RIYADH: After three days of competition, the TEKKEN 8 title at the Esports World Cup has been claimed by South Korea’s “Ulsan” at Boulevard Riyadh City.
In the main event of Friday evening, a capacity crowd watched Ulsan produce a career-best performance in the grand final — defeating “Atif” of Team Falcons 5-0. In doing so, he claimed the $300,000 first prize for his club Kwangdong Freecs.
Reflecting on the enormity of his achievement, Ulsan, real name Lim Soo-hoon, said: “I’ve imagined this moment many times but now that it’s a reality and I’m an Esports World Cup champion, it’s an amazing feeling — it’s unreal, exactly like my whole experience here in Saudi Arabia. The venue, the atmosphere, the hospitality, the way we’ve been made to feel so welcome — all of this has made the Esports World Cup so special, and winning the final adds the finishing touches to a most incredible experience. I can’t wait for the next Esports World Cup.”
The $1 million TEKKEN 8 tournament welcomed 32 of the world’s best players with a series of encounters throughout its three-day duration. After topping Groups C and B in the first and second phases on Wednesday and Thursday respectively, Ulsan’s rich vein of form continued on “Grand Final Friday.”
Unbeaten heading into the latter stages, he proved unstoppable once again on esports’ grandest stage — overcoming Team Falcons’ “Farzeen” 5-3 in the quarter-final before a commanding 5-1 semifinal win against “Yagami” of Al-Qadsiah.
Ulsan commended the Saudi Arabian esports fans for playing a part in his prolific form: “I’ve played in other countries many times but the support I received out there tonight in the SEF Arena with so many people cheering for me and calling my name was unbelievable. It inspired me to keep my focus and get over the line. The fans were terrific.”
Elsewhere on the final Friday of the inaugural Esports World Cup, results set the scene for Saturday’s elimination rounds in Riyadh PUBG: Battlegrounds, Rocket League, and ESL R1. Grand finals in all three are set for another “Super Sunday.”
The Esports World Cup has a $60 million prize pool, the largest in industry history.
Saudi’s Team Falcons champions have already confirmed the top spot in the Esports World Cup Club Championship standings, but the other positions are up for grabs.
