BattleBots IQ 2002 was the first BattleBots IQ event sanctioned under the BattleBots name. Held in March 2002, it was the only BBIQ event to take place before the televised show came to an end on Comedy Central in November that same year.
The event was held at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida and saw middleweight robots piloted by students between 12 and 18 years of age[1] compete for the inaugural BattleBots IQ championship.
The iconic BattleBox returned from the televised series, fitted with spikestrips around the circumference of the arena. The BattleBots IQ logo adorned the middle of the floor, and red and blue squares denoted the starting areas for each competitor. Other hazards included the return of Killsaws as well as Pulverizers, which were housed in two of the four corners of the BattleBox. Arranged by Nola and Bill Garcia of Team Loki with the backing of BattleBots co-founders Trey Roski and Greg Munson, the competition was announced in September 2001. Tom Bales, Jim Smentowski, Joanne Pransky, Dave Calkins and Michael Mauldin served as judges for the event.
Although footage from the event is scarce, the 2002 event is one of the few with full information of the field of competitors, tournament winners and award winners. In 2017, footage from a team member of Checkmate surfaced from the 2002 and 2003 BBIQ events.[2]
The event was ultimately won by Wee Willy Wedgy, who overcame Marc DeVidts' The Edge in the final to win the first BBIQ title. Third and fourth place were taken by PlasticBot and Evil Eagle respectively, and Kaibosch won the Grand Rumble at the end of the competition. Although it was unsuccessful in winning this particular competition, BBIQ 2002 saw the debut of Green Wave, built by future three-time Giant Nut winner Paul Ventimiglia.
Competitors[]
| Large Class (120lb) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Robot | Builder/Team | Home Town |
| a-wreck-no-bot | Team DiCaM | Boca Raton, FL |
| Accelerator | Team Accelerator | Plymouth, MA |
| Angry Kitchen Appliance | Team Angry Kitchen Appliance | Manchester, MA |
| AXis | Team Malicious Intent | Bloomsburg, PA |
| Balronic Wedge | Team Ultra | Independence, OH |
| Botsy | Tasmanian Tigers | Lake Helen, FL |
| Checkmate | Alpha Kai Omega | Miami, FL |
| D-Monic | Team Cerberus | Highland Village, TX |
| Deborah | Lincoln-Sudbury - Lost Bearings | Sudbury, MA |
| Default | Team Default | Plymouth, MA |
| Defenestrator | SHENbot | Columbus, IN |
| Discombotulator | Team Darwin | Arlington, VA |
| E2 | Team Electronic Emphasis | Hackensack, NJ |
| Evil Eagle | Hauppauge High School | Hauppauge, NY |
| First Step to Oblivion | Team Pyramid | Tampa, FL |
| FLIP | Team Ramtech 001 | Miami, FL |
| Gatorblade | Louisiana Swamp Monsters | Slidell, LA |
| Gatorbot | Team Gators | Miami Beach, FL |
| Green Wave | Team Demolition | Wayne, NJ |
| HammerRoyd | Oneida Technology Student Association | Oneida, NY |
| Happy Scrappy Hero Pup | Scrounge Lizards | Wilmette, IL |
| Joan of Arc | Femme Fatale | Miami, FL |
| Kaibosch | Team Evolution | South Wales, NY |
| Karl | Team Karl | Thief River Falls, MN |
| Kobotsu | Team Vortex | Tipp City, OH |
| Lethal Dosage | Michael Bastoni (one-man team) | Plymouth, MA |
| Lurker | Sarasota Custom Robotics | Sarasota, FL |
| Mag-ness | Bartram Trail High School | Jacksonville, FL |
| Metal Fury | Blood Sweat and Gears | North Royalton, OH |
| Nightstalker | Team Nightstalker | Miami, FL |
| PlasticBot | Team PlasticBot | Plymouth, MA |
| Playbot | Team Playbot | Miami, FL |
| Plow King | East High School | Pueblo, CO |
| Raider | Team Force/Eden | Eden, NY |
| Reaver | Reaver Robotics | Warwick, RI |
| Scorpion | Central High School | Pueblo, CO |
| ShellShock * | ? | ? |
| Steven Seagal | Team Poison Fists - Blue | Pittsburg, PA |
| South High School BattleBot * | ? | ? |
| Swiss Cheese the Wedge Bot | Miami Springs High School | Miami Springs, FL |
| Tetanus | Team T.A.R.S. | Pueblo, CO |
| The Edge | Team UI | Harahan, LA |
| Trojan Warrior (a.k.a. Bulldog Warrior) | Bull Dogs | Pueblo, CO |
| Wee Willy Wedgy | Jeff McLay / Team Robot Dojo | Louisville, CO |
| Whambulance | Team Whambulance | Titusville, FL |
| WhirlWind | Team Poison Fists | Pittsburg, PA |
| Wut | Lunatic Fringe | Miami, FL |
* This robot fought exclusively in post-tournament rumbles.
| Consolation Rumbles |
|---|
| First Step to Oblivion vs. Steven Seagal vs. D-Monic vs. Plow King vs. Default vs. Swiss Cheese the Wedge Bot |
| a-wreck-no-bot vs. Happy Scrappy Hero Pup vs. HammerRoyd vs. Angry Kitchen Appliance vs. Scorpion vs. Lethal Dosage vs. Gatorbot vs. Reaver |
| Nightstalker vs. Wut vs. Kaibosch vs. Balronic Wedge vs. South High School BattleBot vs. Playbot vs. FLIP vs. Deborah vs. Gatorblade |
| Metal Fury vs. AXis vs. ShellShock vs. WhirlWind vs. Bulldog Warrior vs. Checkmate |
| Defenestrator vs. Karl vs. E2 vs. PlasticBot vs. Wee Willy Wedgy vs. The Edge vs. Whambulance |
| Grand Rumble |
| Steven Seagal vs. Swiss Cheese the Wedge Bot vs. Gatorbot vs. Reaver vs. Kaibosch vs. Deborah vs. Metal Fury vs. ShellShock vs. Wee Willy Wedgy vs. The Edge |
| East vs. West Grudge Rumble |
|---|
| FLIP, Joan of Arc, Checkmate & Playbot vs. Bulldog Warrior, Tetanus, Plow King & Scorpion |
| Grudge Matches |
| First Step to Oblivion vs. a-wreck-no-bot |
| Angry Kitchen Appliance vs. WhirlWind |
Awards[]
Coolest Robot Award[]
Outstanding Sportsmanship Award[]
- "Due to valorized sportmanship being a common virtue, this catagory [sic] resulted in a five way tie."
- — Extract from Volume III of the BattleBots Magazine[3]
Most Aggressive Robot[]
Best Engineered Robot[]
Best Operators[]
Best Use of the IFI Control System[]
Hardest Working Team[]
Lincoln Electric Welder Winners[]
See Also[]
Trivia[]
- This competition was detailed in Volume III of the BattleBots Magazine.