stop out of line Refbot is able to issue them with a red or yellow card, hopefully trying to contain their appetite for carnage and destruction."
— The Robot Wars Live Event programme on Refbot's new features for 2001[14]
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Refbot counts out Aggrobot 3

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Refbot shows his green light to start the battle

This series saw the introduction of two new features for Refbot, which would become his most important features for the rest of his time on Robot Wars; a countdown clock on his chest to count out competitors that had stopped moving, and a card system, which featured a green light to signify the start of a battle, a yellow card as a warning for competitors or House Robots that broke the rules, and a red light to signify the elimination of competitors or to confine a House Robot to the CPZ for persistent rule breaking. Starting from this series, Refbot would begin each fight in the same spot, near the top of the arena by the floor flipper, showing the green light to start the battle when "3, 2, 1, Activate" was called", then reversing out of the way as the competitors started moving.

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Refbot counts down to the end of the first battle of Extreme 1

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Refbot counts out X-Terminator in the All-Stars

The first time Refbot was shown using his new counter was at the end of the Vengeance battle between Tornado and Stinger, the first battle of the first episode of Extreme 1. As both competitors were still mobile, he counted down the last 10 seconds of the battle, then showed his red light to signal the end of the battle.

"Ooh, time running out, Refbot counting up to the 10, to count them out!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot counts down the last 10 seconds of the battle

The first time he counted out a competitor came in the third battle of the same episode, in the All-Stars battle between Chaos 2 and X-Terminator, where he counted out and red-carded X-Terminator after it was flipped over by Chaos 2. Episode 2 saw the first instance of Refbot counting two competitors out together, Ming 3 and Wheely Big Cheese, after Hypno-Disc immobilised them both during its emphatic victory in the Mayhem battle.

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Refbot gives Sir Killalot a yellow card

The card system was also used to give yellow and red cards to House Robots when they broke the rules. The first instance of this came in All-Stars battle between Diotoir and Wheely Big Cheese in Episode 1. Refbot was about to count Diotoir out after Wheely Big Cheese flipped it over, but Sir Killalot came in to attack it before he could start. As the House Robots are not allowed to leave their CPZs to attack competitors until they have been counted out, Refbot pushed him to let Diotoir go, and gave him a yellow card.

"There's the Refbot coming in, and Killalot as well! Now that's out of order Killalot, because Diotoir was not in a CPZ, it had not yet been counted out! Killalot should not be doing this, Refbot get in there! And that's a yellow card! A yellow card for Killalot. A new feature of this series of Extreme."
— Jonathan Pearce as Sir Killalot attacks Diotoir, then receives a yellow card

Sir Killalot returned to his CPZ, and Refbot proceeded to count Diotoir out, after which Sir Killalot was allowed to come out of his CPZ and attack, along with Dead Metal.

"Now Killalot can have his chance, but the House Robots for me, have been getting away with far too much for far too long, and that's why we've said to Refbot "Get in there, and use your authority on Killalot!" Well, rather you than me Refbot!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Sir Killalot attacks Diotoir
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Refbot intervenes as Dead Metal attacks Behemoth

The first instance of Refbot giving a House Robot a red card came in Episode 3, during the All-Stars battle between Hypno-Disc and Behemoth, where Dead Metal twice left his CPZ during the battle. First, Behemoth pushed Hypno-Disc into Sgt. Bash's CPZ and pinned it there. Suddenly, Dead Metal came across to the CPZ and grabbed onto Behemoth. Refbot pushed against Dead Metal, forcing him to let go, and showed him a yellow card as he chased him back to his CPZ.

"Oh look at this! Dead Metal's attacking Behemoth! That is bang out of order! He can't do that, and the Refbot quite rightly going in, is he giving him a yellow card I wonder? I think he brandished there, yes he has! The Metal gets a yellow card and quite rightly so! "Get out of there!" Wouldn't argue with the Refbot, not in his current mood!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot gives Dead Metal a yellow card
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Refbot gives Dead Metal a red card

Despite this, Dead Metal would break the rules again later on in the battle. Behemoth pushed Hypno-Disc into an empty CPZ and pinned it against the wall, when Dead Metal suddenly came over to the CPZ, getting behind Behemoth and grabbing onto it, allowing Hypno-Disc to drive around it and out of the CPZ. Dead Metal let go of Behemoth, but reversed to block Behemoth's escape as it tried to drive away from the CPZ. Refbot showed Dead Metal a red card for interfering in the battle, and he had to stay in the CPZ for the rest of the battle.

"He's sent Dead Metal back into the CPZ! "You cannot come out and play anymore, you naughty boy!" Home, boy, and do not come out again!"
— Jonathan Pearce scolds Dead Metal as Refbot forces him to return to his CPZ
VengeanceMegaMorgPlunderbird

Shunt axes Mega Morg and receives a yellow card

During a long, dull Vengeance battle between Plunderbird 5 and Mega Morg, Shunt, apparently "bored", came out of his CPZ and axed Mega Morg right on the Ninja Sheep. Refbot intervened, driving besides Shunt, pushing at his side to get him to stop, then issued him with a yellow card, but Shunt seemed to take little notice, because his axe was stuck in Mega Morg's top, and his attempts at freeing himself nearly caused him to topple forwards on a few occasions. Refbot pushed against's scoop a couple of times, but this did not free Shunt's axe, so Refbot pushed against Mega Morg's front, and Plunderbird 5 pushed against Mega Morg's side, which managed to free Shunt's axe from the top.

"So, he's saying to Shunt "I don't care if you're bored, you can't break the rules and come out!" … Well done Shunt, you're okay by me mate, get involved with those Mega Morg boys!"
— Jonathan Pearce sympathises with Shunt as he is yellow-carded for his attack on Mega Morg

However, on some occasions, House Robots attacked the competitors unfairly, and Refbot did not intervene. For example, in Episode 2, towards the end of the Wild Card Warriors battle between Ajjay and Stinger, Sir Killalot picked up Stinger with his claw when it was in his CPZ, and carried it out of the CPZ and down the arena. Refbot did not attempt to stop Sir Killalot, nor did he show him a card, and Sir Killalot proceeded to drop Stinger out of the arena after cease was called.

In Episode 4, during the All-Stars battle between 3 Stegs 2 Heaven and Tornado, Sir Killalot and Dead Metal treated 3 Stegs 2 Heaven as if it was immobile without it having been counted out, but Refbot did not intervene. Tornado rammed 3 Stegs 2 Heaven into the CPZ, and Sir Killalot grabbed hold of it and carried it across the arena, then held it over the flame pit. Refbot merely held back, and Sir Killalot let go of 3 Stegs 2 Heaven, dropping it back to the floor, but one of the drive chains had fallen off, so it could not get away, and Tornado rammed it into another CPZ, where Dead Metal came over. Just like Sir Killalot had, Dead Metal grabbed it and pulled it away up the arena, putting it on the floor flipper, despite the fact it had not been counted out, and after it was thrown, Sir Killalot grabbed it and spun it around. Despite this, Refbot did not intervene, nor give either House Robot a card for attacking a competitor outside of the CPZ without waiting for it to be counted out. Despite 3 Stegs 2 Heaven's limited mobility, the battle continued until time counted out, and went to the Judges as 3 Stegs 2 Heaven had not been counted out.

In the same episode, during the Mayhem battle between Splinter, Aggrobot 3 and Killertron, towards the end of the battle, Killertron appeared to slow to a halt, and without waiting for it to be counted out, Sir Killalot grabbed it with his claw, picked it up and carried it to the pit, and dropped it in. However, Refbot did not stop him from picking Killertron up, nor did he give him a card for attacking a competitor without waiting for it to be counted out.

Panic Attack vs Diotoir vs Shear Khan pit

Refbot and Matilda attempt to intervene as Panic Attack lifts Shunt

RefbotgivesPanicAttackyellowcard

Refbot gives Panic Attack a yellow card

Competitors could also receive cards from Refbot if they did not stop breaking the rules after he intervened. The first time Refbot gave a competitor a yellow card for rule-breaking came in Episode 9, at the end of the Mayhem battle between Panic Attack, Shear Khan and Diotoir. Panic Attack had disposed of its two opponents, but as Shunt pushed Shear Khan to the pit, Panic Attack got its forks under Shunt's side and tried to lift him. Matilda pushed against Panic Attack's side to try and stop it, "Cease" was called again, and Refbot showed Panic Attack the red card to order it to stop, as the battle had ended. However, Panic Attack would not let go, so Refbot showed it a yellow card. Panic Attack stopped, and the battle properly ended, but Panic Attack still retained a formal warning, with Craig Charles reiterating to Kim Davies in the post-battle interview that "Any more of that, you're gonna get kicked out of the competition".

"Cease called again. That means Cease, Panic Attack. I.E. - Stop, desist, finish, end! Yellow card! You're lucky to survive with just that!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot gives Panic Attack a yellow card
Refbotgetsbetween101andMegaMorg

Refbot gets between 101 and Mega Morg

Other competitors would get off with a warning and no card, as Refbot would intervene when they broke the rules. In the Tag Team Terror battle between Mega Morg and Diotoir against 101 and King B Powerworks, Diotoir was fighting 101, but when it went to tag Mega Morg, the two of them broke the rules by both coming out from the corner. Refbot intervened, driving between Mega Morg and 101 as Mega Morg tried to attack 101, and pushing it away from 101.

RefbotintervenesRazervBehemoth

Refbot intervenes as Razer holds Behemoth

During the All-Stars battle between Razer and Behemoth, Razer was crushing into the side of Behemoth, and held it in a firm grip. However, because of the rules about how long a competitor can hold onto an opponent, Refbot intervened. First, Refbot pushed against Behemoth's front scoop to try and force Razer to let go, but Razer held on. Razer turned around, and Refbot pushed against Behemoth's back, but this also did not force Razer to let it go. In the last few seconds, Refbot got besides Razer and pushed against Behemoth, forcing Razer to let it go.

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Refbot pushes Splinter and Pussycat apart

In Round 4 of the first Annihilator, Splinter pinned Pussycat against an angle grinder, holding it still with its arms, preventing Pussycat from escaping. As it was holding Pussycat longer than the rules permitted, Refbot came over, pushing against Splinter and driving between it and Pussycat, forcing Splinter to reverse and let go of Pussycat.

"The Refbot having a check, is the cat OK? Is the cat stuck there on the angle grinder? No!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot comes over to help Pussycat
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Refbot pushes Pussycat and Sumpthing apart

As usual, Refbot was used to free competitors that became caught, either on the arena or with other robots. In Episode 1, during the Mayhem battle between Pussycat, S.M.I.D.S.Y. and Sumpthing, Sumpthing's spike became caught in Pussycat's side. Refbot tried pushing against Sumpthing's side to free it, but the spike was still caught in Pussycat. Refbot drove back at the two, but as he did so, S.M.I.D.S.Y. drove between him and the two other competitors, forcing Refbot to reverse and drive around it. As S.M.I.D.S.Y. continued to spin around, Refbot drove around it, and pushed against Sumpthing's side. Refbot then drove past Sumpthing, brushing against the side, and this helped free Sumpthing, as it was able to reverse away from Pussycat, pulling the spike free.

In the same battle, Sumpthing's spike became stuck in Sgt. Bash's side, but Matilda was used to push Sumpthing free instead of Refbot.

Splinter Refbot

Splinter falls back onto its wheels

In the Mayhem in Episode 4, Aggrobot 3 lifted Splinter onto its top, but as it did so, its lifter became stuck open, pinning itself off the floor. Splinter could not get out from under Aggrobot 3, and Aggrobot 3 could not move away from Splinter. Dead Metal came out of his CPZ and cut into Splinter with his saw, so Refbot came over to warn Dead Metal to return to the CPZ, then pushed Splinter free of Aggrobot 3, turning it back over. Later in the same battle, Splinter was pushing Killertron, which became stuck on one of Splinter's grabbing arms, which was hanging loose, so Refbot gave Killertron a push, allowing Splinter to reverse.

RefbotpushesBehemothoffofanglegrinder

Refbot pushes Behemoth off of the angle grinder

In the Challenge Belt battle between Behemoth and Tornado in Episode 6, Tornado managed to get under Behemoth and tip it onto its side. Behemoth tried to right itself, but its self-righting side arm failed to turn it over, and Tornado pushed against the arena wall. Refbot came over, getting behind Behemoth and pushing it away from the wall, past an angle grinder, and knocking it back onto its wheels to continue the battle.

"In comes the Refbot for a cursory glance, to see whether they're immobilised. Get it onto the arena floor to see if they are immobilised, can do that, and no they're not!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot pushes Behemoth off the angle grinder and onto its wheels
RefbotpushesTornadooffthewall

Refbot pushes Tornado off of the wall

During the All-Stars Semi-Final, Tornado rammed Chaos 2 into a CPZ, but Shunt attacked Tornado, which gave Chaos 2 the chance to flip Tornado up against the wall. Shunt got behind Tornado and axed it, but this did not knock it down from the wall, so Refbot pushed against Shunt to warn him to let Tornado go. Shunt drove away, and Refbot pushed Tornado off of the wall. The audience actually booed Refbot for freeing Tornado. This intervention was particularly notable as Tornado went on to win the battle.

"... the Refbot quite rightly seeing what he can do here, almost to right Tornado, I would have said, and right a wrong! It was a wrong, and that's quite correct! Well done the referee, and Tornado back in play! Ooh, they {the audience} don't like that, but it's correct, it was a good decision!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot pushes Tornado off the wall
StingerhitsRefbotHouseRobotRebellion

Stinger hits Refbot in the House Robot Rebellion

In the House Robot Rebellion, Refbot maintained his neutral status, staying away from the competitors and not helping his fellow House Robots. However, Stinger did briefly take a swing at him after rushing away from the clutches of Dead Metal. Stinger drove up the arena away from Dead Metal, straight into Refbot, and hit Refbot with its mace, but Refbot merely backed away.

"Who had a go at the Refbot there? He's not part of it!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Stinger tries to take the "safe" option
RefbotintervenestoprotectSgtBash

Refbot intervenes to protect Sgt. Bash

However, he did get involved in the Flipper Frenzy when the competitors attacked the House Robots. Chaos 2 was trying to flip Sgt. Bash out of the arena, after it and the other competitors flipped him over and pushed him to the wall, but Matilda rushed over to stop it, followed by Refbot. Matilda rammed into Chaos 2 to stop it attacking Sgt. Bash, and together with Refbot, they pushed the competitors away from the fallen House Robot.

"The Refbot comes in and says "Hang on, I've had enough of this!" What's going on?"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot intervenes in the Flipper Frenzy
Chaos2triestoflipRefbotover

Chaos 2 tries to flip Refbot over

Chaos 2 got its flipper under Refbot's side and tried to flip him, but failed as the flipper was only a little underneath the side, causing Chaos 2 to throw itself over. Refbot pinned Chaos 2 against the wall as it tried to self-right, before reversing away. He did come back to help Chaos 2, pushing it away from the wall as it tried to self-right, but it was unable to, and Matilda hit Chaos 2 with her flywheel, turning it onto its side. Refbot also pushed the immobile Bigger Brother onto the floor flipper and counted it out, but it was not thrown by the flipper.

Unseen on the televised edit, he also backed over the edge of the pit as it began to open, but quickly got away[15].

RefbotpushesZapandMammoth

Refbot pushes Zap and Mammoth onto the floor flipper

Although Refbot was conceived as a "neutral" House Robot, Extreme 1 saw him carry out arena duties on immobile competitors for the first time. During the Middleweight Championship in Episode 2, he pushed Zap onto the floor flipper, to join Mammoth. In the German Melee, after Golem broke down, Matilda and Shunt pushed it onto the pit, and Refbot pressed the pit release, sending Golem to sink down.

RefbotpushesBeefCaketoShunt

Refbot pushes Beef-Cake to Shunt

Refbot was also involved in a controversial series of attacks on Featherweight Champion Beef-Cake during the Featherweight Championship. Beef-Cake had won the battle after RC Warrior broke down and was pitted, but Beef-Cake then took on Shunt, who responded by turning the featherweight over and pushing it into the path of Sir Killalot, who drove over it. Refbot came over, and initially tried to protect Beef-Cake by pushing it to the top of the arena, away from the other House Robots, and standing between them and it. However, he then pushed Beef-Cake in front of Shunt, allowing him to axe it. Refbot did not give any card to either of the House Robots for attacking a mobile competitor.

"Refbot, get out there and stop this punishment of the little, bitty Beef-Cake!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Sir Killalot and Shunt attack Beef-Cake
Behemoth vs tornado

Tornado pushes underneath Behemoth

As Refbot had to stay out of the action as much as possible, very few competitors attacked him throughout the series. However, Tornado actually pushed Behemoth into Refbot whilst ramming it during their Challenge Belt battle. This allowed Tornado to turn Behemoth onto its side.

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Arnold A. Terminegger pushes Pussycat against Refbot

In Round 4 of the first Annihilator, Arnold A. Terminegger was fighting Pussycat, but when Pussycat drove away, Arnold A. Terminegger suddenly drove straight at Refbot, and fired its axe. Refbot reversed as Arnold got close, dodging the axe, but as Arnold A-Terminegger turned towards Pussycat, Refbot drove into it, giving it a little push. Pussycat was attacking the immobile Splinter, but Arnold A- Terminegger pushed it into Refbot's front, tipping Pussycat onto its side. As it did so, it fired the axe at Pussycat, which slid off and hit Refbot.

DiscOInfernohitsRefbot

Disc-O-Inferno hits Refbot with its flywheel

In the Final of the second Annihilator, Disc-O-Inferno hit him with its flywheel. Refbot was counting Spirit of Knightmare out, and Disc-O Inferno hit the back of Spirit of Knightmare. The impact turned it so it was facing Refbot, and Disc-O Inferno slammed into Refbot's side. Disc-O Inferno also hit Shunt's side as he came out of the CPZ to attack Spirit of Knightmare.

RefbotpushesNapalm2intothearena

Refbot pushes Napalm 2 into the arena for the Annihilator

Unlike in Series 4, Refbot was used in Round 1 of both of the Annihilators. Humorously, he had to push Napalm 2 into the arena for Round 1 of the second Annihilator.

RefbotblocksDiotoirvsWBC

Refbot blocks Diotoir

Although Refbot was intended to stay neutral and was not allowed to intervene in the battles unless a competitor was immobile, or a robot broke the rules, in the All-Stars battle between Wheely Big Cheese and Diotoir, he got involved in the battle. Wheely Big Cheese was struggling to get under Diotoir, but as Wheely Big Cheese pushed against Diotior's side, Refbot backed into Diotoir, preventing it from getting away, and allowing Wheely Big Cheese to reverse, and it got the flipper under Diotoir's front, and flipped it over, from which Diotoir could not self-right.

Killalot on fire

Refbot attempts to put out Sir Killalot's fire

Little was seen of Refbot's fire extinguisher throughout the series. The most notable exception came in the All-Stars battle between Pussycat and Tornado, where Sir Killalot caught fire after pushing Pussycat off a flame jet. Pussycat had cut Sir Killalot's hydraulic line earlier in the battle, causing it to leak, and Sir Killalot caught fire as he drove onto the flame jet, which spread into a large fire throughout his internals. Refbot tried to put it out with his CO2 extinguisher, but despite dampening the flames a little, the fire kept burning and spread again, forcing Sir Killalot to drive onto one of the CO2 vents to put out the fire.

"...and Killalot's on fire! Killalot is on fire! The Refbot's in there! I don't think we've seen that, the Refbot using the fire extinguisher! Oh Killalot, what's happened to you mate? Are we sympathetic? Well I am, because he lives near me, and you don't want to rough Sir Killalot up, I can tell you! Oh dear! Ashes to ashes Killalot!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Sir Killalot burns
Oblark vs Mega-Hurts

Refbot tries to push Mega-Hurts free of Rhino

Refbot's most eventful episode of the series was the Forces Special, where he had notable moments in 4 of the 5 battles. In the second Round 1 Melee, between Rhino, Mega-Hurts and Oblark, Mega-Hurts tried attacking Rhino, but became caught on one of its exposed tracks. Refbot came over to help, pushing against Rhino to try and get Mega-Hurts free of the track, but Mega-Hurts was still stuck, so Refbot turned around and reversed against Mega-Hurts, which pushed it free of Rhino's track.

RefbotpushesRhinomascotonflames

Refbot pushes Rhino's mascot onto the flame pit

There was also a humorous moment at the end of the same battle. Rhino's toy mascot fell out of the top after the robot was thrown by the floor flipper, and Refbot pushed it onto the flame pit, much to the amusement of Jonathan Pearce.

"Well the Army mascot goes up in flames, as do the Army's hopes!"
— Craig Charles after the battle
RefbotpushesOblarkfreeofwall

Refbot pushes Oblark free of the wall

In the Semi-Final between Oblark and Anvil, Anvil pushed Oblark against the arena side wall whilst its axe was stuck in the down position, which caused Oblark to become hooked onto the wall. Refbot came in to push Oblark free, driving between it and the arena wall to get Oblark away. However, it wasn't long until Anvil pushed it against the wall again, and Oblark became hooked against it. Refbot tried pushing it free of the wall, pushing it against an angle grinder, but Anvil got behind Oblark, preventing Refbot from pushing it free of the wall. As Refbot pushed, Oblark slid up Refbot's front plough and become caught. Anvil drove away to open the pit, as Refbot pushed Oblark towards the arena centre, then Anvil drove into the back of Oblark to push it free of Refbot.

