What does becoming the World Champion mean to you?
It’s probably the thing that I’ve worked towards and wanted the most in the past few years, so… a lot!
How nervous were you throughout the weekend?
I was nervous at the start, not so much in the middle, then at the end I was very nervous.
What was that first game of the final match like?
I thought he was going to choose Living Legend format, then when he chose Play/Draw I chose Classic Constructed because Cindra should be good into Gravy Bones. I think maybe I used my daggers too quickly and it kind of got a little cursed, so I lost that one, but luckily I was able to get it back with the other two.
What was it like playing Best of Three, Dual Format in top 8?
I liked it because it never felt completely doomed. Losing the first game was like “oh crap, now I gotta lock in”, but up until the final match had always won the first game so I was never really sweating. I like that you get a little wiggle room.
What’s the meaning behind “Stache I/O”?
Shout out to my boy Nick Butcher. He’s like “we’ve all got to have ‘staches for Worlds”. I don’t grow facial hair very well, so it took me a few weeks.
What was your favorite game this weekend?
There was one game where I combo’d off with the Dash I/O deck, but I didn’t kill him, so I had to do a triple Art of War combo after with no High Octane.
What’s the secret to your success?
I’d say there isn’t really any secret. I’m incredibly fortunate to be able to test with some amazing Flesh and Blood players, and people. So any success that any of us get is really all thanks to everyone in the group.
Why did you decide to play Cindra and Dash for this event?
I decided to play Cindra a few days before the event, after thoroughly testing the Verdance matchup with my teammates. It definitely seemed like Cindra was the most well positioned into the top of the Classic Constructed meta. For Living Legend, my friend Tariq Patel had been working a lot on this combo Dash I/O deck. He said it was probably insanely broken. I hadn’t played it until we started testing in person before the event, and then it became pretty clear it was an insanely powerful deck, and didn’t really have any bad matchups. I normally change decks a lot leading up to events; and this was no different. But I had a lot of people helping me learn how to play the deck, so in the end I felt very comfortable with it.
Were there any other heroes you were considering bringing?
As all of my teammates know, I’m incredibly indecisive. So the night before, I changed Living Legend decks nearly five times! Cindra, Gravy Bones, and Verdance were all pretty reasonable Classic Constructed considerations for me, while Dash I/O, Marlynn, Zen, and Starvo were my considerations for Living Legend. In the end, I think I chose the right decks, but I was never really set on playing any specific deck (I also sent Tariq Patel a DM at the start of the year saying I’d always play whatever decks he played, so I stuck to that).
What are you most excited for in Compendium of Rathe?
I’m definitely most excited for a new Levia card that will change EVERYTHING. Hoping for the best for my friend Ethan (Man Sant).
How are you going to spend that $100,000?
I’m definitely going to be using some of my winnings to try and go to more events. Travelling to Flesh and Blood events with my friends is always so much fun.
What are you excited for in 2026?
I’m definitely excited for Pro Tour: Yokohama. I’ll try to get to all the events I can!
What’s your favorite card?
Before I would have answered Crown of Seeds, but now I think it’s got to be be Vest of the First Fist. I’m so sad that Zephyr Needle got banned, because my Vest-Needle-Mono-Head-Jab Fai deck in Classic Constructed was broken.
Shout outs!
My local game stores Invasion and Chimera.
I definitely wanna give a big shoutout to everyone on my team that put in a lot of work with me (Dilks, Aaron, Dylan, Evan, Hayden, Isaak, Jacob, James, Matt, Nick, Tee, Tom, and Victor), but more specifically to Tariq Patel for building the Dash I/O deck, and also to Shawn Dhaliwal who sat with me for hours walking me through the combo.
And my parents!