World Championship V, also known as Discovery Season 5 and the 2020 season, was the fifth season of the modern BattleBots run, and the third to be commissioned by Discovery after picking the show up from ABC.
In late 2019, it was announced that BattleBots would return for another season, with the original field of 81 robots revealed to Facebook Supporters in late February 2020. Filming was to be done in April with the season premiering on May 15, 2020.[1] However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, original dates were postponed, and it was announced that the season would be filmed later in the year. It would ultimately be filmed in October with Facebook Supporters shown the updated, smaller field of 59 robots in November, reduced from 81. The season and premiered on December 3, 2020.
The competition structure changed for the 2020 season. Each bot were now given three Fight Night matches to impress the Selection Committee, who now selected 32 bots as opposed to 16 for the single elimination Championship bracket. The Desperado Tournament was also absent. The season was the first season of BattleBots to not feature a live audience, also due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Shots of audience members between fights and introductions were replaced by shots of various teams, who made up a makeshift crowd in the box-side suites to watch battles from a safe distance. Many of the teams opted to wear face coverings for the duration of filming, though teams were tested prior to and during filming days to ensure no outbreaks on site.
Skorpios and Gigabyte's teams making up part of the live crowd.
The main difference in format was a lack of rumbles and exhibition matches, largely due to spin-off series BattleBots: Bounty Hunters which aired on discovery+ parallel to the main season on Discovery.[2] The Fight Night structure remained, with often seven fights making up an episode, with the exception of Episode 1 and those covering the knockout bracket containing eight.
There were no omissions from the presenting crew, despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, with Chris Rose and Kenny Florian still leading the lines, Faruq Tauheed announcing and Jenny Taft in The Pits. New for World Championship V, former BattleBots competitor Pete Abrahamson's role changed from technical advisor and producer to "Bot Whisperer", where he offered his take on how battles would play out, taking teams' strategies and configurations into account. He also advised Chris and Kenny on the technical aspects of the sport, and as a former competitor himself, the history of fellow veterans.[3] The three judges also remained the same: Derek Young, Lisa Winter and Jason Bardis. Replacing the seven-point judging system was now an eleven-point system, which scored five points for Damage and three points for both Aggression and Control. Previously, this was split as three points for damage, and two apiece for aggression and control.
World Championship V was won by End Game, who defeated the Vasquez family and Whiplash by knockout in the Championship title fight. This not only marked the first time an international team had won the Giant Nut in the reboot era, with the team hailing from New Zealand, but ended the tournament-winning streak of Paul Ventimiglia and Bite Force. The end of season awards were now called the Giant Bolts, and were split into four categories. The Most Destructive Robot Award was won by Valkyrie after its impressive duels with the likes of SubZero, Extinguisher and former winner ROTATOR. The Founder's Award went to Skorpios, and the Best Newcomer Award was won by Dave Eaton and Rusty. Lastly, the Best Design Award, renamed to the Grant Imahara Award in tribute to the former BattleBots competitor, guest judge and TV personality, was awarded to Zoe Stephenson and Chomp.
Impacts of COVID-19[]
- "In light of the extraordinary and evolving COVID-19 situation and the recent public health measures and mandates, the April 3-15, 2020 BattleBots live event will be postponed to a later date. We are closely monitoring the situation and will announce new dates soonest with the health and wellbeing of our fans, crew and bot builders top of mind. The show will go on!
We fully intend to have a 2020 World Championship later in the year as soon as the crisis is over. Until then stay safe, practice preventative measures as outlined by the CDC, and take good care. BattleBots will be back!" - — BattleBots on Facebook
As was the case with many television shows, production of BattleBots was delayed significantly by restrictions imposed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.[4] As such, the original April 3-15, 2020 filming dates were pushed back and ticket-buyers were refunded. It was confirmed by the health department that filming of the season could not go ahead as anticipated just 24 hours prior to the shipping date for competing teams, according to Greg Munson.[5] He also stated that the season would have been postponed irrespective of this official ruling, due to safety concerns surrounding the pandemic. Munson would later post to the BattleBots social media pages, reaffirming plans to film a 2020 season later in the year.[6] In June 2020, the season was later rescheduled to span August 14-27[7] before being moved again to September 11-24[8] and then September 18-October 1.[9] Filming was delayed for five months overall, eventually taking place in mid-October. However, arguably the biggest consequence of the pandemic was the restriction of international travel. This meant teams from outside the US were legally unable to make the journey to compete in BattleBots. This largely affected UK teams, including Monsoon, Cobalt, Ripper, Winston Churchkill, Spitfire, Orion, Quantum and more, but also meant the likes of China's Railgun MAX and Wan Hoo, South Korea's Blade v3, and other European entries like Rainbow and Petunia would be unable to compete.
