How an old man won a trip to EVO 2024! 

During the those first two days I could really tell how much those nerves were getting to you and I wanted to help so bad!! And during finals day when you first started popping off I could tell you figured it out. I was, and still am, SO impressed by how quickly you managed to overcome them!! It took me years and years of competing in tournaments to not feel them anymore, and even with all that experience, I was shaking like crazy until finals day. Beating nerves is something that comes with experience, and even with none, you somehow managed to just throw it all aside on the last day. Mindblowing!! I was grinning ear to ear watching you play without that holding you back on the last day, and I'm smiling even harder watching it here now that I get to see the thought process. I love FD signifier, can't wait to see you at EVO!!

Sajam mentioning that FD will compete in the Slam was like Cyclops and Ryu's handshake. My worlds collided

I feel like FD has a bunch of lore we haven't discovered: bassist in an emo band, knows Esperanto, and own a tricycle. Place your bets now.

F.D. at the beginning: I'm iaaght.... F.D. at the end: ooooh.....You think Tekken is your friend. You merely adopted the Tekken.... I was boooooorn in it! Molded by it!.....

FD still has that dog in him

Finding out FD is a pro gamer is like when you find out that the old guy down the street is secretly an MMA guru

FD getting MattMan's name wrong consistently is the most Unc thing he could do. I love it.

FD talking about his realisation in having fun rather than being wrapped up in his own head has the same energy as Rock Lee dropping the weights.

An old-guy-former-whiz-kid-comes-out-of-retirement-for-one-last-heist story with a wholesome ending? You're gonna get me choked up 🥲

FD will be in Top 6, book it.

FD nerding out about a fighting game event while wearing a Napoleon Blownapart shirt is just peak content. The passion for the game is just so energizing. I wish you good luck on your Evo run

I'm here because of the Sajam Slam. After the tournament I started looking up all the participants and eventually stumbled upon your content. I'm now a massive fan of you and your content.

You know you're a Tekken player when you called mattman markman

FD said ”I got one more in me”

Regular FD Viewer checking in to say: Watching your joy at playing video games is perfectly cool to mix in with the other content you do. I'm here for it all.

Unc had so much fun he had to tell us…shit is genuinely wholesome.❤

Unc is going to EVO letsgoooooo!

That moment with Fairlight is definitely the funniest moment in the tournament but the 2nd funniest was during a match between F.D and LazyMattMan where F.D's controller disconnected. He yelled "MAH CONTROLLER!!!" and I was cracking up laughing.

I'm glad FD shouts out MattMan, because the dude was playing out of his mind in every set, FD was the only one who made it look close. it felt like team Brawlpro was the only team with two pros. Maybe FD just wants to play like a 'normal person', but MattMan sure didn't look like a 'normal person' playing, except for a few moments like against FD.

You'd be surprised how many old dogs are in the Tekken scene who can still fold you with the full King throw combo...

When FD instant climbed to top 1000 in a week I knew dude was nasty. EVO nasty though? LETS GO UNC

I am genuinely so proud man. How could any young black man not support and respect Signified. Keep going, you are great man.

Couldn’t believe tuning into Coney playing and seeing FD, great tourney

As a local fighting game guru, arcade kid, turned career man, turned to video essay consumer, I'm so excited for you. I've only been to EVO once, but it was a really affirming old man experience.

FD in his Muten Roshi era.

As a League/TFT fan seeing "FD vs BoxBox" is deeply surreal! Hope you have a great time at EVO 😊

This EVO arc has been a pleasant surprise, I found your channel by chance because your of Hip Hop videos. But seeing you going to EVO is awesome. Show them what a Tekken veteran is made of FD.

I'm so glad we got an actual tournament report from you, I didn't expect that. The whole event was a ton of fun, and I hope you have an amazing time at EVO.

Lil Bill gonna interfere with a steel chair

Tampa Never Sleeps has fantastic weekly tourneys with some pretty legit contenders every week. I'd love to see you pop up! It would be pretty great practice with both high skill opponents and being in the fgc spotlight.

I was so excited when I saw your name for the Sajam Slam 2

Brawlpro's team didn't win the first Sajam Slam. They came 2nd, but they clutched out a big win for the EVO qualification and the videos they cut focused around that. That's where the viral moment where Coney pops off at Brawlpro's victory yelling "My coach, my idol, my King" comes from. It was just Mandela effect from there lol, I think Sajam even introduced them as tournament one winners at some point iirc.

I'm 36, I used to go to local Florida fighting game tournaments in my twenties. I still game with my friends so as an older man, I'll be rooting for you, brotha. EVO is literally my favorite summer event. My homies and I have watched together every year since 2011.

