Harumi Wins U22 Punk Workshop Street Fighter 6 Tournament

The Punk Workshop U22 Street Fighter 6 tournament, done under the umbrella of Saishunkan Sol Kumamoto, has concluded, and the winner was a young Japanese Dhalsim player, Harumi. 

He defeated Reaction Bomb2 in grand final to win the tournament and also win an all-expense-paid trip to the final Capcom Pro Tour premiere, the  FightClub Championship VI Chengdu, China. 

The tournament drew in some buzz and was a chance to promote and showcase some of the incredible young talent coming through in Japan. 

The Punk Workshop tournament, which was in conjunction with SSK, is another example of a way Japan is honing young talent in fighting games, especially in Street Fighter 6. 

Japan is considered the strongest region in Street Fighter 6 right now, and this comes down to the fact that there are structures in place to encourage more and more players to come through. Younger players also have the success stories of players like Sahara who got into Street Fighter 6 relatively recently and has not only made it into one of Japan's strongest teams, Good 8 Squad, but on a personal level has also been able to punch his ticket into Capcom Cup. There's also KingsVega who burst onto the scene last year and is making a strong case to making Capcom Cup via the global leaderboard. 

Support from organizations like the Japan Esports Union and several esports teams has created an environment where players are really starting to thrive, and initiatives like this that especially promote young players is creating a pathway for them to make a living.