RefbotpushesSubVersionmascottoflames

Refbot pushes Sub-Version's mascot onto the flame pit

SubVersionthrownagainstRefbot

Sub-Version hits Refbot, having been thrown by the floor flipper

The other Semi-Final saw a couple of humorous moments after Sub-Version was immobilised. Sub-Version's Action Man mascot was tipped out of the Crow's Nest by Shunt using his axe and scoop, and just like he had done with Rhino's mascot, Refbot pushed it onto the flame pit. Sub-Version was pushed onto the floor flipper, and as it was thrown, it hit Refbot on landing.

RefbotpushesMegaHurtsfree

Refbot pushes Mega-Hurts free of the angle grinder

In the Final, Mega-Hurts accidentally turned into an angle grinder, and Anvil rammed into the back of it, which caused one of its spikes to become caught underneath the angle grinder, leaving it stuck. Refbot came over and pushed it free of the angle grinder.

Disc-O-Inferno vs Velocirippa

Refbot's counter shows 67

There was a technical issue with Refbot's counter during the Mayhem battle between Disc-O-Inferno, Velocirippa and Comengetorix in Episode 13. When Refbot went over to count out Velocirippa, his counter showed the number 67, before correcting itself to show the count.

At the end of the Second World Championship final, Refbot counted down the last 10 seconds of the battle before it went to a Judges' decision.

Series 5[]

"When the action starts you can be sure that Refbot will be in the thick of it, ensuring that fairplay is being upheld."
— The Series 5 programme on Refbot[16]
Series 5-6 House Robot Intro

Refbot and the other House Robots during the House Robot introduction

Obisidan SMIDSY Refbot

Refbot counts out Obsidian

Series 5 was a relatively quiet year for Refbot, as he was mostly just used for his essential purposes, and he had relatively few notable moments. The first robot he counted out in this series was Obsidian, after it was immobilised in its Round 1 battle with S.M.I.D.S.Y. in Heat A.

"...all the design work in the world will not save you from the Refbot's count!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot counts out Obsidian
Kliptonite out

Kliptonite is counted out

Razer v Rick

Rick is counted out and eliminated

Refbot's busiest heats in this series were Heats D and K, where he counted out 5 competitors across the 7 battles in each episode. In contrast, in Heat J, he only counted out one competitor, and in two episodes, Heat H and the Grand Final, Refbot was not needed to count out any competitors. Heat H is particularly notable, as none of the 7 battles required him to count out a competitor, all of the battles ending with knockout victories via pitting or flipping a robot out of the arena, Judges' decisions, or the losing robot was immobilised, but pitted before Refbot could count them out.

Whilst counting out Bee-Capitator in Heat D, Refbot was shown shaking his head for the first time.

Lambsy Bulldog Breed 3

Refbot comes over to push Bulldog Breed off of Lambsy

As usual, Refbot was used to separate competitors when they became caught together. In Heat B, during the Round 2 battle between Bulldog Breed 3 and Lambsy, Bulldog Breed 3 drove up over Lamby's jaw, but became stuck on Lambsy's top, hanging over the edge with its wheels unable to gain purchase. Bulldog Breed 3 could not reverse off, and Lambsy could not drive with Bulldog Breed 3 on top of it, so Refbot quickly came in and pushed Bulldog Breed 3 down off on Lambsy's top on top of the jaw, so Lambsy could turn and reverse out from under Bulldog Breed 3.

Napalmwarhog

Refbot pushes Warhog away from the wall

In Heat E, Napalm 2 pinned Warhog against the arena wall, but because it held it there longer than was allowed, Refbot pushed Napalm 2 away from Warhog. First, Refbot pushed against Napalm 2's front a couple of times, to warn it to let Warhog go. Napalm 2 kept Warhog pinned, so Refbot got beside it and pushed it away from Warhog.

"Napalm has Warhog pressed to the arena. "Get out of the way," says the Refbot "I want to see if Warhog has been immobilised here! I want a closer check.""
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot pushes Napalm 2 away from Warhog

However, Warhog still couldn't get away as one of its blades was caught under an angle grinder. so Refbot drove around Warhog and pushed it away from the wall. As he did so, Napalm 2 turned into the angle grinder, and stopped moving by the wall. Refbot got behind Napalm 2 and pushed it away from the wall, in front of the angle grinder, but Napalm 2 was still not moving, though time soon ran out, and Napalm 2 won on a Judges' decision.

PushingThzandMing3apart

Refbot tries to push Terrorhurtz and Ming 3 apart

In Heat L, Ming 3 had Terrorhurtz in its crusher, and was pulling it down the arena, when suddenly Matilda reversed into the back of Ming 3 with her flywheel, immobilising it. Terrorhurtz was left stuck on top of Ming 3's wedge, so Refbot came in to push the two apart, with Dead Metal also giving Terrorhurtz a push.

"They're on the flame pit, the Refbot comes in and has a check, should give Matilda the red card!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot pushes Terrorhurtz free of the immobile Ming 3
RefbotpushesWheelyBigCheesefree

Refbot pushes Wheely Big Cheese free of the angle grinder

Refbot also helped free a couple of competitors who became caught under angle grinders. During the Loser's Melee in the second Semi-Final, Wheely Big Cheese and Firestorm 3 were fighting by a CPZ, and Firestorm 3 pushed Wheely Big Cheese against the side wall. Wheely Big Cheese tried to drive away, but as it did so, it drove straight into an angle grinder, and the edge of the flipper became caught under an angle grinder. As Wheely Big Cheese could not reverse out from underneath, Refbot pushed it free.

RefbotpushesRazerfreeofanglegrinder

Refbot pushes Razer free of the angle grinder

In the Grand Final battle between Firestorm 3 and Razer, Firestorm 3 rammed Razer into an angle grinder, then pinned it against the wall by the angle grinder. As it did so, one of Razer's rear wheels became caught under the angle grinder. Firestorm 3 reversed away, but Razer could not get free, so Refbot drove to Razer's side and pushed against it, freeing the rear wheel and allowing it to drive away.

"...Simon looks worried! And the Refbot looks concerned too! And Razer here.... oh I thought they were immobilised!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot frees Razer
SgtBashYellowCardS5HeatE

Sgt. Bash receives a yellow card for his attack on Evolution

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Sir Killalot gets a yellow card from Refbot

Refbot continued to use his card system if the House Robots broke the rules. In a Heat G first round battle between Evolution and Sabretooth, both competitors appeared to stop, and Sgt. Bash came out of his CPZ to attack Evolution whilst Sir Killalot pushed Sabretooth away from Evolution, at which point it started moving again. Sgt. Bash crushed into the front of Evolution with his pincers.

"Not actually allowed to do that, Refbot, because Evolution was in no sort of trouble. Get in there and pull out a card for the Sergeant. There it is - fully deserved."
— Jonathan Pearce as Sgt. Bash illegally damages Evolution

Considerable damage was caused to the fibreboard robot, and Sgt. Bash was given a yellow card by Refbot. Despite this, Sir Killalot continued to attack Evolution, cutting its turret off with his claw and spinning it around. As a result of these unfair attacks, the judges put Evolution through to the second round.

"Well, Killalot and Sgt. Bash both get yellow cards! They were obviously not happy with that fight though, it was a bit like handbags at dawn!"
— Craig Charles after the battle ended
RefbotShunt

Shunt gets red-carded

In Heat K, during the battle between Destruct-A-Bubble and Rick, Shunt came out of his CPZ when Destruct-A-Bubble stopped moving and axed it. Rick tipped Destruct-A-Bubble onto its front, and Shunt came into the arena centre and axed it again. His axe got stuck in the competitor, so he tipped Destruct-A-Bubble back onto its wheels. As Shunt axed Destruct-A-Bubble again, Refbot gave Shunt an instant red card from Refbot for leaving his CPZ and attacking a competitor before it had been counted out.

"...I don't think Shunt should be out there, that's not in the CPZ, Refbot. And Shunt on the attack again... he's red-carded! Shunt sent back to his corner!"
— Jonathan Pearce whilst Shunt is red-carded in the battle between Rick and Destruct-A-Bubble
ShuntpushesRefbot

Shunt pushes Refbot in retaliation

As Shunt reversed to his CPZ, Refbot followed him, and Shunt pushed back against Refbot, "angry" at the red card.

"...and Shunt's having a ruck here with the Refbot! A real argument ensuing!"
— Jonathan Pearce in the battle between Rick and Destruct-A-Bubble
RefbotwarnsPanicAttackasitattacksShunt

Refbot warns Panic Attack as it attacks Shunt

Refbot also warned competitors when they broke the rules, although unlike in Extreme 1, he did not give any cards to robots that broke the rules. In Heat J, during the Round 2 battle between Panic Attack and Tiberius 2, Panic Attack pushed Tiberius 2 into the CPZ, where it was attacked by Dead Metal, and Shunt also came over to attack. However, as he did so, Panic Attack got its forks under Shunt's side and lifted him up. Refbot came over and pushed against Panic Attack, forcing it to drop Shunt back to the floor.

There were a couple of unusual moments where Refbot did not follow his usual rules. In Round 1 of Heat D, Gemini managed to immobilise Ruf Ruf Dougal, then flipped it over. Sir Killalot came over and picked Ruf Ruf Dougal over, then dropped it out of the arena without waiting for Refbot to count it out. However, Refbot did not give him a yellow card, likely because Ruf Ruf Dougal was clearly immobilised. If Refbot had counted Ruf Ruf Dougal out, he would have counted 6 robots across 7 battles in Heat D.

In Round 2 of the Semi-Finals, in the battle between Hypno-Disc and Dominator 2. Dominator 2 kept rocking back and forth on one wheel, and Hypno-Disc attacked it a few times, but then stopped once the team realised Dominator 2 was immobile. However, Refbot did not go in to count Dominator 2 out. Hypno-Disc held back, as Dominator 2 continued to spin on the spot, but the two didn't fight, as they expected Refbot to count Dominator 2 out, but he never did. The battle ground on until it reached a Judges' decision. The audience booed the lack of action, and the Judges described it as the most boring fight they'd seen. Why Refbot did not count Dominator 2 out is not known.

Tetanus steam vent

Refbot, about to count out Onslaught and Tetanus

Unusually, this series saw two occasions where Refbot had to count out both competitors together after they both stopped moving at the same time, and both these battles happened in the same episode, one after the other. During the Round 1 battle between Onslaught and Tetanus, Tetanus toppled Onslaught, but drove onto a CO2 vent, which immobilised it. With Onslaught unable to self-right, and Tetanus immobile, Refbot counted them both out so the battle could go to a Judges' decision.

"The Refbot is in there and about to count... I think Onslaught will be counted out, because we've seen no movement whatsoever from the Onslaught team."
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot stands over the two immobile competitors
Eleven vs 3 Stegs

Eleven and 3 Stegs 2 Heaven are both counted out

The other occasion was the battle between Eleven and 3 Stegs 2 Heaven, also in Round 1 of Heat I. 3 Stegs 2 Heaven tried to attack the body of Eleven with its spinning disc, but one of cables became caught behind the disc, leaving 3 Stegs 2 Heaven unable to move. Rather than trying to push 3 Stegs 2 Heaven free, Refbot counted both robots out so the battle could got a Judges' decision.

"The Refbot is in, and I think the Refbot is counting them both down to a Judges' decision!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot counts Eleven and 3 Stegs 2 Heaven out together
Pushing3StegsandTetanusapart

Refbot pushes 3 Stegs 2 Heaven and Tetanus apart

Strangely, Refbot would need to intervene in all three of 3 Stegs 2 Heaven's battles, as it would become stuck in some way in each round it competed in. In its Round 2 battle against Tetanus, Tetanus rammed 3 Stegs 2 Heaven against the arena wall, but then broke down. 3 Stegs 2 Heaven was caught on one of Tetanus' front prongs, and was only moving on one wheel, so it could not move away from the wall. Refbot would come over to help it, driving at the side of the two robots and pushing them apart.

"The Refbot, has a glance. The wheels of 3 Stegs are spinning, it is not yet immobilised. They were held together, locked together. The Refbot can come in and break them up like that."
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot pushes 3 Stegs 2 Heaven free of Tetanus
RefbotFrees3Stegs

Refbot knocks 3 Stegs 2 Heaven off the wall

In the Heat Final, Bigger Brother flipped 3 Stegs 2 Heaven against the arena wall, then chased after Sir Killalot. As flipping an opponent so it is stuck against the wall is not a form of knockout victory, Refbot pushed 3 Stegs 2 Heaven off the wall, though it still lost the battle.

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Refbot puts out Corkscrew's internal fire

Refbot's extinguisher did not see much use. In the Heat Final of Heat F, Corkscrew's internals caught fire after it was thrown by the floor flipper. Shunt used his axe to tip Corkscrew onto its side, and Refbot used his extinguisher on the base, putting out the fire. As he did so, his yellow card was flashing, though this did not appear to be at any robot, as no House Robot had broken any rules in attacking the immobile Corkscrew.

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Refbot puts out Diotoir's flaming fur

The other notable use of his extinguisher came in the next Heat, where he was once again required to put out Diotoir's burning fur. In the Heat Final of Heat G, Spawn Again flipped Diotoir over, and Refbot counted it out. The Spawn Again and Diotoir teams had made a gentlemen's agreement that they would pit the loser before the House Robots could attack, but Spawn Again lost signal whilst trying to pit Diotoir, giving Sgt. Bash a chance to come over and set the fur on fire as usual. Refbot came over to put out the flames, but as he did so, Sgt. Bash drove around to the other side and set the rest of the fur on fire. Refbot would drive around Diotoir, and when Sgt. Bash drove away, he would put the flames out.

"...and in a splash of steam, out go the flames and out go the hopes!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot puts out Diotoir's fires
X-Terminator Refbot

X-Terminator fires its axe at Refbot

A few competitors actually attacked Refbot across the series. In Round 1 of Heat F, during the battle between X-Terminator and Immortalis, X-Terminator axed Immortalis, but the axe became stuck, and when it tried to pull the axe back, the whole robot overbalanced and was pulled forwards onto Immortalis. Refbot came over and pushed X-Terminator, allowing it to fall back down and pull the axe free of Immortalis. X-Terminator reversed, but then, instead of attacking its opponent, X-Terminator drove at Refbot and fired its axe at him, with the axe landing between his rear "feet". Refbot turned around and drove at X-Terminator to give it a warning, and X-Terminator turned around and reversed into Refbot's side. Refbot tried to reverse away, but X-Terminator kept reversing against him, so Refbot drove forwards to get away. As X-Terminator drove away, Refbot backed into his side.

"Oi, Refbot, yellow card X-Terminator, surely! Have a word!"
— Jonathan Pearce as X-Terminator curiously tussles with Refbot
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Axe-Awe pits Refbot on top of its burning opponent

In Round 1 of Heat H, Granny's Revenge was set alight by Sgt. Bash, and with some pushing by Axe-Awe, it limped towards the pit, but drove so only one wheel was hanging over the edge, leaving it stuck. Refbot came over to push it in fully, but as he did so, he drove too far over the edge, leaving it stuck over the edge of the pit. Axe-Awe toppled Refbot into the pit with the burning Granny.

"OH, who's gone in there with her? The Refbot's gone in! Granny's got hold of the Refbot, what a dreadful thought!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Granny's Revenge - and Refbot - are pitted
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Wheely Big Cheese gets under Refbot

Wheely Big Cheese briefly had an opportunity to flip Refbot during its battle with Dominator 2 in the Semi-Finals. Whilst avoiding Dominator 2's axe, Wheely Big Cheese drove forwards, straight into Refbot, getting underneath him. However, Refbot reversed, and Wheely Big Cheese turned, not taking the opportunity to flip the House Robot.

CorkscrewhitsimmobileRefbot

Corkscrew hits the immobile Refbot with  its blades

Refbot was broke down in two battles during this series, and was completely immobile throughout the battle. First, in Heat F, during the Round 2 battle between Corkscrew and 13 Black, Refbot did not move at all during the battle, though his card system was still working. At the start of the battle, Corkscrew accidentally drove into him whilst swerving to avoid a charge from 13 Black. Usually, Refbot would have reversed as Corkscrew drove towards him. Corkscrew started getting its spinning body up to speed, but 13 Black drove at it before it was up to speed, so Corkscrew reversed to dodge it, hitting Refbot with its spinning blades. 13 Black would also drive into Refbot later in the battle, whilst turning around for another attack. Off-screen, Refbot was pushed to the top of the arena so he would not get in the way. Late on in the battle, one of Corkscrew's blades became caught in 13 Black's side, and with Refbot immobile, Shunt had to come out of his CPZ to try and push them free.

DestructABubblebacksintoimmobileRefbot

Destruct-A-Bubble backs into the immobile Refbot

Also, Refbot did not move at all in the Round 1 battle between Destruct-A-Bubble and Axe-C-Dent in Heat K. Destruct-A-Bubble drove into him twice, once when charging up the arena, then later when reversing away from its opponent. Off-screen, Refbot was pushed to the top of the arena - Shunt can be seen leaving the CPZ and driving towards Refbot. When Axe-C-Dent broke down, Refbot was unable to go over to count it out, so a close-up clip of Refbot's countdown clock was used.

Series 6[]

"As our referee, Refbot is there to keep things as calm as possible!"
— The Series 6 programme on Refbot[17]
BrutusMaximusCountedOut

Refbot counts out Brutus Maximus

For Series 6, Refbot's fire extinguisher was improved, and copies were made of all his components, so they could be easily replaced if damaged during a battle[18]. Much like Series 5, Series 6 was a mostly straightforward year for Refbot, where he was mostly just used for his basic purposes, with only a few notable moments.

RefbotfreesXTerminatoraxe

Refbot frees X-Terminator's axe

Refbot's main purpose in this series was to push robots free when they were stuck on the arena, or on each other. In Heat B, X-Terminator missed an axe blow on Robochicken, and the axe became stuck in the floor, with X-Terminator unable to pull it free. Refbot came over, and pushed against the axe with his front plough, allowing X-Terminator to pull it free. Notably, X-Terminator was by the arena side wall when it got its axe stuck, between an angle grinder and the flame pit, so Refbot had to drive over the flame pit to free the axe, though he turned around and reversed down the arena to avoid the flame pit after freeing the axe, rather than reversing back over it.

"...we can see the Refbot, getting a bit close for comfort!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot tries to get away from the flame pit
RefbotcomesovertoMightyMouseoffanglegrinder

Refbot pushes Mighty Mouse off the Disc of Doom button

In the next Heat, Dantomkia flipped Mighty Mouse towards the arena wall, and it rolled over and landed resting against the Disc of Doom button. As Mighty Mouse was unable to roll back down whilst resting on its side, Refbot came over and pushed it away from the button using his front wedge, then turned around, so it was facing its base, and pushed it against an angle grinder to tip it back onto its wheels.

EdgeHogCountedOut

Refbot counts Edge Hog out

In Round 1 of Heat G, Edge Hog became stuck in reverse drive after being hit by Matilda's flywheel, and it slammed into the pit release button. Edge Hog could not drive away, and Refbot drove the arena to try and push it away from the button, but despite multiple pushes, Edge Hog was still stuck by the button as it was stuck in reverse drive, so Refbot counted it out.

"The Refbot, going in and having a look at Edge Hog, still stuck to the arena side wall. ... The clock is counting down against the Edge Hog boys..."
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot tries to push Edge Hog away from the wall, then counts it out
RefbotpushesSupernovaoffanglegrinder

Refbot pushes Supernova off of the angle grinder

In the Heat Final of Heat H, Spawn Again flipped Supernova against an angle grinder, and despite spinning its flywheel to try and get free, Supernova could not get down. Refbot came over and pushed Supernova with his front plough, tipping it back down to the arena floor.

"What an anti-climax for Supernova! They're wedged in tight on the arena side wall! The Refbot can free them, and has done!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot pushes Supernova down from the angle grinder
RefbotpushesKronic2offflamepit

Refbot pushes Kronic 2 off of the flame pit

During the Round 2 battle between Terrorhurtz and Kronic 2 in Heat I, Terrorhurtz rammed Kronic 2 across the arena, and Kronic 2 was left stuck on the flame pit, seemingly immobile. With Kronic 2 not moving at all, Refbot pushed it off the flame pit, where after a spurt from a CO2 vent and a push from Growler, Kronic 2 regained some movement, albeit only on one wheel. Refbot had to wait until Kronic 2 was fully immobile before counting it out.

