Texas Twister

Texas Twister
Participation Information
Reboot Seasons	World Championship IV
Team Information
Team	Team Toad
Team Members	Michael "Fuzzy" Mauldin (Captain) Kay Lane Tony Woodward Jon Bennett Brady Davis
From	Liberty Hill, TX
Other Entries	Hypothermia, El Furro, Ice Chip, TadPole, SnowCone, WindChill, IceCube, SnowFlake, IceBerg, FrostBite
Associated Robots	Skorpios (Tony Woodward) SubZero, Lock-Jaw (Brady Davis)
Robot Statistics
Weight	250lbs
Power	MaxAmps 36V LiPo batteries
Drive	2x Long Magmotors
Weapons	Horizontal spinner
Statistics correct as of its most recent appearance on the show, or if not applicable, qualification attempt.

Texas Twister was a heavyweight robot built by Team Toad, which competed exclusively in BattleBots World Championship IV.

It is an invertible, two-wheel drive robot armed with a 50lb single-toothed disk, which could either act as an angled overcutter, or as an undercutter depending which way up the robot was. This could be swapped out for a slightly lighter option if deemed appropriate, and was powered by a pair of Magmotors. Team captain Michael "Fuzzy" Mauldin cited Surgeon General as inspiration for Texas Twister's design. According to the team, their primary weapon was capable of hitting 2600rpm. The bot was red, white and blue in color, paying homage to the Texan flag with their appearance and the team's attire. Texas Twister used the same drive chain as Hypothermia, and was driven by Fuzzy Mauldin's daughter, Kay Lane.

Texas Twister during World Championship IV hero shots.

Texas Twister was accompanied in the BattleBox by a drone called Spitfire, which was loaned from SubZero following World Championship III. It remained functionally identical as it still had its flamethrower, but was painted to match the Lone Star state's flag. Though Texas Twister achieved more success than Hypothermia, winning its first two fights of the season, it was denied a place in the championship bracket. This proved to be Team Toad's most recent BattleBots appearance, as they opted against entering future seasons of the show.

Team Toad competed in the classic era of BattleBots with a variety of robots, almost all with the theme of extreme weather. However, bar a quarter-final finish with superheavyweight IceBerg, he would rarely find success with during his BattleBots run.

Texas Twister on display in December 2023.

Texas Twister in October 2020, stored in Team Toad's workshop.

Trey Roski observes Spitfire's flamethrower test.

Texas Twister during initial assembly.

Texas Twister under construction.

Outside BattleBots

However, Fuzzy's middleweight IceCube fought in various RFL events and even became the national champion in 2006. He was also a regular competitor in US live events such NERC Bots, ComBots Cup events and RoboGames.

After failing to qualify for Series 8 and having to withdraw from Series 9 of Robot Wars with the most recent version of Polar Vortex, Fuzzy and wife Debbie Mauldin fought with Cathadh in the second episode of the World Series special. Built by Team Robo Challenge and known by the name Arena Cleaner in a previous special episode, Cathadh ultimately lost both of its fights and Team Toad ended winless.

Fuzzy Mauldin also owns the Lazy Toad Ranch, a farm which briefly hosted the Robot Club & Grille restaurant. This was unique as it was also able to host live robot combat events. The restaurant operated between December 2002 and May 2003, and has been closed ever since.

