Not to be confused with lightweight entrant Stinger, or the Robot Wars heavyweight of the same name.
Overview[]
Stinger: The Killer Bee, often shortened in televised seasons to Stinger, was a heavyweight robot from Team PlumbCrazy which competed in BattleBots World Championship I and II.
An earlier incarnation also competed in the unaired 2009 Pro Championship held in Vallejo, California. Despite losing its opening battle in the main double-elimination tournament, Stinger: The Killer Bee recovered with two victories in the losers bracket before being defeated again by eventual runner-up Root Canal. It also won an exhibition battle against Jim Smentowski's Breaker Box, with both machines also being scheduled to team up in a proposed 2v1 battle against Counter Revolution. However, the latter battle does not appear in official BattleBots match records, likely suggesting that it never took place.
For both ABC seasons, Team PlumbCrazy entered a brand-new version similar in design to their heavyweight Evil Plunger, itself originally built as a successor to their highly-successful Sewer Snake. This incarnation featured a new four/six-wheel drive design with a black and yellow paint scheme and a variety of interchangeable lifter and flamethrower attachments. Lifter configurations included anti-spinner wedges and set of two or three-pronged forks inspired by Evil Plunger. This build of Stinger enjoyed a strong debut in World Championship I, reaching the quarter-finals before losing to Bronco in entertaining fashion.
In World Championship II, Stinger also performed well, defeating the veteran vertical spinner Nightmare to reach the Round of 32. However, it lost to Mega Tento on a split Judges' decision. During the latter match, the main robot was accompanied by a red, four-wheel drive ant-shaped minibot named Flicker (alternatively Flicker the Fire Ant), itself weighing 7lbs and armed with a flamethrower. Though Matt Maxham suggested that Team PlumbCrazy would consider improving Stinger's reliability for a third reboot season, it would not return for Discovery Seasons 3 or 4.
For World Championship V, Team PlumbCrazy's Matt and Wendy Maxham joined Robotic Death Company and Gigabyte, where Matt became weapons operator. The Maxhams continued their involvement with Robotic Death Company in the 2021 season, where they oversaw Cobalt's entry following its transfer from original builders Team Carbide. Matt Maxham was appointed as Cobalt's driver for the competition, as well as the 2022 re:MARS all:STARS event, but this changed to Gigabyte captain John Mladenik for future events.
Robot History[]
BattleBots Pro Championship 2009[]
Stinger: The Killer Bee's BattleBots debut came at the 2009 Pro Championship. In the first round of the main winner's bracket, it faced the heavyweight version of SubZero. Very limited information is available for this and Stinger: The Killer Bee's other 2009 matches, though BattleBots records suggest that both robots survived the full three minutes. SubZero took the Judges' decision and match win, relegating Stinger: The Killer Bee to the Losers bracket at this early stage.
Next to face Stinger: The Killer Bee was the twin vertical spinner Counter Revolution, an opponent Team PlumbCrazy would also fight against at RoboGames 2009 with Sewer Snake. Similarly to its counterpart, Stinger: The Killer Bee won by knockout after 33 seconds, enabling it to maintain its place in the competition.
Stinger: The Killer Bee would proceed to fight the overhead bar spinner of Bender, which had previously suffered serious bodywork damage following its earlier loss to Megabyte. BattleBots records indicate that it achieved the joint-fastest knockout win of the entire competition, emerging victorious after only eight seconds.
Fresh from its newly-earnt victories, Stinger: The Killer Bee next fought former Giant Nut winners Mutant Robots and their newest heavyweight robot, Root Canal. Both machines were documented to have lasted the full three minutes according to BattleBots records, with Root Canal winning the Judges' decision. As a result, Stinger: The Killer Bee was eliminated from the main competition with a 2-2 match record.
Towards the end of the 2009 Championships, Stinger: The Killer Bee also took part in an exhibition match against rival lifter Breaker Box. Again, BattleBots records confirm that both heavyweights survived the full three minutes, with Stinger: The Killer Bee emerging victorious on a Judges' decision.
BattleBots World Championship I[]
Stinger's first match was against Captain Shrederator. For this match, it had a ramp with two antenna like extensions. In the match, Captain Shrederator started spinning and managed to land hits on Stinger's wedge, sending sparks flying. Stinger was unaffected by the attacks and managed to use it's lifter to get under Captain Shrederator and flipped it upside down where it could not self right. Captain Shrederator was knocked out at 1:12 and Stinger advanced to the round of 16, where it faced Warhead.