Refbotpushes13BlackandFirestorm4

Refbot pushes 13 Black and Firestorm 4 together

In the first Semi-Final, Firestorm 4 flipped 13 Black over, then flipped it against the arena wall. However, whilst 13 Black was left hanging by one disc off the wall, Firestorm 4's rear-up system caused it to lift its front up on the wall beside 13 Black, leaving it stuck as well. Firestorm 4 fired the flipper to try and knock itself back down, but this failed. Refbot pushed 13 Black against the wall, and although it slid off the wall, it was stuck on Firestorm 4, which was still stuck hanging on the wall.

"And the Refbot has a nudge and a check, and I think John Denny there, with the beard, the captain and driver of 13 Black, probably realises the worst is just about to happen... or is it? Is Firestorm moving?"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot tries to push 13 Black and Firestorm 4 off the wall
RefbotpushesFirestorm4offtheanglegrinder

Refbot pushes Firestorm 4 off the angle grinder

Refbot tried pushing 13 Black against Firestorm 4 to push Firestorm 4 free, but this didn't work, so Refbot drove around to Firestorm 4 and reversed into it, using his rear "feet" to push it free of the wall, also pushing 13 Black free of Firestorm 4. However, when Firestorm 4 tried driving away, its rear-up device activated again, and it drove into an angle grinder with its front end sticking up and became stuck again. Refbot used his front plough to push it off of the angle grinder. Firestorm 4 went on to win the battle by flipping 13 Black so it was resting against an angle grinder.

"...the Refbot has another look. It actually helped both robots out I think here earlier, to get them off the arena side wall. 13 Black promptly went back up on the side wall, and therefore will be counted out..."
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot counts out 13 Black
RefbotpushesDantomkiafromundertheanglegrinder

Refbot pushes Dantomkia from under the angle grinder

In the next battle, between Dantomkia and S3, Dantomkia missed a charge at S3 and crashed into an angle grinder, and its front wedges became stuck under the angle grinder. Refbot pushed against Dantomkia's side a couple of times with his front plough, but this did not free him. Refbot turned a little and tried again, this time brushing past Dantomkia, which turned Dantomkia around, getting its front wedges out from under the angle grinder, but when it was freed, it became clear it was immobile, the safety link having been knocked out on impact with the angle grinder.

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Refbot tries to push Wild Thing free of Vader in Round 1

However, on three occasions in Heat E, Wild Thing and Vader became stuck together, and though Refbot tried to push them apart, he was unable to. In Round 1, Wild Thing attacked Vader's side, and the blade became stuck in Vader's armour. Wild Thing tried to push Vader onto the flame pit, but Vader struggled against it, managing to turn away from the flame pit, and turned Wild Thing around, forcing it onto the flame pit. Wild Thing struggled, but could not get free, despite UFO pushing against it and Vader. Refbot came over and pushed Wild Thing, but whilst it did manage to push it off the flame pit, the blade was still stuck in Vader's side. The two remained stuck together until the battle ended.

SirKillalotseperatesVaderandWildThing

Sir Killalot helps separate Vader and Wild Thing

In the Heat Final, Vader and Wild Thing fought again, and Vader hit the front of Wild Thing with its disc, and the blade became caught in the armour. Wild Thing and Vader struggled against each other, but could not get free. Refbot came over and pushed against Vader, then reversed against Wild Thing, but this did not separate the two competitors. Sir Killalot had to come over, pushing against Wild Thing with his claw, which separated the two.

Wild Thing vs Vader HF

Refbot fails to separate Vader and Wild Thing

Later in the battle, Wild Thing charged into Vader's side with its disc, and it became stuck in the armour, as it had in Round 1. Wild Thing struggled to get free, but the disc was lodged in the armour, and although Wild Thing pushed Vader into Shunt, who attacked it with his axe and pushed it with his scoop, this failed to separate the robots. Refbot came over as Wild Thing pushed Vader, getting alongside the two competitors, and pushed against Wild Thing's side, but this failed to push it free. As he did so, Vader's disc was spinning, and it hit Refbot's side. Sir Killalot came out of his CPZ and got under Wild Thing with his claw, pushing against it and Vader, which freed Vader's disc from Refbot, but Wild Thing's disc was still caught in Vader. Wild Thing pushed Vader up the arena to Shunt's CPZ, who lifted Vader up with his scoop and pushed it and Wild Thing to the arena centre, and as he dropped Vader, this separated it and Wild Thing.

TornadofreesRazerRefbotwatcheson

Tornado frees Razer from the angle grinder whilst Refbot watches on

Refbot also tried and failed to push Razer free of angle grinder. In the Grand Final, Tornado rammed Razer against the wall, and one of its wheels became stuck under an angle grinder. Refbot came over and pushed against Razer's side a couple of times to try and free it, but this failed, so Refbot reversed. Tornado continued to slam into Razer, and Refbot drove around Tornado, but before he could try and push it free, Tornado's repeated slams pushed Razer's rear wheel free of the angle grinder.

"...the Refbot comes in, and all of a sudden, the clock takes on a lurid and awful hue if you are a fan of Razer! They cannot cannot get themselves released, they are pegged in there!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot comes in to help Razer
Refbotseparates259andJudgeShred

Refbot tries to separate 259 and Judge Shred 2½

In the UK vs Germany Special, 259 repeatedly battered Judge Shred 2½ with its flywheel, flipping it up, but as it tried to attack the underbelly, 259 broke down, leaving Judge Shred 2½ hanging off the flywheel. Refbot pushed against Judge Shred 2½, which slid off the disc, but because the two were right by the wall, it fell onto 259. With both competitors immobile, the two could not separate, so Growler came out of his CPZ to push the two apart. Refbot then counted Judge Shred 2½ out, as it had been immobilised first. Unseen on the UK broadcast of the episode, Refbot would also count out 259. In this battle, Refbot's head was strangely stuck facing upwards.

RefbotcountsoutWASP

Refbot counts out W.A.S.P.

The first robots Refbot counted out in this series were Brutus Maximus and W.A.S.P. in the opening battle of the series is Round 1 of Heat A. Both times, Refbot's red light showed before the count reached 10.

Refbot had to count out at least one robot in every episode of the series, and he was particularly busy in Heat K, where he counted out every robot that was eliminated in all five of the battles (Granny's Revenge 2, 4x4, Spin Doctor, Revenge of Trouble & Strife, Kat 3, Bulldog Breed and Barber-ous 2), and in Heats F and the UK vs Germany Special, Refbot counted out every robot that was not beaten on a Judges decision, although the latter includes the battle between Judge Shred 2½ and 259 where both robots were counted out. However, in contrast, Refbot only counted one robot out in Heat B, X-Terminator, and only one in the Grand Final, Terrorhurtz.

Armadrillo vs Refbot

Armadrillo is freed by Refbot

There were a couple of robots that were stuck that managed to avoid the count. In Heat D, Armadrillo stopped moving, and Refbot came over to count it out. However, as he did so, he gave Armadrillo a push, and as the counter was roughly 4 seconds in, Armadrillo was suddenly able to turn and drive away, the first time a competitor started moving again whilst being counted out.

"I thought that aluminium armour would be a weak link for S3, I was wrong. And so was the Refbot, there look, it started to count out Armadrillo, but there is still life in that machine! They are still mobile, just about!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Armadrillo moves away from Refbot's count

After the battle, it was revealed that Armadrillo's low ground clearance had caused it to get stuck, presumably on some piece of debris, and Refbot's intervention had pushed it free.

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13 Black moves away from Refbot, despite being upside-down

13 Black used discs to "crab walk" away from Refbot after it was flipped over in the loser's melee of Semi-Final 1. Dantomkia flipped it over in a CPZ, and after Dead Metal attacked, 13 Black span its two discs together to get out of the CPZ. Refbot came over, but 13 Black moved across the arena on its discs. As it was still moving, Refbot could not count it out, so he reversed away.

Discoinferno refbot

Refbot extinguishes Disc-O-Inferno's internal fire

As in Series 5, little was seen of Refbot's extinguisher. The most notable exception came in Heat L, during the battle between Disc-O-Inferno and Killer Carrot 2. Disc-O-Inferno was dominating the battle, but then drove close to a flame jet and started spinning on the spot. After spinning around the flames, driving over the flame jet repeatedly, Killer Carrot 2 drove into Disc-O-Inferno, which backed away into the wall. Disc-O-Inferno stopped moving, its armour visibly singed by the fire, and with a small fire visible inside the robot. Refbot came over and fired his extinguisher at Disc-O-Inferno, putting out the internal fire, and Disc-O-Inferno was able to move away from the wall.

RefbotextinguishesKronic2

Refbot extinguishes Kronic 2's burning foam spikes

One of the only other times Refbot was shown using his extinguisher came in Heat I, during the battle between Terrorhurtz and Kronic 2. After Kronic 2 was counted out, Growler pushed it by a flame pit. Kronic 2 was still moving on one wheel, and it drove onto the flame pit, causing its foam spikes to catch fire. After the battle ended, Refbot was shown putting out the flames, though strangely, Refbot reversed away from Kronic 2 as he fired the extinguisher.

Notably, in the Round 1 battle in Heat A, Ruf Ruf Dougal's tail caught fire after it drove by the flame pit, and the fire quickly spread, burning the whole coat. Refbot did not attempt to put out the fire, leaving it to smoulder. In the same battle, the extinguisher briefly went off when Weld-Dor 3 backed into him whilst it was trying to get away from Dead Metal.

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Refbot opens the pit

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Tornado rams Razer into Refbot in the CPZ

There were a couple of notable exceptions to Refbot's usual behaviour in this series. In Heat L, Refbot opened the pit during the second Round 1 battle whilst the House Robots were carrying out mercy killings on Derek 2 and Tridentate, which Refbot usually did not take part in, being conceived as the neutral House Robot.

Also, in the Grand Final, Refbot stayed in one of the top CPZ's for most of the battle. He later drove out of the CPZ when Tornado pushed Razer into the CPZ.

"The Refbot gets in the way! Firestorm pushes the Refbot against the arena wall! You can see Growler there, at the top of your picture, and Refbot did get far too close! And Firestorm 4 it was, thrust him over!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Firestorm 4 flips over Refbot
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Firestorm 4 flips Barbaric Response onto Refbot

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Refbot, after being flipped over by Firestorm 4

Refbot managed to stay away from the competitors for the most part, and very few chose to attack him. The most notable exception was in Heat B, during the battle between Firestorm 4 and Barbaric Response. Firestorm 4 got under Barbaric Response and rammed it up the arena, in Refbot's direction. Refbot tried backing away as the competitors came towards him, but Growler was driving up the arena and Refbot backed into him. Firestorm 4 flipped Barbaric Response over, with it falling onto Refbot then onto its back, and Firestorm 4 drove into Refbot's side, pushing him against the top arena wall. Firestorm 4 reversed out from under Refbot and turned around, but then drove under the back of Refbot, getting underneath and flipping him over. Firestorm 4 would later go on to win the battle by flipping Barbaric Response against the arena wall, from which it could not get down. With Refbot unable to push it down or count it out, cease was called.

Craig Charles: "I tell you on thing though, you know you flipped over Refbot! And you know, our robots have very long memory chips! And he's probably talking to Growler and Mr. Psycho right now, and they might come and reap some revenge for that, you know!"
Graham Bone: "It's gotta be done though, hasn't it?"
Craig Charles: "It's gotta be done, because it's Robot Wars, innit?"
— Craig Charles warns Team Firestorm after the battle
Anarchy vs Inshredable

Inshredable counted out. Notice Refcam has fallen off Refbot at the bottom of the picture (click to enlarge)

In the Round 2 battle between Anarchy and Inshredable in Heat G, Refbot came over to count out Inshredable when it stopped moving. Anarchy was still attacking it, and as Refbot began counting it out, Anarchy flipped Inshredable onto him. Refbot tried reversing to let Inshredable to slide off, but Anarchy drove into Inshredable, pinning it against Refbot and flipped it against him, knocking off his camera. This also immobilised Refbot, as he was unable to move away after counting out Inshredable, leaving Inshredable leaning against him. Growler had to push Refbot to separate the two.

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Tetanus 2 pushes Weld-Dor into Refbot, pushing them against the top wall

In Round 1 of Heat A, Tetanus 2 was pushing Weld-Dor 3 up the arena, and though Refbot tried reversing out of the way, Tetanus 2 pushed Weld-Dor 3 into Refbot, forcing Refbot against the arena entry gate.

Refbot pitted

Refbot reverses into the pit

Being attacked by competitors was not the only problem Refbot suffered from in this series. In Round 2 of Heat A, Tetanus 2 gripped onto Raging Reality and pinned it against the arena wall. However, it became stuck there, and with the two competitors unable to separate, Refbot came over to try and push them apart. It pushed Raging Reality, then Tetanus 2, but this failed to separate. Refbot reversed to try again, but as he did so, his rear "feet" went over the edge of the pit. Refbot tried driving forwards to get the feet out of the pit, but couldn't, and he reversed, toppling into the pit.

"The Refbot comes in, to see if it can get things moving again. Oh Refbot, what are you doing?! REFBOT!!! That is appalling! The Ref…is in…the pit! Give the Ref a red card, someone! That is dreadful! Where do we go from here? I'm asking the man who knows the rules... oh, it's the Refbot! And obviously the Refbot is in no position to give me advice right now, so we'll battle on."
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot backs into the pit

This left Raging Reality free to flip Tetanus 2 out of the arena.

"LOL I was driving Ref on during that match !"
Mike Franklin on YouTube in 2007[19]
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Barbaric Response lifts the immobile Refbot

Refbot broke down in three battles across the series. First, in Round 1 of Heat B. After pushing X-Terminator's axe head free of the floor, Refbot broke down. X-Terminator reversed into him, pushing him back. As he was lying there immobile, Barbaric Response got its flipper under Refbot's front and flipped, although it only managed to flick him up a little. Spirit of Scorpion and Robochicken would also push past him. Notably, Barbaric Response and Spirit of Scorpion both broke down later on in the batle, with Barbaric Response stopping shortly before Spirit of Scorpion did. However, with Refbot unable to count either robot out, the battle had to go to the Judges, despite X-Terminator pushing Barbaric Response. The Judges chose to eliminate Spirit of Scorpion, ruling that Spirit of Scorpion was immobile.

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ICU nearly hits immobile Refbot after being thrown by the floor flipper

Refbot also broke down in the first Round 1 melee in Heat D. He was working for most of the battle, counting out ICU. However, late on in the battle, Refbot stopped moving by the disc of doom, and some of the three remaining competitors bumped into him as they fought. GBH 2 pushed past him, pushing him close to the floor flipper, and Refbot was nearly hit by ICU when Shunt put it on the floor flipper, the axe narrowly missing him as it was thrown down the arena.

Extreme 2[]

"The level-headed referee in the chaos of the arena, Refbot is equipped with a fire extinguisher to douse out any over-heated battles. He can also dish out a red or yellow card for unscrupulous roboteering, and count down any well and truly immobilised robot."
— The Series 6 programme on Refbot[20]

Compared to the previous two series, Extreme 2 saw more notable moments for Refbot. Whilst his main purpose was still to count robots out, there were few instances of him being used to push competitors apart, and Refbot actually got involved with the battles more.

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Refbot counts Dantomkia out

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Refbot counts out Snake Bite

The first robot Refbot counted out in this series was Dantomkia in the first semi-final of Heat A of the All-Stars Championship. Refbot actually counted out fewer robots than he had in previous series, with most episodes seeing him count out only one or two robots. In three episodes, he was only required to count out one robot; Heat A of the All-Stars Championship, where he counted out Dantomkia, Fatal Traction in Heat D of the New Blood Championship, and Behemoth in the University Challenge. The most notable exception was Heat B of the New Blood Tournament, where he counted out all 5 of the beaten robots. He also counted out 4 robots in Heat C of the New Blood Championship, and 3 robots in the Annihilator. He counted out 6 competitors in the Tag Team Terror, and was shown counting out 4 robots in the Robot Rampage, but these episodes had more competitors than usual. However, Refbot made up for this with a number of notable moments across the series.

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Refbot pushes Maximus away from the angle grinder

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Refbot watches Maximus, before going to count out Niterider

One rare exception of Refbot deciding not to count out an immobile machine came in Round 1 of Heat A of the New Blood Championship, during the battle between Mr Nasty, Maximus and Niterider. Mr Nasty rammed Maximus into an angle grinder, where its front end got caught beneath. Refbot pushed Maximus free of the angle grinder, but it was immobile. Mr Nasty pushed it back against the angle grinder, and Refbot pushed it free again. With Maximus unable to drive away, only able to open its flipper, Refbot stood over it, but then decided to turn away and count out Niterider, which had not moved properly since the start of the battle, as that had been immobile longer after losing drive on one side.

"Now the question: who's fallen first? Maximus still active, we can see the flipper still moving, very, very slowly! But the Refbot making sure, and turning away! So is Maximus still okay? And now goes to look at Niterider!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot turns away from Maximus and counts out Niterider

There was also a controversial battle in the same episode. During the other Round 1 melee between Mute, Roobarb and Terror Turtle, Roobarb flipped Terror Turtle over early on, but then flipped it back over, and as it did so, its spinning bar went over the arena side wall, preventing Terror Turtle from getting away. Terror Turtle was still able to move back and forth along the wall, but could not get free, and Sir Killalot's attempts to get the bar off the side also failed. Refbot did not count Terror Turtle out, and Mute accidentally drove into the pit, leaving it unclear which robot would be eliminated. The Judges ruled that Terror Turtle had been immobilised first, so it was eliminated.

NewBloodFinalRound1

Refbot counts out both Mute and Cedric Slammer

Another controversial battle came in the Grand Final of the New Blood Championship. In the Eliminator battle between Cedric Slammer and Mute, both competitors slowed to a halt after a flip from Mute. Cedric Slammer was still moving on one side, whilst Mute was immobile, apart from a couple of little spurts. Refbot counted both robots out, and Mr. Psycho attacked Cedric Slammer.

"The Refbot's going to have a look here, closely. Ooh, both robots I think! Are they both immobile? He's counting them down, you know! Cedric Slammer only twitching, it's not moving cleanly, I think they've both been counted out! What, at the same time, or has he only counted one out there?"
— Confusion as Refbot counts both competitors out

The battle was judged up to the point where both robots stopped, and the Judges controversially ruled in favour of Mute, to the disdain of some of the crowd.

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Killer Carrot 2 lifts Refbot as he finishes counting it out

Only one competitor attacked Refbot in this series, that being Killer Carrot 2 in the Minor Meltdown. Having lost a wheel in its Round 2 battle with Lambsy, Killer Carrot 2 was only turning around in circles. Refbot came over to count it out, and Killer Carrot 2 turned into his side and tried lifting him. It could not turn Refbot over, with Refbot slipping off the lifter, but as he landed, the countdown clock reset, all his card lights showed at once, and the extinguisher went off.

"A valiant effort to stop the clock and get rid of the Refbot!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Killer Carrot 2 tries lifting Refbot

Refbot had more trouble from his fellow House Robots than the competitors in Extreme 2, having a number of tussles with the other House Robots, not all of them unintentional.

Sergeant Bash vs Refbot

Refbot extinguishes Sgt. Bash's flamethrower

The most notable example of this came in Heat A of the New Blood Championship. During Mute’s fight with Mr Nasty, Sgt. Bash inexplicably had a fight with Refbot. Sgt. Bash rushed out of his CPZ, charged at Refbot and blasted his flamethrower at him. Refbot turned and reversed away, but Sgt. Bash chased after him, continuing to blast his flamethrower at him. Refbot turned to avoid the flames, bumping into Sgt. Bash's side. Sgt. Bash turned around and fired his flamethrower at Refbot, who gave him a yellow card. Refbot then drove around to Sgt. Bash's side and reversed against it, pushing him up to the top of the arena.

"Sgt. Bash and the Refbot come head-to-head, and Sgt. didn't like it! "Get out of the way Ref!" Referee will have taken note, oh Sgt., you can't that! Quite right, yellow card, warning! I'd have given him a red, I'd have banned him! ...It's a real old tussle between the two of them! The House Robots having an argument, I love it!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Sgt. Bash fights Refbot
SgtBashchasesRefbotbypit

Sgt. Bash chases Refbot by the pit

Sgt. Bash turned around, pushing Refbot against the wall with his front pincers, and continued chasing after Refbot as he tried to reverse away down the arena. Refbot reversed around the pit, going very close to the edge, and Sgt. Bash followed him, also driving dangerously close to the edge. Sgt. Bash reversed, but then drove around the pit and continued chasing Refbot, blasting his flamethrower. When Sgt. Bash caught up with Refbot, Refbot began firing his fire extinguisher at Sgt. Bash’s flamethrower, managing to put out the fire.

"Mute dominant, the Sergeant dominant, the ref's in trouble! (bursts into laughter) He's trying to put out the fire! He's put out the Sergeant's fire, with the extinguisher!"
— Jonathan Pearce comments on the tussle between Sgt. Bash and Refbot
SirKillalotpushesRefbot

Sir Killalot pushes Refbot as he tries to count Saw Point out

GrowlerpushesSawPointintoRefbot

Growler pushes Saw Point into Refbot

In Round 1 of the Minor Meltdown, two House Robots drove into Refbot during the same battle. In the battle between Bigger Brother, Saw Point and Lambsy, after Bigger Brother had flipped Saw Point over, Refbot went over to count it out, but Sir Killalot drove at his side and pushed him against an angle grinder just before he started his count. After Refbot had counted it out, the House Robots attacked it, with Growler grabbing it in his jaws and ramming it up the arena to the floor flipper, but as he did so, he rammed it into Refbot, who was standing by the flipper.