When filming finally went ahead in October 2020, teams were regularly tested and zero positive cases were reported during filming. As such, the original field of 81 competing robots for World Championship V had to be reduced to 59, excluding the three which were exclusive to the spin-off series BattleBots: Bounty Hunters - these being Bronco, Icewave and Son of Whyachi. This included many of the original roster and a handful of newly-announced teams who had benefited from the additional time. US-based teams who were previously rejected had this decision overturned under the circumstances, and those who had missed the initial application deadline were given another opportunity to compete. Despite this, even some US-based teams withdrew from the season, notably DUCK!, Overhaul and then defending Giant Nut winner Bite Force.
| Champion | Runner-Up | Semi-Finalists | Quarter-Finalists |
|---|---|---|---|
| End Game | Whiplash | Black Dragon Tantrum |
Hydra Ribbot SawBlaze Shatter! |
Reveals and Trailers[]
A season trailer was publicly released on November 12, 2020, showing a pair of wind-up toy robots reciting lyrics to Sir Mix-a-Lot's hit single 'Baby Got Back'. Several of the lyrics were adapted to be more relevant to the show, most notably in the line "I like big bots and I cannot lie", which later became a tagline for the 2020 season.[10] The trailer teased several Fight Night battles, including Slap Box vs. Sharko, Uppercut vs. Gemini and ROTATOR vs. Valkyrie.
Another 30-second trailer was uploaded to the BattleBots YouTube channel a few days later, but featured the same teaser clips, just with slightly different adapted lyrics.[11] The trailer closes with Chris Rose saying "Let the big bot battle begin!", a variation on his typical catchphrase to mark the start of a battle. This foreshadowed HUGE vs. Mammoth from Episode 2 of the season, despite the trailer not officially confirming the fight.
Changes to the BattleBox[]
The BattleBox floor was entirely rebuilt in the off-season. It was now made from ½" mild steel, replacing the three layers of ⅛" steel used since the 1999 events.[12] This change was intended to prevent imperfections in the floor affecting fights as it did several times in previous seasons, such as Minotaur's Main Event loss to Tombstone, and most notably, Cobalt's surprise loss to DUCK!.
The Pulverizers also saw redesigns, now diamond-shaped and able to transfer energy more effectively on impact. The new BattleBots logo now adorned the center of the BattleBox, and the red and blue squares were repainted to be smaller too.
Fight Night Schedules[]
| Robot | Fight Night Record | Fight Night Opponents | |||
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| Aegis |  |
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| ATOM#94 |  |
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| Axe Backwards |  |
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| Axolotl |  |
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| Bale Spear |  |
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| Beta |  |
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| Big Dill | |
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| Black Dragon |  |
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| Black Widow |  |
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| Bloodsport |  |
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| Bronco |  |
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| Captain Shrederator | |
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| Chomp |  |
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| Chronos | |
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| Claw Viper | |
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| Copperhead | |
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| Deadlift | |
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| End Game | |
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| Extinguisher |  |
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| Fusion | |
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| Gamma 9 | |
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| Gemini |  |
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| Ghost Raptor | |
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| Gigabyte | |
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| GRABOT | |
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| Gruff | |
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| HiJinx | |
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| HUGE |  |
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| Hydra | |
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| HyperShock | |
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| Icewave |  |
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| JackPot | |
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| Kraken | |
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| Lock-Jaw | |
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| MadCatter | |
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| Malice | |
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| Mammoth | |
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| P1 | |
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| Pain Train |  |
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| Perfect Phoenix | |
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| Rampage | |
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| Ribbot | |
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| ROTATOR | |
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| Rusty | |
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| SawBlaze | |
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| Sharko |  |
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| Shatter! | |
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| Skorpios | |
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| SlamMow! | |
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| Slap Box | |
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| SMEEEEEEEEEEEEE | |
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| Son of Whyachi |  |
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| Sporkinok | |
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| SubZero | |
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| Tantrum | |
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| Tombstone | |
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| Tracer | |
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| Uppercut | |
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| Valkyrie | |
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| WAR? EZ! | |
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| Whiplash | |
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| Witch Doctor | |
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* This robot did not receive any further Fight Night battles.
