Once the dust settled after this week’s Team Battles one team clinched a spot in the playoffs and another was mathematically eliminated from contention. Only four teams will move on to the playoffs in week ten to get a shot at the Finals and the $75,000 prize pool for first and second place. The team that finishes in first place will start the playoffs in Grand Finals, which is obviously a tremendous advantage worth fighting for. The top three teams, NASR, VERSUS VORTEX and BANDITS, are very close in points and one week can change who has the top spot. RED ROOSTER in fourth and UYU in fifth place are on the bubble between making the playoffs and not. Every single match counts.
If you missed any of season 6 and want to get caught up before reading further, check out the STREET FIGHTER LEAGUE: Pro-US Season 6 Archive or the Capcom Fighters YouTube channel’s STREET FIGHTER LEAGUE: Pro-US Season 6 video playlist for the full episodes.
UYU (HOME) vs BANDITS (AWAY)
Away Team Player and Character Order: 1) Caba (Guile), 2) Xiao Hai (JP), 3) MenaRD (Luke), 4) Chris Tatarian
UYU came into this week in fifth place and desperately needed points to lift their position in the standings. For BANDITS they were in third place and, crucially, just 30 points behind first place NASR. When the two teams first met in week three UYU beat BANDITS in a tiebreaker 25-20. In the runback BANDITS pulled out an impressive 30-10 victory, which after this week left them tied with VERSUS VORTEX just 25 points back from the top spot.
The Team Battle started well for UYU as Zhen’s Dee Jay pulled off a 2-0 win against Caba’s Guile. In several rounds Caba started off strong and even got a perfect in the first round of game two but Zhen’s offensive pressure with Dee Jay was too much for Caba to overcome.
The next match between Xiao Hai and Dual Kevin was the highlight of the Team Battle. It was very competitive with a lot of back-and-forth momentum changes. The Zhen/Caba match had a lot of offense, and this match slowed the tempo down with both players being incredibly patient. Xiao Hai started with JP against Dual Kevin’s Luke. Both players would win a game and in the third game Xiao Hai switched characters to Ken. The last game was as close as the first two with Xiao Hai landing the final blow in the very last round with both players at low health. Xiao Hai wins 2-1.
Both teams had 10 points and it was time for the anchor match to determine the winner as VXBao’s JP took on MenaRD’s Luke. VXBao seemed to be on the back foot from the beginning. MenaRD’s Luke smothered VXBao with offensive pressure and seemed to have the right answer for every situation. VXBao showed some signs of life in game three but this was a dominant performance by MenaRD as he cruised to a 3-0 win.
| Match | Player | Team | Character | | Player | Team | Character | Result |
| 1 | Zhen | UYU | Dee Jay | defeated | Caba | BANDITS | Guile | 2-0 |
| 2 | Xiao Hai | BANDITS | JP, Ken | defeated | Dual Kevin | UYU | Luke | 2-1 |
| 3 | MenaRD | BANDITS | Luke | defeated | VXBao | UYU | JP | 3-0 |
| Tie-Breaker | – | – | – | defeated | – | – | – | – |
| SCORE | TOTAL | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Break |
| HOME | 10 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| AWAY | 30 | 0 | 10 | 20 | 0 |
VERSUS VORTEX (HOME) vs ENDEMIC (AWAY)
Away Team Player and Character Order: 1) ChrisCCH (Ken), 2) Samurai (Luke), 3) MenaRD (Luke), 4) FlashMetroid
This Team Battle must have been bittersweet for ENDEMIC. After being at the bottom of the standings for most of the season and suffering six straight defeats, they finally broke their losing streak this week in a close Team Battle against VERSUS VORTEX. While that is cause for celebration it is tempered by the fact that they were mathematically out of playoff contention after losing the first match.
For VERSUS VORTEX they have been riding high in recent weeks. They came into this week in second place and have won their last three Team Battles, including a 40-0 shutout against UYU last week. This week’s 20-25 loss to ENDEMIC doesn’t impact their position much. They are still in second place and just 25 points back from NASR.
The first two matches were competitive but ENDEMIC just could not close them out in their favor. The first match between ChrisCCH’s Ken and NL’s Luke was close, with NL winning 2-1. Xian’s Dee Jay triumphed over Samurai’s Luke in the next match 2-0 .
It looked bleak for ENDEMIC once again until the anchor match between Reynald and DCQ, which was a JP mirror match. DCQ had been winning with almost robotic efficiency all season with his only losses being to BananaKen and AngryBird. Reynald stepped into this daunting situation with his usual enthusiasm. DCQ would win a close first game but starting with the second game the tide slowly turned. Reynald narrowly won game two. As the match went on Reynald continued to have success and it lifted the excitement of the entire team. In the final game DCQ looked shaken as Reynald went on to win 3-1 and ENDEMIC was ecstatic.
