Infiltration removed from Panda Global roster, out of 2018, 2019 CPT

Esports team Panda Global and Capcom have both come to separate decisions regarding accusations leveled against Seon-woo "Infiltration" Lee, and as a result he is no longer with Panda Global and he will sit out both the end of the 2018 Capcom Pro Tour and all of 2019.

The accusations center around a post made anonymously in September 2018 accusing Infiltration of domestic violence, infidelity and fraud. An investigation by both organizations found that while some of these allegations can either not be confirmed or are false, Infiltration was charged with "violence" against his ex-wife and forced to pay a fine.

As such, on Nov. 15, 2018, Panda Global issued a statement terminating its contract with Infiltration. Capcom, meanwhile, released a separate statement announcing that "while this incident did not happen during a Capcom Pro Tour event, we do not condone any acts of violence or harassment" and as a first offense has removed Infiltration from the end of Capcom Pro Tour 2018. He will also not participate in the 2019 season.

Panda Global has released the findings of its investigation, complete with the initial charges leveled against Infiltration and the discoveries made by the organization. Readers can look over the results on Scribd.

More Echo Fox cuts revealed as JDCR, Saint announce departure

The downsizing of Echo Fox is more broad than first thought, as the organization has also parted ways with its Tekken players Hyunjin "JDCR" Kim and Jinwoo "Saint" Choi.

In separate statements made on Twitter, JDCR and Saint both thanked Echo Fox for the almost two years they spent with the team.

In the time since Echo Fox signed the pair of players during early February 2017, JDCR and Saint have been a force in global competitive Tekken, winning or making a top-three placing at many events such as Evo and the Tekken World Tour finals.

In his statement, Saint said that he'll always remember being able to live his "pro-gamer dream" and that it has a been "a blessing I'll never forget."

Echo Fox announces realignment, releases teams, several FGC players

Citing a "strategic effort to best position our organization for the future," Echo Fox has dropped its Gears of War and Call of Duty teams as well as fighting game players Jivan "Theo" Karapetian, Victor "Punk" Woodley and Brad "Scar" Vaughn.

While the organization itself did not name the players, all three tweeted out their free agency, thanking Echo Fox for its support during their time with the team.

Scar had been a part of Echo Fox since the team's big-name aquisitions kicked off 2017, while Theo had spent almost a year and a half with the team and Punk just over six months.

Readers can check out the full statement about the situation from Echo Fox President Jared Jeffries on the organization's Twitter account.

Equinox Gaming signs Joey Fury

Fighting game sponsor and apparel company Equinox has taken another step into the fighting game scene with its addition of Joseph "Joey Fury" Bennett to the team's roster.

Joey Fury has been a mainstay in the upper echelons of Tekken 7 in the U.S. since its release. Through his tournament success he was able to make it to the Tekken World Tour finals in 2017, and he is currently one of only two U.S. players to crack the top 20 in 2018's standings.

Joey is known for his Jack-7 and Paul play, and he joins fellow Tekken player Ji-myung "Dimeback" Jeon as part of EQNX.

In a video for the signing, Joey Fury said he's excited to represent his new team and that Equinox is changing his life because he wouldn't be travel to these different events without the organization's support. Joey had previously been part of Circa Esports, which ceased operations after Evo 2018.

Readers can check out the promo after the jump.

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NuckleDu joins Ghost Gaming

Du "NuckleDu" Dang has found his new team: Ghost Gaming.

Formerly a member of Team Liquid, Dang spent roughly the first half of 2018 as a free agent after leaving the team in early February.

Ghost Gaming, meanwhile, is an organization previously known for competition in first and third-person shooters, with teams in Gears of War, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Splatoon 2, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds and more.

Ghost had previously sponsored Kenneth "KBrad" Bradley earlier in 2018. 

YUYU joins UYU

UYU has announced that a new Tekken player has joined the team.

YUYU, one of the strongest Ling players in Japan, will join upcoming events as part of the esports team. Orginally potrayed as an opponent for Tanukana in the Kemonomichi tournament series, YUYU showed her strength in high-level play.

She will be part of team UYU when they compete at Combo Breaker 2018 on May 25-28, 2018.

Dekillsage joins Echo Fox

Esports teams continue to increase their rosters and depth as Echo Fox has signed Jon "dekillsage" Coello to its fighting game team.

Coello first made his name in Skullgirls, where he won events such as Northwest Majors 7 and Summer Jam 9 in 2015 as well as Frosty Faustings 8 in 2016. Since the fall of 2017 Coello has broadened his focus, first to include Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite, coming in third at NorthEast Championships 18 and fourth at Frosty Faustings X. Then as 2018 started he added Dragon Ball FighterZ, coming in fourth at Winter Brawl 12.

He will make his debut as part of Echo Fox at Naptown Clutch 2018 in Indianapolis, Indiana, on April 21-22.

"I'm very excited to be a part of the team," Coello said in a statement, "and I'm ready to reach even grander heights alongside my friend SonicFox!"

