Good afternoon and welcome to the second quarter final of WHC XII. A mismatch in terms of size to be sure but the Mantis Shrimp is a former champion and won't roll over. The Hippo has more or less forgotten the taste of defeat in recent times: effortlessly dispatching all comers. Will this be a bridge too far for the plucky crustacean?
Mantis Shrimp - beat the Saltwater Crocodile 30/27 in the 2nd round
The mantis shrimp shook the world, taking the WHC crown in 2014. Since then it has struggled to make its mark, even failing to make it out of the group stage and "Weekendgate" last year. However, 2019 is looking like a vintage year for the former champion. It will be delighted to have made it to the quarter finals, especially as it took down the Saltwater Crocodile in the last round. Such a notable scalp should make the WHC cognoscenti sit up and take notice. The Shrimp might be small but it is a magnificently evolved fighter. It has two hunting options, as it can hunt with either a smasher or spear claw. It is capable of inflicting serious damage on far larger prey. It has the fastest punch in the animal kingdom, which accelerates faster than a bullet. It can strike with such speed that it creates cavity bubbles. These subsequently collapse and create a secondary shock wave that disables and kills prey. Packs an awful lot of hard into its four inch frame.
Poor puffer fish...
Hippopotamus - beat the Deathstalker Scorpion 38/21 in the 2nd round
The King! WHC XI victor and defending champion. The Hippo has entered the building. It cruised past the Deathstalker Scorpion in the last round. It stepped on it.
The Hippo fears nothing. Absolutely nothing. It will take you on if you're a threat, a perceived threat, simply in its way, if you're looking at it funnily, if you're breathing wrong or if you're running away. The Hippo, along with the Honey Badger, really aspires to be the Francis Begbie of the animal kingdom. It's colossal. It has massive strength. It's has the strongest bite on Earth outside the Croc family and all of this is wrapped up in a vast ball of attitude.
The Hippo kills more humans each year than any other animal in Africa. Big 5? Nah! The Hippo farts in their general direction and calls them a silly thing.
This video is not the greatest quality but amply demonstrates Hippo head mentalness.
