# Jeff Ross Presents Roast Battle

Jeff Ross Presents Roast Battle is an American roast comedy competition television series that was broadcast on Comedy Central from July 27, 2016 to August 28, 2018.
Hosted by Jeff Ross, the show consisted of one on one roast battles during which the comedians would insult each other comedically. The winners of each battle were decided by a panel of guest judges that consisted of fellow comedians and other celebrities. Comedian Brian Moses served as the announcer and referee.

## History

The television series is based on a live show that runs at The Comedy Store in Los Angeles in the comedy club's Belly Room. The live show originated from a heated argument that occurred in The Comedy Store's parking lot in 2013 between two comedians over a stolen joke. The argument was about to devolve into a physical fight and comedian Brian Moses–who was hosting an open mic night the following night–suggested that the two comedians could fight it out verbally on stage. Two other comedians volunteered to judge the event. From there Moses and fellow comedian Rell Battle started the live Roast Battle comedy show.
Moses and Battle eventually parted ways. Moses continued the show in the Belly Room and his shows were sometimes credited as "Jeffrey Ross Presents". Moses also brought the show to The Stand comedy club in New York City under the title Brian Moses and Jeff Ross Present Roastmasters. Both the LA and NYC roast battle shows held bracket-style tournaments to determine the top regional roaster for each city, then the top LA and NYC roasters would compete for the title of Roastmaster, which included a championship belt similar to those awarded in professional combat sports.
The Roastmasters show in NYC was emceed by comedian Luis J. Gomez and audio recordings were posted to a podcast feed under the Roastmasters name. The NYC show dissolved in 2018. Moses also broadcast audio recordings of the LA show as a podcast titled Verbal Violence. The show gained in popularity and Ross was able to recruit friends like Dave Chappelle and Sarah Silverman to serve as guest judges during the show.
Since 2014 Ross has been adviser and lead judge of Roast Battle In 2015 Ross brought the live show to the Just For Laughs comedy festival in Montreal where it caught the attention of Jonas Larsen, a senior vice president at Comedy Central. The first episode of Jeff Ross Presents Roast Battle aired on the network in 2016. In 2018 the Verbal Violence podcast's name was changed to Roast Battle and the podcast was moved to Comedy Central’s Global Podcast Network.

## Format

The show is hosted by Jeff Ross who also serves as one of the judges on each show. Comedian and show co-creator Brian Moses announces each competitor and also serves as referee. The winners of each battle are determined by a panel of guest judges that include two or more comedians or other celebrities. There are three rules to the competition: The competitors must use only original material, no physical contact is allowed and the battle always ends with a hug.
In the first two season there were regional events filmed at various comedy clubs across the United States in search of some or all of the sixteen contestants to compete in the main eight battle competition via a bracket-style tournament. In the first season the regionals were held in Los Angeles, Austin, Chicago and New York City. The final eight battles were filmed at the 2016 Just for Laughs festival in Montreal and the very final battle was broadcast live on Comedy Central.
In the second season the regionals were held at the Comedy Cellar in New York City, Comedy Works in Denver, Colorado, the Laughing Skull Lounge in Atlanta, Georgia and the Los Angeles Comedy Store. In addition, there were comedians added to the final sixteen competitors list who did not compete in the regionals. The final eight battles of the second season were filmed on the Sunset Strip and the final battle was also broadcast live.
The show changed it format in the third season and abandoned the bracket-style tournament. As a result there were no preliminary regional battles and instead each episode featured only two battles per episode over six episodes. In addition Anthony Jeselnik and Nikki Glaser served as judges on all six episodes and they were also joined by Pete Davidson during the final episode. The final episode also marked the first time that Ross took to the stage as a battler during the show; he battled with NBA player Blake Griffin.

## International versions

The popularity of Jeff Ross Presents Roast Battle has led to the launch of roast battle shows on some of Comedy Central's sister stations outside of the United States:
* Comedy Central’s Roast Battle South Africa launched in 2017 on Comedy Central Africa and was renewed for a second season in 2018.
* Roast Battle was launched in 2018 on Comedy Central (UK & Ireland). The show is hosted by former Jeff Ross Presents Roast Battle contestant Jimmy Carr.
* Duelo des Comediantes was launched on Comedy Central Latinoamérica in 2018.
* Two versions have been produced in Canada, the English-language Roast Battle Canada for CTV Comedy Channel and the French-language Roast Battle: Le Grand Duel for Z.