Robot History

World Championship IV
Texas Twister vs. Black Dragon Sparks fly as Black Dragon slams into Texas Twister. Texas Twister tears off Black Dragon's top panel. Black Dragon takes Texas Twister to the killsaws. Texas Twister's first match was against newcomer Black Dragon. When the match began, Texas Twister caused problems for Black Dragon by disabling its weapon in the first hit. As the match continued, Black Dragon soon started smoking and a fire erupted from the weapon motor. Texas Twister continued to attack until its own weapon died as well, resulting in a pushing match. Unfortunately, this did not favor Texas Twister well at all as they were being pushed around several times, nearly avoiding the pulverizer. Texas Twister was also flipped a few times during the various exchanges and lost one of its drive wheels in the last few seconds of the match, but the fight went the distance. Ultimately, the judges awarded a 2-1 split decision to Texas Twister.
Texas Twister vs. Axe Backwards Texas Twister strikes Axe Backwards early on. Texas Twister rips a wheel from Axe Backwards. Up next for Texas Twister was a fight against Axe Backwards. As the match got underway, Texas Twister attacked Axe Backwards, flipping itself over before accidentally taking out their own minibot Spitfire. Texas Twister then drove Axe Backwards into the screws before targeting the tires of Axe Backwards. Sparks flew as Texas Twister threatened to deliver a big shot, before Team Toad's spinner tore off one of their wheels, exposing the insides of their opponent through their drum, which was also inactive. Smoke began to pour out of Axe Backwards, who was now only able to spin in circles. After several seconds, Texas Twister hit Axe Backwards again as their opponent's request, ripping off their remaining axe before Axe Backwards was counted out, giving Texas Twister the win by KO.
Texas Twister vs. Son of Whyachi The initial collision between Son of Whyachi and Texas Twister. Now 2-0, Texas Twister next found itself against former BattleBots heavyweight champion, Son of Whyachi. Early on, Son of Whyachi was able to clip their disk, which sent Texas Twister on their back end. This allowed Son of Whyachi to send them over the screws and nearly out of the arena with their next attack. Texas Twister was able to escape, but soon had the outer left wheel bent inward, rendering that side of drive useless. Texas Twister then lost its rear plate and had its remaining outer wheel bent damaged, leaving Team Toad's bot unable to move. Texas Twister was counted out, giving Son of Whyachi the win by KO.
Texas Twister vs. Whiplash Texas Twister is popped into the air by Whiplash. Texas Twister was next placed against Matt Vasquez and Whiplash. They opted for a lighter disk ahead of the match in order to get their weapon up to speed more quickly. Additionally, they opted to start upside down act as an undercutter. However, as the match got underway, Texas Twister was quickly ambushed by Whiplash and couldn't cause any damage with their weapon. Making matters worse, the repeated exchanges caused a fire to erupt inside and the weapon had to be spun down to prevent further damage. This left Texas Twister very vulnerable as they had neither the drive nor the design to take on Whiplash and were shoved around the arena, including onto the screws before escaping. Texas Twister then was pinned on the screws and later pushed on top of them by Whiplash, disabling the screws in the process. With Texas Twister stuck on top of the screws, it was counted out, giving Whiplash the win by KO. According to Terry Ewert of Team Whyachi, Texas Twister was originally selected to face Son of Whyachi again in the playoffs for the Top 16, but Fuzzy Mauldin declined.
Texas Twister vs. Free Shipping Texas Twister is pushed into the screws by Free Shipping. Texas Twister also participated in an exhibition fight against Free Shipping and Gary Gin. Texas Twister was accompanied by the drone Spitfire but started off very tentative against its opponent. Both robots stayed wary of each other until finally Texas Twister attacked Free Shipping's plow twice. This did not cause much damage, and Texas Twister found itself rearing up when it drove forward. Free Shipping was able to push Texas Twister around, though the fight ultimately went the distance. The judges awarded a unanimous 3-0 decision to Free Shipping.

Results

Competitive Wins/Losses

• Wins: 2
• Losses: 2

Exhibition Wins/Losses

• Wins: 0
• Losses: 1

Total Wins/Losses

• Wins: 2
• Losses: 3

Competition	Wins	Losses
World Championship IV	Black Dragon (Undercard Match) Axe Backwards (Undercard Match)	Son of Whyachi (Undercard Match) Whiplash (Undercard Match) Free Shipping (Exhibition Match)

Faruq Tauheed Introductions

"This bot's so insane if you only had a brain, you'd be pretty scared-crow. I'll get you my pretty, and your little bot too! *Wicked Witch cackle* You're not in Kansas anymore, you're stuck in the TEXAS TWISTER!"

"When it's done, it'll be the lone star of the BattleBox. It'll put the stun in Houston. It'll put the corpse in Corpus Cristi and you're gonna be Dallas Ft. Hurt cause every hit is bigger in Texas. It's TEXAS TWISTER!"

"From the lone star state, the land of barbecuing. It's a monster storm that just keeps brewing. Sound the alarmage and get ready for a whole mess of chili con carnage. Look out sister, here comes a TEXAS TWISTER!"

"From the lone star state, head for shelter. It's the tornado of hato. It's a blower, it's a hailer, and like a divorce down south, it'll take your trailer. Told you mister, don't mess with TEXAS TWISTER!"

"A fight with this bot is like a trip down I-35. You'll start in Slam Antonio and then get tossed in Austin. At the end, it'll kick your Gallas. Reach for the sky, it's TEXAS TWISTER!"

Trivia

• Texas Twister was the eighth heavyweight robot built by Team Toad since November 2000.
• Kay Lane practiced for the 2019 season by driving an antweight version of Texas Twister called Dust Devil, built by Brady Davis of SubZero.
• In testing, Texas Twister tore up the floor of Fuzzy Mauldin's test area.
• Team Toad initially planned to enter the 2019 season with a second version of Hypothermia, but instead opted to build Texas Twister.
• Texas Twister shares its name with a Marvel superhero dating back to December 1976.

External Links

• Texas Twister's profile on Team Toad's Website (Archived)