"Growler will chew the fat with Saw Point. Get out of the way Refbot!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Growler rams Saw Point into Refbot
Refbotlightsbentandnotworkin

Refbot lights not working after Mr. Psycho bends his arm

During the Iron Maidens, Mr Psycho accidentally hit Refbot's lights with his claw whilst turning around, rendering the lights non-operational. In the Round 1 battle between Kat 3, Pussycat and Spin Doctor, Spin Doctor was lying by the arena side wall, and as Refbot went over to check if it was immobile, Mr. Psycho also came over. Mr. Psycho turned around, and as he did so, his claw hit the lights on Refbot's hand, causing the arm the bend. Refbot counted Spin Doctor out, but the lights were no longer working after the impact, so Refbot could not show a red card.

RefbotpinsEdgeHogagainstwall

Refbot pins Edge Hog against the wall to stop it attacking Sgt. Bash

Refbot's most notable battle in this series came in Heat B of the New Blood Championship. In the Round 2 battle between Edge Hog and Hell's Teeth, Edge Hog immobilised Hell's Teeth early on, then took on Dead Metal and Sgt, Bash. Refbot reversed into Edge Hog as he attacked Sgt. Bash. Sgt. Bash reversed, but as soon as Refbot moved away from Edge Hog, it drove back at Sgt. Bash, hitting the flamethrower with the axe again. Refbot intervened again, reversing into Edge Hog and pushing it against the wall. Edge Hog pushed past Sgt. Bash and drove to the other side of the arena. Edge Hog's attacks had caused Sgt. Bash's rear armour to fall loose at the back, so Sgt. Bash reversed into Refbot to push it back into place.

"Well look what's happened to the rear end of Sgt. Bash! It's not a pretty sight, and the Refbot, erm, just... saving his modesty there a wee bit, I think. Putting his pyjamas back on!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Sgt. Bash reverses into Refbot to push his back armour back into place
RefbotpushesHellsTeethintopit

Refbot pushes Hells Teeth into the pit

Edge Hog drove to the other side of the arena, where it continued to fight against Dead Metal and Sgt. Bash. With the other House Robots occupied, Refbot performed the arena duties on Hell's Teeth, first pushing it onto the floor flipper, then backing it onto the Drop Zone, before finally pushing it into the pit.

RefbotpushesDoctorFistontoflamepit

Refbot pushes Doctor Fist onto the flame pit

This series saw an unusual amount of attacks on competitors from Refbot, as well as getting involved in battles, despite his original purpose being as an unbiased House Robot. In Heat D of the New Blood Championship, Doctor Fist was only working on one side, and without waiting for it to become immobile and counting it out, Refbot backed it onto the flame pit, immobilising it.

RefbotpushesKat3ontoflamejet

Refbot pushes Kat 3 onto the flame jet

In Round 1 of the Iron Maidens, Behemoth flipped Kat 3 over, and as it struggled to self-right, Refbot backed into it, pushing it onto a flame jet. Kat 3 tried to use its axe to right itself, but couldn't and Refbot pushed it against an angle grinder, pinning it there. Kat 3 was eventually able to right itself when Behemoth pushed Riptilion by it, and went through when Riptilion broke down, despite the fact it had essentially been immobile for a long time after being flipped over.

Tiberius vs Infinity vs Fluffy

Refbot pushes Fluffy and Tiberius 3 into the pit

In Round 1 of the University Challenge, Tiberius 3 crushed into the top of Fluffy, but the crusher became stuck, and Tiberius 3 could not drop Fluffy off the tip. Refbot pushed against Fluffy to try and free it, but this failed. Tiberius 3 pushed Fluffy over to the pit, which Growler opened, but could not let Fluffy go, and Refbot got behind Tiberius 3 and pushed them both into the pit. As Fluffy went in first, it was eliminated.

RefbotaccidentallybreaksPanicAttack'ssrimech

Refbot accidentally breaks Panic Attack's srimech

Refbot accidentally broke Panic Attack's srimech as it tried to self-right in its battle with Firestorm 4 in the Commonwealth Carnage. Firestorm 4 got under Panic Attack and flipped it up against the arena side wall. Panic Attack's srimech was designed for righting the machine when stuck on its back, but as it was stuck on its side, it merely managed to push it away from the wall a little. Mr. Psycho tried to free Panic Attack, but failed. Refbot came over and also tried to help, giving Panic Attack a push, but this did not help Panic Attack self-right. Refbot drove in between Panic Attack's body and the self-righting lid, causing it to become stuck open.

"Firestorm awaits, The Refbot checks. Panic Attack, I don't think is gonna self right. If they're immobilised for 30 seconds or more, the Refbot will count them out. Firestorm 4 says "Where's your watch Ref?" - there it is! And the countdown to Commonwealth Carnage oblivion for Wales begins!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot prepares to count Panic Attack out

Refbot got behind Panic Attack and pushed it away from the wall, but Panic Attack could not close the self-righting lid, so Panic Attack was counted out.

Craig Charles: "How come you couldn't self-right?"
Kim Davies: "Basically, it self-rights from where we're upside-down, we were on our side, up against the arena, so I hadn't really thought about that. And we managed to get it open, but then Refbot went in and damaged it and it stopped working."
— Post-battle interview
RefbotbacksAMCVnintothepit

Refbot backs AMCVn into the pit

During one of the Heats of the Featherweight Championship, Refbot reversed AMCVn into the pit after counting it out, another rare example of Refbot performing a mercy killing on a competitor.

Refbot Pit

Refbot crushes the featherweights

In the other Featherweight Heat, Gladiator drove behind Refbot near the edge of the pit, Refbot reversed, pushing Gladiator into the pit as well, with the House Robot falling in too, crushing the featherweights.

"How many can we get in that pit? Just about everyone!"
— Jonathan Pearce reviewing the highlights as Refbot reversed into the pit
Refbotbreaksdiscofdoomcover

Refbot breaks the cover of the disc of doom button

There was also a comical moment in Round 1 of the Iron Maidens. Whilst Spin Doctor was unable to move away from the wall, Refbot came over to try and push it away from the wall, but as he turned, his feet hit the disc of doom button, ripping off the front cover.

"The Refbot destroying everything it touches!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot knocks off the front of the disc of doom button
RefbotcounterhalfnotworkingcountingEdgeHog

One half of Refbot's counter not working whilst counting Edge Hog out

The lights on Refbot's counter were not working in the Heat Final of Heat B of the New Blood Championship. Edge Hog had broken down on one side, and Thor pushed it into Sir Killalot, who dropped it on its back. Thor pushed it, causing it to fall on its back, and as it tried to use the axe to right itself, Refbot pushed it to the arena wall. Refbot reversed, and Edge Hog used the axe to self-right, but was no longer moving, so Refbot counted it out. However, his counter had broken on one side, so when it intended to display the 10, it instead read 0.

There was another case of Refbot staying in a CPZ during a battle, the Heat Final of Heat A of the All-Stars Championship between Bigger Brother and Firestorm 4. Firestorm 4 pushed Bigger Brother into the CPZ, so Refbot drove out of it.

Refbot diotoir

Refbot extinguishes Diotoir as it counts it out

This series saw the last time Refbot needed to use his fire extinguisher to put out Diotoir's burning fur, in Round 1 of the Tag Team Terror. Bulldog Breed flipped Diotoir over, then pushed it onto the flame pit, and after Robochicken flipped it off the flame pit, Refbot drove over to put out the flames. Before he could start, Robochicken flipped Diotoir onto his front. Refbot tried extinguishing the flames, but couldn't reach the burning fur on Diotoir's back, so reversed, and drove around Diotoir to reach the back and put out the rest of the flames. This was the only time he was seen using his extinguisher in this series.

Series 7[]

"In the chaos and carnage of a metal melee, is our intrepid and fearless robot referee!"
— The Series 7 Programme on Refbot[21]
RefbotcountsoutBrutusMaximusS7

Refbot counts out Brutus Maximus

As Refbot did not return for the rebooted series, Series 7 was Refbot's final series in Robot Wars, and it proved to be an eventful year for him.

The first competitor that Refbot counted out in this series was Brutus Maximus, in the second Round 1 melee of Heat A. Coincidentally, Brutus Maximus was also the first robot he counted out in Series 6. Although Refbot had to count out at least one competitor in each episode of Series 7, many episodes saw him only have to count out only one or two. In Heat B, Refbot only counted out one robot, out of the 12 robots beaten over the course of the episode. He also only had to count out one robot in the All-Stars Championship, that being Dantomkia in the Final. In contrast, in Heat H, Refbot counted 5 robots out, one in every battle, apart from the special event. In the Grand Final, he counted out X-Terminator in the Eliminator and the Play-Off, the only time he counted out one robot in two battles in the same episode.

Refbot Alienator

Alienator makes its retreat from Refbot's count

Unusually, two competitors started moving again whilst being counted out. In the second Heat of the Featherweight Championship, Alienator crashed into the pit release button, and stopped moving. Refbot came over, and began to count it out. The count reached 5, but suddenly, Alienator started moving again, and it drove away from the arena wall.

"He's got away from you Refbot! Is that allowed? Well, it's cheeky! And DTK is about to make him pay! The Refbot's nonplussed, totally lost for words!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Alienator drives away from Refbot's count

According to Karl Asplin in the post-battle interview, the chain slipped off of Alienator's spinning disc, and Alienator became beached on it, but it was able to get off whilst Refbot counted.

Supernovasurvivesthecount

Supernova survives Refbot's count

Supernova would also survive Refbot's count in Round 1 of The Third World Championship. Having immobilised Hard and Spartacus, Supernova was suffering from interference, and was not moving, although its disc was spinning. Refbot came over and began to count it out, but as the counter hit 2, Supernova moved away.

"Just who is moving? The Refbot is gonna come in here, and count out... whoah! Supernova, and the count will have to stop! The count will have to stop because they just proved there, just in time!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Supernova moves away from Refbot's count
RefbotcountsoutSpartacusandSupernova

Refbot counts out Spartacus and Supernova

However, although it was able to move away and attack Spartacus, it soon stopped moving again, with only its spinning disc working. Spartacus was spinning on the spot, and Refbot came over to count it and Supernova out together. Supernova managed to move just a little as Refbot started his count, making one last attack on Spartacus before stopping again. Refbot counted both robots out, and Supernova went through as it had been mobile longer than Spartacus.

"So Spartacus is spinning, err... Supernova is sort of twitching. The Refbot is looking, and one of them's been counted out and I've a funny feeling it's Spartacus"
— Jonathan Pearce predicts which robot was counted out.
Pinser and cobra

Refbot counts out Pinser and Cobra

This was not the only battle in this series where Refbot had to count out two competitors together. In Round 1 of Heat J, Cobra broke down on one side early in the battle, leaving it stuck by the arena wall. Pinser drove up to it and grabbed it with its crusher, but as it did so it drove onto a flame jet, causing it to catch fire internally. Pinser pulled Cobra away from the wall, but suddenly broke down, still holding onto Cobra. With neither robot able to get free or move, Refbot counted them both out together. They were then pushed to the floor flipper by Mr. Psycho, where they were thrown together, then to the Drop Zone, still caught together.

Gravity vs Shunt

Gravity throws Shunt over and gets a red card

As well as showing the red card to immobilised competitors, Refbot also showed cards to competitors that broke the rules. In the Heat Final of Heat D, having defeated Lightning, Gravity took on the House Robots, first flipping over Shunt, then fighting with Dead Metal, eventually managing to turn him over as well. Refbot showed Gravity a red card to force it to stop.

"It's taken them all on, and beaten them all! Watch out for Gravity later in the series. It could go all the way, but for now, Refbot - red carded! Cheeky little blighter!"
— Jonathan Pearce after Gravity had flipped over the House Robots
VelocirippadrivesintoRefbot

Velocirippa drives into Refbot

In Round 1 of Heat K, during the melee between Kat 3, Velocirippa, Hard and T-Wrecks, Velocirippa drove away from its opponents and charged straight at Refbot, driving up his front wedge. Refbot reversed, letting Velocirippa slide off the front, and showed it a yellow card.

"Velocirippa, in on the Refbot, is that allowed sir? Gads sir! That's terrible sir!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Velocirippa drives onto Refbot
DantomkiaYellowCard

Dantomkia receives a yellow card for attacking the House Robots

Dantomkia also received a warning from Refbot for attacking the House Robots. In Round 2 of the All-Stars, Dantomkia swiftly defeated Panic Attack, then went after Dead Metal, chasing after him and repeatedly getting under and lifting him up, despite Growler's attempts to stop it. After Dantomkia flipped Dead Metal against Growler, Refbot gave Dantomkia a yellow card as a warning to stop.

"...Dantomkia has beaten {Panic Attack}, and I think it's beaten the House Robots into submission! A yellow card! A yellow card for Dantomkia, quite right too Refbot!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot gives Dantomkia a yellow card
ThunderpantsRedCard

Refbot gives Thunderpants for failing to enter the arena

Refbot also showed red cards to competitors that failed to enter the arena, disqualifying Thunderpants in Heat E, and Flippa in Round 2 of the Annihilator. This was the only series where he was shown doing this, as in previous series, if a robot had to withdraw, their withdrawal (if it was acknowledged on the show) would be announced before the battle via the battleboards.

"Come on, you've got to get out of those doors to compete... Refbot - red card! Thunderpants has gone already!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot gives Thunderpants a red card for being unable to enter the arena
BiggerBrotherflipsUROontoRefbot

Bigger Brother flips U.R.O. onto Refbot

In Round 1 of Heat O, Bigger Brother flipped U.R.O. onto him. Refbot showed a yellow card, though it is unknown if this was a warning to Bigger Brother, or it merely shone by accident due to the impact.

"...a very capable machine, and already flipping U.R.O. onto the Refbot's little black book it would seem!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Bigger Brother flips U.R.O. onto Refbot
RefbotpushesThorandLightningapart

Refbot pushes Thor and Lightning apart

There were very few occasions in this series where Refbot had to push apart competitors that were stuck together. In Round 2 of Heat D, during the battle between Thor and Lightning, Thor lost drive on one side by the pit. Lightning hit the pit release and reversed up Thor's front wedge, but Thor fired its hammer, preventing it from sliding off. With Thor unable to turn away or reverse, and with the hammer blows not pushing Lightning free of the wedge, Refbot was forced to separate the two. Refbot gave a little push to Thor's side, which allowed it to turn, causing Lightning to slip off

"Look at the dents, the little holes there, I think Lightning's finished! He says no, almost in response, but they're not moving are they Refbot? Go and check. Oh they are! Well, well, well! That was the old rope-a-drope {sic} Muhammad Ali trick!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot separates Thor and Lightning
RefbotfreesKat3saxe

Refbot frees Kat 3's axe from the arena floor

In Round 1 of Heat K, during the melee between Kat 3, Velocirippa, Hard and T-Wrecks, Kat 3 fired its axe at Velocirippa, but Velocirippa drove up Kat 3's wedge, causing Kat 3 to miss, and the axe hit the floor flipper and became stuck in it. Whilst the other three competitors continued to fight, Refbot and Mr. Psycho pushed against Kat 3, one at each side. Mr. Psycho reversed back to his CPZ, and Refbot gave a few pushes to Kat 3's axe handle, which eventually managed to free the axe head from the floor.

RefbotpushesTyphoonandSteelSandwichapart

Refbot pushes Typhoon and Steel Sandwich apart

In the Middleweight Championship, shown as part of the same episode, Typhoon's spinning body stopped working, and it drove onto Steel Sandwich's front wedge, but this lifted its wheels off the ground, making it unable to move. Steel Sandwich could not get out from under Typhoon, so Refbot had to separate them. Refbot reversed into Typhoon, using his rear "feet" to push it off the wedge.

There were a couple of occasions where Refbot tried to push a competitor free, but failed. In the Heat Final of Heat N, Spawn Again's pneumatic system exploded, leaving it hanging out of the front of the robot. It drove down the arena to hit the pit release button, but the piston speared in between the floor and the wall. Refbot came over, and did give it a little push to try and free it, but this failed, so Refbot backed off, and allowed Raging Knightmare to flip Spawn Again, which freed it.

RefbottriestopushFlippaoutfromunderEwe2

Refbot tries to push Flippa out from under Ewe 2 (Background)

In Round 1 of the Annihilator, Ewe 2 pushed Flippa to the arena wall, and Ripper got behind it, flipping Ewe 2 up against the wall, with its flipper hanging over the fence. Ewe 2 was left stuck on top of Flippa, unable to get down from the wall, and Flippa was immobile, so could not get free. Refbot came over and tried to push Flippa out from under Ewe 2, but failed. He tried a couple of times pushing Flippa with his plough, but couldn't get under the low ground clearance. He turned around and tried using his rear feet to push Flippa free, but still couldn't, so he left the two stuck together. As Dead Metal came out to attack, Refbot went out to count Robochicken, which had broken down and been flipped over right at the start of the battle, as that had been immobilised later. Refbot finished counted Robochicken out just before Kan-Opener pushed Ewe 2 into the pit.

"I think they were the first to be immobilised, right at the start! The Refbot agrees with me, and that's the end of the henpecked Robochicken! Laid a couple of rotten eggs, and although the others are now going down in the pit, they'll be okay, to fight another day."
— Jonatahn Pearce as Refbot counts out Robochicken, just before Ewe 2 is pitted
M2flipsPussycatagainstRefbot

M2 flips Pussycat against Refbot

A number of competitors attacked Refbot in this series. In the Round 2 battle between Pussycat and M2 in Heat A, M2 pushed Pussycat against Refbot. As it did so, Refbot tried to reverse out of the way, but M2 kept pushing Pussycat, pinning it against Refbot, and Refbot was forced back into an angle grinder. M2 flipped Pussycat against Refbot, the impact causing his green light to briefly show.

"We nearly went out of the arena once, Refbot saved us!"
— Stuart Barnwell mentions M2 flipping Pussycat against Refbot in the post-battle interview
MantispushesJabberagainstRefbot

Mantis pushes Jabber against Refbot

Mantis would also push an opponent against Refbot. In Round 1 of Heat K, Mantis grabbed Jabber and lifted it up, then rammed it into Refbot, who was standing by a CPZ, getting a view of Bulldog Breed attacking Infernal Contraption. It was actually the second time Mantis had driven into Refbot, as in the same battle, as it had rammed into Refbot's side at the start of the battle, though it failed to get its lifter underneath Refbot, and Refbot turned, so Mantis did not attack.

DisConstructorandIronAweattackRefbot

DisConstructor and Iron-Awe 2.1 attack Refbot

In Round 1 of Heat O, DisConstructor hit Refbot's side with its disc, immobilising him. As the battle started, Iron-Awe 2.1 charged at DisConstructor, and DisConstructor drove around Refbot to avoid it. Refbot reversed to avoid DisConstructor as it drove past, and tried to reverse to a corner to stay away from the competitors, but DisConstructor turned and drove right into Refbot's side, hitting the side, ripping off a piece of armour. As it did so, Iron-Awe 2.1 drove into Refbot's front, pushing him into the CPZ, against a wall. Refbot did not move out of the CPZ for the rest of the battle.

"Well Iron-Awe has bags of experience, crosses the arena floor, looking for damage, and chasing the Refbot!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Iron-Awe 2.1 pushes Refbot into the CPZ

Bigger Brother flipped two of its opponents against Refbot, first flipping U.R.O. up on his front in Round 1, then flipping Iron-Awe 2.1 up against him in Round 2.

"Close up to the Ref cam - Ref, get out of there Refbot!"
— Jonathan Pearce as Bigger Brother flips Iron-Awe 2.1 up against Refbot
Ripper flips refbot

Ripper flips Refbot onto his back, despite Shunt's attempts to stop it

In Heat P, Ripper very quickly flipped over Daisy-Cutter, then went after the House Robots, including Refbot. Ripper first went after Shunt, flipping him up, but Sir Killalot drove into the CPZ and pinned it against the wall. Ripper managed to get away, despite Sir Killalot chasing it, and drove up the arena at Refbot. Ripper got its flipper under Refbot's front, and tried to tip him onto his back. Ripper lifted Refbot up, nearly getting him over, and Shunt chased after Ripper to try and stop it attacking Refbot, but as he drove into Ripper, this gave Ripper the extra momentum needed to turn Refbot over. Shunt axed Ripper's top to stop him attacking Refbot any further, and Sir Killalot drove up the arena to try and right his fellow House Robot. He pushed him away from Ripper and Shunt, but as he did so, Refbot toppled onto his side, with small parts falling off, and his card lights malfunctioned.

