Is Riot Racing the same as Podracing in The Bad Batch?

Is Podracing in The Bad Batch the same as Riot Racing? initially featured on Ready Steady Cut.

Is Podracing in The Bad Batch the same as Riot Racing? There will be spoilers for The Bad Batch season 2 episode 4.

Riot racing is a brand-new form of racing that is introduced in The Bad Batch’s Season 2 Episode 4 to the galaxy. In this brand-new, extremely risky sport, competitors must strike a balance between offence and defence while avoiding obstacles at breakneck speed. All of the racers are subject to incredibly high-stakes wagers, which draws a large number of dishonest individuals and spectators.

If this sounds vaguely familiar, it’s because riot racing and another type of racing in Star Wars, podracing, have a lot in common. This race, which was first featured in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, also draws big crowds, high stakes wagers, and fast speeds with tight corners.

But these aren’t the only similarities there are. Because of the quick reflexes required, there are noticeably fewer humans in these races. When Tech races and wins, it raises the question of whether Tech is force sensitive, given that Anakin could only podrace due to his extreme Force sensitivity.

Is Riot Racing the same as Podracing in The Bad Batch?

Riot racing is very similar to the galaxy-wide podracing competition. There are some obvious similarities as well as some that are more subtle.

Of course, the nature of the sport is where the similarities begin. Both styles of racing are extremely risky, and racers frequently crash and are disqualified from competition. A racer may even pass away under certain conditions. This is a result of the sports’ loose rules and the unrestrained behaviour of the competitors. There is no concern about who wins, whether Sebulba destroys Anakin’s pod or Jet Venim uses a cutting instrument to kill other racers.

This brings up another commonality, which is the possibility of being shot. Tatooine’s podrace featured a contingent of Tusken Raiders shooting at the contestants in an attempt to halt them, albeit it isn’t a feature at every single podrace in the galaxy. It’s normal practise in Riot Racing to modify racers so they have blasters so they can shoot the opposition. Podracers are also heavily modified.

Both the podrace on Tatooine and riot racing raise concerns about track safety. In the races, there are closed sections of the courses, but sadly they are not well protected. In The Phantom Menace, Anakin is coerced up a service ramp that is barely closed and takes him into the air, while Tech chooses a route with nothing but a red “do not enter” light.

Despite the obvious similarities between riot racing and podracing, there are also a significant number of distinctions. In riot racing, the crowd is far more at risk from errant blaster fire, and the course is constructed more like an obstacle course than a race track.

With its parallels and variations, the riot racing in The Bad Batchis more of an homage to the podracing seen in The Phantom Menace, creating a special kind of new race in the Star Wars galaxy.

Also Read: Disney Studios Australia Commences Production on Kingdom of The Planet of The Apes

How Is Riot Racing Different from Podracing?

Beyond just the speeder difference, though, there are some other distinctions between the two that outweigh the similarities. The path that Tech takes is more like to an obstacle course, complete with traps, track segments that jut out at regular intervals, and multiple courses to choose from. Podracing is more about straight racing than it is about dodging obstacles.

There are variations in safety as well. In podracing, the spectators are perfectly safe (unless you linger beyond the service ramp), but the competitors are more at risk. The crowd is equally as liable to get shot in riot racing as any racer. However, the racers have comforts not found in podracing, including as deflector shields and a closed cockpit.

But compared to riot racing, podracing is far more well-liked. On Malastare, the planet where Sebulba resides, Batuu, the planet where Galaxy’s Edge is set, and of course Tatooine, the sport is played. While riot racing is limited on one planet and doesn’t have the same attraction as podracing, it does draw the most powerful criminal organisations, most notably the Hutts.

Also Read: Unique Disney World Video of A Lit-Up Dark Ride Makes Viewers Feel Scared!

Is Tech force sensitive?

TAY-0, a grating droid, makes it abundantly obvious throughout the episode that he doesn’t believe Tech or humanity in general are capable of winning at riot racing. Tech’s strategies for winning the race, such as switching power from the weapons to the shields, are roundly dismissed by TAY-0, who asserts that Tech is incapable of making the split-second judgements required to prevail. He even claims that Tech makes inexperienced errors.

Tech comes up to take TAY-0’s position in the race after the impolite and overconfident TAY-0 gets destroyed by a riot racer. It comes as a shock when he defeats the opposition and flies to victory. In The Phantom Menace, Anakin was the only human who could win the podracing competition on Tatooine, and he was only able to do it because of his Force sensitivity. Therefore, may Tech also be Force sensitive?

Despite the similarity of the two scenarios, Tech is not Force-sensitive. His enlarged intellect, which provides him stronger analytical abilities and hyper-intelligence, allowed him to prevail. While Anakin isn’t shown doing this, he spends the most of his time researching the track and racing patterns in preparation for the competition.

The fact that Anakin has sentiments sets him apart from Tech. Since Anakin is more sensitive than Tech, Qui-Gon tells the young Anakin to feel rather than think immediately before the podrace. Tech frequently overlooks the emotional aspects of events (for instance, he didn’t realise that flying is about a sensation), therefore he wouldn’t be able to navigate a race like a Jedi