** This robot competed exclusively as a gatekeeper in BattleBots: Bounty Hunters and did not participate in the regular season.
BattleBots: Fight Night[]
Episode 1: Return of the Bots[]
- "The steel-on-steel action, hard-hitting combat of BattleBots: Fight Night returns. The 2020 regular season kicks off as 62 teams from all over the world converge for an all-out tournament. Tonight, Jack Barker with his beloved bot, End Game squares off with Ray Billings with his iconic robot, the fearsome Tombstone."
- — Official description for Episode 1
Main article: World Championship V/Episode 1
| SawBlaze vs. Whiplash |
| Fusion vs. MadCatter |
| Malice vs. Axe Backwards |
| Skorpios vs. Bloodsport |
| Lock-Jaw vs Captain Shrederator |
| Rusty vs. Sporkinok |
| SMEEEEEEEEEEEEE vs. Sharko |
Episode 2: Let the Big Bot Battle Begin[]
- "It's a clash of the titans as the big bots do battle in the box. Four brand new bots make their rookie debut, including an 11-year-old driver. Meanwhile, a "ghostly" legend returns from the past. Also, last year's runner-up begins their season with a match against last year's breakout bot in the main event."
- — Official description for Episode 2
Main article: World Championship V/Episode 2
| Ghost Raptor vs. Shatter! |
| Tracer vs. Ribbot |
| Black Dragon vs. Kraken |
| Mammoth vs. HUGE |
| Claw Viper vs. HiJinx |
| Perfect Phoenix vs. Extinguisher |
Hydra vs. Witch Doctor |
Episode 3: Stop! Hammer Time![]
- "It's an all-out battle of veterans and rookie bots alike. A legendary hammer bot makes its return when it goes back in the box with one of the best rotating bots. Also, two top contenders go head-to-head in the electrifying main event for a chance to move up in the rankings."
- — Official description for Episode 3
Main article: World Championship V/Episode 3
| Copperhead vs. Gigabyte |
| JackPot vs. SubZero |
| Uppercut vs. Gemini |
| Beta vs. ROTATOR |
| Valkyrie vs. Tantrum |
| ATOM#94 vs. Big Dill |
Gruff vs. HyperShock |
Episode 4: Blood, Sweat and Gears[]
- "It's put up or shut up for the bots that already lost a match. They only have one more chance in the battle box to assert their dominance over their opponents. If they don't, they could be pushed out of the Top 32. A giant bot makes its historic season debut after two years by getting a facelift as a 500-pound 'walker' bot. A frog-bot battles it out with a cat-bot. A fan-favorite takes on a 'bloody' bot in a messy main event."
- — Official description for Episode 4
Main article: World Championship V/Episode 4
| Tombstone vs. Slap Box |
| Pain Train vs. SlamMow! |
| Perfect Phoenix vs. Skorpios |
| Ribbot vs. MadCatter |
| Chomp vs. Gamma 9 |
| Malice vs. Shatter! |
End Game vs. Bloodsport |
Episode 5: Sin City Slasher[]
- "Some of the biggest named in BattleBots who had their robots turned upside down in the arena by the young gun bots get their chance at redemption. Two legendary bots, Witch-Doctor and Kraken who lost their first matches go bot-to-bot in the Box. Vegas newcomer JackPot rolls the dice against comeback veteran bot Ghost Raptor. Also, flipper bot Hydra has an enormous surprise in store for HUGE in a controversial fight."
- — Official description for Episode 5
Main article: World Championship V/Episode 5
| Claw Viper vs. Black Dragon |
| JackPot vs. Ghost Raptor |
| SubZero vs. GRABOT |
| Hydra vs. HUGE |
| Fusion vs. Aegis |
| Lock-Jaw vs. Big Dill |
Witch Doctor vs. Kraken |
Episode 6: Battle of the Undefeated[]
- "It's the mid-point of the qualifying round and impressing the selection committee is what it's all about. Sparks fly around the BattleBox as several winless bots go head-to-head. Valkyrie and ROTATOR square off in a deadly battle of horizontal spinners. Also, surprise winning bots Malice and MadCatter duke it out while MIT grads Uppercut and SawBlaze meet each other in an explosive main event to see who will get their first loss."
