Hal Rucker is a BattleBots competitor who managed the production of ShowBots for BattleBots: Destruct-A-Thon from late 2022 until mid-2023.
Having competed since 2003, Hal Rucker is best known for building and driving DUCK! for a total of three BattleBots World Championships as captain of Team Black and Blue. His other robots include 340lb superheavyweights Buster and Crazy Susan, multibot Black & Blue, 220lb heavyweight Black Widow which measured just 2.5" in height, and Whoops! - the inspiration for DUCK!.
Hal Rucker has competed in a multitude of events outside of BattleBots, including Steel Conflict 4, Combots Cup and RoboGames, more recently alongside his daughter Hannah Rucker.
Hal Rucker and DUCK! in the red square during World Championship IV.
It was revealed in the September 16, 2022 episode of the Outside of the Box podcast that Hal Rucker had been employed by BattleBots for a 'secret project' ahead of World Championship VII.[2] This project meant Hal was not able to also compete in BattleBots, which coincided with DUCK!'s retirement after World Championship VI.
On top of overseeing the ShowBots, Hal Rucker also featured in person during the special BattleBots: Most Outrageous Moments to discuss numerous moments in the show's history. He notably weighed in on the World Championship III Last Chance Rumble, and the controversy which surrounded it.
In a post on Team Black and Blue's Facebook page, Hal Rucker confirmed he no longer worked with BattleBots as he wanted to return to competition - something he was unable to do while in the ShowBot Project Manager role.
- "About a year ago, I showed BattleBots a prototype of a new bot concept that has no wheels. I was waiting for a decision about whether it qualified for a weight bonus when they instead hired me to manage the teams building versions of their bots for the live Destruct-A-Thon show in Las Vegas. I wasn't allowed to compete on the TV show while I was an employee working on the live show.
The live show launched on February 3, I’m no longer a BattleBots employee, and I’d like to get back into competing with the new concept. Finding a generous sponsor who can fund the new build is the next step." - — Hal Rucker on Facebook[3]