This weekend saw the SF 6 Defend the North tournament take place. It’s an early tournament for the latest Street Fighter game and gives us a decent look at how the game’s competitive scene feels going into EVO 2023. This tournament has been particularly important for that, with what amounts to an upset at this very early stage in fighting game esports for SF 6.
This is what happened at SF 6 Defend the North, and why it’s made such a big difference to where players stand for the game.
Source: Defend the North
SF 6 Defend the North
The Street Fighter 6 at Defend the North tournament is an early major for the game, with international players meeting in New York to compete in the biggest fighting game right now. There were over 300 players taking part in SF 6 Defend the North, but it all came down to the final bracket.
Heading into this tournament, MenaRD was definitely the favorite. He’s had a ton of early wins in the game. Along with being a two-time Capcom Cup winner, he was an early favorite for tournaments like EVO this year. He started the top 8 bracket in the semifinals, easily taking a 3-0 win over Portajon. He similarly got through the Winners Final simply, with another 3-0 over Space Boy. This put him into the Grand Finals.
Caba on the other hand began things in the losers bracket in SF 6 Defend the North, but began fighting his way up. He won the losers Round first match against Teiga and the second against LegendaryyPred both 3-0. He ran into a bit more trouble in the third round but still won out 3-2 against NoNeedToTalk. Just like MenaRD, his Finals match was against Space Boy where he just came out ahead at 3-2.
Defend the North Finals
The Grand Final of SF 6 at Defend the North saw Caba go up against MenaRD. We had the favorite for the tournament coming in from the winners bracket. Although, he was up against a real underdog story of a player climbing up through the bottom of the losers’ bracket.
Caba got off to an early start, forcing a full reset after taking it 3-1. The second stage saw him increase his lead, taking it 3-0. Caba’s performance in this later end of the bracket was definitely impressive. He had a few moments with some impressive blocking, along with skills in using Drive Rushes, Flash Kicks, and Sonic Booms with fantastic timing.
This new win at SF 6 Defend the North definitely sets the stage for Caba being a contender at future tournaments. MenaRD doesn’t look as unstoppable heading into EVO 2023 either. This new tournament has shown how alive and open the game still is. Each tournament seems to have a higher level of competition on display and things are exciting for the future of the game right now.
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