"Fortune favours the brave, so they say. Ah, but this is being churlish! They've flipped the Refbot! We have long memories Ripper! Oh, something's obviously gone off between Killalot and Refbot in the pits, because he doesn't like him either! Poor Refbot, what's he done to anyone?"
— Jonathan Pearce as Ripper flips Refbot onto is back, then Sir Killalot knocks him over

There was also an unaired attack on Refbot. In Round 1 of Heat D, Gravity flipped Hydra onto the arena wall, destroying a section of it, then threw Hydra from the arena and into a camera, breaking it, before 'cease' was called for safety reasons. Not hearing the original 'cease', the team continued fighting, and flipped Thor over Refbot, causing its hammer to become stuck in Refbot until 'cease' was called for a second time[22]. The judges marked the criteria up until the first 'cease' was called, and Gravity moved through, along with Thor.

"In our episode, we were referred to as “the bad boys of Robot Wars” but the show did not air the reason for the nickname. ... we broke the arena side wall and threw Hydra onto a camera (which was the second one we broke…remember the V3 fight?) Apparently, a cease was called at that point. We honestly did not hear it and continued the fight. We flipped Thor OVER the Refbot and it got its axe stuck in the back of the house robot. Then a member of production stormed in our booth and yelled that we must stop! We really did not hear the “cease” but we were told we were in serious trouble and could face disqualification. We got a seemingly scripted safety speech from Derek Foxwell (the senior technical consultant) with the cameras rolling."
— Jeroen van Lieverloo on Facebook
OnehalfofRefbotsscreennotworking

One half of Refbot's screen not working whilst counting out Mega Hurts LT

Refbot suffered from a number of technical problems across the series. In Heat H, one half of his screen was not working, so the 0 was not visible on the left-hand side, and the board showed 0 at the end instead of 10. This happened first when he counted out Metalis, then in the next battle whilst counting out Mega-Hurts LT. The screen was repaired for Round 2, and he was able to count out Scraptosaur and Revolution 3

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Refbot only one eyes shining in Round 1 of Heat K

In Round 1 of Heat K, only one of his eye lights was shining in the first Round 1 melee. This was repaired for the next battle.

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Refbot counts out Zorro, but the red light does not show

In Round 1 of Heat P, when Refbot counted out Zorro, the red light did not show. It was working later when he counted out Daisy-Cutter.

Refbot Counter Fault

Refbot's counter goes 'Euro' as he counts Ripper out

However, later in the same episode, during the Heat Final, whilst he was counting out Ripper, the screen malfunctioned, so instead of showing a 0 on the left hand side, it showed a 2.

"What's happened to the count? What on earth's ha- Refbot? What’ve you gone, Euro? I dunno! 28, 29, 10?! He's gone daft!"
— Jonathan Pearce notices the glitch on Refbot's counter as Ripper is eliminated
StAgroCountedOutNoRedLight

Refbot counts out St. Agro, but the red light doesn't show

The red light also did not show after Refbot counted out St. Agro in the first Semi-Final. The light later worked properly when counting out Bulldog Breed, but in the Grand Final, the red light did not show when Refbot counted out X-Terminator in its eliminator against Typhoon 2.

RefbotpushesThermidor2ontoDropZone

Refbot pushes Thermidor 2 onto the Drop Zone

Despite being intended as the neutral House Robot, this series saw a number of occasions where Refbot got involved in battles or pushed competitors onto the arena hazards. In the Middleweight Final, shown as part of Heat K, Refbot opened the pit by pressing pit release. In the second Semi-Final, after Thermidor 2 was immobilised in its battle with Typhoon 2 in Semi Final 2, Refbot pushed it onto the Drop Zone, after Sir Killalot had put it on flipper and flame pit.

Refbot pits metalis

Refbot pits Metalis

In the first Round 1 melee of Heat H, Metalis was flipped over and counted out. Ceros flipped Metalis back upright, and though it tried to re-join the battle, Growler grabbed it in his jaws and pushed and pulled it around the arena. However, Metalis slipped out of the jaw, and then took on Refbot, ramming against his side. Refbot turned around, pushing against Metalis, then got his two rear "feet" under Metalis' side and backed it into the pit.

RefbotopensthepitasStorm2pitsTornado

Storm 2 pits Tornado after Refbot opened the pit

There was also a very controversial moment in the Grand Final, during the Eliminator battle between Tornado and Storm 2. Storm 2 was ramming Tornado down the arena, and Refbot hit the pit release button as Storm 2 got Tornado by the pit, allowing Storm 2 to pit the reigning champions. The Storm 2 team initially thought they had won by knockout, but the pit was raised. Storm 2 eventually won the battle on a Judges' Decision.

"At the far end of the arena Refbot went to press the pit release button and we drove Storm II down the length of the arena at full speed with Tornado on the front and threw them off the front of the robot, sending them skimming into the pit. Tornado sank down out of our view, the crown cheered and we celebrated in the control booth.... but NO, controversy was to come and hit us again."
— Team Storm's initial response to the above incident[23]

Past cases of House Robots interfering in the battle had resulted in the Judges being immediately called to intervene, though it is unknown what influence the hazard's activation and trapping of Tornado had on the subsequent decision for this battle. However, Andrew Marchant subsequently recollected that 'there was nothing actually happening to trigger it being lowered', perhaps suggesting that Team Tornado were unaware of Refbot's involvement at the time and the pit was raised to prevent them from being eliminated unfairly.[24]

RefbotpushesSgtBash

Refbot helps Sgt. Bash push Mean Streak to the pit

On a couple of occasions, Refbot had to help out his fellow House Robots. In Heat G, Refbot counted out Mean Streak, and Sgt. Bash bit into it. However, as he pushed it to the pit, he stopped moving forwards. His wheels were spinning, but he couldn't push Mean Streak into the pit, forcing Refbot to reversed against the back of Sgt. Bash to push him and Mean Streak closer to the pit, and when Mean Streak was hanging over the edge, S.M.I.D.S.Y. pushed Mean Streak out of Sgt. Bash's jaws. Sgt. Bash was able to move after letting go of Mean Streak.

RefbotRightsShunt

Refbot pushes Shunt back over

During the Round 2 battle between Ceros and Revolution 3 in the next Heat, Ceros took on the House Robots after Revolution 3 quickly became immobile, and flipped Shunt over. Whilst Sgt. Bash grabbed Ceros and pulled it over to the pit, Refbot tipped Shunt back onto his wheels.

MatildaflipsMicroMuteintoRefbotslights

Matilda flips Micro Mute into Refbot's lights

There was also a humorous moment in the Middleweight battle in Heat M. Refbot was counting out Micro Mute, and as he finished counting it out, Matilda flipped it with her tusks, tossing it straight into Refbot's lights.

In the second Round 1 melee of Heat F, Fluffy attacked Scarey-Go-Round early on in the battle, cutting a large gash in the side. After this, Scarey-Go-Round was only able to spin around in circles, but Refbot never went over to count it out. Later in the battle, smoke began to rise from Fluffy, and it span on the spot, only moving on one wheel, before stopping completely. It later regained a little movement, but despite Sgt. Bash coming out to attack, Refbot never started counting it out, meaning that all four competitors went to a Judges' decision. Why Refbot did not count either of the competitors that were not working is unknown, as he was mobile in the battle.

In Round 1 of Heat N, The Executioner broke down after being hammered by Mr. Psycho, but although Refbot was able to count it out, he was not able to drive up the arena to be beside The Executioner as he did so, instead staying at the bottom half of the arena, facing away from The Executioner. The reason for this is unknown.

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Refbot counts out Ewe 2

In Round 2 of the Annihilator, two robots were very nearly eliminated at the same time. Ripper flipped Ewe 2 on its side, and it failed to roll over, leaving it stuck, despite firing the flipper. Refbot came over to count it out, but as he did so, Kan-Opener grabbed Raging Knightmare and pushed it over to the pit. As Refbot counted Ewe 2 out, Kan-Opener pushed Raging Knightmare over the edge, but couldn't let go, as Raging Knightmare was stuck in the claw. Kan-Opener was unable to drop Raging Knightmare, and Refbot finished counting out Ewe 2, preventing any confusion as to which robot was eliminated first. Refbot's red light failed to show when he counted out Ewe 2

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Refbot uses his extinguisher on Kan-Opener

The only time Refbot was shown using his CO2 extinguisher in this series came in the final of the Annihilator. Kan-Opener grabbed Ripper with its jaws, but suddenly began to smoke and was unable to move away. However, when Refbot came over, Ripper was the one counted out, as it had been immobilised first. After the battle, Refbot used his extinguisher on Kan-Opener.

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Refbot opens the pit and Hydra falls in

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Refbot pushes Kat 3 onto the floor flipper

Refbot was involved in a number of notable battles where the competitors took on the House Robots, and even the neutral Refbot got involved. During the Axe Attack special event, the competitors started by fighting each other, but after Kat 3 was counted out, they attacked the House Robots, with Iron-Awe 2.1 trying to flip Cassius Chrome, and Hydra flipping Shunt over. Hydra and Iron-Awe 2.1 fought Cassius Chrome, whilst the Refbot went over and hit the pit release button. Hydra drove over the pit as it lowered, causing it to fall in. In the same battle, Refbot pushed Kat 3 to the floor flipper after counting it out as Cassius Chrome had driven over the edge of the pit and got one of his wheels stuck.

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Gravity tries to get under Refbot

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Refbot tries to right Growler

In the House Robot Rebellion, even the usually neutral Refbot got involved, helping his fellow House Robots. At the start of the battle, he opened the pit, although this backfired for him, as Cassius Chrome drove over the pit as it opened, becoming stuck, which allowed Gravity to get under and flip him over, having already flipped Growler over. Gravity chased after Refbot, who drove over to the flame pit, but Gravity soon caught up, trying to get under his side. Refbot managed to get away before Gravity could get underneath, and drove at Growler, pushing him to try and push him over. He was unable to, but as Behemoth and Gravity fought Mr Psycho, the pit was raised, and Refbot was able to push Cassius Chrome back upright.

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Refbot reverses into the pit

The competitors also decided to take on the House Robots in Round 1 of the All-Stars, leading to one of the most bizarre battles in the shows history, and Refbot played a large part of it. At the start of the battle, Firestorm 5 got under Shunt and flipped him over. Refbot tried to push Shunt back over, but Bigger Brother got in the way, getting behind Shunt and preventing from pushing him over, so Refbot drove away. Later in the battle, Refbot opened the pit, but the opening was delayed as Bigger Brother was on the pit as it opened. Refbot reversed into Bigger Brother to help it get free, and it drove away, but Refbot then backed into the pit, so the pit was raised so he could get out.

"Oh Bigger Brother's on the pit there! The pit is descending and Bigger Brother were very, very nearly caught! The Refbot's down! The Refbot descends! "Bring that pit back up!" says the Refbot "You don't get rid of me that easily!""
— Jonathan Pearce as Refbot opens the pit, then drives in himself
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Panic Attack and Bigger Brother attack Refbot

The competitors would also try to flip Refbot over, but failed. Firestorm 5 tried to get under and flip him, but as he charged at him, he drove up the front plough. Later, Bigger Brother charged up the arena and tried to flip Refbot, but despite lifting him up a little, Bigger Brother was unable to topple the House Robot. Refbot drove away from Bigger Brother, trying to push Panic Attack and Cassius Chrome apart, and Bigger Brother chased after him, getting under the side and flipping, but again, despite lifting Refbot up a little, he slid off the flipper, and Bigger Brother was unable to topple it. Later in the battle, when Refbot drove to the arena centre, Firestorm 5 made another charge at Refbot, but as it tried to get under his side, Refbot turned to avoid it, and Firestorm 5 charged forwards, straight into the pit.

Kat 3 vs Bigger Brother

Kat 3 misses Refbot with its axe and hits Bigger Brother

Bigger Brother got behind Refbot and lifted him up, but couldn't turn him over, and he fell off the flipper. As he did so, Panic Attack tried getting underneath Refbot with its forks, but Refbot bounced off the forks as it landed, preventing Panic Attack from getting under. As Refbot tried to drive away, Kat 3 lined up an attack with its axe, but Bigger Brother pushed into the back of Refbot, causing Kat 3 to miss Refbot and hit Bigger Brother instead. After this, the competitors went after each other, until Bigger Brother drove into the pit.

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Refbot pushes Supernova down from the wall

Refbot's final battle was the Final of the Third World Championship, the last episode of the show's original run, and it proved to be a controversial battle due to an issue with Refbot. In the battle, Storm 2 tipped Supernova onto its side, and its spinning disc pulled it along, causing it to crash into the arena wall. Supernova was unable to get itself down, and Refbot was supposed to go in and count it out, but he could not due to a fault in his counter. [25] This issue was not communicated to the House Roboteers, who along with Team Storm believed that Storm 2 had already won and so allowed Shunt to fight Storm 2.[25] However, the producers decided that the fight was to continue.[25]

"There was total confusion as to what was going on after the fight. No-one seemed to quite know what was happening.

Turns out that Refbot's counter didn't work when they went to count out Supernova stuck on the side wall and production didn't really know what to do ! Shunt was busy playing with us (which didn't bother us as we believed wed won at that point) in the meantime it was decided that the fight would have to go on so Mentorn could get the footage they needed to close the fight - hence Refbot suddenly going in to free Supernova after so long stuck on the wall."

— Ed Hoppit on the FRA forum

As a result, Supernova was freed by Refbot despite having being stranded long enough for it to have been counted out, and Supernova proceeded to damage Storm 2 sufficiently to immobilise it towards the end. However, many of Supernova's attacks were left out of the televised episode, to the disappointment of Team Supernova captain Suren Balendran; the Judges nevertheless took the time of Supernova's stranding into account while making their final decision.

US Season 1[]

"Refbot holds down the unenviable task of trying to maintain order. Good luck Refbot, because this showdown is going to be beyond control!"
Mick Foley introduces the first Extreme Warriors Tag Team Terror tournament

Having previously been introduced to American audiences through dubbed episodes of the UK series such as TNN's Robot Wars: Grand Champions, Extreme Warriors Season 1 was Refbot's first time being used in a series made for Americans.

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Refbot counts Close Enough out

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Refbot puts out Close Enough's internal fire

Refbot's first battle of the series proved to be one of his most notable, as he demonstrated two of his features. Close Enough broke down at the start of the battle, and after Shunt pushed it into the arena centre, Refbot counted it out. Shunt pushed the beaten competitors onto the floor flipper, then onto the flame pit. Close Enough's gasoline engine caught fire, and Refbot came in to reverse it off of the flame pit and used his extinguisher to put out the flames.

"There's Refbot with the countdown, if it gets to 10 that means the robot's immobilised and out of the competition! And there's 10, which is the cue for the House 'bots to come in for some disposal duty! ... Refbot's gonna cool things down."
— Stefan Frank as Refbot counts out Close Enough, then puts out the flames

Unseen on television however, whilst Refbot's extinguisher did manage to supress the flames a little, Close Enough kept burning internally, and had to be put out by firefighters backstage.

"The match ended. Stagehands dragged Gilson's bot offstage and tried to extinguish the fire. But it kept burning. Firefighters sprayed it with extinguishers. Wrestler Mick Foley shoved a microphone in Gilson's face and asked him what it was like to see his monstrosity engulfed in flames. In the background, Gilson could hear the firefighters shout "It's still burning, it's still burning!""
— Omaha World Herald[26]

Extreme Warriors Season 1 was filmed along side Robot Wars Extreme Series 1, as part of the Tomorrow's World filming, which was Refbot's first appearance with the counter, and Refbot regularly counted out competitors. In the Annihilator, only one of the battles ended without Refbot counting out the beaten robot. His busiest episode of the season was the World Championship, where he counted out 6 competitors.

Strangely, in the US Championship, Refbot only counted out 3 of the 23 beaten robots, though it is possible there were more instances that were edited out due to time. In the Civil War battle between Manta and Spike, Manta rammed Spike into the arena wall, immobilising it. Unusually, the House Robots came over to attack Manta without waiting for Refbot to count it out, though it is possible that Refbot's count was edited out, as he was seen driving down the arena whilst Spike was stuck against the wall.

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Refbot puts out Conquering Clown's internal fire and burning head

Refbot was shown putting out fires a number of times. In the Annihilator, Drillzilla pushed the immobile Conquering Clown onto the flame pit, causing its internals to catch fire and its novelty head to burn. After counting it out, Refbot put out the fire.

"Oh come on, somebody come put the clown out, it's a family show! Oh brother, well the crowd's loving it! ... Refbot with that fire extinguisher, putting the flames out, and the clown with him!"
— Stefan Frank as Conquering Clown burns, then Refbot puts out the fire
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Refbot puts out Tiger Cat's burning fur

The Tiger Cat intentionally doused the robot with WD40 before their fight with Manta in the Civil War as they were unhappy with the quality of the robot they had been lent, and intentionally drove over the flame jet. It kept fighting despite the burning fur and taking a lot of damage from Manta, but when it did stop moving, Refbot put the flames out, then counted it out.

"Boy, I'll tell ya, that Tiger Cat's looking mighty crispy by now as Refbot puts out the flames!"
— Stefan Frank as Refbot puts out Tiger Cat's burning fur

However, there were some occasions where Refbot did not go in to put out competitors that were on fire. In the Robot Rebellion battle between Tricerabot and The Green Mouse, Tricerabot pushed The Green Mouse onto the flame pit after turning it over, and the fur caught light, but despite going in to count The Green Mouse out, Refbot did not put out the flames, and Dead Metal pushed The Green Mouse onto the flame pit to make the flames even larger. The Green Mouse was subsequently pushed onto the floor flipper by the House Robots, then pushed into the pit by Tricerabot, burning all the while.

Tricerabot's decorative covering would be set alight on two occasions in the Tag Team Terror, but Refbot did not put out the flames, merely allowing all of Tricerabot's decorations to burn away, although it did not affect the outcome of either battle.

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Refbot pushes Dead Metal out from under Rot Box

Refbot's other main role was to free competitors that were trapped. If a competitor was caught on another competitor or a House Robot, Refbot would push them free. In the Robot Rebellion battle between Rosie the Riveter and Rot Box, after Rot Box was counted out and thrown by the floor flipper, Sir Killalot pushed it onto the flame pit. Dead Metal came over to grab Rot Box and cut into it with his saw, but as he tried to let it go and reverse away, Rot Box was caught on top of one of his arms. Refbot came over and pushed against Dead Metal's side, allowing him to get his grabbing arm out from under Rot Box.

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Refbot tries to push Unibite and Red Virus apart

Refbot was forced to help Red Virus on three occasions during the Annihilator. In Round 1, Red Virus got its lifter under Unibite's saw blade, lifting it up a little, but the two became stuck together, as despite trying to reverse and turn away, Unibite could not get off the lifter. Refbot pushed against Unibite's side, trying to push it free of Red Virus' lifter, but it was still caught, and as Refbot pushed Unibite, he accidentally forced it onto the front of Conquering Clown. Red Virus managed to get away from Unibite, but Unbite was still caught on the front of Conquering Clown, so Refbot pushed the two apart. As Refbot pushed Unibite, his extinguisher went off a little.

"Here comes Refbot, to break up the deadlock between Red Virus, Unibite and Rippa Raptor. The Clown's in there, they're all stuck in it together!"
— Stefan Frank as Refbot pushes the robots apart
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Refbot pushes Red Virus and Rippa Raptor apart

In Round 4, Refbot had to help Red Virus twice in one battle. Early in the battle, the forks on Red Virus' lifter became caught in the front of Rippa Raptor. Red Virus pushed Rippa Raptor against the arena wall, but as it reversed, it could not get free, so Refbot had to drive between the two competitors to push them apart.

"...Refbot gets right in between them! Oh, what a lucky stroke for Red Virus!"
— Stefan Frank as Refbot pushes Red Virus and Rippa Raptor apart
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Refbot pushes Red Virus and Dead Metal apart

Later on, Drillzilla pushed Red Virus into Dead Metal's CPZ, whilst Red Virus' lifter was stuck halfway up. Dead Metal trapped Red Virus in the CPZ, but as he attacked with his saw and pushed with his grabbing arms, one of his arms became caught under the lifter. Refbot had to come into the CPZ and push against Red Virus' side to push it free of Dead Metal. Strangely, as Refbot tried to free Red Virus, Matilda also came over to the CPZ, and as Refbot drove out, she turned around and reversed into Refbot with her flywheel.

"Refbot's getting into the action again! I can't believe it! Is he supposed to be impartial, or what's the deal here? And even with all his help, Red Virus is looking pretty slow, pretty beaten down."
— Stefan Frank as Refbot pushes Red Virus free
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Refbot pushes Joker and General Chompsalot apart

In the Tag Team Terror, Run Away got under Joker, and General Chompsalot came out to help its Tag Team partner, getting under Joker, lifting it off the front of Run Away, and helping Run Away push Joker onto the flame pit. However, although Run Away was able to reverse, General Chompsalot was caught underneath Joker. Refbot came over to help, pushing General Chompsalot out from under Joker, helped by Joker's Tag Team partner Falcon, who also pushed Joker.

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Refbot pushes Plunderbird 5 and Rosie the Riveter apart

In Round 1 of the War of Independence, during the battle between Plunderbird 5 and Rosie the Riveter, Rosie the Riveter's spike became bent down, and was dragging along the ground. Towards the end of the battle, Rosie the Riveter rammed into Plunderbird 5's front, but it could not reverse away due to the bents spike, and Plunderbird 5 had lost drive on one side, so could not move away either. Refbot had to come over and push Rosie the Riveter away from Plunderbird 5, reversing into it using his rear feet.