- — Official description for Episode 6
Main article: World Championship V/Episode 6
| Valkyrie vs. ROTATOR |
| Extinguisher vs. Gigabyte |
| Slap Box vs. Sharko |
| Malice vs. MadCatter |
| ATOM#94 vs. Tantrum |
| Pain Train vs. SMEEEEEEEEEEEEE |
Episode 7: Turning Up the Heat[]
- "As BattleBots closes in on the end of the final qualifying rounds, the remaining bots need to impress the selection committee who will soon pick the 32 most lethal bots to make it into the world championship tournament. A loss by any of these teams could cripple their season. With a few fights left, this is one of these teams' chances to prove they belong among the best bots."
- — Official description for Episode 7
Main article: World Championship V/Episode 7
| Axe Backwards vs. Captain Shrederator |
| Copperhead vs. P1 |
| Rusty vs. Beta |
| Mammoth vs. HyperShock |
| SubZero vs. Sporkinok |
| Bale Spear vs. Tracer |
Episode 8: Hit the Jackpot[]
- "Some of the most notorious bots that have either undefeated or balanced records prepare for their third and final chance to impress the selection committee and do some damage inside the BattleBox as they try to make it into the Top 32 of the world championship tournament."
- — Official description for Episode 8
Main article: World Championship V/Episode 8
| HUGE vs. Kraken |
| Ribbot vs. Axolotl |
| Big Dill vs. ROTATOR |
| Lock-Jaw vs JackPot |
| Chronos vs. Bloodsport |
| Fusion vs. WAR? EZ! |
Episode 9: Now or Never[]
- "It's the final round of the qualifiers. Some bots are on the brink of making it to the Top 32 while others it's do or die time in the BattleBox. Will the top teams risk it in order to get a better seed in the tournament? One bad hit could reek [sic] havoc on their season. For the rest, it's playing for pride and letting it all hang out to spoil the best bots' chances, making a statement to impress the selection committee."
- — Official description for Episode 9
Main article: World Championship V/Episode 9
| Captain Shrederator vs. Shatter! |
| Gigabyte vs. Claw Viper |
| Chomp vs. HiJinx |
| Witch Doctor vs. SlamMow! |
| Extinguisher vs. Gruff |
| Perfect Phoenix vs. ATOM#94 |
Episode 10: Qualify! Or Wave Goodbye![]
- "The tournament qualifiers has reached the end of the line. So it's the last chance for some of the bots to qualify and have an opportunity to influence the selection committee to make it into the Top 32. Plus, seeds will be determined for the BattleBots World Championship bracket."
- — Official description for Episode 10
Main article: World Championship V/Episode 10
| Hydra vs. Uppercut |
| Rusty vs. SawBlaze |
| Gamma 9 vs. Tantrum |
| End Game vs. HyperShock |
| SMEEEEEEEEEEEEE vs. P1 |
| Beta vs. GRABOT |
Top 32[]
Episode 11: Survive and Advance[]
- "It's time for the Round of 32 of the World Championship. Low-seeded bots try to punch their ticket into the next round by trying to defeat the top bots. So there's danger in every match as up-and-coming teams look to shake up the tournament bracket."
- — Official description for Episode 11
Main article: World Championship V/Episode 11
| (1) Hydra vs. HyperShock (32) |
| (16) Malice vs. Gigabyte (17) |
| (8) Whiplash vs. HUGE (25) |
| (9) Valkyrie vs. SubZero (24) |
| (4) Uppercut vs. HiJinx (29) |
| (13) Beta vs. Ribbot (20) |
| (5) Black Dragon vs. SlamMow! (28) |
| (12) MadCatter vs. Tombstone (21) |
Episode 12: We're Beast Slayin' Tonight![]
- "It's win-or-go-home time for the 16 remaining bots as the Round of 32 concludes. The winning teams move onto the Round of 16, and one step closer to the World Championship."