UYU adds Suiken as player manager

UYU has welcomed another Tekken player to its ranks with the signing of Michael "Suiken" Khieu as the team's player manager.

Khieu is a veteran of the Southern California Tekken scene, with strong placings across multiple iterations of the series. A longtime player of Lei Wulong, Khieu was forced to switch characters in Tekken 7 when his favorite was omitted. Even so, he made top 8 at Evolution 2017 and has continued to play multiple characters as he searches for a proper replacement.

According to UYU, Khieu will "be working closely with our FGC pro players to provide an extra level of support, mentoring and guidance through the upcoming season and beyond."

"I'm truly grateful for this opportunity," Khieu responded on Twitter, "it's always been a dream of mine!"

NRG signs HookGangGod, Supernoon

Two more Dragon Ball FighterZ players have found a team as NRG Esports has announced the signings of Eduardo "HookGangGod" Deno and Steve "Supernoon" Carbajal.

Both Supernoon and HookGangGod have made names for themselves in the nascent DBFZ scene, with HookGangGod taking top placings at Next Level Battle Circuit and qualifying for June's Summit of Power event thrown by Beyond the Summit.

Supernoon, meanwhile, has shown strong placings at Wednesday Night Fights as well as a third-place finish at NorCal Regionals 2018 and fifth place at CenCal Standoff. He has opted in for the Summit of Power's nomination process in hopes that he will join HookGangGod at the event on June 9-10, 2018.

HookGangGod and Supernoon represent the first fighting game players signed by NRG since Nairo joined the organization in August of 2016. According to ESPN Esports, Both will compete under the NRG banner for the first time at Super TSB on April 28, 2018, in New York City. Readers can check out the announcement video after the jump.

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Injustice 2 Pro Series Season 2 announced, $150,000 in prize money

Warner Bros. Entertainment is teaming up with Samsung and SIMPLE MOBILE to present the second year of its Injustice 2 pro tour.

The Injustice 2 Pro Tour Season 2 will consist of eight major events, five offline Premier and three regional online events, that will give players points toward the global leaderboards. From that, the top 12 players will advance on to the grand finals event in November 2018. The other four qualifying players will be decided by regional competitions—one in Canada, Latin America and Europe, respectively—as well as a last-chance qualifier before the grand finals.

Each Premier stop on the Pro Series will boast a $10,000 pot bonus and the tour begins with Combo Breaker 2018 on May 27-28, 2018.

For more information, including registration for the individual leagues, head over to the Injustice website. Readers can check out the tour's trailer after the jump.

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Nakkiel signs with Panda Global

The recent flurry of FGC signings refuses to slow down, as Derek "Nakkiel" Bruscas revealed himself as the latest addition to Panda Global during NorCal Regionals 2018.

Bruscas is a longtime veteran of anime fighting games, at times considered one of the strongest players in the U.S. at BlazBlue and a top contender in Guilty Gear Xrd. He has currently set his sights on being the best in Arc System Works' newest title, Dragon Ball FighterZ, and placed seventh at NCR.

"I'm excited to be a part of Panda Global and a teammate to so many strong players and wonderful people, including one of my best friends Jachin 'SKD' Harte," Bruscas said in an interview with ESPN esports. "I've been working hard towards this goal, and I'll keep going to be one of the best DBFZ players around."

Nakkiel is yet another major signee from fighting games within the last 30 days. He joins Infiltration as part of Panda Global; Kizzie Kay, Cloud805 and Qudans were added to the UYU roster; Team Liquid picked up Nemo and John Takeuchi; and Echo Fox signed Punk.

Echo Fox adds Punk to its roster

The most dominant team in fighting games has added another star to its roster with the signing of Victor "Punk" Woodley.

Woodley was one of the strongest Street Fighter V players during 2017, with wins at NorCal Regionals, Dreamhack Austin and West Coast Warzone, along with second-place finishes at CEO and Evolution 2017. His Karin play has consistently been at the highest level, with a focus on strong poking and whiff-punishing.

"We're honored to have Victor "Punk" Woodley, one of the most exciting names in the fighting games genre, join our Echo Fox family," said team founder Rick Fox. "I'm confident his talent will continue to solidify our position as one of the leading esports organizations across genres, and will strengthen our roster."

Punk's first event as part of Echo Fox will be the sight of one of his 2017 victories, as he will attend NorCal Regionals 2018 in Sacramento, California, on March 30 through April 1.

UYU signs Cloud805, Kizzie Kay

UYU has added two more players to its roster with the additions of Jonathan "Cloud805" Morales and Keenan "Kizzie Kay" Kizzie.

Morales was the 2017 Battle for the Stones champion in Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite, as well as a player with many tournament victories in Marvel vs. Capcom 3. Kizzie, meanwhile, has posted victories in major tournaments for both BlazBlue and Guilty Gear Xrd in recent years.

