I’ll be honest. I’m ill-positioned to write a hype piece about this weekend’s Red Bull Battle Grounds. Even as I stare at the clock, knowing that I will be in Boston in roughly 18 hours, I still can’t muster the full level of hypeness. Maybe it’s because it’s been a long year following the Capcom Cup and this weekend is one of the last chances to qualify. Someone I’ve been following cheering for until my voice goes hoarse is going to have to wrap up their equipment and head back to a lab wondering what went wrong.
The road to the Capcom Cup is a long one. Throughout the world, there are events that earn fighters points. Securing them a placement on the ladder hoping to be one of the top 30 players in the world. And if you can’t qualify that way; you hope you’ve earned enough points to be one of the seven fighters from your region to make it to the regional qualifier. Otherwise, you’ll have to battle it out to be the 8th man to fight for your spot at the cup.
North America’s Regional Qualifier is taking place in Boston this weekend at Red Bull Battle Grounds and just looking at the seven fighters who have already qualified, the event is going to be interesting. You have the break out rookie in Panda Global’s Punk; a player who looked simply unstoppable until he was defeated by Echo Fox’s Tokido at Evo 2017. There is the veteran you shouldn’t bet against in Tokido’s team mate, Justin Wong. And there are players like Idom and Brian_F, looking to make their mark as forces to be reckoned with. For a full breakdown on the 7 fighters, watch the video below where Capcom’s Michael Martin hosts Wake Up Wednesdays and gives you the lowdown on each player.
While Sunday is the main event, Saturday is the open qualifier for that 8th man spot in the Regional Qualifier, and the competition is stacked. There are a quite a few big names not yet qualified for the Capcom Cup, and this is their last chance to qualify without having to face down some serious international threats at the Last Chance Qualifier at the Capcom Cup.
Two fighters not yet qualified are Evil Geniuses’ K-Brad and Tempo Storm’s Alex Meyers. K-Brad is a seasoned veteran and a Capcom Pro Tour mainstay. And while he’s had a consistent season, he hasn’t had the fire to have the finishes necessary to be in the top 30 on the leader board.
In Alex Meyers‘ case, he’s been on a hot streak in his handful of tournaments, and there is a strong chance that despite the opposition he could win the open qualifier and push his limits in the Regional Qualifier.
I honestly don’t know what’s going to happen, and I’m nervous just thinking about it. Bring on the weekend already, please.
Be sure to tune in and watch all the action over at twitch.tv/capcomfighters.