Was looking into new controller for my brother after he wore out the Hori controller I gave him years ago, went and bought a Sajam Slam edition leverless controller for my brother after you posted you were in Sajam Slam, thanks FD 😊

Bruh, I ended up buying Tekken 8 because of your participation in the tourney and I've been grinding ever since. I'm an older gamer as well, 34, and my first fighting game was Tekken 2, but I never played past passing the controller on the couch with my cousins/siblings. Super casual. Actually learning how to play Tekken 8 has been great though! Learning frames, positioning, counterhits and electrics has been very rewarding. Hoping to hit red ranks soon!

FGC creators & F.D. crossover is unexpected & awesome. Good luck man!

my man had every old head excuse in the book! nah vlog that trip man its a once in a lifetime experience like you said, document it! enjoy sunday too man.

Loooool if you happen to meet him please get a photo with Core A Gaming.

This tournament had a lot of cool stuff in it. I’ve only seen highlights, but it really makes me appreciate fighting games even just as a spectator sport. This is beautiful!

This is such a gaggy crossover for me! Bc I play Overwatch and that’s how I know about Eskay, so knowing that y’all competed in this together after also watching your videos for years is wiiiild

Unc bouta turn EVO into the Fifth International ✊🏽✊🏽✊🏽

12:10 reminds me of my first (and only) taekwondo tournament. My body just wouldn't move like I had practiced for so long. Kicks barely coming out, footwork was terrible, just getting plain embarrassed in the sparring. Referee was calling me on bullshit. Got soundly outpointed and was so discouraged and disillusioned that I pretty much lost all motivation to continue training. I do occasionally miss those days of practicing TKD, but I find that my motivations when I was a teen weren't all that healthy mentally.

Im so mad that not only do I have absolutely no interest in fighting video games, but your narrating style is so good that I’m actually gonna tune in on July 18th and root for your over explaining ass

This is told like a sports documentary and I love it. It's my two favorite words colliding

Excited for this. Also excited for the breakdown of the battle and the cultural analysis. I check everyday 😅. Mad respect for contending with the reflexes of the younger generation.

You fucking rock man. Have fun, whoop all the ass. You earned and deserved this and I can't wait to see you in Sajam Slam 3 taking the top spot

I watch your content, I made the logo for Sajam Slam (he's the homie), love to see my worlds collide like this. I know your core audience maybe isn't here for this, but glad you're sharing it

Love Eskay, she's seemingly always down to improve. I remember watching her get movement tips from wrthcrw in overwatch thinking like "damn, usually I only see t1 hopefuls get coaching from wrthcrw". Such a crazy thing yo. See you at evo man, make some vlogs while you're there.

Old Man FD having fun. Love this wholesome content 😌

I love fighting games, and I watched pretty much all of Sajam Slam. Watching you on Phi's team was super fun, and after watching KatLink is now my goat

As Sajam said, a lot of people thought team Brawlpro won the first tournament because they saw the Conney clip of him popping off at Brawlpro winning his match and thought it was the grand finals lol.

FD X Eskay is a combo I never knew I would experience but love all the same. Also, new challenger jingle is quite literally what kept me here on the first video of yours I watched XD Congratulations to you and the team for making it to EVO. I hope to get to see y'all on the big screen!

: WoolieVS FD Signifier collab on Get Into Fighting Games WHEN

I'll be cheering you on from Argentina Fd! just don't forget to fix your controller 😅

I’ve replayed you ducking that jab dozens of times, and you followed it up with a clean finish. I jumped out of my chair when I first saw it, absolutely insane. Love seeing new and unexpected sides to people I watch; can’t wait to see what you do at Evo!

I watched the first Sajam Slam, started watching some occasional PhiDX vids, and every night's stream of Sajam Slam 2 because of your communtiy posts... and I've played a collective 2 hours of Tekken Tag 2. Nonetheless it's been a really fun world to peer into and cheering you on all the way through to Grand Finals was sooooo fun. Thanks for all the top-tier entertainment, video essays and otherwise

GO WIN EVO UNC

ive never played fighting games in my life but they are always so interesting to hear about/watch, i try to catch baaulp's hosting of EVO every yaer so i hope i got to see you play! good luck!

Did not know much about you before the tournament, but seeing all that experience come into play on that last day was hype. It was like all the pieces were coming together, all you had to do was floor it, and that you did.

As a long time overwatchh fan (unfortunately), it makes me so happy hearing about how well eskay did and your impression of her. she's the best ☺️ she does the overwatch community proud

Let’s go FD! It was so cool to see you in the Slam

I was at Only The Best in Turin this year, a few weeks ago. The atmosphere was electrifying and that event, despite being the biggest in Italy, is only a fraction of EVO, so I can only imagine what this experience will be for ya. Good luck FD, Tekken pros are killer.

Giving me hope that I can still show up to friendlies in my city despite being a little older. Keep fighting!

it was so hype to see you playing on the slam, it was like two world colliding for me also how hyped everyone was about the way you played! time to win EVO now

Unc dropped the nebula ad so smooth, I ain’t even see it coming 😂.

This is an insane intersaction of my favorite things and I love it!

Let's go, FD! I'm heading to Evo with my son this year too. See you there!

