
Eight games, eight stories. EVO 2025 crowns its kings. From Blanka comebacks to Cyrax bombs, Las Vegas had it all this weekend. I watched Sunday’s EVO finals with a cold drink in one hand and my jaw on the floor.
Around 10,000 players showed up to the biggest FGC tournament of the year, and it felt like every Top 8 had a plot twist baked in. Mena went full Blanka. GO1 clutched a Fatal Fury reset. And Tekken’s Top 2 ended in an all-Pakistan slugfest. Whether you play or spectate, this year was a reminder why EVO’s still the main stage for fighting games.

MenaRD didn’t just win. He tore through the SF6 bracket on Championship Sunday. All with Blanka… yes, that Blanka. He beat Japan’s Kakeru 3-0 in the grand finals, dominating neutral with hops, electric pressure, and that nasty corner control.
It’s one of the most dominant runs in EVO SF history, and maybe the clearest signal yet that SF6’s tier list still has room to grow. If you weren’t respecting Blanka before, welcome to the jungle.

Sixth EVO title. Different year, same Arslan Ash. Except this time, he brought Anna Williams to Top 8. After dropping to losers, he clawed back with Anna before swapping to Nina in grand finals against fellow Pakistani Atif Butt.
The reset score ended 3-1. Between the comeback arc and the Anna/Nina mix-up, Arslan’s win wasn’t just historic, it reminded everyone that he’s still rewriting the Tekken playbook.

CotW had its EVO debut this year, and GO1 made it count. He ran Kain R. Heinlein all the way to the trophy, using fireballs and long-range normals to shut down E.T.’s aggressive Hokutomaru.
The reset went 3-2 and came down to the last round. GO1’s ability to slow the pace and force trades gave Kain his moment, and fans a taste of just how deep CotW’s roster can go.

This was the Johnny show. Kshuewhatdamoo came from losers, reset the bracket against RedDitto, and closed it out 3-0 with Johnny’s brutal loop damage and corner pressure.
This is Strive’s last EVO before the big 2.0 patch hits, and Kshue just gave Johnny mains something to brag about. Big swords, big meter burn, and an even bigger win.

If there was a marathon MVP award, it’d go to Kojicoco. He ran Beatrix from losers all the way to a 3-1 reset over Zane, showcasing whip spacing and anti-air perfection under pressure.
This was Rising’s second EVO stage, and the match proved Beatrix can dominate the neutral game too. Kojicoco played like he had nothing to lose and everything to prove.

It’s 2025, and MVC2 still gets an EVO slot, and Ken “Khaos” Villalobos showed why. Running the classic Matrix squad (Sentinel/Storm/Cyclops), he took down VIGGA 3-2 in a nail-biter of a grand final.
Khaos barely dropped a match all weekend. In a bracket stacked with legacy names, that’s huge. Long live the old heads.

Defiant and BigBlack are two of the most technical UNICLR players out there, and their finals didn’t disappoint. Defiant started with Hyde, then made a clutch switch to Londrekia during the reset to take it 3-2.
It was a matchup chess match, with footsies and frame traps deciding every round. UNICLR might still be niche, but this grand final felt like a masterclass.

Eight EVOs. That’s what Dominique “SonicFox” McLean is sitting on after this year’s MK1 run. Using Cyrax with a Madame Bo Kameo assist, they beat Nicolás 3-2 in a grand final that came down to timed bomb setups vs. Baraka rushdown.

Here’s the cheat sheet for all championship Sunday winners and their characters:
| 🎮 Game | 🏆 Champion | 💡 Characters Played | 🔢 Final Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Street Fighter 6 | MenaRD | Blanka | 3-0 vs Kakeru |
| Tekken 8 | Arslan Ash | Anna (Top 8), Nina (reset) | 3-1 reset vs Atif Butt |
| Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves | GO1 | Kain R. Heinlein | 3-2 reset vs E.T. |
| Guilty Gear Strive | Kshuewhatdamoo | Johnny | 3-0 reset vs RedDitto |
| Granblue Versus: Rising | Kojicoco | Beatrix | 3-1 reset vs Zane |
| Marvel vs. Capcom 2 | Khaos | Sentinel / Storm / Cyclops (Matrix team) | 3-2 vs VIGGA |
| Under Night In-Birth II [Sys:Celes] | Defiant | Hyde → Londrekia (reset) | 3-2 reset vs BigBlack |
| Mortal Kombat 1 | SonicFox | Cyrax (Madame Bo Kameo assist) | 3-2 vs Nicolás |
Across eight finals, we saw 18 different mains. Only one character repeat (Hyde in UNICLR). That’s rare. Even better, a handful of champions swapped mid-set to clutch the win: Nina, Londrekia, Kain.
As for the regional scoreboard:
It’s as even as EVO’s ever been.
EVO’s results will shape the next few months on eSports betting sites across multiple circuits:

EVO 2025 wasn’t just about new games or surprise tech. It was about resilience. SonicFox winning again. Arslan Ash staying on top. Khaos holding it down for a game released in 2000.
The character diversity, crowd pop-offs, and mid-match drama made this year’s EVO feel bigger than a tournament, it felt like a celebration of every player who’s ever hit rematch with sweaty palms. If you missed it live, do yourself a favor and catch the VODs. Trust me, they’re worth it.