Team Small Robots are an active BattleBots team who debuted in World Championship VII with their heavyweight robot, Banshee.
Based in Phoenix, Arizona, the team name was carried over from that of David Small, who previously competed as part of Team Malice. The team had a frustrating debut season in BattleBots, largely due to only being able to operate at 1000psi. In spite of this, Banshee picked up a Fight Night win against Valkyrie but fell short of the Top 32.
David Small and Banshee returned for BattleBots Proving Ground in May 2023 with a more powerful primary weapon. There, it picked up two wins over the ShowBot OverKill after its intended opponent withdrew. It also earned two wins over Maximum Paralysis, with the team joined by David Rush and Jeff Waters for this weekend of fights. Returning in April 2024, Banshee took on Claw Viper and Lucky.
Team Members[]
David Small[]
Team captain David Small has been involved within the sport since childhood, initially helping his father compete with smaller robots such as Kram in the early 2000s. David took the reigns in 2016, competing with Son of Kram before building flipper bots in lower weight classes, such as Kelpie and The Highlander.[1] He also began Arizona Robotic Combat (ARC) in 2018, in order to promote the sport and develop a local scene in his native state.[2]
David Small initially competed in BattleBots World Championship V and VI with Malice before splitting off to create Banshee.
In January 2023, he drove his 3lb robot Púca to first overall in the National Havoc Robot League event specifically for new robots, and won a Golden Dumpster. Púca also placed first in the 2024 Sonoran Showdown event in Arizona, held by Wildcat Robotics. At RoboGames 2024, David Small competed with Son of Kram in the 12lb division. There, it beat Whomper before losing out to Full Court. In the loser's bracket, Son of Kram defeated Solaris and beat Whomper for a second time. It then defeated Team Uai!rrior and Xupa-Cabra to enter the final through the loser's bracket, but lost at that stage to Full Court for a second time and claimed second.
Gus Collier[]
Present with Team Pun-Chant and Nelly the Ellybot during the 2019 season, Gus Collier joined Team Small Robots in 2022 following the rejection of Pardon My French, who he assisted in building. However, he was unable to attend filming due to issues concerning NIE Visas preventing people flying from the United Kingdom to Las Vegas during filming for the 2021 season. On the British live scene, he is best known for his beetleweights Bad Futhermucker and Sawcon.
Kevin Lillie[]
Team member Kevin Lillie has over two decades of experience in the sport, having entered Widowmaker into Season 2.0 and Season 5.0 of Comedy Central BattleBots with modest success.
He then built lightweight Guillotine under the Team Widowmaker name, which fought at a handful of Combot Cup events before retiring after RoboGames 2015. It was replaced by Tastes Like Burning in the years which followed, picking up four wins in the 2016 RoboGames tournament but losing in the loser's bracket to Federal M.T.. It beat Mrs. Plow before losing to Federal M.T. and Son of Spam a year later. Returning for RoboGames 2024, Tastes Like Burning got a first round bye before defeating Herr Gepoünden, and then beating Torment Nexus and Twister. As Twister won the loser's bracket final, Tastes Like Burning got an immediate rematch against it in the 60lb final. Kevin Lillie's robot won again to become lightweight champion.
Genny Korn[]
Genny Korn joined Team Small Robots with six years of experience building combat robots. Her work as a automation engineer saw her assist with the mechanical repairs of Banshee. She also helped with the upkeep of Banshee's aesthetics during the season. Genny Korn began doing FIRST Robotics before moving into combat robotics during college and graduating from UIUC college. She also competed in RoboGames 2017, where she first met David Small.[3]
Caleb Hecht[]
Robotic engineering student Caleb Hecht joined the team with several years of experience in the sport. His role on the team concerns the CNC machining of Banshee's parts. He co-founded the Combat-Ready Robotics Club in Arizona State University, where he is also a student. He also competes in the NHRL with 30lb spinners Accelerando and The Beast.
Robots[]
| Name | Weight Class | Season |
|---|---|---|
| Banshee | Heavyweight | World Championship VII BattleBots: Champions II BattleBots Proving Ground |
Win/Loss Record[]
- Wins: 7
- Losses: 5
See Also[]
Trivia[]
- Though not officially part of Team Small Robots, Banshee's aesthetics were designed by Ian Rosenthaler - a co-worker of captain David Small.[1]
- Team Small Robots was inspired by the surname of David Small's father, Kelly Small.
- Kelly Small built the original Kram in 2001, accompanied by a then eight-year-old David.
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Private correspondence between SFCJack and David Small in June 2023
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/teamsmallrobots/videos/634374214485506
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQsUpTZMpvU