Root Canal

Root Canal
Participation Information
Comedy Central Seasons	Season 4.0 Season 5.0
Unaired Events	Pro Championship 2009
Other Names	RootCanal
Team Information
Team	Mutant Robots
Team Members	Donald Hutson
From	San Diego, CA
Other Entries	Diesector, Tazbot, Easty Beast, Karcas 2, Lock-Jaw, Pro-Pain, Gear Crow
Robot Statistics
Weight	220lbs (2009 Pro Championship)
Weapons	Horizontal circular saw (Season 4.0-5.0) Grabbing jaws (2009 Pro Championship) Plow (2009 Pro Championship)
Statistics correct as of its most recent appearance on the show, or if not applicable, qualification attempt.

Root Canal was a middleweight (later heavyweight) robot built by Mutant Robots for Seasons 4.0 and 5.0 of Comedy Central BattleBots, as well as the 2009 Pro Championship.

It was originally a four-wheel drive robot featuring omniwheels mounted at 45-degree angles to the front of the robot, allowing for Root Canal to drive in all directions. Root Canal's weapon was a diamond-tipped circular saw originating from the BattleBox itself during during the It was originally a four-wheel drive robot armed with a circular saw at the front, mounted horizontally. Its wheels were omnidirectional and mounted at 45-degree angles to the front of the robot., mounted horizontally. Unfortunately, Root Canal did not enjoy the success its larger cousins Tazbot and Diesector had, losing both of its BattleBots fights.

Root Canal in the pits with a four-jaw weapon configuration.

Root Canal's design was inspired by the video game Quake, where Hutson realized he could not play the game without strafing from side to side, and it inspired him to build a strafing robot.

Root Canal was reimagined as a 220lb heavyweight for the the 2009 Pro Championship, taking the form of a purple, green and silver robot with four-wheel drive and an angular chassis design. In common with Diesector and early incarnations of Lock-Jaw, this incarnation's main weapons were sets of serrated hydraulic forks and jaws hinged from the center-rear of the machine. Multiple variations of these were adopted as interchangeable weapons; up to three or four could be paired at a time to grab and lift opponents off the BattleBox floor. When fighting against powerful spinners, Root Canal could alternatively be configured with a defensive front plow and one jaw, functioning as a 180-degree lifting, clamping or self-righting arm.

Root Canal enjoyed a highly successful run in the 2009 Pro Championship. Despite suffering an early setback with a loss against Eugene, it would achieve seven consecutive victories after benefiting from Drumble-B's forfeit from the Loser's bracket. This allowed Root Canal to reach the overall final against Aptyx Designs' Brutality, ultimately finishing the Pro Championship as runner-up with a 7-2 match record.

Root Canal at the Mutant Robots workspace during World Championship I.

Donald Hutson brought Root Canal with him to filming for World Championship I in 2015, though it is unknown whether Root Canal was an official reserve, or if it and the 2015 iteration of Lock-Jaw shared components.

