The X-1 (also often referred to as X-1 or X1) was a middleweight robot which competed in the 1994 and 1995 US Robot Wars competitions. The first robot fought by Mike Winter, it was successful in the inaugural events, winning the 1994 Middleweight Face-Off outright over South Bay Mauler, before losing in a multi-class Melee at the end of the event. The X-1 would later finish second in the 1995 Middleweight Face-Off, losing to La Machine, and would later compete in an autonomous class event.
The X-1 would be retired following 1995, although lighter successors would compete in later Robot Wars events as one of many entries from Winter and his team. These were featherweight The X-2, competing in 1996, and the lightweight clusterbot X7, competing in 1997.
Design[]
The X-1 alongside Mike Winter
The X-1 was a grey, rectangular robot decorated with checkered tape in both of its appearances. Its lifting mechanism, a spike located on the front of the machine that was described by the team as a flipper, was operated using CO2. The X-1 also had a skewer on the back that acted as a spike, and was used to attack opponents. For 1995, parts of the exterior were covered, preventing potential attacks targeted at the internals of The X-1, although much of the locomotion remained exposed. Beyond that, however, The X-1 remained identical to its guise in 1994.
The robot had a six-wheel drive in both events it competed in, powered by two DC electric gear motors, and was described as having tank-type steering.[1]. The robot also had the ability to drive autonomously, competing in an autonomous division alongside Cyberknight, Rambot and Spike.[3]
The Team[]
The X-1 was entered by five people: Dennis Adams, Mike Winter, Jim Sellers, Dave Hamel and Clark Hochgraf. Adams served as the team captain in both of its appearances, although little is known about the team beyond that. The Robot Action League, albeit with a different membership and including Mike Winter's daughter, Lisa Winter, would compete beyond the US Live Events with Tentoumushi, making appearances in both BattleBots and Robot Wars. For more information on this, see here.
Robot History[]
1994 US Championship[]
The X-1 fighting South Bay Mauler
The X-1 overturns South Bay Mauler
In the first and sole battle of the Middleweight Face-Off category, The X-1 faced South Bay Mauler. The X-1 began tentatively, steadily moving across the arena before making its way to the top-left corner, where South Bay Mauler was. After two failed attempts at lifting over South Bay Mauler, The X-1 retreated before returning, using its spike. After some time, The X-1 attempted another charge, managing to upturn its opponent and being declared as the victor, and consequently becoming the first Middleweight champion.
Robot Action League abstained from the Escort event, but The X-1 would later compete in an eight-way Melee featuring all remaining functional robots from all weight classes. Opponents included 1994 Heavyweight champion Ramfire 100, Tiny Tim, Zomo, Doolittle, The Beetle, Spiny Norman and its former rival, South Bay Mauler.
The X-1 on top of Spiny Norman
The Melee began tentatively for The X-1, which initially attacked Tiny Tim before moving on Spiny Norman, and managed to successfully breaking off its shell in the process, though it would be stuck upon the latter, only being prised off by a counterattack from Tiny Tim. Following this, The X-1 started to have difficulties with its mobility and became less active and at times, totally immobilised. Despite this, though, the robot continued to display aggression, primarily targeted against South Bay Mauler, Tiny Tim and Zomo, albeit not to any decisive degree.
The House Robot pushes The X-1 into a corner
These issues continued intermittently throughout the melee, and extended to the entrance of the House Robot. The X-1 initially attacked, being hit by the paddle of the House Robot in response before it returned to its previous position. Later, The X-1 was pushed into the top-right corner, though it managed to escaped from this position. It would be pushed there again sometime afterwards, being held alongside Zomo by the Arena Mousetraps, but not being directly targeted. As the House Robot retreated, The X-1 managed to escape and attempted to ram into the House Robot a few more times. After later attempting to attack both Tiny Tim and Zomo, it returned to attack the House Robot with a few more ramming attacks, failing and ultimately retreating. It became trapped in the Arena Mousetraps, and finally broke down completely next to Ramfire 100. As a result, it lost the melee, which was won by South Bay Mauler instead.
1995 US Championship[]
The X-1 returned for the 1995 Robot Wars Middleweight Face-Off, mostly identical to its guise in the previous season. In the first round, it would be drawn against Ladybug.
The X-1 pushes back Ladybug as it begins to smoke
Both robots began the battle by driving to the centre of the arena, with The X-1 managing a series of lifts as Ladybug emitted smoke. However, these initial attacks failed to provide The X-1 with much of an advantage, as it failed to move Ladybug. After an initial retreat, The X-1 returned, lifting Ladybug once again around the Arena Mousetraps before pushing it further back after some difficulty whilst Ladybug released more smoke, pinning it onto the arena walls, rendering them immobilised and winning the match, consequently advancing to the Semi-Finals of the Middleweight Face-Off.
The X-1 lifts the tail of StingRayBot
Here, The X-1 would fight StingRayBot. The match began tentatively, with The X-1 quickly charging to the centre of the arena before halting as StingRayBot span. After a brief period, and following a failed attempt at lifting its opponent, The X-1 managed to grab onto StingRayBot's tail, driving in circles a few times and dragging Scorpion alongside it. Despite some attempts, StingRayBot failed to escape, and was counted out as a result, leading to a victory for The X-1.
