Once again, the South Korean bear aficionado proves that tier lists are only a suggestion.
History was made at Shibuya, Tokyo, last Sunday as the legendary Jeong “Rangchu” Hyeon-ho became the Tekken World Tour 2024 Champion with the ferocious Kuma. Not only is he the first Tekken 8 world champion, he’s also the first player to become a two-time Tekken World Tour Champion.
His previous championship was all the way in 2018, back in the early days of Tekken 7. That time, Rangchu took the Tekken World Tour using Panda. Unlike her male counterpart in Tekken 8, Panda was by and large considered to be one of the worst characters in the game. But, as Rangchu has proven once again, skill goes beyond any tier list.
Rangchu won the championship off of a close 3-1 victory against Atif Ijaz from Pakistan. Atif has been on a tear recently, rising above all the other Pakistani killers in the world tour. Unfortunately, his consistency really extends to his results as he now had three back-to-back second-place finishes in major tournaments.
On the other hand, Rangchu really leveled up his play for the Tekken World Tour 2024 championship. He left the group stage with a 4-0 match record, sending fellow South Korean Yoon “LowHigh” Sun-woong and the Philippines’ very own Alexandre “AK” Lavarez down into the Last Chance Qualifier tournament.
He then distinguished himself as the Pakistani slayer in the bracket stage, by sending Arslan “Arslan Ash” Siddique to the losers. With one of the biggest threats of the tournament out of the way, there was no one else who could’ve stopped Rangchu’s bear supremacy. Atif gave a valiant effort but it would be Rangchu taking the Tekken World Tour 2024 and solidifying his name in Tekken history.
Banner photo from Tekken.