Robot History

Season 4.0
Root Canal vs. CUAD the Annihilator Root Canal fought CUAD the Annihilator in its only Season 4.0 fight. Root Canal struck CUAD the Annihilator early on with the saw, dealing little damage but scoring points, and then managed to get under its opponent. Then, CUAD the Annihilator went into a defensive spin, causing smoke to start coming from the tires. Root Canal moved in with the saw again, but CUAD the Annihilator charged Root Canal, slamming it against the wall, and Root Canal stopped moving. The fight ended before Root Canal could be counted out, but it still lost the fight on a 26-19 decision.
Season 5.0
Root Canal vs. WhirlWind Root Canal loses an omni-wheel bead after getting struck by WhirlWind. Root Canal is struck by Whirlwind's angled block. A close up of WhirlWind and the damage it dealt to Root Canal's right wheelguard. Root Canal was pitted against WhirlWind in Season 5.0. WhirlWind spun around early on in the match and Root Canal got hit by its arm, and the hit knocked out one of the omni-directional beads on Root Canal. The next hit by WhirlWind crippled Root Canal as it knocked the wheel guard in on one side. Root Canal could still move but was unable to drive well and when the fight ended WhirlWind was given the decision, 27-18, thus eliminating Root Canal from the tournament.
Pro Championship 2009
Root Canal vs. Eugene Root Canal's first match in the 2009 Pro Championship put it up against the Team Moon drum spinner Eugene. Very limited information is available, though Root Canal is confirmed in BattleBots match records to have lost by knockout after one minute and 19 seconds.
Root Canal vs. Drumble-B (Loser's Bracket) Already consigned to the Loser's bracket, Root Canal was next scheduled to face Drumble-B. However, Drumble-B was forced to forfeit for as-yet unknown reasons, allowing the Mutant Robots machine to progress.
Root Canal vs. Breaker Box (Loser's Bracket) Root Canal would proceed to fight Team Nightmare and the heavyweight version of their invertible lifter Breaker Box. Official match records confirm that Root Canal won by knockout after two minutes and 17 seconds.
Root Canal vs. Stinger: The Killer Bee (Loser's Bracket) Root Canal tussles with Stinger. Root Canal next faced Team PlumbCrazy and their brand-new machine Stinger: The Killer Bee. Here, it survived the full three minutes alongside its opponent, winning both the Judges' decision and the match.
Root Canal vs. SubZero (Loser's Bracket) Next to fight Root Canal was SubZero, a 220lb version of Team Hammertime's middleweight flipper. As in the previous match, both robots lasted the full three minutes, with Root Canal again winning by Judges' decision.
Root Canal vs. Warrior (Loser's Bracket) With three consecutive victories to its name by this stage, Root Canal squared up against the then-latest incarnation of Team Whyachi's dual kinetic flipper/spinner Warrior. BattleBots records indicate that both robots again survived the full three-minute duration, this time with Root Canal winning by knockout.
Root Canal vs. Surgeon General (Loser's Bracket) Root Canal's next opponent was Comedy Central-era veteran Surgeon General. Here, it would again win by a Judges' decision, in a match recorded as having lasted one minute and 16 seconds.
Root Canal vs. Tombstone (Loser's Bracket) Root Canal attacks the side of Tombstone's blade. Now close to securing a place in the Loser's bracket final, Root Canal would fight future ABC/Discovery mainstays Hardcore Robotics and their powerful horizontal spinner Tombstone. For this match - publicly released by event sponsor Autodesk Inventor - it was fitted with the plow setup including a single overhead jaw. Root Canal came at Tombstone and took a hit to the front, though not causing much damage. Root Canal continued to charge and took damage to its wheels. After two more attacks, Tombstone ended up hitting the screws and stopped moving briefly. Root Canal attacked Tombstone, unwilling to let it get its weapon up to speed but eventually Tombstone was released. However, Tombstone was still stuck in the corner as the pulverizer came down, seemingly having drive issues. Root Canal stayed on the attack and Tombstone took punishment from both the pulverizer and Root Canal. Tombstone's right drive motor caught fire and Tombstone was unable to move. Tombstone's driver, Ray Billings, tapped out, thus giving Root Canal the win by knockout after one minute and 49 seconds.
Root Canal vs. VD6.0 (Loser's Bracket Final) With a place in the overall final at stake, Root Canal faced the tracked vertical spinner of VD6.0 at the last stage of the Loser's bracket. Limited information is available on this match, though Team Think Tank captain Bradley Hanstad asserts that VD6.0 initially dominated until losing mobility at the halfway point due to an unforeseen battery issue. Thus, Root Canal would win by knockout after one minute and 47 seconds.
Root Canal vs. Brutality A three-wheeled Root Canal pushes Brutality. Having cemented its place in the final, Root Canal would challenge the overhead bar spinner of Brutality for the overall Pro Championship title. This would be the second fight of its campaign to have footage officially released, revealing that it again used the single jaw and plow configuration. Root Canal drove straight at Brutality and stopped its blade from spinning, but Brutality managed to get underneath Root Canal and pushed it back into the arena wall. After pushing Root Canal around, Brutality got its blade spinning again and attacked Root Canal with it, sending sparks flying but failing to cause any visible damage at first. Root Canal continued to drive at Brutality until one of Root Canal's wheels was torn off by Brutality's blade. Brutality attacked the vulnerable Root Canal again, but the impact of its blade on Root Canal sent it flying into the air. Despite losing a wheel, Root Canal managed to persist in pushing Brutality into a corner, where smoke started to rise from it. Brutality retaliated by using its wedge to get underneath Root Canal and push it into the arena wall and the pulverizer. The two then met in the center of the BattleBox, where they both attempted to push each other and became stuck. The match was stopped for a moment to separate them. When the battle restarted, the two continued to push each other, with Root Canal being lifted momentarily by the hellraisers but it escaped. Brutality got hit by the killsaws twice. This pushing match continued until time ran out and the battle went to the judges, who ruled in favor of Brutality. As a result, Root Canal was declared the runner-up of the 2009 Pro Championship with a 7-2 record.

Results

Wins/Losses

• Wins: 7
• Losses: 4

Competition	Wins	Losses
Season 4.0	None	CUAD the Annihilator
Season 5.0	None	WhirlWind
Pro Championship 2009	Drumble-B (forfeit) Breaker Box Stinger: The Killer Bee SubZero Warrior Surgeon General Tombstone VD6.0	Eugene Brutality