This article is about the Comedy Central era heavyweight BattleBots competitor. For other uses, see Spitfire (disambiguation).
Spitfire was a British heavyweight robot entered by The Lancashire Bombers, which competed in Season 5.0 of Comedy Central BattleBots.
It was a bi-wedge shaped named after the Supermarine Spitfire fighter plane, armed with high-pressure pneumatic flipping arm powered by CO2 gas. Spitfire's design incorporated an adjustable running strip at the rear which allowed it to keep its chisel-shaped wedges close to the BattleBox floor when activated, or to raise them when retracted. This, in turn, also allowed Spitfire to double as a sit-and-spin design, using its wedges to strike opponents while spinning on the spot. To compliment its airplane themtheme, the robot was painted in a dark green and brown camouflage pattern, with Royal Air Force roundels and a Union Jack flag alluding to its UK origins.[1]
Spitfire without its flipper and top armor.
Spitfire was a collaboration between two UK teams - Team Dantomkia and The Lancaster Bombers - and was rebuilt from one version of the former's highly successful Robot Wars heavyweight Dantomkia. Initially, Michael Lambert had intended to call the machine Bad Attitude, though this was later changed, likely to avoid confusion with the middleweight competitor of the same name.[2] Like Dantomkia, Spitfire was armed with a mechanism that adjusted the robot's height and could redistribute its weight to act as a battering ram. Unlike it, however, Spitfire's steel frame was given additional protection in the form of 12mm Lexan panels. Spitfire won each of its preliminary fights by knockout and scored a shock victory over Vlad the Impaler II to reach the Round of 32. Despite its statement victory, Spitfire fell at this stage after sustaining heavy damage from Surgeon General.
Outside BattleBots[]
Newer versions of Dantomkia - painted yellow and black - enjoyed major success on Robot Wars, with the Mk3 and Mk4 versions reaching the semi-final stages of the main Series 6 and Series 7 respectively. Dantomkia is also recognized for having inflicted the most out of the arena flips on the UK show, defeating nine competitors this way including former champions Chaos 2 and Panic Attack. Dantomkia returned to Robot Wars for Series 8 in 2016, making the heat final but losing out to the eventual third-placed finisher, TR2.
Spitfire and Dantomkia fight Thorak at a UK live event.
The Lancaster Bombers themselves also briefly appeared in Series 5 of Robot Wars with Wolverine, which also enjoyed an active period on the UK live circuit alongside Dantomkia. Spitfire returned to the British live circuit in June 2013, where it notably fought in the Guildford Extreme Robots event.[3][4]
Robot History[]
Season 5.0[] |
|---|
Spitfire vs. Silverback  Spitfire flips Silverback. Spitfire's BattleBots debut came against Silverback. Spitfire dodged Silverback's initial charge and then spun around, attempting to hit Silverback with its wedge spikes. Silverback was hit by the spikes, stopping the spin, but was unable to get underneath Spitfire and lift it. Spitfire wedged underneath Silverback and attempted a flip, but it missed as Silverback escaped the wedge. Silverback then caught Spitfire in the side and pushed it onto its back, but Spitfire self-righted. Spitfire then cornered Silverback and flipped it onto its back, and Silverback was unable to self-right, giving Spitfire the victory by knockout. This win put Spitfire to the next preliminary round. |
Spitfire vs. Golem   Spitfire flips Golem. Next up for Spitfire was Golem in another untelevised battle, which proved close for the majority of the allotted time. With thirty seconds remaining, Spitfire managed to flip Golem onto its back, and it was unable to self-right. Golem was counted out just as time ran out, but Spitfire was still given the win by KO. |
Spitfire vs. Chewbot In the final preliminary round, Spitfire fought Chewbot. Spitfire immediately wedged Chewbot, drove it into the corner, and flipped it onto the spikes, where it was unable to move. Chewbot's driver tapped out just 39 seconds into the match, sealing another win for the British bot. |
Spitfire vs. Vlad the Impaler II   Vlad the Impaler II II drives over Spitfire's front.   Spitfire flips Vlad the Impaler II II. |
Spitfire vs. Surgeon General   Spitfire after being destroyed by Surgeon General. Spitfire advanced to the Round of 32, where it fought Surgeon General. However, this time around Spitfire was not as lucky, as Surgeon General was able to cause severe damage to Spitfire, even tearing out a wheel. Surgeon General won by a KO after absolutely demolishing Spitfire, eliminating it from the tournament. |
Heavyweight Consolation Rumble   Spitfire flips Diskontent onto its back.   Nightmare hits Spitfire. However, safety concerns caused by a stray tooth of Nightmare resulted in this rumble being the last one that took place during the event, and the final rumble in Comedy Central BattleBots. |
Spitfire with its team
Wins/Losses[]
- Wins: 4
- Losses: 1
| Competition | Wins | Losses |
|---|---|---|
| Season 5.0 | Silverback Golem Chewbot Vlad the Impaler II |
Surgeon General |
Mark Beiro Introductions[]
"Show him a gracious loser and he'll show you his next victim. Here is SPITFIRE!"