## Broadcasts

| Series | Start date | End date | Episodes |
| 1 | July 27, 2016 | July 31, 2016 | 5 |
| 2 | January 1, 2017 | January 29, 2017 | 8 |
| 3 | July 29, 2018 | August 28, 2018 | 6 |

## Episodes
### Series 1

The winner of each roast battle is in bold.
| Episode | Episode Title | First broadcast | Judges | Battles | Notes |
| 1.1 | Road to Roast Battle | July 27, 2016 | Various (see notes) | Various (see notes) | This was an introductory episode featuring clips from the preliminary battles that were held in Los Angeles, Austin, Chicago and New York City. |
| 1.2 | Night One | July 28, 2016 | David Spade, Kevin Hart | Sarah Tiana vs. Chris Cubas Sam Morril vs. Steve Rannazzisi Tom Ballard vs. Earl Skakel Jimmy Carr vs. Christi Chiello | |
| 1.3 | Night Two | July 29, 2016 | Whoopi Goldberg, Anthony Jeselnik | Mike Lawrence Matthew Broussard Ralphie May vs. Ms. Pat Mark Normand vs. Tony Hinchcliffe Olivia Grace vs. K. Trevor Wilson | |
| 1.4 | Night Three | July 30, 2016 | Seth Rogen, Jimmy Kimmel | Mike Lawrence vs. Ralphie May Earl Skakel vs. Jimmy Carr Sarah Tiana vs. Sam Morril Tony Hinchcliffe vs. K. Trevor Wilson | |
| 1.5 | Night Four: Live Finals | July 31, 2016 | Sarah Silverman, Judd Apatow | Semifinals: Sarah Tiana vs. Earl Skakel K. Trevor Wilson vs. Mike Lawrence | The final round was broadcast live on Comedy Central |
| 1.5 | Night Four: Live Finals | July 31, 2016 | Sarah Silverman, Judd Apatow | Finals: Mike Lawrence vs. Sarah Tiana | The final round was broadcast live on Comedy Central |