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Refbot blocks Matilda from the CPZ

Throughout the series, there were many occasions where the House Robots broke the rules and attacked competitors unfairly, and Refbot would warn them to return to their CPZs. The first occasion came in the Civil War, during the battle between Bot-Ugly and Spike, where Spike gripped Bot-Ugly and pushed it into Shunt's CPZ. As Shunt attacked, Matilda also drove up the arena to attack, but Refbot stopped her, as it was not her CPZ and neither competitor was immobile. Although he did not show a card, he blocked Matilda from reaching the CPZ, driving under her tusks and pushing her against the wall.

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Refbot intervenes as Sgt. Bash attacks Sobek

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Refbot chases Sgt. Bash away from Sobek

The first occasion of Refbot giving a House Robot a card came in Round 1 of the Civil War, during the battle between Sobek and The Revolutionist, where Sgt. Bash interfered in the battle twice. Whilst The Revolutionist and Sobek were fighting at the bottom of the arena, Sgt. Bash came out of his CPZ, driving down the arena and pinning Sobek against the bottom arena wall. Sgt. Bash tried to crush Sobek with his front pincer, but Refbot pushed against his side, forcing him to let go and reverse away. Refbot drove between Sobek and Sgt. Bash, then chased him back up the arena to the CPZ.

"...Sgt. Bash comes from nowhere! What's he doing there? Sobek was nowhere near a Corner Patrol Zone, I betcha Refbot's going to have something to say, and he does! He gets Sgt. Bash out of there!"
— Stefan Frank as Sgt. Bash attacks Sobek, and Refbot forces him to return to the CPZ
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Refbot gives Sgt. Bash a yellow card

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Sgt. Bash "angry" at Refbot after receiving a yellow card

Later in the battle, The Revolutionist and Sobek drove up the arena and The Revolutionist rammed into Sobek, when suddenly Sgt. Bash came out of his CPZ again, chasing after Sobek, blasting his flamethrower at Sobek as it tried to drive away. Sgt. Bash chased Sobek down the arena, catching up with it near the bottom, and grabbed the back. Refbot came over and drove into Sgt. Bash's side, showing him a yellow card to order him to stop. Sgt. Bash did let Sobek go, but "angrily" turned against Refbot and blasted his flamethrower.

"Oh, Sgt. Bash out of his zone again! I don't know what he's up to, he's been nowhere near a Corner Zone, Sobek, and Sgt. Bash has just been going in there! Well, he gets the warning from Refbot for insubordination!"
— Stefan Frank as Sgt. Bash attacks Sobek again, and receives a yellow card
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Refbot gives Dead Metal a yellow card

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Refbot pushes Dead Metal and Sobek apart

Refbot would also have to give a House Robot a yellow card for unfairly attacking Sobek in Round 2. During its battle with 6 Million Dollar Mouse, one of Sobek's front wheels fell off. As it hobbled along, Dead Metal suddenly came out of his CPZ, grabbing hold of Sobek. Refbot showed Dead Metal a yellow card, but Dead Metal did not let go, and pulled Sobek over to the flame pit, cutting into its armour. Dead Metal pushed Sobek onto the flames, and Refbot came over to push Sobek out of Dead Metal's arms, then drove between Sobek and Dead Metal. Refbot counted Sobek out, and Dead Metal and Sir Killalot were not allowed to attack until he had finished his count.

"...and here comes Dead Metal! What's he doing there? He's definitely not immobilised, Sobek, so there's no reason and Refbot's giving him a warning! Refbot's saying "Hey, get back into your corner you freak!". I wouldn't call him a freak, at least not to his face anyway, but Refbot's a braver 'bot than me!"
— Stefan Frank as Refbot gives Dead Metal a yellow card


Refbot would also give Dead Metal a yellow card in Heat 3 of the US Championship. Manta rammed Rippa Raptor into Dead Metal's CPZ, and Dead Metal grabbed it and cut into it with his saw. However, he then pushed it out of the CPZ, pushing it towards the arena centre and continued to cut into it. As Dead Metal had held onto a mobile competitor for longer than permitted, and left the CPZ without a competitor being counted out, Refbot intervened. As Dead Metal let go and reversed for another attack on Rippa Raptor, Refbot drove between Dead Metal and Rippa Raptor, and gave him a yellow card as a warning to return to the CPZ.

"Well he's only cutting through him because Rippa Raptor's supposedly immobilised. He's got some spinning parts, but he's not moving around! And Refbot comes in to let Dead Metal know, with a warning light, that he can't come in and clean up the trash until they're well and truly over out of this bout!"
— Stefan Frank as Refbot gives Dead Metal a yellow card

Once Dead Metal was back in the CPZ, Refbot counted Rippa Raptor out, after which Dead Metal was allowed to come out and attack the immobile competitors.

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Refbot gives Matilda a yellow card

In Round 2 of the US Championship, towards the end of the battle between Panzer Mk2 and Manta, Manta was barely moving, having been rammed repeatedly by Panzer Mk2, and Panzer Mk2 rammed it to the bottom arena wall. Manta struggled to move away from the wall, with Panzer Mk2 repeatedly charging into it. Matilda came out of her CPZ to help push Manta away from the wall, getting behind it and pushing it with her tusks. Refbot drove down the arena and gave her a yellow card for coming out of her CPZ when neither competitor had been counted out.

"Refbot goes and reprimands Matilda for coming out of her corner illegally."
— Stefan Frank as Refbot gives Matilda a yellow card
Panzer nearly flipped.

Panzer Mk2 lands on its feet thanks to Refbot

Humorously, as Refbot drove down the arena after Matilda, Panzer Mk2 drove over the side of Manta, nearly tipping over, but it happened to hit Refbot, who was passing, stopping itself from falling over, and tipped back onto its wheels.

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Sir Killalot receives a red card

Only one House Robot received a red card, that being Sir Killalot. In Round 1 of the Tag Team Terror, during the battle between Drillzilla & Tut Tut against Tricerabot and Rosie the Riveter, Drillzilla was fighting Tricerabot, when suddenly Rosie the Riveter came out of its CPZ to help its Tag Team partner, and Tut Tut also left the CPZ. Sir Killalot came out of the corner, and grabbed Rosie the Riveter with his claw. He picked it up, span it around and tossed it aside. As a result, Refbot gave him a straight red card for getting involved in the battle and unfairly attacking a competitor.

"...Killalot is milling around, looking like he's taking the law into his own hands, and he has! Rosie the Riveter came in without a tag, and Killalot is gonna make her pay! ... Refbot is warning Killalot "Get back to your corner!"."
— Stefan Frank as Refbot shows Sir Killalot the red card

Despite this, Sir Killalot would later come out of his CPZ to lift Matilda back over after Tricerabot tipped her over, and grabbed Tricerabot with his claw, picking it up, spinning it around and tossing it aside. However, Refbot did not do anything to stop Sir Killalot as he picked up Tricerabot.

"This is a Tag Team free-for-all! Look at that, Refbot has lost total control of any semblance of order!"
— Stefan Frank

Unlike some of the other House Robot Rebellions, in the Final of the House Robot Rebellion, Refbot stayed out of the action, not attacking any of the competitors, helping his fellow House Robots or opening the pit.,

No competitors chose to attack Refbot in this series. After being set on fire in its battle with Manta, Tiger Cat did chase after Refbot, who reversed down the arena. Tiger Cat kept chasing after Refbot as he reversed, and drove into his front, but before it could try attacking, Manta charged into its side, flicking it up with its spinner and immobilising it.

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Rosie the Riveter drives up Refbot

Rosie the Riveter accidentally drove up Refbot's front wedge during its battle with Rot Box in the House Robot Rebellion. Rosie the Riveter rammed Rot Box against the top arena wall, and it limped away, but due to a punctured tyre, it could not drive in a straight line, and drove into on Refbot's side. Refbot tried to drive away, but suddenly Rosie the Riveter charged at him, presumably having aimed for Rot Box and missed, and drove up Refbot's front wedge.

"...Refbot's in the action! Oh! Rosie goes into the impartial arms of Refbot!"
— Stefan Frank as Rosie the Riveter drives up Refbot's wedge

According to Chris Gattman, Rosie the Riveter broke Refbot's timer as it drove up Refbot's front.

"I accidentally smashed the timer on the Refbot and if it had been an episode of Peaky Blinders I'd be dead now."
— Chris Gattman on YouTube in December 2018

US Season 2[]

"Robot Wars' own official adjudicator, Refbot never hesitates in getting right in the thick of the mayhem to ensure that fairplay is being upheld"
— The Extreme Warriors Season 2 programme on Refbot

Season 2 of Extreme Warriors was a relatively quiet year for Refbot, where he had very few notable moments, and counted out fewer robots than usual.

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Refbot counts Cyclone out

The first competitor that Refbot counted out in this series was Cyclone in the second Round 1 melee in Heat A. Unusually throughout the season, Refbot usually only had to count out two competitors each episode, with their only being two episodes requiring him to count out 3 or more. In Heat A, the Grand Final and the Tag Team Terror, Refbot only had to count out 1 competitor, and in Heat F, none of the battles ended with him counting out a competitor. Ironically, this was followed by his busiest episode of the series, Heat G, where every battle ended with him counting out an immobilised competitor, apart from the Round 2 battle between Marauder and Destructive Criticism, where Marauder drove into the pit. In the Tag Team Terror, Refbot only counted one competitor out of 14 beaten competitors, though he should have counted out Trackzilla, but was unable to due to breaking down.

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General Chompsalot 2 becomes stuck on G-Force, and Refbot prepares to count G-Force out and separate them

Refbot's main role throughout the series was separating competitors when they became stuck on opponents or the House Robots. In Round 1 of Heat G, G-Force broke down, and Shunt pushed it onto the floor flipper. General Chompsalot 2 charged at it, but as it charged, it drove up its side, and due to the curved shape of its jaw, it became stuck on top of G-Force. Refbot counted G-Force out, then pushed General Chompsalot 2 off the top of G-Force

"Well G-Force and Chompsalot are precariously dangled right on top of that flipper. Let's see if the flipper's got enough power to put over 350 pounds up into the air! The audience thinks it's going to happen, and Refbot clears Chompsalot off the ramp!"
— Stefan Frank as Refbot counts out G-Force, then pushes General Chompsalot 2 off the top
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Refbot pushes Run Away and Lightning Tracks apart

In the other Round 1 melee, Lightning Tracks became stuck on the Disc of Doom, and Run Away drove up Lightning Tracks' wedge, knocking off the decorative turret. However, as it tried driving over the top, it became stuck on top of Lightning Tracks, with all four wheels held off the ground. Destructive Criticism repeatedly hit Lightning Tracks with its spinning disc, also hitting Run Away, pushing Lightning Tracks off the Disc of Doom, but could not push Run Away free of Lightning Tracks top. As Destructive Criticism hit one of Run Away's wheels with its spinning disc, Refbot drove into it to force it to stop, so that he could push the two apart. Refbot first tried pushing the side of Lightning Tracks to push it out from under Run Away, but it was still stuck underneath, and as Refbot pushed it around, it pushed it into Destructive Criticism. Refbot reversed and pushed Run Away, pushing it off the top of Lightning Tracks, though its scoop was still hanging on the side, and Run Away had stopped moving, so it could not reverse off. Destructive Criticism gave Run Away a push, then Refbot pushed Run Away off of Lightning Tracks, though it was immobile. Refbot counted them both out,

"Refbot's trying to separate Run Away from Lightning Tracks. Run Away has at least got one of its weapons going, but Refbot's going to break it up. ... Refbot counts down. Now you know only two are gonna go through from here, so it's a question of who was out first? In my opinion, it seemed to me that Lightning Tracks was well and truly out of it first, and the House 'bots are agreeing!"
— Stefan Frank as Refbot separates Run Away and Lightning Tracks, then counts out Lightning Tracks
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Refbot and Matilda try to right Xylon

In the next Heat, Xylon became stuck against the arena wall, and Refbot pushed it free. After being turned over by Buzz, Xylon drove into the arena wall, but as it tried reversing away, its side panels, which were loosely attached on the side snagged in to the arena floor, preventing it from reversing. Refbot came over to push it free, and Matilda came out of her CPZ to help. As Refbot got at Xylon's side and pushed, Matilda got the other side and flipped it with her tusks. This turned Xylon onto its side, and Refbot reversed away, allowing Xylon to roll back onto its wheels.

"...Refbot's having a look at Xylon, might be impaled up against the rail! And the Refcam gets a little bit too close, because Matilda has decided that's part of the Corner Patrol Zone, and is definitely taking advantage of Xylon's vulnerability!"
— Stefan Frank as Refbot and Matilda drive into Xylon
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Refbot tries to separate The Falcon Mark 2 and Tyranabot

In the Heat Final of the same episode, The Falcon Mark 2 drove underneath Tyranabot, but it could not move with the weight of Tyranabot on top of it, and Tyranabot's wheels were stuck off the floor, so it could not get free. Dead Metal came out of his CPZ to cut into the back of Tyranabot and gave it a push, but this did not separate them, so Refbot tried pushing them apart. He first tried pushing Tyranabot, which slid along The Falcon Mark 2's top a little, but did not fall off, and as Refbot pushed, he pushed The Falcon Mark 2 into Dead Metal. However, Refbot had pushed one of Tyranabot's wheels onto the top of The Falcon Mark 2, allowing it to get traction and drive off the top of The Falcon Mark 2.

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Refbot separates General Chompsalot 2 and Shunt

In the Final of the International Championship, General Chompsalot 2 got its rear jaw caught under Shunt's snowplough, and could not reverse out from underneath. Tornado rammed into the back of General Chompsalot 2 a couple of times, but couldn't push it free. Refbot came over, and pushed against Shunt, so when General Chompsalot 2 reversed, it was able to pull the jaw out from underneath.

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Refbot pushes Paul Bunyan off of Snake Bite

In Round 1 of the Robot Rebellion, Paul Bunyan drove up the side of Snake Bite, but as it tried driving over Snake Bite's top, Snake Bite reversed against it, and Paul Bunyan was left hanging off the back. Snake Bite could not move with Paul Bunyan hanging off the back, and Paul Bunyan's wheels were suspended off the floor, preventing it from getting free, so Refbot pushed into Snake Bite's side, and Paul Bunyan was able to reverse off of Snake Bite.

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Refbot pushes Rosie the Riveter 2 off of Snake Bite

Refbot also had to push another one of Snake Bite's opponents free of Snake Bite's top in Round 2. During Snake Bite's battle with Rosie the Riveter 2, Snake Bite got its front wedge under Rosie the Riveter 2's front, and Rosie the Riveter 2 became caught due to Snake Bite's "fangs", with all four wheels off the ground, meaning Rosie the Riveter 2 could not get free. Snake Bite pushed Rosie the Riveter around the arena, until Refbot reversed into Rosie the Riveter, pushing it free of Snake Bite.

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General Chompsalot 2 stuck on Refbot

One competitor actually became caught on Refbot. In Round 1 of Heat G, General Chompsalot 2 charged at Marauder, but missed its charge, driving into Refbot, and the jaw rode up his plough front, leaving General Chompsalot 2 became stuck on top. Refbot span around with General Chompsalot 2 until it slid off.

"Chompsalot has a little attack on Refbot! Wrong bot there, Chompsalot!"
— Stefan Frank as General Chompsalot 2 drives onto Refbot's front blade
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Refbot counts out The Bat

Refbot had very few notable battles across the series. One exception came in Round 1 of Heat B. Rocky-Bot-Boa rammed The Bat into the arena wall, immobilising it, and Refbot counted it out, then the House Robots pushed it into the pit. However, Medusa Oblongotta had also broken down, and the Judges intervened, stating that Medusa Oblongotta was immobile at the same time The Bat was counted out, so the battle should go to a Judges' decision. Judging the battle up to the point where The Bat and Medusa Oblongata became immobile, and decided on a 2-1 split decision that The Bat should go through.

"...but hold on a second, Refbot's come into the action and he's starting to count down The Bat, when I think it's actually Medusa Oblongotta that was out of there first! ... The only thing is, the audience wants to see some damage, they don't care who it is! As the Refbot counts it {The Bat} out, only two 'bots are gonna go through and one has to be a loser! And I believe that loser's going to be Medusa!"
— Stefan Frank as Refbot counts out The Bat
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Refbot immobile in the Tag Team Terror

In Round 1 of the Tag Team Terror, Refbot broke down. He was closely watching the battle between Texas Tornado and Mad Cow Bot against Trilobyte and Trackzilla, when he suddenly stopped moving in the centre of the arena. Mad Cow Bot accidentally drove into him whilst turning away from Sir Killalot, and then rammed Trackzilla onto Texas Tornado, hitting the immobile Refbot. Texas Tornado later reversed against him, pushing him backwards. Trackzilla was eventually immobilised, but Refbot could not count it out. Dead Metal actually pushed the immobile Refbot and used his saw on him, a rare example of the House Robots actually intentionally attacking each other.

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Refbot warns Sir Force A Lot to get back to its corner

As usual, Refbot was used to uphold fair play during battles. In the Tag Team Terror, he and the other House Robots could intervene if the competitors broke the rules by coming out of their corner without a tag. During the battle between Sir Force A Lot and G-Force against Snookums and Bang, Sir Force A Lot came out whilst G-Force was still out fighting. As Sir Force A Lot rammed Snookums, Refbot drove over to try and force Sir Force A Lot to return to its corner. Snookums pushed Sir Force A Lot against Refbot, and Refbot pushed against Sir Force A Lot until it reversed around him, then drove between Sir Force A Lot and Snookums, and Sir Force A Lot returned to the CPZ.

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Refbot forces Dead Metal to return to his CPZ

Refbot would also give warnings to the other House Robots if they attacked a competitor unfairly, although there were very few examples of this across the series, all of them involving Dead Metal. In Heat G, during the battle between Marauder and Destructive Criticism, Dead Metal came out of his CPZ whilst both robots were still fighting. Dead Metal drove into the arena centre, and Marauder drove into him. It quickly reversed away, and as Dead Metal tried to attack, Refbot intervened, driving besides him and Marauder to prevent the House Robot from attacking. Refbot reversed, but Dead Metal did not return to the CPZ, and Marauder continued to attack Marauder, then Destructive Criticism, until Refbot pushed against his side, forcing him to return to the CPZ, and possibly giving him a yellow card off screen.

"...Dead Metal out in the middle of the arena as well, for some reason, I don't know why! He's lost his mind! Refbot's saying "Get back to your corner!"."
— Stefan Frank as Refbot forces Dead Metal to return to the CPZ
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Refbot warns Dead Metal to stop attacking G-Force

In the Tag Team Terror, Refbot had to warn Dead Metal again for attacking a competitor unfairly. During the battle between G-Force and Sir Force A Lot against Mad Cow Bot and Texas Tornado, all four competitors broke the rule by fighting together. Dead Metal attacked G-Force, cutting into its side with his saw, but Refbot intervened. He gave Dead Metal a push to warn him to stop, and Dead Metal returned to the CPZ. Refbot could be shown raising his card lights, but if Dead Metal was given a card, it was not shown.

In the Heat Final of Heat E, Rosie the Riveter 2 pushed Darkness into an empty CPZ, and Dead Metal and Sir Killalot rushed over to the CPZ to attack the competitors. However, as Dead Metal tried to attack Rosie the Riveter, Refbot blocked him, as Sir Killalot was already in the CPZ. Refbot drove into Dead Metal's side, stopping him from attacking, but as he did so, Dead Metal became stuck on Refbot's front plough, and the two struggled to get apart, both trying to reverse away.

"They're both in the CPZ, and the House bots are gonna make 'em feel it! Dead Metal's in there, Refbot's running interference!"
— Stefan Frank as Refbot stops Dead Metal

Strangely, there were a number of occasions where the House Robots broke the rules, but Refbot did not get involved. In Round 2 of Heat D, during the battle between The Revolutionist and Psycho Chicken, Shunt pushed the immobile Psycho Chicken onto the flame pit and the floor flipper without waiting for Refbot to count it out. The Revolutionist had ripped off both of Psycho Chicken's wheels, and knocked it down the arena, then to the edge of Shunt's CPZ. Shunt axed it and pushed away, then returned to the CPZ, but after The Revolutionist hit Psycho Chicken again, Shunt came out of the CPZ without waiting for Refbot to count Psycho Chicken out, then used his axe to drag Psycho Chicken to the flame pit, and after it burnt, pushed it up the arena to the floor flipper.

In Round 2 of Heat F, Dragbot suddenly broke down during its battle with Brawler. Brawler went to open the pit, then rammed into the back of its immobile opponent, which suddenly started moving again, driving way from Brawler, around the pit, only to drive straight into the arena wall in the CPZ, where it stopped moving again. Sir Killalot drove down the arena to the CPZ, grabbed Dragbot with his claw, picked it up and dropped it out of the arena. However, Refbot did not give Sir Killalot a card, nor did he attempt to stop him dropping Dragbot out of the arena, instead just holding back at the other side of the arena.