It was tiebreaker time and now it was VERSUS VORTEX who faced a tough situation. ENDEMIC was brimming with confidence from Reynald’s win and Oil King’s Ken would have to face FlashMetroid’s Blanka. Blanka is a tricky character to face, but in a one game situation where there is little time to adapt its even more so. FlashMetroid would go on to win to complete their unlikely victory over VERSUS VORTEX.
| Match | Player | Team | Character | | Player | Team | Character | Result |
| 1 | NL | VERSUS VORTEX | Luke | defeated | ChrisCCH | ENDEMIC | Ken | 2-1 |
| 2 | Xian | VERSUS VORTEX | Dee Jay | defeated | Samurai | ENDEMIC | Luke | 2-0 |
| 3 | Reynald | ENDEMIC | JP | defeated | DCQ | VERSUS VORTEX | JP | 3-1 |
| Tie-Breaker | FlashMetroid | ENDEMIC | Blanka | defeated | Oil King | VERSUS VORTEX | Ken | 1-0 |
| SCORE | TOTAL | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Break |
| HOME | 20 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| AWAY | 25 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 5 |
NASR (HOME) vs RED ROOSTER (AWAY)
Away Team Player and Character Order: 1) Xian (Dee Jay), 2) DCQ (JP), 3) NL (Luke), 4) Oil King
NASR clinched a spot in the playoffs this week with this 25-20 win over RED ROOSTER. They have been unbeaten so far this season, but they have had some close calls including this week’s Team Battle. RED ROOSTER, who came in this week in fourth place, gave them a good run.
NASR’s Punk Cammy hadn’t lost a single match this entire season and that streak finally snapped as he took his first loss against Ajax Fidelity’s Juri in a shocking first match. Punk and Ajax Fidelity both play patiently with Ajax Fidelity having strong anti-air counters to Cammy’s dive kicks, especially early on. It was an evenly matched set until game three when Ajax Fidelity took control and didn’t let go, winning 2-1.
Nephew versus PR Balrog in the next match was a real slugfest with lots of back-and-forth. To illustrate this, they both traded perfect rounds in the very first game of the match. PR Balrog won 2-1 by a narrow margin.
AngryBird took one of his two losses this season to BananaKen in week three and it was time for the runback. AngryBird would win 3-1 but it was a thrilling set with some unbelievable play on both sides. Just when you thought one player had the upper hand the other would pull off an incredible read to reverse the situation. BananaKen did not win this one, but it was another showcase for his skill against one of the game’s apex players.
The tiebreaker between Big Bird’s Marisa and Mono’s Dee Jay was a bit of an anti-climax after three fantastic matches. Big Bird’s Marisa smashed Mono in this game. Big Bird’s dominating win here snaps a losing streak he’s been on in recent weeks and is a welcome boost to his confidence.
RED ROOSTER came into this week on the bubble at fourth place and needed every point they could get. After this Team Battle their position remains largely unchanged this week. NASR avoided a close call here and still has work to do to stay in first place in the closing weeks.
| Match | Player | Team | Character | | Player | Team | Character | Result |
| 1 | Ajax Fidelity | RED ROOSTER | Juri | defeated | Punk | NASR | Cammy | 2-1 |
| 2 | PR Balrog | RED ROOSTER | Juri | defeated | NEPHEW | NASR | Juri | 2-1 |
| 3 | AngryBird | NASR | Ken | defeated | BananaKen | RED ROOSTER | JP | 3-1 |
| Tie-Breaker | Big Bird | NASR | Marisa | defeated | Mono | RED ROOSTER | Dee Jay | 1-0 |
| SCORE | TOTAL | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Break |
| HOME | 25 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 5 |
| AWAY | 20 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 0 |
TEAM STANDINGS
NASR clinched a spot in the playoffs but just 25 points separate first from third place. All three teams will be fighting for that top spot in the remaining weeks. RED ROOSTER and UYU are both right on the edge of playoff contention and will need every point to hold on to one of the top four spots.
| NASR | 8-0 | 225 |
| VERSUS VORTEX | 5-3 | 200 |
| BANDITS | 4-4 | 200 |
| RED ROOSTER | 2-6 | 160 |
| UYU | 3-5 | 140 |
| ENDEMIC | 2-6 | 80 |
TUNE IN NEXT WEEK!
Be sure to catch the next episode on Twitch and YouTube on Wednesday at 4:00 PM Pacific, 7:00 PM Eastern!