While dominant players in their own right, both players have now set their sights on the burgeoning Dragon Ball FighterZ scene with hopes to prove their strength across titles. Morales is scheduled to attend the upcoming NorCal Regionals 2018, while Kizzie is in the brackets for this year's Anime Ascension event.

Morales and Kizzie are the two most recent acquisitions of UYU, a team that has been adding players from all games across the fighting game community. Before these signings, UYU had most recently signed 2017 Tekken World Tour champion Qudans. 

Infiltration joins Panda Global

At Final Round 2018, Lee "Infiltration" Seon-woo revealed that he has joined Panda Global.

Infiltration is a multiple-time Evolution champion across several games, most recently winning Street Fighter V at Evo Japan 2018.

According to Panda Global CEO Alan Bunney, "Infiltration's work ethic, dynamic personality and incredible skill fit Panda Global perfectly, and we already feel like he's one of us for how well we get along."

Infiltration will retain his sponsorship from Monster Energy. He was previously part of Team GRAPHT before leaving the team in February 2018.

Readers can check out Panda Global's announcement video after the jump.

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Qudans joins UYU

Fighting game team and brand UYU has signed 2017's Tekken World Tour champion.

In a statement on Twitter, the team announced that Byung-moon "Qudans" Son has joined UYU's roster and that he "will be defending his title this year across the EU, NA and Asian stops of the #TWT."

Qudans joins a host of high-profile competitors including Jeondding, P.Ling and Brian F. as part of UYU. He was previously part of Rox Gaming, joining shortly after his victory at the Tekken World Tour in November 2017.

Team Liquid signs Nemo, John Takeuchi

Team Liquid has unveiled its newest team members in the world of fighting games: Street Fighter V players Nemoto "Nemo" Naoki and Ryouta "John" Takeuchi.

The signings were announced in a video message from Liquid's co-CEO Steve "Liquid 112" Arhancet. In the video, Arhancet also revealed the opening of Liquid's Alienware Training Facility in Los Angeles, California. Nemo has signed a two-year deal with Team Liquid, while the terms of Takeuchi's deal were not disclosed at this time.

The two represent Team Liquid's "first step into Japanese esports," according to Arhancet. Readers can check out the reveal video after the jump.

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Team Liquid says goodbye to NuckleDu

Du "NuckleDu" Dang has ended his tenure as part of Team Liquid, according to a new video from the team.

Dang first joined Curse in November 2014, being added to Team Liquid as part of the merger of the two organizations in early 2015. Throughout his time on Liquid, Dang has had continued success in Street Fighter with his biggest accolade coming from his victory at Capcom Cup 2016.

In the video, Liquid's co-CEO Steve "LiQuiD112" Arhancet briefly talks about Dang's history with the team before wishing him the best in his future plans.

Readers can check out the video after the jump. Dang had posted in early January that he was open to accepting "new opportunities" with the end of his Liquid contract, so it will be interesting to see what plans NuckleDu has made for the future.

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Qudans joins ROX Gaming

Korean esports team ROX Gaming has added a second fighting game player to its roster with the signing of Tekken World Tour 2017 champion Byung-moon "Qudans" Son.

Qudans was a world-class Tekken player during the era of Tekken 5 before taking time away from the game for various reasons. He has returned to the competitive scene with Tekken 7 and has quickly reestablished himself on the world stage by winning both the South East Asia Major 2017 and the Tekken World Tour finals.

Qudans joins fellow Tekken legend Knee as part of ROX Gaming's roster.

Infiltration joins Team GRAPHT

Japanese sponsor GRAPHT has added another player to its roster as Lee "Infiltration" Seon-woo has joined the team.

Infiltration is a several-time Evolution champion across games and has won or placed highly in many big Street Fighter events across the last several years. Since the start of Season 2 of Street Fighter V, Infiltration has had less success but still won Manila Cup 2017 and placed fourth at OzHadou Nationals 15. 

Infiltration joins a number of other fighting game players on Team GRAPHT including MOV, Takumi, Fuudo, Haitani, Yukadon, Gllty and the Cyclops Osaka team.

In addition to joining GRAPHT, Infiltration will be maintaining his relationships with both Monster Energy and Razer.

Japanese Tekken team gains additional sponsors

The Japanese team Yamasa has added four more sponsors to its list of supporters.

The team, consisting of Daichi "Nobi" Nakayama, Kato "Yuu" Yuji and Takehiko "Take" Aoki, was originally sponsored solely by Yamasa, the company involved with creating pachislot games based on Tekken.

However, according to Avoiding the Puddle, the team has now added Japanese specialty PC company Level ∞; capture and streaming device maker AVerMedia; BenQ monitor brand Zowie; and gaming chair provider AKRacing as additional backers.

It's interesting to note this shows a continued growing interest by otherwise PC-focused companies into the traditionally console-focused fighting game community. Team Yamasa will be competing in Tokyo Tekken Masters, taking place on Sept. 3, 2017, in Tokyo, Japan.