In Round 2 of Heat H, during the battle between The Falcon Mark 2 and Buzz, Buzz broke down, and The Falcon Mark 2 pushed it up to the top of the arena. Sir Killalot drove up the arena, grabbed it with his claw, then carried it down to the pit and dropped it in, without waiting for Refbot to count it out. However, in each of these cases, it is unknown if Refbot counted the competitors in question out, and it was edited out.

In Round 1 of the House Robot Rebellion, Sgt. Bash and Sir Killalot attacked Paul Bunyan when it was neither immobile, nor in a CPZ. Refbot separated Paul Bunyan from Snake Bite when it was stuck on top, and Sgt. Bash, who was out of the CPZ, grabbed its side. Sgt. Bash ultimately let it go, with some help from Sir Killalot, but instead of returning to the CPZ, Sir Killalot grabbed Paul Bunyan with his claw and pushed it into Sgt. Bash, who bit into its spinning axes, breaking them off. Paul Bunyan tried to get away, but Sir Killalot chased after it, grabbed one of the wheels with his claw, lifted it off the floor and carried it to the bottom of the arena and dropped it over the fence. However, Refbot did nothing to stop either of the House Robots, not giving either of them a card for attacking Paul Bunyan.

As in Extreme Warriors Season 1, Refbot did not get involved in Final of the House Robot Rebellion, staying out of the action, and did not even count out Snookums after Sir Killalot threw it over

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Run Away pushes Lightning Tracks under Refbot

Although no competitors made any serious attacks on Refbot in this series, Run Away did briefly manage to leave him stuck on top of another competitor. In Round 1 of Heat G, Run Away and Destructive Criticism were attacking Lightning Tracks, and Run Away pushed Lightning Tracks into Refbot, and due to Lightning Tracks' low profile and wedge shape, it got under the front of Refbot, lifting his wheels off the floor. Refbot could not get away, until Lightning Tracks drove out from underneath.

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Refbot shakes his head after Hyperactive is thrown out of the arena

There was a humorous moment in Round 2 of the Annihilator, after Cyclone used its flywheel to toss Hyperactive out of the arena. Refbot went over to the arena fence where Hyperactive had been thrown out, overlooking the beaten competitor outside of the arena, and "shook his head in disbelief."

"Well with another one out, all Refbot can do is shake his head in disbelief!"
— Stefan Frank as Refbot overlooks Hyperactive outside the arena
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Refbot and Shunt spin around together

There was also a humorous moment at the end of the International Championship. After Cease was called, Refbot and Shunt drove into the arena centre, and both spun on the spot together.

"...the House Bots do a little do-si-do"
— Stefan Frank as Refbot and Shunt spin around

Nickelodeon[]

"...and last but not least, Refbot will be officiating every round on Robot Wars, and he'll make sure it'll be a fair fight!"
— Stefan Frank introduces Refbot in the House Robot introduction
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Refbot during his introduction in Nickelodeon Robot Wars

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Refbot shows his lights and counter during his introduction in Nickelodeon Robot Wars

In the only series of Nickelodeon Robot Wars, Refbot was introduced at the start of the series during the House Robot introduction. The same introduction that was used in Series 5, Dutch Series 1 and Extreme Warriors 2 was shown, but Refbot had his own introduction clip, not included in either of those series. In the clip, he spun around for the camera, showed his countdown timer and red card, and moved his head and arms.

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Refbot counts out Ninjitsu

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Refbot counts out Phantasm for the second time

Nickelodeon Robot Wars proved to be a very quiet year for Refbot, as he was mostly just used for counting robots out, and had very few notable moments. The first robot Refbot counted out in this series was Ninjitsu in the US Championship. Refbot would go on to count out all four losing competitors in the four battles, making this the only episode where all 4 battles ended with Refbot counting out the loser. Refbot counted out Phantasm twice, first against Probophobia, then in the Bonus Battle against Ninjitsu, making this one of the only times he counted out the same robot in two battles in one episode.

"Refbot shows the red light, which means it's the green light for the House Robots to come in and do the damage!"
— Stefan Frank as Refbot counts out Phantasm in the Bonus Battle

Refbot's busiest episode was Episode 5, where he counted out 5 robots; Diskotek and Rigby in the Mayhem, Joker in the Vengeance battle, and The Revolutionist and Vert-I-Go in the Ultimate Mayhem. In contrast, Refbot only had to count one robot out in Episode 3, Tyranabot in the Challenge Belt, and only one in the Annihilator, Techno Trousers in Round 1.

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Refbot counts out Probophobia as it tries to use its forks to move across the floor

One of the most notable moments for Refbot in the series was regarding Probophobia. In the Grand Final of the US Championship, Probophobia lost drive after its motors burnt out. As Refbot came over to count it out, Probophobia tried to show continued mobility by lifting itself end-over-end across the arena with its forks, but Refbot counted it out anyway.

"Look at the design of that thing! It's moving with its weapon, but the wheels are disabled, which is why Refbot is counting down! If the wheel or the drive chain is not functioning anymore, that's considered immobilised, even though Geena's doing a great bit of driving with that spinning lifting arm..."
— Stefan Frank as Refbot counts out Probophobia

According to Noel Sharkey, Probophobia succeeded in using its forks to evade the House Robots for some time, lasting an alleged twenty minutes before finally being pitted by Sir K. At Sharkey's insistence, the immobilization rules were changed so that a robot would only be eliminated if it lost complete mobility through its drive and weapon systems.

"I had long been arguing with the producers about changing the immobilisation rule. That is, if even one motor stops working for at least 30 seconds, the robot is considered to be immobilized and it automatically looses {sic}. For me immobilized means that the robot has lost its mobility but I was unsuccessfully putting pressure on the production team to change the rule. Anyway, the wheels on this kid's robot stopped turning in the middle of the competition and the house robots were sent in to finish it off. This started one of the funniest and most gratifying chases that I have ever seen. The robot had two lifting spikes at the front and it used these like crutches to hobble round. What was so good was that it managed to completely evade the house robots for twenty minutes and one of them ended up in the pit. My face said it all when the producer came to talk to me about it and the immobilisation rule was changed."
— Noel Sharkey, interviewed by Computer Science for Fun

[27]

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Refbot watches as the immobile Probophobia uses its lifter to move away from the pit

This rule change later affected Probophobia in its Challenge Belt battle against Tut Tut. As in the US Championship Final, Probophobia's motors burnt out, leaving it immobile, and Tut Tut pushed it by the pit, then drove away to open the pit. Although Probophobia could not drive away, it was able to lift its forks over its top, and turn itself over to get away from the pit, before turning itself back upright. Due to the rule change, Probophobia was still classed as mobile, so Refbot could not count it out, and it actually lasted until the Judges' Decision, though it still lost.

"Probophobia's got a lifting arm, but no drive wheels, which is not good, but they can actually use that lifting arm as a walker instead, so they're not actually immobilised by the rules of Robot Wars!"
— Stefan Frank as Probophobia turns itself over using its lifting arms
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The Revolutionist runs into Refbot

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Propellor-Head hits Vert-I-Go and bounces into Refbot

Another notable battle for Refbot was the Ultimate Mayhem. Early in the battle, The Revolutionist accidentally charged into Refbot after missing a charge at Propeller-Head, and the impact caused The Revolutionist's power link to fall out, immobilising it, making this one of the only times that Refbot was responsible for immobilising a robot. In the same battle, as Refbot went over to Vert-I-Go to count it out, Propeller-Head slammed into the immobile Vert-I-Go with its bar spinning, and bounced off, hitting the Refbot twice. Refbot reversed away from Propeller-Head, and did not go in to count it out until Propeller-Head was out of the way.

"The Revolutionst goes to work on Refbot! Wrong action!"
— Stefan Frank as The Revolutionist crashes into Refbot
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Propeller-Head hits Refbot

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Refbot pushes back against Propeller-Head

Propeller-Head also hit Refbot in its Mayhem battle against Xylon and Rosie the Riveter. Xylon got underneath Propeller-Head and pushed it up the arena towards Refbot. Refbot reversed away, but Rosie the Riveter rammed into Xylon, and as Propeller-Head fell off Xylon and tried to get away, it drove into Refbot. Propeller-Head got its blade back up to speed, and hit Refbot again. Refbot pushed against Propeller-Head, and it drove away.

"...as Refbot gets into the action, Propeller-Head has got that blade going up, but he's going after the wrong 'bot!"
— Stefan Frank as Propeller-Head hits Refbot
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Basenji drives into the pit trying to get away from Refbot

Refbot was also indirectly responsible for Basenji's loss in the Annihilator in Round 2. Basenji was fighting Hannibal down at the bottom of the arena, with Refbot nearby. As Basenji turned away from Hannibal, Refbot turned and reversed into it, as he was trying to avoid Bunny Attack and The Piecemaker. Basenji drove forwards to get away from Refbot, and drove straight into the pit.

In the House Robot Rebellion, held in Episode 4, Refbot did not get involved in the battle, just like in both series of Extreme Warriors. He did not even count out Humdrum after it was immobile, instead just allowing the other House Robots to put it on the Drop Zone.

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Shunt attacks Run Away before Refbot finishes his count

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Refbot stops Shunt attacking Run Away

In the International Tag Team, Refbot was counting out Zanzara and Run Away together, and Shunt came out of his CPZ and started pushing Run Away as Refbot's count was halfway through. Refbot pushed Shunt's side, pushing him apart from Run Away, forcing him to wait until he had finished counting it out. When he had finished, Shunt was able to push Run Away to the Floor Flipper.

"Now Refbot's doing the countdown, because Zanzara and Run Away are both immobilised, which is just a really tough break for that team!"
— Stefan Frank as Refbot counts out Zanzara and Run Away
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Shunt pulls Zanzara back on its wheels right in front of Refbot

However, in the Playoff, Shunt intervened when a competitor was immobile, and Refbot did not punish him. Bigger Brother flipped Zanzara onto its side by the arena wall, and Refbot went over to it, but before he could count it out, Shunt came out of his CPZ and used his axe to drag Zanzara back down to its wheels. Refbot did not give Shunt a card for coming out of his CPZ, and Zanzara survived to the end of the battle, but still lost the Judges' decision.

"Poor Zanzara doesn't have what it takes to get off the side, and in comes Shunt with that axe, as Refbot's having a closer look. But Shunt actually helped out Zanzara! Got him back on the wheels! A little bit of a reprieve!"
— Stefan Frank as Shunt pulls Zanzara back on its wheels

This was not the only time a House Robot broke the rules, but Refbot did not intervene. In the final of the International Tag Team, Sir K picked up Ming 3 by one of its wheels, carried it out of the CPZ and dropped in in the arena centre, causing it to become immobile, but Refbot did not give Sir K a card. He later grabbed Rick, who was not immobile nor in a CPZ, picked it up and dropped it out of the arena. Although Refbot did not show Sir K a red card, the Judges intervened, judging the battle until the point Sir K intervened.

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Refbot watches on, but does not intervene as Sir Killalot grabs Bunny Attack's hammer

In the Vengeance battle between Bunny Attack and Hoot, Sir K came out of his CPZ and interfered with the battle multiple times, but Refbot did not show him a card. First, Bunny Attack was pushing Hoot, which turned away, and suddenly Sir K came out of his CPZ, drove over to Bunny Attack and pushed it against Hoot. Sir K reversed, and Bunny Attack continued to push Hoot, but Sir K then drove into Bunny Attack's side, pushing it away from Hoot. Refbot did nothing to stop Sir K as it pushed Bunny Attack, and Sir K returned to the CPZ after pushing Bunny Attack away from Hoot without Refbot showing him a card for leaving his CPZ when the competitors were still mobile. Later in the battle, Bunny Attack was trying to push Hoot, and Sir K came out of this CPZ, grabbing Bunny Attack's hammer with his claw, bending it. Sir K let Bunny Attack go, and it drove back into Hoot, but then Sir K drove around to Bunny Attack's side, and broke off the hammer using his claw. However, during Sir K's attacks, Refbot held back, not reprimanding Sir K for breaking the rules.

In Round 3 of the Annihilator, Shunt came out of his CPZ to push Bunny Attack off the Steam Vent (known in other series as the Flame Pit), which is usually something Refbot would do, and Refbot did not show Shunt a card for leaving his CPZ when no competitor had been counted out.

Dutch Series 1[]

"This is Refbot. He came in in Series 4, to sort of really keep control in the studio, because it was getting a bit out of control up to that point."
Chris Reynolds introduces Refbot in Robot Wars: The Kick-Off
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Chris Reynolds introduces Refbot in Robot Wars: The Kick Off

Before the first Heat of Robot Wars: The Dutch Battles, Refbot and the other House Robots were introduced in Robot Wars: The Kick-Off, a special programme that acted as an introduction to the series and gave a behind the scenes look at the show. Amongst the people interviewed by Bridget Maasland was Chris Reynolds, designer of the House Robots, who revealed each House Robot's weapons, or in Refbot's case, his features, and their specialities. He also described the reason why Refbot was introduced, to act as an unbiased House Robot that could free trapped competitors.

Bridget Maasland: "What can he do, because I think it's a she, but you said it's a he."
Chris Reynolds: "We're not too sure actually ourselves! It's a sort of both!"
— Bridget Maasland discusses Refbot with Chris Reynolds
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Refbot counts out Lethal Swan

The first competitor Refbot counted out this series was Lethal Swan, in the first battle of the series, in Heat A. He regularly counted competitors out, counting out at least three in each episode. In Heat E, he counted out Shapeshifter in two battles, and also counted NEAT Machine out two battles, making the only episode where he counted out two competitors in two battles each.

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Refbot pushes Scraptosaur free of the angle grinder

Refbot's main role across the series was separating robots that were caught together, or freeing competitors that were stuck in the arena. For example, in the Heat B Round 1 battle between Scraptosaur and Alien Destructor, Alien Destructor rammed Scraptosaur into an angle grinder, and because of the very low wedge shape at the back of Scraptosaur, it became caught under the angle grinder. Refbot had to push against Scraptosaur's side to push it free.

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Refbot pushes Lizzard off of Slicer

In the Grand Final between Slicer and Lizzard, Slicer hit Lizzard's front with its drum, and Lizzard's became stuck on top of Slicer's drum. Slicer tried reversing out from under Lizzard, but Lizzard's front armour was caught on Slicer's drum, and Slicer could barely reverse with Lizzard weighing it down, and the drum could not spin with Lizzard on top of it. Refbot had to push the two apart by nudging Lizzard off of Slicer.

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Pathetica axes Shapeshifter whilst Refbot tries to push Shapeshifter free

Heat E was particularly busy for Refbot in this regard. In Round 1 of Heat E, Shapeshifter reversed into the pit release button, but its rear spike became caught behind the button. Pathetica attacked Shapeshifter with his axe, and Dead Metal came out of his CPZ to cut into it, but it was still stuck, so Refbot had to come over and push it free. Refbot drove between Shapeshifter and the wall to push the spike out from behind the button, breaking the pit release button off the wall in the process. However, Shapeshifter was immobile anyway, so Refbot counted it out.

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Refbot pushes NEAT Machine and Sater apart

In the battle between NEAT Machine and Sater, NEAT Machine was pushing against Sater's side, and its front ram became caught on Sater's rear wedge, causing the two robots to become caught together. Refbot had to push the two apart by pushing against Neat Machine's side, pushing it away from Sater so the battle could continue.

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Refbot pushes NEAT Machine away from the wall

Refbot would have to help NEAT Machine again in the Loser's Melee. The end of NEAT Machine's front ram snagged as it drove over the floor flipper, causing the ram to bend down. This prevented NEAT Machine from driving forwards, so it tried reversing, but backed into an arena wall, leaving it stuck. Refbot got behind it and tried to push it away from the wall, but as he pushed it forwards, NEAT Machine became caught against another angle grinder. Refbot drove to the other side of NEAT Machine and pushed it away from the wall. NEAT Machine accidentally drove into Refbot, who pushed it towards Shapeshifter. NEAT Machine axed Shapeshifter, being just about able to reach the edge with Refbot in the way, and Refbot pushed the two together, then reversed away.

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Refbot pushes Sater off of the flame pit

In the Heat Final, Sater charged at Sniper, which was between the arena wall and the flame pit, but in doing so it drove onto the flame pit. Sniper drove around Sater, blocking its escape as it tried to drive off. Sater caught fire, and could not get free when Sniper drove away, so Refbot had to reverse into Sater to push it off the flame pit.

Strangely, Refbot did not attempt to push Alien Destructor and Twisted Metal apart when disc was stuck in the side during their battle in Heat B. Sir Killalot came out of CPZ to pull them apart using his claw.

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Refbot counts out Pika 2 and Hammerhead together

There were a couple of battles where two competitors became immobile together, so Refbot counted both of them out and the one that was immobilised first was deemed the loser. In Heat C, Hammerhead immobilised Pika 2 with its spinning hammers, but then drove onto one of its front spikes, beaching itself of the ground. With Pika 2 unable to move, and Hammerhead unable to get off from the spike, Refbot counted both competitors out, though after the count, Pika 2 was the only one attacked by the House Robots, as it had been immobilised first.

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Refbot counts out Slicer and Enderbot together

In the Round 1 battle between Slicer and Enderbot in Heat D, Slicer rammed Enderbot into Sir Killalot, and Sir Killalot picked it up with his claw. However, when he put Enderbot down, not only was Enderbot immobile, but Slicer was only twitching a little. Refbot counted both robots out, and Enderbot was ruled to have been immobilised first, so Sir Killalot only attacked it and not Slicer.

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Refbot gives Sgt. Bash a yellow card

On a number of occasions, the House Robots would break the rules and attack competitors without them being counted out. On these occasions, Refbot would show them cards. No House Robot had to be shown a red, but there were a number of yellow cards. In Heat B, during the battle between Scraptosaur and Alien Destructor, Alien Destructor drove into Sir Killalot, who picked it up with his claw, and as he let it go, Sgt. Bash came over to the CPZ, grabbed Alien Destructor by the tail with his front pincer and pulled it up the arena. Alien Destructor struggled against Sgt. Bash to try and get free, but Sgt. Bash kept hold. Refbot drove at Sgt. Bash as Alien Destructor pulled against him, but Sgt. Bash refused to let go. Eventually he did as Refbot gave him a yellow card. However, Sgt. Bash would come out of his CPZ again later in the battle, as Alien Destructor rammed Scraptosaur against an angle grinder, and because of its low rear wedge, it became caught underneath, and Alien Destructor was seemingly stuck in the front of Scraptosaur. Sgt. Bash came out his CPZ to grab Alien Destructor by the tail and pulled it free of Scraptosaur, allowing Refbot to push Scraptosaur free of the angle grinder. In the last few seconds of the battle, both Sgt. Bash and Sir Killalot came out of their CPZ's whilst two two competitors, with Sgt. Bash trying to crush into Alien Destructor's side, and Sir Killalot grabbing Alien Destructor's tail with his claw. Refbot reversed against Sgt. Bash to try and force him away from Alien Destructor, but Sgt. Bash merely went straight back to grabbing Alien Destructor.

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Refbot gives Shunt a yellow card

In Heat D, during the Round 1 battle between El-Mower and Flextreme, Refbot gave Shunt a yellow card, after he came out of his CPZ whilst the two competitors were fighting. First Shunt drove down to the bottom of the arena and opened the pit. Flextreme was pushing El-Mower, which had ground to a halt, and Shunt pushed them apart, for which Refbot gave him a yellow card, forcing him to return to the CPZ.

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Refbot pushes Botwork off of the flame pit

Sir Killalot also received a yellow card in the Grand Final. During the battle between Slicer and Botwork, Botwork broke down after a few attacks from Slicer, and Slicer rammed it onto the flame pit. Refbot pushed it off the flame pit, and Sir Killalot came out of his CPZ to attack it, without waiting for Refbot to count it out, for which Refbot showed him a yellow card, forcing him to return to the CPZ. Once Refbot had counted Botwork out, Sir Killalot was allowed to come out and attack it.

However, in the Loser's Melee of Heat D, both Sir Killalot and Sgt Bash came out of their CPZs but Refbot didn't show any cards. First, Sgt. Bash came out of his CPZ and grabbed Project One's axe, dragging it back to his CPZ. Sir Killalot also came over to Sgt. Bash's CPZ, grabbing Project One with his claw, pushing it to his CPZ, then ramming it down the arena. Project One was still moving a little, but Sgt. Bash came across the arena, pushing it onto a flame jet. Project One managed to move off the flame jet, but Sgt. Bash continued to attack before time ran out. Despite these attacks, Refbot did not intervene or show any cards.