### Series 2

The winner of each roast battle is in bold.
| Episode | Episode Title | First broadcast | Judges | Battles | Notes |
| 2.1 | New York Regional | January 1, 2017 | Lisa Lampanelli, Jay Pharoah, Jim Norton, Mike Lawrence | Eli Sairs vs. Scott Chaplain J.P. McDade vs. Yamaneika Saunders Evan Williams vs. Zac Amico* Dina Hashem vs. Aaron Berg** | Filmed at the Comedy Cellar in New York City *Both contestants advanced to final sixteen. **Neither contestant advanced to the final sixteen. |
| 2.2 | Denver and Atlanta Regionals | January 8, 2017 | Denver: Russell Peters, Moshe Kasher | Denver: Justine Marino vs. Sam Tallent Karlous Miller vs. Jay Light* CJ Sullivan vs. Nate Craig Bri Pruett vs. Erin Ingle Noah Gardenswartz vs. Clayton English Nicole Aimée Schreiber vs. Andy Haynes | Filmed at Comedy Works in Denver, Colorado. *The only contestant to advance to the final sixteen from this episode was Jay Light. |
| 2.2 | Denver and Atlanta Regionals | January 8, 2017 | Atlanta: Lil Rel Howery, Josh McDermitt, Fortune Feimster | Atlanta: Kath Barbadoro vs. Kim Congdon* Candice Thompson vs. Jasmin Leigh** Erik Bergstrom vs. Jacob Williams (tie)*** Megan Gailey vs. Sean White**** | Filmed at the Laughing Skull Lounge in Atlanta, Georgia. *Neither contestant advanced to the final sixteen. **Neither contestant advanced to the final sixteen. ***Neither contestant advanced to the final sixteen. ****Neither contestant advanced to the final sixteen. |
| 2.3 | LA Regionals: Part 1 | January 15, 2017 | Chris D'Elia, Sebastian Maniscalco, Ron Artest | Alex Hooper vs. Joe Dosch* Toby Muresianu vs. Omid Singh** Greg Roque vs. Frank Castillo Anna Valenzuela vs. Keith Carey*** | Filmed at The Comedy Store in Los Angeles. *Both contestants advanced to the final sixteen. **Neither contestant advanced to the final sixteen. ***Both contestants advanced to the final sixteen. |
| 2.4 | LA Regionals: Part 2 | January 22, 2017 | Chris D'Elia, Sebastian Maniscalco, Ron Artest | Jamar Neighbors vs. Guy Branum* Robin Tran vs. Pat Barker** Leah Kayajanian vs. Connor McSpadden*** | Filmed at The Comedy Store in Los Angeles. *Neither contestant advanced to the final sixteen. **Neither contestant advanced to the final sixteen. ***Neither contestant advanced to the final sixteen. |
| 2.5 | Night One | January 26, 2017 | Anthony Jeselnik, Snoop Dogg | Kurt Metzger vs. Yamaneika Saunders Joe Dosch vs. Leah Kayajanian Evan Williams vs. Anna Valenzuela Jay Light vs. Frank Castillo | Filmed in Los Angeles on the Sunset Strip |
| 2.6 | Night Two | January 27, 2017 | Whitney Cummings, Ken Jeong | Todd Barry vs. Jessica Kirson Keith Carey vs. Olivia Grace Scott Chaplain vs. Alex Hooper Matthew Broussard vs. Zac Amico | Filmed in Los Angeles on the Sunset Strip |
| 2.7 | Night Three | January 28, 2017 | Sarah Silverman, John Mayer | Joe Dosch vs. Yamaneika Saunders Anna Valenzuela vs. Frank Castillo Olivia Grace vs. Todd Barry Alex Hooper vs. Matthew Broussard | Filmed in Los Angeles on the Sunset Strip |
| 2.8 | Night Four | January 29, 2017 | Patton Oswalt, T.J. Miller, Jason Sudeikis, Natasha Leggero | Semifinals: Joe Dosch vs. Frank Castillo Todd Barry vs. Matthew Broussard | Filmed in Los Angeles on the Sunset Strip |
| 2.8 | Night Four | January 29, 2017 | Patton Oswalt, T.J. Miller, Jason Sudeikis, Natasha Leggero | Finals: Frank Castillo vs. Matthew Broussard | Filmed in Los Angeles on the Sunset Strip |

### Series 3

| Episode | Episode Title | First broadcast | Judges | Battles |
| 3.1 | Sarah Tiana vs. Dolph Ziggler | July 29, 2018 | Anthony Jeselnik, Nikki Glaser | Todd Barry vs. Brendon Walsh Sarah Tiana vs. Dolph Ziggler |
| 3.2 | Yamaneika Saunders vs. Jamar Neighbors | July 31, 2018 | Anthony Jeselnik, Nikki Glaser | Alex Duong vs. Robin Tran Yamaneika Saunders vs. Jamar Neighbors |
| 3.3 | Randy Sklar vs. Jason Sklar | August 7, 2018 | Anthony Jeselnik, Nikki Glaser | Randy Sklar vs. Jason Sklar Joe List vs. Sarah Tollemache |
| 3.4 | Sam Morril vs. Joe Machi | August 14, 2018 | Anthony Jeselnik, Nikki Glaser | Kim Congdon vs. Olivia Grace Sam Morril vs. Joe Machi |
| 3.5 | Mike Lawrence vs. Tony Hinchcliffe | August 21, 2018 | Anthony Jeselnik, Nikki Glaser | Mike Lawrence vs. Tony Hinchcliffe Matthew Broussard vs. Jerron Horton |
| 3.6 | Blake Griffin vs. Jeff Ross | August 28, 2018 | Anthony Jeselnik, Nikki Glaser, Pete Davidson | Blake Griffin vs. Jeff Ross Kurt Metzger vs. Mark Normand |