For this match, it had ramp with the top panel attached to it. The first hit flipped Warhead over and Stinger pushed Warhead upside down to the screws, briefly re-righting it before being pushed into the pulverizers. Stinger then flipped Warhead again and forced it into the wall, but Warhead managed to right itself with its dome and was able to cause some minor damage to Stinger's rear-right tire and the sides of its flipping panel with the dome before time ran out. Stinger won on a unanimous 3-0 judge's decision and advanced to the quarterfinals, where it faced Bronco.
In this fight, Stinger used a three-pronged lifter, much like Stinger's default two-pronged lifter. In this match, both robots went straight at each other and Bronco gives Stinger a small pop from its flipping arm. Bronco tries to flip Stinger again, but it flipped itself onto the screws. Bronco used its flipper to get off the screws but lands upside down on the floor. Bronco self-rights before Stinger started pushing and lifting Bronco and sprayed fire underneath Bronco. Bronco drove itself onto the killsaws and flips Stinger onto its back. Bronco bumps into the killsaws again and flips Stinger back onto its feet. After this, Bronco got underneath the front of Stinger and flipped it against the corner of the BattleBox. Bronco got underneath the rear of Stinger and flipped it out of the BattleBox for an automatic KO at 1:18. This meant that Stinger was eliminated from the tournament.
Stinger also participated in a three bot rumble with Bull Dog and Splatter. This time, Stinger used the two pronged lifter that it has in its official photo. After Stinger and Splatter worked together to destroy Bulldog, Stinger lighting Bulldog on fire, and Splatter pushing Bulldog into the killsaws, it was Stinger vs Splatter. In the end, Stinger beat Splatter and was declared the winner of the rumble.
Stinger: The Killer Bee was due to compete in a nine bot rumble at the end of the tournament, but due to time restraints in filming, the rumble never happened.
BattleBots World Championship II[]
Stinger's first match in Season 2 was against Nightmare. For this match, it had a ramp with two antenna like extensions and just four wheels. Both robots went straight at each other and Nightmare ripped off one of Stinger's wheels, causing sparks to fly in the process. The two robots sparred on one side of the BattleBox for a while, but eventually Stinger got underneath Nightmare, picked it up with the antenna-like extensions and flipped it onto its back. Nightmare couldn't self-right as one of the sensors for the self-righting arms had broken lose, giving a false reading, thus disabling the pin on that side and preventing it from being removed. Stinger tried to help, but Nightmare was already being counted out and Stinger got the win by a quick KO at 44 seconds. After the match ended, an autographed piece of Stinger was given to Jim Smentowski as a souvenir. This win put Stinger into the round of 32 as a No.5 seed again, where it faced the No.28 seed Mega Tento.
For this match, Stinger added a minibot called Flinger to join it as well as going back to having six wheels. The match started out rather well for Stinger as it was able to push Mega Tento around and fend off the drum on the back. Mega Tento continued to attack with the drum and Stinger tried to flip Mega Tento over but was unsuccessful. Stinger pushed Mega Tento into the wall, bending the sandbox shell. Mega Tento eventually escaped and tore off one of Stinger's wheels. Stinger hit a seam in the Battlebox floor then tried Mega Tento again but to no avail once more. Mega Tento managed to send Stinger flying but neither robot was able to do much before time ran out. The judges awarded a split decision in favor of Mega Tento, eliminating Stinger from the tournament.
Stinger wasn't finished yet as it participated in a small rumble with Lock-Jaw and Ghost Raptor. In the beginning, Stinger lost two tires seemingly placed where the center wheels would go before taking aim at Ghost Raptor. Stinger was then flipped by Lock-Jaw but promptly self-righted. Eventually, Stinger was flipped by Lock-Jaw again but after self-righting, lost a tire, reducing its mobility. Ghost Raptor eventually stopped working and Lock-Jaw flipped Stinger on its plow once more before time ran out. The judges awarded a unanimous decision to Lock-Jaw.
Results[]
| Competition | Round | Opponent(s) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| BattleBots Pro Championship 2009 | Winners Bracket, Round 1 | SubZero | Lost |
| Losers Bracket, Round 1 | Counter Revolution | Won | |
| Losers Bracket, Round 2 | Bender | Won | |
| Losers Bracket, Round 3 | Root Canal | Lost | |
| Exhibition Match | Breaker Box | Won | |
| BattleBots World Championship I (Seeded 5th) |
Qualifiers | Captain Shrederator | Won |
| Round of 16 | (12) Warhead | Won | |
| Quarter-Finals | (4) Bronco | Lost | |
| Exhibition Rumble | Bull Dog Splatter |
Won | |
| BattleBots World Championship II (Seeded 5th) |
Qualifiers | Nightmare | Won |
| Round of 32 | (28) Mega Tento | Lost | |
| Legends Rumble | Ghost Raptor Lock-Jaw |
Lost |
- Wins: 7
- Losses: 5
See Also[]
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