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Team Whyachi are an active team, who have competed in multiple weight classes since their debut in Season 3.0 of Comedy Central BattleBots.
As one of the most famous and recognizable teams in BattleBots history, they are best known for their championship-winning tri-bar spinner Son of Whyachi, but currently compete in the show with Hydra and Fusion. Team Whyachi have also fought in untelevised BattleBots seasons with Warrior, Warrior SKF, Falcon, Whyachi, YU812, Y-Pout, Why Not and Red Square.
Team Whyachi with some of their robots in 2005.
Based in Dorchester, Wisconsin, the team is comprised primarily of the Ewert family, headed by Terry Ewert, though his sons have captained their own entries in recent years. Team Whyachi won the heavyweight division with then-shuffler Son of Whyachi in their debut season, forcing a change in rules towards the weight bonuses shufflebots received from Season 4.0 onwards. Despite being the team's flagship robot for some years, Son of Whyachi, as its name suggests, was a smaller version of the team's original superheavyweight Whyachi. Despite winning a rumble, Whyachi's only other win came by way of forfeit and it was retired shortly after.
While Son of Whyachi would not win another Giant Nut, the team later won the hobbyweight division in the 2004 NPC Charity Open with Ricochet and rebuilt Son of Whyachi under the official name Nitro SOW. Team Whyachi also found success in BattleBots IQ events with the original middleweight version of Falcon, also known as Falconizer in the first of its two championship wins.
Various members of the Ewert family during World Championship I.
Returning for the reboot with Son of Whyachi, the team have since entered seasons with heavyweights Warrior Clan (later known as Warrior Dragon), Falcon, Hydra and Fusion.
Team Whyachi are known for their custom stand for hydraulic flipper Hydra, which allows for the team to rotate the 250lb robot on an axis 360 degrees for easy access to its underside. They also offer parts for other robot combat teams under the Team Whyachi Robotics business, including gearboxes, power switches,[1] along with custom-machined and fabricated components.[2] Since 2008, Team Whyachi's business has expanded to include a waterjet cutting service allowing for higher-precision machining.[3] They have provided vital parts for a number of competitors, including Ray Billings of Tombstone fame.
Following World Championship VI, the team entered the June 2022 re:MARS all:STARS event in Las Vegas, but fell in the bracket final to Team HyperShock. It had been rumored that Fusion would be retired, with Robotic Death Company hinting on Facebook that Fusion would not be participating in World Championship VII.[4] Team Whyachi were confirmed to be participating in the season in October 2022, with Hydra ranked #5 in the BattleBots Pre-Season Power Rankings.[5] Fusion was not ranked within the Top 32, but returned despite rumors suggesting otherwise.
In March 2023, the team began producing weekly livestreams, titled the Team Whyachi Rumble. These often featured special guests, including Ray Billings, Diana Tarlson and Zach Lytle, Logan and Brady Davis, Jamison Go and Ben Burton.
Outside BattleBots[]
Terry Ewert and Whyatica during Robotica.
Team Whyachi also competed in TLC's Robotica with Warrior, renamed Whyatica for the competition. Whyatica was a four-wheel drive robot armed with a lifting plough at the front. Prioritizing drive power over damaging weaponry for the show, Whyatica lost in the preliminary stages of Episode 4 to Jav Man after flipping itself over and being unable to recover.
Team Members[]
Terry Ewert[]
- "For me, robots are actually the ultimate fighting experience. You design, you build, you prepare as best as you can. It's really about getting the win. If you have to rip the other guy apart to do that, we'd be more than happy to."
- — Terry Ewert during World Championship I
Builder of the original Son of Whyachi, Terry Ewert drove it to success in its debut year. Despite not appearing on camera in recent seasons, Terry Ewert remains heavily involved in the design, construction and maintenance of each robot.
Terry Ewert is the father to Jake, Reese, Luke and Clint Ewert. He runs a business which manufactures and sells automated equipment for the meat industry. This ties into one of Team Whyachi's most prominent sponsors and a product of Westar, Udder Gun.
Jake Ewert[]
Jake Ewert began driving combat robots in the early 2000s, alongside his brothers. Having been present for all three of Warrior Clan's seasons, Jake Ewert debuted a new build called Hydra for World Championship IV. Jake Ewert has since become one of the most popular personalities of the modern era.
He also drove Son of Whyachi for the first time during BattleBots: Bounty Hunters, in its 2020 loss to Gigabyte.
Reese Ewert[]
Captain and driver of the most recent Team Whyachi heavyweight, Fusion, he has become known for his deadpan and humorous interviews and rivalry with brother Jake Ewert.
Reese also featured with Warrior Clan for the 2015 season and was everpresent with Son of Whyachi in its reboot seasons, including rejoining Jake alongside Dick Stuplich for its Bounty battle.