The X-1 lands after La Machine's first attack
Now in the finals, The X-1 would fight La Machine. The X-1 initially swerved to the right, causing La Machine to overshoot into the Arena Wall. After that, however, The X-1 was scooped up and pushed into the arena paddleboards. It then attempted to pirouette towards La Machine, but consistently failed. Following that, it chased La Machine to the right-hand side of the arena, where it drove onto its opponent's wedge and was barged into the Arena Mousetraps. Here, it became momentarily stuck, before being removed by a subsequent offensive from La Machine. The X-1 tried to stage its own offensive on La Machine from there, attempting to flip it twice and trying to use its back spike, but both failed, with The X-1 then being dragged towards the top Arena Mousetrap before it spun in place.
The X-1 barges into the Cambot
From there, it became victim to several more attacks, although it did manage to spin off of La Machine's wedge when being pushed around. After a first offensive failed as a result of being interrupted, a second attempt was made, which also failed as The X-1 rammed into the Arena Mousetraps. There, it escaped to the bottom-right corner of the arena before being pushed into the Wrecking Ball by La Machine. Following a handful of further pushes, La Machine was able to get beneath The X-1 once more, pushing them across the arena again. By this stage of the battle, The X-1 began to struggle with drive issues, being rendered unable to move at a similar pace, an issue exploited by La Machine as it pinned The X-1 against the Arena Walls before retreating.
La Machine spins in place as The X-1 is fully immobilised
The X-1 eventually managed to prise itself off of the Arena Walls, although only through moving underneath the Arena Mousetraps, which slammed into its top. It then lurched sluggishly forwards but still attempted to attack, mistiming an attack with its lifter. Further attacks continued from La Machine, but following a brief deluge, The X-1 was able to reclaim some mobility, spiralling around at a hastened pace before inching forwards into the right-hand corner of the arena, finally stopping after a brief moment. La Machine pushed it first into the Arena Mousetraps and then towards the right hand of the arena, where it remained, its top visibly buckled, as La Machine was declared the champion of the Middleweight Face-Off, thus confining The X-1 into being the runner-up.
The X-1 grazes Have A Nice Day
Later, The X-1 also competed in a melee involving several robots billeted as being the Middleweight melee, where it fought Dawn Patrol, Boy Howdy, Satoru Special 2, Have a Nice Day and two previous opponents in La Machine and StingRayBot. After seemingly being introduced, The X-1 first charged into the centre of the arena, where it pushed Have a Nice Day before attacking StingRayBot alongside La Machine. From there, though, it didn't play a significant part in visible combat, although it eventually returned to the centre of the arena, where it staged a further attack on Have a Nice Day, successfully hoisting it into the air.
Numerous machines resting across the arena. Note The X-1 in the bottom-centre of the arena
However, this had a detrimental impact on The X-1, which remained mostly fixed in place and was rendered unable to pry itself loose from Have a Nice Day's frame. After several minutes, La Machine eventually aided in unsticking the pair, with The X-1 moving towards the left-hand side of the arena. By this stage, though, most other robots had been immobilised, and The X-1 failed to move as well following a second attack from La Machine, being left beside the Cambot. As a consequence, La Machine was declared the victor of the melee, and The X-1 was defeated once more. The X-1 was retired following this battle, marking an end to its career.
Results[]
| THE X-1 - RESULTS | ||
| 1994 US Championship | ||
| Middleweight Face-Off Champion | ||
| Final | vs. South Bay Mauler | Won |
| Melee | ||
| Melee | vs. Tiny Tim, Zomo, Doolittle, The Beetle, Ramfire 100, Spiny Norman, South Bay Mauler | Lost |
| 1995 US Championship | ||
| Middleweight Face-Off Runner-up | ||
| Round 1 | vs. Ladybug | Won |
| Round 2 | vs. StingRayBot | Won |
| Final | vs. La Machine | Lost |
| Middleweight Melee | ||
| Melee | vs. La Machine, Dawn Patrol, StingRayBot, Boy Howdy, Satoru Special 2, Have a Nice Day, | Lost |
Wins/Losses[]
- Wins: 3
- Losses: 3
Series Record[]
1994-1997 US Competitions[]
| Events | The X-1 Event Record |
|---|---|
| 1994 | Middleweight Champion (Face-Off) |
| 1995 | Middleweight Runner-up (Face-Off) Entered with Holobot (Mike Winter) |
| 1996 | Entered with The X-2 Entered with Attiller (the Hun) (Jim Sellers) |
| 1997 | Entered with X7 (Mike Winter & Dennis Adams) Entered with Dough Boy (Lisa Winter) Entered with Red-Green (Jim Sellers) |
UK Series[]
| Series | The X-1 Series Record |
|---|---|
| The First Wars | Did not enter |
| The Second Wars | Did not enter |
| The Third Wars | Middleweight Melee & War of Independence with Tentoumushi |
| The Fourth Wars | Did not enter |
| The Fifth Wars | Did not enter |
| The Sixth Wars | Did not enter |
| The Seventh Wars | Did not enter |
| Series 8 | Did not enter |
| Series 9 | Did not enter |
| Series 10 | Did not enter |
Honours[]
References[]
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