Quote:
Originally Posted by dtengineering
I think 1114 and 2056 might be amongst the first to point out that they might actually be considered underdogs when going up against the reigning world champions.... 
Darn, but there are a LOT of GOOD teams in Ontario.
Jason |
I'm fully aware 610 and 1241 are reigning world champions. This would still get me nowhere close to EVER calling 2056 an underdog, especially at the regional level. 2056 has played in 17 regionals, and brought home 17 regional wins, 2 WFFAs, 1 RCA and 1 EI. 1114 carries a similarly impressive pedigree.
Neither 610, nor 1241 have historically been able to hold a candle to 1114/2056 in any sort of a consistent fashion. Both have shown moments of brilliance, and are firmly planted at the top of Canada's second tier, but have not been able to show the consistent early season excellence required to win regionals in Ontario. Both 610 and 1241 are great at adapting as the game progresses to improve their machines and strategies as Championship gets closer. Even then, 1114 and 2056 are generally much more consistent.
Indeed, the two matches they eliminated 1114/4039/118 with at Championship were decided by a smaller margin than 1114's failed 30 pt climb. 1114's climber failed at the worst possible time, and 610 and 1241 were able to capitalize and parlay that into a Championship win. It truly is as Karthik and many others have said. The biggest component of winning championships is getting a little bit of good luck when you're well positioned to take advantage of it. Baracus was specifically designed to be 1st pick in its Championship division, by being a stellar climber. That part of 1114's plan played out perfectly. Then Baracus failed to complete even one 30 pt climb during eliminations thanks to some poorly timed bad luck.
All four teams are able to win events given the appropriate infusion of luck at the right time. Several occasions have come about over the past few years where 2056's streak would have been broken were it not for some well-timed luck.
By nearly every metric I can think of, Ontario is one of the top 3 regions in FRC. Michigan is the only other region similarly strong across the board.