Luke Ewert[]
Luke Ewert was the driver of both Warrior Clan (later Warrior Dragon) and Son of Whyachi for the majority of its reboot career. Luke also took pre and post-fight interviews during the 2019 season.
He later joined brother Reese Ewert as part of Fusion ahead of the 2021 season.
Clint Ewert[]
Clint Ewert was also everpresent with Warrior Clan in its three reboot seasons. Alongside brother Reese Ewert, he piloted the dual drum spinner Falcon in the 2019 season.
Richard "Dick" Stuplich[]
Joining Team Whyachi in the 2018 season, Dick Stuplich competed in the Comedy Central era of BattleBots with superheavyweight New Cruelty.
Rachel Stuplich-Trantow[]
Daughter to veteran builder Dick Stuplich, Rachel Stuplich-Trantow joined Team Whyachi ahead of the 2019 season. Her involvement in the sport dates back to 2001 where she was a registered part of Team Killerbotics at the age of five. She married teammate Trevor Trantow after filming concluded for World Championship VI, and has such been credited by her maiden name by the show to date.
Elizabeth Ewert[]
Also present since Son of Whyachi's debut, Elizabeth is the wife of Terry Ewert. She also returned for World Championship II.
Trevor Trantow[]
Trevor Trantow and Pedro Vela both joined Team Whyachi in 2021 as part of Fusion. Trantow married fellow Team Whyachi member Rachel Stuplich in the off-season following filming for World Championship VI.
Tyler Paul & Tommy Untiedt[]
Untiedt was part of Team Whyachi for both of Warrior Clan's ABC seasons, though have both been part of Team Whyachi for over 15 years.[6]
Korbin Ewert[]
The youngest member of the team, Korbin Ewert is the son of Jake Ewert.
Robots[]
| Name | Weight Class | Events |
|---|---|---|
| Whyachi | Superheavyweight | Season 3.0 |
| Son of Whyachi | Heavyweight (Season 3.0, WC II - BB: Bounty Hunters) |
Season 3.0 World Championship II World Championship III World Championship IV BattleBots: Bounty Hunters |
| Superheavyweight (Season 4.0-2004) |
Season 4.0 Season 5.0 NPC Charity Open 2004 | |
| YU812 | Lightweight | Season 4.0 Season 5.0 NPC Charity Open 2004 |
| Y-Pout | Heavyweight | Season 4.0 Season 5.0 |
| Why Not | Middleweight | Season 4.0 Season 5.0 |
| Warrior | Heavyweight | Season 5.0 NPC Charity Open 2004 2009 Pro Championship |
| Red Square | Middleweight | Season 5.0 NPC Charity Open 2004 |
| Buzzkill | Large Class | BattleBots IQ 2003 |
| Falcon | Middleweight (2004-2009) |
NPC Charity Open 2004 R3: Rochester Robot Rampage Cisco Party 2006 2009 Collegiate Championship |
| Heavyweight (World Championship IV) |
World Championship IV | |
| Ricochet | Hobbyweight | NPC Charity Open 2004 |
| 3A | Beetleweight | NPC Charity Open 2004 |
| 1A | Antweight | NPC Charity Open 2004 |
| POW | Antweight | NPC Charity Open 2004 |
| Falcon15 | Small Class | BattleBots IQ 2005 R3: Rochester Robot Rampage |
| BABS | Middleweight | 2009 High School Championship |
| Warrior Clan | Heavyweight | World Championship I World Championship II World Championship III |
| Hydra | Heavyweight | World Championship IV World Championship V World Championship VI re:MARS 2022 World Championship VII BattleBots: Destruct-A-Thon |
| Fusion | Heavyweight | World Championship V BattleBots: Bounty Hunters World Championship VI World Championship VII BattleBots: Champions II |
- Wins: 40 (Minimum)
- Losses: 32 (Minimum)
See Also[]
Trivia[]
- The Ewert family were commissioned to build several traps for the Saw franchise of films, including the Laser Collars trap for Jigsaw, as well as the mechanism behind the Angel Trap from Saw III.[7]
- Team member Patrick Kivin supplied many of the batteries used in Team Whyachi's robots, known as Ballistic Batteries.
References[]
- ↑ http://www.teamwhyachi.com/shop.html
- ↑ http://www.teamwhyachi.com/services.html
- ↑ http://www.teamwhyachi.com/waterjetting.html
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/groups/56319454480/permalink/10159891798304481/
- ↑ https://twitter.com/BattleBots/status/1580151296396775424
- ↑ http://www.teamwhyachi.com/teammembers.html
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/live/y2DcYwEUm7k?feature=share&t=12143