Fuudo

Keita Ai (Japanese: 阿井 慶太, born 7 November 1985), better known as Fuudo, is a Japanese electronic sports player specializing in the Street Fighter series. Fuudo entered the fighting game scene in 2005 playing Virtua Fighter 4. Fuudo has won various fighting game tournaments, including the World Cyber Games and Evolution Championship Series. Fuudo has been described by multiple journalists as the world's best R. Mika player.

Fuudo
Keita Ai
Fuudo at EVO 2012
Personal information
Born (1985-11-07) 7 November 1985
NationalityJapan
Nickname(s)Fuudo
Career information
StatusActive
Current teamCyGames Beast
GamesVirtua Fighter 4
Street Fighter IV
Street Fighter V
Career history
2012–2018Team Razer
2018–presentCygames Beast
Career highlights and awards

Career

Fuudo first appeared on the larger fighting game scene at the Virtua Fighter 4 tournament at the 2005 World Cyber Games.[1] Fuudo came first place in Virtua Fighter 4 at Super Battle Opera that same year, and first took gold at the World Cyber Games in 2009 before permanently switching to Street Fighter IV.[2]

Fuudo entered the Super Street Fighter IV tournament at the 2011 Evolution Championship without much attention, but according to Red Bull's Pete Dreyer, "rampaged through the competition, displaying incredibly solid fundamentals and perfect execution," beating players such as Xian and Poongko.[2] Fuudo defeated Latif's Crimson Viper in the finale in only three matches, making him the overall winner of the tournament.[3]

"I value the knowledge and skills I can acquire from players outside of Japan, and being sponsored by Razer will provide us with the full support we need to travel to more tournaments and have more opportunities to learn from international players."

–Fuudo (2012)[1]

In April 2012, Fuudo and colleague fighting game player Itazan accepted a sponsorship deal with American company Razer Inc. in order to design and create an arcade fighting stick peripheral and to compete for Team Razer from that point onward. According to Fuudo, he accepted the deal in order to be able to travel to more tournaments and meet more international players. Robert Krakoff, president of Razer USA, stated that he brought the two veteran players in because the fighting game scene was booming in the United States at the time and described the input of Fuudo and Itazan for the "Razer Arcade Stick" as "priceless".[1][4]

Fuudo has not won any major tournaments since reaching first place at Topanga League 2 in 2012, though has reached high placings at tournaments such as DreamHack and Stunfest.[2][5] Having hit ninth place at Tokyo Game Show 2015, Fuudo almost ran out of chances to qualify for the 2015 Capcom Cup, though he qualified when he reached second place at the 2015 KO Fighting Game Festival by beating Latif's Crimson Viper again, though he lost to Xian in the finale.[6][7]

During the Street Fighter V finale at Evolution Championship 2016, Fuudo lost against Infiltration, making second place. Playing R. Mika against Infiltration's Nash, Fuudo was able to win against him and send him to the loser's bracket in the first round of the top 8. The two met each other again in the grand final, in which Infiltration managed to counter all of Fuudo's techniques.[8][9]

Notable tournament placings
Fuudo at the Evo 2011 award ceremony
YearTournamentGamePlaceCharacterCitations
2005 Tougeki – Super Battle Opera 2005Virtua Fighter 41stLion Rafale[2]
2009 World Cyber Games 2009Virtua Fighter 41stLion Rafale[2]
2011 EVO 2011Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition1stFei Long[2][3]
2012 EVO 2012Virtua Fighter 51stShun[10]
2014 Capcom Cup 2014Ultra Street Fighter IV7thFei Long[11]
2016 DreamHack Summer 2016Street Fighter V2ndR. Mika[12][13]
2016 Stunfest 2016Street Fighter V2ndR. Mika
2016 G-LeagueStreet Fighter V4thR. Mika[5][14]
2016 EVO 2016Street Fighter V2ndR. Mika[8][9]
2018 EVO 2018Street Fighter V3rdR. Mika[15]

Acknowledgements

Fuudo has been described as the best R. Mika player in the world by ESPN's Tyler Erzberger and Timothy Lee, the latter stating that "his defensive and smothering style is perfect for large tournaments because he forces his opponent in a corner where they have no choice but to make mistakes."[12][14] Chelsea Stark of Mashable similarly stated that, during his performance at Evo 2016, "Fuudo's play took Mika to her extreme, as she relentlessly chased down opponents and pummeled them in a corner round after round."[8] Red Bull's Pete Dreyer estimated in February 2016 that Fuudo had earned $55,110.09 USD worth of prize money throughout his career, putting him among the highest earning Street Fighter players.[2]

References
  1. Webb, Benjamin (2012-04-24). "Razer Team Up With Fuudo And Itazan". Capsule Computers.
  2. Dreyer, Pete (2016-02-15). "The 10 highest-earning Street Fighter IV pros ever". Red Bull.
  3. Davis, Christian (2011-08-01). "Fuudo Wins Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition Championship at EVO 2K11". Device Magazine.
  4. "Razerが日本の格闘ゲーマーとプロ契約 Team Razerにふ～ど選手と板橋ザンギエフ選手が参加". Famitsu. 2012-04-24.
  5. Jurek, Steven (2016-06-22). "Three things to watch for at G-League". The Daily Dot.
  6. Martin, Michael (2015-09-25). "Team Razer Secures Victory in Kuwait Premier Event". Red Bull.
  7. Martin, Michael (2015-12-02). "The Road to Capcom Cup: Day Three". Red Bull.
  8. Stark, Chelsea (2016-07-18). "Upsets and close wins make Evo's Street Fighter V finale mesmerizing". Mashable.
  9. "The Winner's Circle of Evo 2016". Red Bull. 2016-07-23.
  10. http://shoryuken.com/2012/07/08/fuudo-of-team-razer-takes-first-in-virtua-fighter-5-final-showdown-at-the-evo-2012-world-championships/
  11. Jurek, Steven (2015-12-04). "The biggest Street Fighter event of the year starts Sunday, and here's what you need to know". The Daily Dot.
  12. Erzberger, Tyler (2016-07-17). "Street Fighter V top eight preview". ESPN.
  13. Walker, Ian (2015-06-22). "Phenom Takes on Japan and Wins at DreamHack Summer". Red Bull.
  14. Lee, Timothy (2016-07-15). "The Evo Street Fighter V primer". ESPN.
  15. Taylor, Nicholas (2018-08-05). "EVO 2018 results". Eventhubs.
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