Last weekend in Las Vegas, the Luxor hosted the final open invitation Capcom Pro Tour Event as well as the North American Regional Finals for Street Fighter V. With many players scrambling in their last chance to boost their rankings ahead of the Capcom Cup next month in Los Angeles, it was Yeh “Talon|Hotdog29”Man Ho and Du “NuckleDu” Dang who came up big in Sin City.
Hotdog29’s Bison went through the gauntlet to win his second premier event in as many months, having to defeat REC|Punk in winner’s semi-finals, Evo 2018 winner Mouz|Problem X in winner’s finals, and NuckleDu in grand finals. Though it looked like Ho’s luck had run out after NuckleDu won the first set to reset the bracket, the Bison specialist from Hong Kong regrouped in the second set and closed out strong for a 3-1 win and walked out of Las Vegas with $40,000 in his pocket.
I won the NA Regional Super Premier CPT😆I am so happy that proves my skill is working for worldwide.Thank you @Talon__esportsGod Bless Hong KongI am looking forward to Capcom Cup. Hope i can keep this momentum. pic.twitter.com/CSxovOON6Q
— Talon|HotDog29 @ NA Final CPT (@HotDogIsTasty) November 17, 2019
While NuckleDu came up short in the open premier, he wouldn’t have to wait long for another shot at glory as a qualified entrant for the North American Regional Finals. NuckleDu had to best Punk not once, but twice, to win the title and punched his ticket to next month’s CPT Finals. The win wasn’t without controversy as Punk lashed out on social media that his setup for the grand finals match compromised his chances of winning.
Both Hotdog29 and NuckleDu will have to hope their momentum carries over to the narrower, hotly competitive pools they’ll find themselves in at the CPT Finals. While NuckleDu performed admirably last weekend, he’ll have to look forward to another weekend of double duty. Not just for a chance to be a two-time CPT champion, but also as a member of Team USA in the Street Fighter League Finals against Team Japan.
With the bracket all but set for the December tournament, Street Fighter V is looking to go out with a bang in 2019 with 32 of the world’s best players converging on Los Angeles. While last weekend’s action ticked off all of the right boxes for what many come to expect in a Street Fighter tournament, the best may be yet to come.