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. . . There have been many upsets, and every combatant of the third day is acutely aware of this fact. What this means to each robot varies as much as their personalities do. For the self-confident, they see an easier path to victory and are uplifted by each surprise defeat. For the reflective and self-depreciating, each upset brings more worry and concern that they too can fall at any moment.

Such reflections are only heightened by the state of the staging area. It’s a mess back there. Pieces of robot parts lie about everywhere. The floor and walls are pitted with molten steel from the medical bays where each robot is patched up for the next battle. There are no private rooms, repairs are out in the open for all to see. Welding sparks fly everywhere, and screams of pain echo in the tightly confined spaces. After each battle, the ring itself is cleaned for the next fight, but back in the staging area, junk thrown on the floor tends to remain there, either to be shoved to the side of the room or buried under even more scrap. Such a sight cannot help the nerves of those already deeply concerned of their contests to come . . . .

The Autobots of 1986 Bracket

Pre-Match Analysis
This is the deepest, biggest bracket of them all. All 32 spots are filled, even leaving 1 Autobot out in the cold. At the top, Rodimus Prime, Hot Rod, and Sky Lynx can all claim top honors. Just behind them, Springer, Metroplex, and Superion can all play the role of spoiler, and perhaps sneak into the finals themselves. Ultra Magnus, the Protectobots, the Aerialbots, and much more fill out a very competitive field.

Notable Results
The first round featured two landmark upsets. No. 27 Swerve bested no. 6 Superion in a full-length affair, and in the biggest upset of the tournament so far, no. 29 Eject dispatched no. 4 Springer – taking only 4 matches to do so. The second round would feature 4 more upsets, led by the unlikely Eject taking his second victim, no. 13 Air Raid, in 5. No. 3 Sky Lynx also fell victim to no. 14 Skydive. Oddly, the third round featured no upsets, as Eject dropped 3 straight matches against a much heftier Metroplex. Metroplex would also provide the headline match, as he eliminated top-seeded Rodimus Prime in a 5 match thriller. The final saw no. 2 Hot Rod dispatch Metroplex in 4 matches.

Post-Match Analysis
While this bracket did not set the record for number of total upsets, it certainly featured the most top seeds going down in flames. Four participants reached double-digit wins in this large field, including Kup, Rodimus Prime, Metroplex, and Hot Rod. While not the top seed, Hot Rod will be a Tournament of Champions favorite from simply surviving this bracket. Hopefully Rodimus can live vicariously through his youth.


The Decepticons of 1986 Bracket

Pre-Match Analysis
This bracket isn’t as large or as deep as the Autobot side, but still there is plenty of depth and talent in play. The top is dominated by Galvatron and Tripticon, with a sizeable gap on the rest of the field. Cyclonus and Scourge make up the next tier, and both should do well overall, and perhaps sneak into the finals. The remainder of the field features the Combaticons, the Predacons, and the Stunticons, along with a cadre of others who will likely not make much of an impact.

Notable Results
Despite the large field, only 2 upsets occur across the bracket and only one of note when no. 22 Reflector took out no. 11 Blast Off in a full match. A number of matches went the distance but ended predictably. The finals saw no. 1 Galvatron and no. 2 Trypticon alternate wins until the top-seed took the final game.

Post-Match Analysis
No bracket featured fewer upsets than this one, which proved to be the most orderly, predictable, and boring of them all. The Predacons generally did well, finishing 28-24. The other groups finished with losing records, but none embarrassed themselves. Cyclonus and Scourge finished a solid 14-9, but were barely competitive against the top two seeds.


Conclusion
The most likely outcome was to see Galvatron vs. Rodimus Prime, but instead we have Galvatron vs. Hot Rod. Even with this unexpected match-up, this pairing may prove to be the most competitive match of the Tournament of Champions. Either one can expect to be a strong contender for the title.

Hot Rod's tech spec numbers are "bloated". He should never have been entered.