- — Official description for Episode 12
Main article: World Championship V/Episode 12
| (2) Bloodsport vs. Gruff (31) |
| (15) Fusion vs. Tantrum (18) |
| (7) SawBlaze vs. Kraken (26) |
| (10) Skorpios vs. Witch Doctor (23) |
| (3) Copperhead vs. Mammoth (30) |
| (14) Lock-Jaw vs. Shatter! (19) |
| (6) End Game vs. Perfect Phoenix (27) |
| (11) JackPot vs. ROTATOR (22) |
Top 16[]
Episode 13: Shock and Awe[]
- "The Round of 16 begins. Sixteen bots will battle it out to move even closer in the tournament. Eight winning teams will have two more fights left while eight losing teams will have their chance at earning the Giant Nut die in the BattleBox."
- — Official description for Episode 13
Main article: World Championship V/Episode 13
| (1) Hydra vs. Gigabyte (17) |
| (8) Whiplash vs. Valkyrie (9) |
| (4) Uppercut vs. Ribbot (20) |
| (5) Black Dragon vs. Tombstone (21) |
| (2) Bloodsport vs. Tantrum (18) |
| (7) SawBlaze vs. Witch Doctor (23) |
| (19) Shatter! vs. Mammoth (30) |
| (6) End Game vs. ROTATOR (22) |
Top 8[]
Episode 14: The World Championship Finals[]
- "The BattleBots World Championship Tournament has reached the end as the remaining eight bots battle it out in the Battle Box. Only one team will hoist the Giant Nut trophy and be crowned champions."
- — Official description for Episode 14
Main article: World Championship V/Episode 14
| Championship Quarter-Finals |
|---|
| (1) Hydra vs. Whiplash (8) |
| (20) Ribbot vs. Black Dragon (5) |
| (18) Tantrum vs. SawBlaze (7) |
| (19) Shatter! vs. End Game (6) |
| Championship Semi-Finals |
| (8) Whiplash vs. Black Dragon (5) |
| (18) Tantrum vs. End Game (6) |
| Championship Final |
Basement Tapes[]
| Mammoth vs. Deadlift |
| Rampage vs. Black Widow |
| Deadlift vs. Bale Spear |
| Tracer vs. HiJinx |
| P1 vs. Chronos |
| WAR? EZ! vs. SlamMow! |
| Axolotl vs. WAR? EZ! |
| Chomp vs. Ghost Raptor |
NOTE: Mammoth vs. Black Widow was an untelevised fight filmed as part of Josh Gates Tonight, but was not shown as part of the 2020 season Basement Tapes.
International Broadcasts[]
In the United Kingdom, ITV4 began airing World Championship V in mid-2023. As was the case with the 2019 season, episodes were cut in half to suit a one-hour timeslot (roughly 45 minutes minus commercials). This meant although episodes were reduced to four fights, the inclusion of Basement Tape battles in their entirety meant a total of forty episodes. These included twelve episodes dedicated to the spinoff series BattleBots: Bounty Hunters, which was spliced among main season episodes. Witch Doctor and Son of Whyachi brackets, for example, aired in the four episodes following the conclusion of the main tournament. Each episode, therefore, had a unique title compared to its US counterpart.
The same is true in other European countries, where previously untelevised fights were shown in their entirety on channels such as BLAZE in Italy.
See Also[]
Trivia[]
- World Championship V saw the first time in the modern era that filming had been substantially delayed.
- With End Game's eventual triumph, this marked the first time in BattleBots that a team from outside the US won the heavyweight competition and the Giant Nut.
- The final episode of the season was dedicated to former BattleBots competitor and guest judge Grant Imahara and Gayle Garner Roski, mother of BattleBots co-founder Trey Roski, both of whom passed away in 2020.
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10156739660921406&set=a.10150179252701406
- ↑ Discord message from Team HyperShock's Kyle Awner
- ↑ https://www.reddit.com/r/battlebots/comments/jdp18x/comment/g9c6h7t/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10156793679791406
- ↑ BattleBots 2020 - The Adam Savage Project - 12/1/20
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10157037690596406&set=a.10150179252701406
- ↑ https://battlebots.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Screen-Shot-2020-06-24-at-9.39.55-PM.png
- ↑ https://battlebots.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/BB-Cal-Chart.jpg
- ↑ https://battlebots.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/BB-Schedule-911-101.jpg
- ↑ https://twitter.com/discovery/status/1326955753945575429
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wsCLmIoxQ-o
- ↑ Public comment from Aren Hill in the Out of the Arena Discord server
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