Photo credit: Ryan Hart
The fighting game trio that formed Team UK recorded a top five finish at the recent Gamers8 Tekken 7 Nations Cup.
The event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, saw 3v3 matches played between teams from 16 nations.
It featured a $1m prize pool for the FGC (fighting game community) and took place between July 6th and 9th 2023.
Team UK included British players K-Wiss, JoKa (who finished runner-up at VSFighting last year) and Gosain.
“It was a dream come true to be able to compete alongside my friends and I hope I can experience something close to it again. Until next time.”
JoKa, Team UK at Gamers8 Tekken 7 Nations Cup
Team UK finished top of Group D with two wins and one loss, before losing 2-1 to eventual champions Pakistan 2-1.
In the lower bracket, they were knocked out by Japan 3-0. The result meant Team UK finished 5th-6th, alongside France, with both teams each taking home $40,000.
Team Pakistan went on to beat South Korea in the final, 3-1, giving them a huge $500,000 in winnings, with South Korea taking home $200,000.
Other UK talent at the event included host Hassan ‘Spag’ Farooq, and Mario ‘Rookang’ Tufinio who commentated on the B-stream.
‘I lived out multiple dreams’ – reaction to Tekken Gamers8 tournament
British fighting games legend Ryan Hart said to Team UK: “You did us proud! Stand tall fellas.”
British host Spag said he lived out multiple dreams at the event, in a country close to his heart:
Spag added: “To the Pakistani fans: Remember to always be graceful in victory and defeat even if others aren’t. And support your players no matter the circumstances. Tekken is a beautiful game played around the world and the Gamers8 Tekken 7 Nations Cup has been a brilliant reminder of that.”
Rookang said:
In terms of the Team UK players themselves, Gosain said: “This was an amazing opportunity and I’m so happy to be a part of something like this. Thanks again everyone for the love and support.”
K-Wiss echoed his teammate’s sentiment on the Gamers8 Tekken 7 Nations Cup:
JoKa added: “This week was such a great experience for me both inside and outside of Tekken with memories which I will always remember and be grateful for. I am more motivated than ever and will do my best to perform in the future.
“A big thank you to Gamers8 for inviting me to this event and being so accommodating the entire week. It was a dream come true to be able to compete alongside my friends and I hope I can experience something close to it again. Until next time.”
JoKa also responded to comments about Team Japan allegedly ‘icing’ Team UK (i.e. calling for breaks during ‘hot’ periods of play that Team UK had, to cool their momentum).
The Gamers8 Tekken 7 Nations Cup is one of many Gamers8 esports tournaments taking place in 2023
Gamers8 Tekken 7 Nations Cup is one of several Gamers8 tournaments taking place in Saudi Arabia this year, as the region continues to increase its focus on esports with high-prize-pool events.
A $2m Fortnite event has also just taken place, won by Polish players Japko and Kami, and there are CSGO, Rocket League and Rainbow Six tournaments on the horizon, among others.
The Rainbow Six Siege Gamers8 tournament kicks off on July 13th, and features some UK and Irish esports broadcast talent getting involved, including host Iain Chambers and casters Demo and Xrtroika, plus analyst Fresh, and Irish casters Gibson and Whippet.
Related article: Last year, Moist Esports declined to play in a Saudi Rocket League LAN
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Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.
As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.