FD, say it with your chest. It's gonna be light work at EVO! From another old head gamer who doesn't have it anymore, I'm glad your fire still burns. The old heads are with you!

LET'S FUCKIN GOOOO!!! Edit: Just finished the video! Seeing you able to participate in the Sajam Slam and tbh just seeing you play Tekken and have such a passion for it is such a wonderful experience to see. I hope you kill it at Evo and I hope you are able to do more Tekken content in the future. If not I'm definitely gonna cherish this ride!

FD bout to pop out and show em those combos

this is so funny I'm literally a yt girl who lives on the other side of the globe, and while watching and being interested in all your educational content is one thing, but I really didn't expect to be so invested in the plot of this particular video and cheering at the end of it, not being into gaming at all. Congratulations!!!

Fiq’s controller disconnects and his character is just standing there, but due to his aura the other player doesn’t even attack 😂 “He’s just standing there… menacingly”

I was so happy to see you and eskay on the same team and hearing the stories was everything i wanted. Goodluck for Evo! have a fucking blast

so fucking good man. takes me back to getting my ass whooped harder than I ever though possible at smash bros

as a big fan of you and eskay, watching both of your videos about sajam slam has been such an incredible treat and it's so surreal

Im waiting to hear Tastey Steve say, "Make Some Noise!!!!!" When FD makes it to Top 8.

Did a really great job during the tournament. Was really great to see and a hell of a team comeback in the end. Much respect here from one of the Katlink mod team members.

I watched your run live, Phi was a great coach as always but theres no doubt that you were that groups anchor. Chips were down, you were always able to clutch out a victory. It was awesome man.

This is so crazy to me, working my way through tekken and watching your videos. It’s so cool they intercept!

Dog I was a huge tekken fan AND a big abolitionist so hearing you got in the Sajam Slam was sick as hell

That's dope. I barely put any time into Tekken since I got my soul sucked by animal crossing.

Lowkey got back into fighting games when you started posting about tekken last year, this is so exciting!

I was so hype seeing you and Eskay ended up on the same team. I'm so glad this worked out well for you, doing as well as you did with less experience in a live tournament setting is actually really good. You should be really proud, it was legendary!

This is just so awesome! I’m extra excited for EVO now!

LETSSS GOOOOOOOOOOO, Im hyped for EVO, even more so now! YESSS!!!!

god ur fucking awesome FD, was really happy to hear ur name being mentioned as a competitor in the 2nd sajam slam

As a vegas local, I'm more than pumped to see you at Evo. I just got into your channel this year and learned plenty. Looking forward to next week

Over the last year since a bit before the release of SF6 I've been getting into fighting games again after having a really bad experience take me out of them. Since around the end of 2021 I've been following your content and exploring other creators as I've began to inform myself better about social issues I care about. So, I was clearly very excited when you got to participate in the second Sajam Slam. Having this intersection between you and one of my favorite game series is extremely fun to say the least. It's a really good time, and I'll always be here for any FGC content you put out.

Unc had to hit himself with the dracula flow real quick. "They must have amnesia, they forgot that I'm HIM."

This is so cool. I'm glad you were able to get that info about The Yips, and were able to reach into yourself for that wellspring of FUN. I am inspired.

Congrats FD! Looking forward to hearing more about your experience at EVO.

Seeing Eskay and FD together is a crossover i could not have guessed in 1000 years

I love that I found your page and then to find another page of yours with only tekken. As someone else who has been playing tekken since the beginning this gave me such joy to discover. I will be watching the tournament

Hey FD, really enjoy your work on your main channel but man seeing this side of you is so dope, brother. I know these videos may not yield as much traffic as maybe some of your other stuff but getting to hear your perspective and story telling like one of your main vids for a community I’ve been apart of for damn near 20 years now is amazing! I personally hope you do more videos like this in the future, even if to shake things up content wise. But yeah man, I was rooting for you and team PhiDX HARD, man. I even spied on other teams and gave PhiDX the tech to use his Steve against KawaiiFaceMiles (she hates fighting Steve Fox) 😂 Good times… Hope you have fun at EVO and I really hope you document your time there for those of us who may not be going! Cheers!

I love your videos and I NEVER comment. You were cheesing so much in this video it was so endearing. EVO 2024 let’s go 🎉

this legit made me cry, what an amazing vid

I'm also heading to my first evo this year and I'm going to be a referee! hope I get to see you there!!

Good luck in T8, hope you go far! I ended more on the SF and GG side of things here but still always down for big Tekken. "I hate open world games, I _hate_ open world games." So true. The last one of them I've finished is Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth, and even they've worn me down with how damn big they made Hawaii while giving Ichiban like half the care and story he had in LaD7. After I finish BG3 I need to crawl back to my Penny Big Breakaways and Alan Wake 2s for a long time.

FD! We were watching your matches in our house and we popped off when yall made it to Evo! I'll be following your journey in a couple weeks. Fighting games are still peak after all these years.

Congrats bro