RefbotseparatesRatandBammBamm

Refbot tries to push Rat and Bamm Bamm apart

Refbot actually had a few notable battles across the series. In the battle between Rat and Bamm Bamm in Round 1 of Heat A, he had to separate the two competitors multiple times. First, Rat had Bamm Bamm pinned against an angle grinder, and the two robots became caught together, with Bamm Bamm caught on Rat's baseplate and unable to get free, and Rat unable to reverse or move away. Refbot pushed against Rat's side to try and separate the two, but Bamm Bamm was still caught on Rat's baseplate, so he drove around to Rat's other side and reversed against it, pushing it apart from Bamm Bamm. However, very soon after this, Bamm Bamm's club became caught under Rat's frame, so the two were stuck again. Refbot tried pushing Rat to help Bamm Bamm get free, but the two were still stuck together. Rat pushed Bamm Bamm down to the pit release button, and as the two struggled against each other, Refbot pushed Bamm Bam to try and free it, but Rat was still caught on Bamm Bamm's axe. Refbot reversed into Bamm Bamm, pushing it free of Bamm Bamm. Rat's internals had caught fire due to the burning fur of Bamm Bamm's club, and it broke down by the arena wall, blocking Bamm Bamm in the CPZ. Refbot pushed Rat away from the wall.

In the battle between Lizzard and Arena Killer, both the House Robots went too far in attacking the competitors, but Refbot did not stop them, and the battle had to be decided by the Jury. Lizzard pushed Arena Killer into the CPZ, and Shunt axed it, pulling it out of the CPZ, then turned it over using his scoop. Lizzard pushed the overturned Arena Killer back into Shunt's CPZ, and Shunt continued to attack, despite Refbot coming into the CPZ. Shunt turned Arena Killer back over with his scoop, and the two competitors continued fighting. However, when Lizzard drove close to her CPZ, Matilda flipped Lizzard over with her tusks, flipping against Refbot. Shunt and Matilda pushed Lizzard onto the floor flipper, then after cease was called, Shunt pushed it into the pit. Despite all these rule breaks from the House Robots, Refbot did not show either of them a card, and the battle went to the Jury, who ruled the House Robot interventions had been illegal, and judged the battle up to the point where they got involved.

RefbotcaughtonSgtBash'spincer

Sgt. Bash blasts his flamethrower at Refbot when he gets caught on Sgt. Bash's pincer

MatildathrowsScraptosaurontoRefbot

Matilda throws Scraptosaur onto Refbot

There was a humorous moment in the Heat B battle between PullverizeR and Scraptosaur in Heat B. PullverizeR defeated Scraptosaur by throwing it over with its flywheel, and Sgt. Bash and Matilda attacked it, dragging it back to the CPZ. Refbot actually drove between Sgt. Bash and Scraptosaur, blocking it, getting on top of Sgt. Bash's bottom pincer. Sgt. Bash retaliated by firing his flamethrower at Refbot, and as Refbot struggled to get off Sgt. Bash's pincer, Matilda hit Scraptosaur with her rear flywheel, throwing it against Refbot. This impact helped Refbot reverse off Sgt. Bash's pincer.

Strangely, nothing was seen of Refbot's fire extinguisher across the series, despite several competitors catching fire in their battles. Lethal Swan's fur was set on fire in both of its battles, but Refbot was not shown putting out the fire on either occasion. In the battle between Bamm Bamm and Rat, Bamm Bamm's foam club caught fire, and the fire spread to Rat's internals and Bamm Bamm's top, but Refbot never put out the flames. In Heat B, Shunt pushed Pyramid of Chaos onto the flame pit during the Losers' Melee, and the outside caught fire, but Refbot did not put out the flames. In Heat D, Sgt. Bash set Blue's decorative side armour on fire with his flamethrower, and as it fell off Blue, the flames grew, but Refbot just let it burn. As Blue immobilised Project One, Sgt. Bash came out of his CPZ and blasted Blue with his flamethrower again, setting fire to the other side of Blue, whilst Refbot counted out Project One, and Refbot was not shown putting out the flames.

Dutch Series 2[]

"Refbot, designed to control the House Robots and identify the losers."
— Robot Wars website, translated from Dutch
CountingOutP2

Refbot counts out Project Two: Hex'em

As in the first series of Robot Wars: The Dutch Battles, Refbot counted a competitor for the first time in the first battle of the series, with that robot being Project Two: Hex'em in its battle against Lizzard. As Refbot counted out Project Two: Hex'em, Lizzard repeatedly pushed against Refbot. The first five battles of the series would all involve Refbot counting out the losing competitor, with the first battle not to involve Refbot counting out a competitor being the Round 2 battle between Lizzard and Meshuggah.

RefbottriestopushHardfree

Refbot tries to push Hard free of the wall

The battle between Neater and Hard was notable for Refbot. After he had counted out Hard, he opened the pit. Matilda and Growler were attacking Hard, but Hard's axe was hanging over the arena wall, preventing Growler from pulling it away. Refbot gave Hard a couple of pushes to try and push it free of the wall, forcing it against the angle grinder, but the axe was still hanging over the side.

Heat B was Refbot's busiest episode of the series, with only one beaten competitor not being counted out by him, that being Trazmaniac in its Round 2 battle with Philipper 2.

RefbothelpsputShapeshifteronflipper

Refbot helps put Shapeshifter on flipper

In the battle between Philipper 2 and Shapeshifter, Refbot counted out Shapeshifter, then reversed up to the top of the arena. Sir Killalot grabbed its front scoop with his claw and dragged it up to the floor flipper, and Refbot helped Sir Killalot line up Shapeshifter on the floor flipper.

ImpactpushesBeaverbotawayfromRefbot

Impact pushes Beaverbot away from Refbot as he starts to count it out

Uniquely, in the battle between Impact and Beaverbot, Refbot began to count out the immobile Beaverbot, but before his count had even reached 2, Impact drove besides Beaverbot and pushed it away from Refbot, then pushed it into the pit. This was the only occasion in Robot Wars history where Refbot failed to complete his count on an immobilised robot because another competitor pushed it into the pit.

GrowlerdrivesintoRefbotwithSlamtilt

Growler drives into Refbot whilst pushing Slamtilt

Slamtiltcountedout

Refbot counts out Slamtilt

After his busiest episode of the series, where only one battle did not involve him counting out a competitor, Heat C proved to be the exact opposite, with it being his quietest episode of the series, with only one battle involving him counting out a competitor, that being Slamtilt in its battle against Twisted Metal Evo. Growler pulled Slamtilt away from the wall, and as he pushed it to the arena centre, he drove into Refbot. Slamtilt was then put on the floor flipper, where Refbot counted it out, and as he finished the count, Slamtilt was thrown by the floor flipper.

The battle between Flepser and Bamm Bamm was the first Round 1 battle of the series not to have Refbot count out the beaten competitor (Including his attempted counting out of Beaverbot), as it ended in a Judges' decision.

In Round 2, during the battle between Flepser and Twisted Metal EVO, Flepser was attacked by the House Robots without Refbot counting it out. After sustaining damage from Twisted Metal EVO's disc, Flepser strayed to the edge of Matilda's CPZ, and Matilda reversed into its side with her flywheel, ripping one of the tyres off. Without waiting for Refbot to count it out, Growler came out of his CPZ and drove over to Flepser, grabbing it in his jaw and pushing it up the arena to the floor flipper. After it was thrown, Growler pushed it onto the Drop Zone, then into the pit. However, despite this, Refbot did not show Growler a yellow card for attacking a competitor before it was counted out, nor did he attempt to count out Flepser whilst Growler was attacking it.

CountingOutAmok

Refbot counts out Amok

Heat D was also a quiet episode for Refbot. He counted out four competitors, but was not involved in any of the battles, and did not have any notable moments.

Scarab Vortex Inducer

Refbot pushes Scarab into Vortex Inducer

The first battle of Heat E proved to be a very unusual one, as the two competitors struggled to move towards each other, so the House Robot had to push them together. Sir Killalot reversed into Vortex Inducer and pushed it toward Scarab, and Refbot pushed Scarab against Vortex Inducer. The two competitors were unable to attack each other, so Refbot pushed Vortex Inducer away from Scarab, and Sir Killalot grabbed Scarab and pushed it against Vortex Inducer. With neither of the competitors moving, Refbot began to count them both out. However, Vortex Inducer was deemed to have been immobilised first, so the House Robots attacked it and it was eliminated.

RefbotpushesPika3free

Refbot pushes Pika 3 out from under the angle grinder

Pika3caughtonRefbot

Pika 3 caught on the front of Refbot

In the battle between Pika 3 and √3², Pika 3 dodged one third of √3², but drove into an angle grinder, and its lifter became stuck underneath. Refbot came over and tried to push it free. After a couple of pushes, Pika 3's lifter was freed from under the grinder, and it went back to fighting √3². However, as Refbot drove away, Pika 3 tried driving away from √3², and charged into him, driving up his front wedge. Refbot had to reverse, and Pika 3 managed to get its lifter free of Refbot's front.

CountingOutElevation

Refbot counts out Elevation

In the Heat Final, Refbot counted out Elevation, and as PulverizeR had also ripped one of the wheels of Son of X Bot clean off, two thirds of the clusterbot were deemed immobile. This was the only occasion of Refbot having to count out one third of a clusterbot.

Krab-Bot Philipper 2 Refbot

Refbot frees Krab-Bot from the angle grinder

The Grand Final proved to be a very uneventful episode for Refbot, as he only had to count out two competitors out of the 7 battles, and his only notable moment came in the Round 1 battle between Krab-Bot and Philipper 2. Krab-Bot rammed Philipper 2 into the arena wall, then reversed, and Philipper 2 drove around and got underneath, then flipped it. Krab-Bot fell onto an angle grinder, with one of its claws resting on the top, preventing it from falling onto its wheels. Krab-Bot opened and closed his jaws to try and get off the angle grinder, but couldn't, so Refbot had to push it off.

German Series[]

Jurgenandrefbot

Refbot with Jürgen Törkott

"Then there is "Refbot" (the referee robot), who keeps the house robots within their limits and the countdown-K.O. for the losers..."
— Robot Wars official website, translated from German[28]

In the only series of Robot Wars: The German Struggles, Refbot was regularly called on across the five episodes.

Tyke pitted by SOA

Refbot counts out Thorgrim whilst Son of Armageddon pushes Tyke towards the pit

The first competitor Refbot counted out was Thorgrim during the first battle of Heat A. In the battle, Tyke barely moved, and broke down after being lifted and pushed against the arena wall by Son of Armageddon, but because Thorgrim did not move at all, Refbot went to count Thorgrim out. However, as he did so, Son of Armageddon clamped the immobile Tyke with its lifter, and pushed it down the arena, pushing it into the pit just as Refbot finished his count. The Jury were called on to make a decision about which robot was eliminated first, and their decision was to eliminate Thorgrim.

RefbotpushesJunkyardQueenoffdiscofdoom

Refbot pushes Junkyard Queen off of the disc of doom

Golem vs Ansgar's Revenge

Refbot checks Ansgar's Revenge for mobility

The second Round 1 battle was very eventful for Refbot. First, Junkyard Queen drove over the disc of doom but stopped moving, leaving it stuck by the edge, seemingly immobile, so Refbot pushed it away from the arena spinner, after which it started moving again. Ansgar's Revenge was struggling to move by the arena wall, and Refbot went over to it, but did not count it out, seemingly deciding it was not yet immobile, though it barely moved for the rest of the battle. Soon after, Junkyard Queen was lifting Golem with its lifting forks and pushing it to the arena wall, but it became stuck, holding Golem off the floor, but unable to let go, push it or move away. Refbot had to push Golem free of Junkyard Queen's lifting forks. At the end of the battle, Junkyard Queen drove onto the disc of doom, and became stuck, and Refbot had to push it off. In the same battle, Growler came out of his CPZ and opened the pit without any competitors being counted out, but Refbot did not give him a yellow card.

GolemCountout

Golem is counted out against Tyke

HydrotecCountedOut

Refbot counts out Hydrotec

In the two Finals, Refbot counted out the losing robot in both battles, meaning Ansgar's Revenge was the only robot in the episode (Not including the robots from the German Melee, which was also shown as part of the episode) not to be counted out by Refbot.

Refbot's eye lights were not shining during the first final between Son of Armageddon and Junkyard Queen, but were repaired for the second final between Goeln and Tyke.

Heat B was a fairly quiet episode for Refbot, as he counted out two robots, Absolut Krankhaft in Round 1 and Hydrotec in the first Final, but he didn't have any real involvement in the battles apart from that.

RefbottriestopushNotPerfectandJunkyardQueenapart

Refbot tries to push Not Perfect and Junkyard Queen apart

In the Grand Final, in the Loser's Melee, Junkyard Queen drove onto the flame pit, and Not Perfect rammed into it with its rear spikes, but then got stuck on Junkyard Queen's lifting spikes. Refbot drove into the side of the two competitors to try and push them apart, but Not Perfect was still caught on Junkyard Queen's forks, so Refbot reversed into Junkyard Queen to try and push it free, but failed to separate the two competitors. Mr. Psycho had to come out of his CPZ to push the two competitors off the flame pit, then picked up Junkyard Queen with his claw, allowing Not Perfect to fall off the forks.

RefbotpushesJunkyardQueenontotheDropZone

Refbot pushes Junkyard Queen onto the Drop Zone

However, as Mr. Psycho carried Junkyard Queen, he overbalanced whilst turning and fell onto his side. Refbot reversed into Junkyard Queen to try and push it free of Mr. Psycho's claw, but couldn't get it free, so Sgt. Bash pushed it free with his claw. Refbot would then reverse the immobile Junkyard Queen onto the Drop Zone, the only time in the German Robot Wars where he pushed an immobile competitor onto one of the arena hazards.

RefbottipsTykedownfromthewall

Refbot tips Tyke down from the wall

During the 3rd Place Playoff, Son of Armageddon pinned Tyke against the bottom arena wall and flipped it up so it was resting against it, unable to get down. Refbot gave Tyke a push, allowing it to fall back to its wheels and continue the battle, though it ultimately lost anyway

RefbotcountsoutTyke

Refbot counts out Tyke

Refbot only counted out one competitor in the Grand Final, that being Tyke in its battle against Tsunami, making this the only episode of the series where he only counted out one competitor. However, in the 5th Place Playoff, he can be seen showing his red card whilst pushing Junkyard Queen out of Mr. Psycho's claw. Junkyard Queen was immobile by this point, so it is possible that Refbot counted it out whilst still in Mr. Psycho's claw, and this part was edited out.

Refbot delldog

Refbot counts out Delldog

After only counting out one competitor in the Grand Final, the next episode, the Germany vs England special, proved to be his busiest in terms of counting out competitors, with him counting out 6 competitors across the 7 battles. Of the 7 battles, 2 ended in a Judges' decisions, and every other battle involved Refbot counting out the loser, and in the 259 vs Judge Shred 21/2 battle, he counted out both robots after they both became immobile

Refbotcountsout259

Refbot counts out 259

Notably, there was a moment in the German dub in the episode where Refbot counted out a competitor that was not included in the UK broadcast of the episode. In the battle between 259 and Judge Shred 2½, 259 immobilised Judge Shred with its flywheel, then knocked it against the arena wall. However, as it attacked the bottom, the impact caused 259 to stop, and Judge Shred 2½ rested on top of its flywheel. As seen in the UK broadcast, Refbot pushed the two competitors, then counted Judge Shred 2½ out, as it had been immobilised first. However, after Judge Shred 2½ was put on the floor flipper and then the pit by Growler, in a part deleted from the UK version, Refbot also counted out the immobile 259, and it was pushed into the pit by Growler and Sgt. Bash.

Strangely, in this battle, Refbot's head was facing upwards.

RefbotpushesPhilipperfreeoffthearenafloor

Refbot pushes Philipper 2 free off the arena floor

The final episode of the series, the European Championship, was Refbot's quietest episode of the series. He only counted two competitors out (Zeus and Snake Bite), and his only notable moment was in the Final between Tornado and Philipper 2, where Philipper 2 drove over the flame pit, but the tip of its flipper became caught in the arena floor on the edge of the flame pit, leaving the robot stuck over the flames. Refbot pushed against its side a couple of times, pushing Philipper 2 out from under the arena floor.

In the battle between Tornado and Razer, Razer broke down whilst holding up Tornado by the pit. However, Refbot did not attempt to push them apart.

Whist Refbot usually only showed the Green light at the start of the battle, in the European Championship final, he showed the Red, then the Yellow, then the Green.

Appearances in Merchandise[]

Gallery[]

Outside Robot Wars[]

RefbotEntrance

Refbot's entrance at the Robot Mayhem event

Refbot made his first appearance at the Robot Mayhem event prior to Series 4, his first show being July 24th 2000. The theme tune from Match of the Day was played, and he demonstrated his fire extinguisher, putting out a flaming football[29][30].

Refbot was also used for the Series 5 qualifiers, at the Robot Wars Live Events tour[31], but not for the Series 6 and 7 qualifiers, which were not held in front of a live audience and did not involve the House Robots.

Refbot also went on tour with The Robot Zone, a charity event run by Steve Merrill of The Hub Nuts, where he was used for static display along with other competitors and House Robots[32].

Both versions of Refbot, other House Robots and a robot from the Robot Wars sister show Mechanoids made a cameo appearance in a BBC documentary about Leonardo Da Vinci in a section where the props team attempted to recreate some of Leonardo's designs with wood and other materials from around his time period.[33]

Trivia[]

  • Because of his role in later series, Refbot was the only House Robot to feature in every battle of the series he appeared in.
  • Due to the War of Independence being filmed before the rest of Series 4, alongside American Robot Wars 2000, this was the first episode of Robot Wars episode he was used in, although it was not broadcast first, being broadcast halfway through the series, during the Christmas specials.
    • Due to the MTV Pilot never airing, it is unknown if Refbot was used in the American Robot Wars 2000.
  • Unbeknownst to many, there were in fact two Refbots built, as a result of the producers requiring him to be present for every battle. This was revealed by producer Steve Carsey to the audience during a recording for the Seventh Wars. If one looks closely, a small number (1 or 2) can also be seen on Refbot's back, identifying which Refbot was being used in certain battles.
  • According to Robot Wars Magazine, there were plans for Refbot to be equipped to speak in order to explain his decisions[34][35], although these were never implemented.
  • Refbot was referenced during Heat A of Series 10, where Angela Scanlon jokingly claimed that the Daedalus Mk 1 hovering equipment invented by Richard Browning would be the 'perfect outfit for a new Refbot'.
  • Refbot's name was spelt as Ref Bot on his Battle Card, sold as part of the third pack of Robot Wars Battle Cards.
  • Jonathan Pearce would often refer to Refbot as "The Refbot" during his commentary, though his name was never listed as such.
  • In his introduction in Nickelodeon Robot Wars, Refbot's name was spelt with a hyphen in the middle, but this spelling has not been used outside of Nickelodeon Robot Wars.
  • In some battles, such as Plunderbird 4 vs Knightmare (Series 4, Heat L), Refbot's head was mounted backwards.

References[]

  1. Nottingham Post (Page no longer active)
  2. Mike Franklin's YouTube channel - Discussion
  3. Ultimate Warrior Collection: Sir Killalot and the House Robots
  4. Robot Wars Series 5 Programme, Page 17
  5. Robot Wars Magazine, Issue 6 - Robot Laws
  6. Robot Wars: Ultimate Warrior: Sir Killalot and the House Robots on YouTube
  7. Ultimate Warrior Collection: Sir Killalot and the House Robots
  8. Robot Wars Magazine, Issue 6 - Robot Laws
  9. Robot Wars Series 5 Programme, Page 17
  10. Robot Wars Magazine, Issue 6 - Robot Laws
  11. Robot Wars Magazine, Issue 6 - Robot Laws
  12. 'Live and Flipping!', Robot Wars Magazine, Issue 6, pp.20-21.
  13. 'House Robots', Robot Wars Magazine, Issue 7, p.9.
  14. Robot Wars Live Event programme - Page 15
  15. Robot Wars Extreme - Flipper Frenzy | Uncut Battle and interview on YouTube
  16. Robot Wars Series 5 Programme, Page 16
  17. Series 6 Programme, Page 17
  18. Series 6 Programme, Page 17
  19. Mike Franklin on YouTube comments, Tetanus II vs Raging Reality, 2007
  20. Extreme 2 Programme, Page 24
  21. Robot Wars Series 7 Programme, Page 22
  22. Jeroen van Lieverloo on the Unofficial Robot Wars Facebook group
  23. Team Storm website - Series 7, The Grand Finals (Archived)
  24. Correspondence with User:VulcansHowl, 14th July 2020
  25. 25.0 25.1 25.2 Ed Hoppit on the FRA Forum
  26. Omaha World Herald, 2001
  27. 'Computer Science for Fun - cs4fn: Robot Wars: Interview with Noel Sharkey', Computer Science for Fun (CSf4n) magazine website
  28. Robot Wars official website - House Robots (Archived, German)
  29. Robot Wars Magazine, Issue 6 - Robot Laws
  30. Robot Wars Magazine, Issue 6 - Live and Flipping
  31. Ultimate Real Robots magazine, Issue 31, Page 16
  32. The Robot Zone website (archived)
  33. Twitter - The Big Live Tour fan (Post Deleted)
  34. 'Robot Report - House Cleaning', Robot Wars Magazine, Issue 5, p.3.
  35. 'Live and Flipping!', Robot Wars Magazine, Issue 6, pp.20-21.

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