This weekend is set to be a busy one for fighting games. There’s the Street Fighter 6 release, DreamHack Dallas with a whole host of fighting tournaments, but also a separate Major exclusively for Smash. If you’re more into the platform fighter, then this weekend’s Crown the Third is going to be the big event! It’s a Smash Bros Major with most of the big names attending, and it could be the chance for a few of them to turn the year around after dropping in the rankings.
Crown the Third is an upcoming Melee and Ultimate tournament taking place in Utah, the third of this type. It’s going to be taking place over June 3-4 as a standard two-day event. It’s a bit of a different tact to the tournaments at DreamHack Dallas this weekend. While both are going to be fun, more of Smash’s biggest names are showing up for Crown the Third.
Over in Melee, there are 21 players coming to the singles tournament, where there’s a $1,315 prize pool. Crown the Third will have a fun Melee event, although it’s clear that Ultimate is going to be the main event here. For Ultimate, there’s $16,045 in prize money on offer, which has drawn out some of the top players. There are more than 400 players turning up for Ultimate alone.
Source: @CometoCrown
Players to Watch at Crown the Third
Two of the biggest players attending are MKLeo and Sparg0. MKLeo has dropped quite a bit in the rankings for 2023. He’s currently looking at changing up his character choices, but Crown the Third might be coming too soon for that to take effect. Sparg0 on the other hand has been on a real hot streak.
Sparg0 is coming into Crown the Third fresh off a win at Smash Revolution 2023, Battle of BC 5, Kagaribi 10, and Major Upset. Basically, he looks like the key player to beat. Taking another win off MKLeo this season would definitely secure his higher spot in the rankings.
It’s not just the old MKLeo and Spargo duopoly in Smash Ultimate anymore though. Tweek will be showing up too, with some great recent results. There’s also Sonix, the player single-handedly proving Sonic the Hedgehog belongs in the top tier of Smash Ultimate.
The Steve situation is still quite controversial, but the bigger Steve hitters like Acola aren’t at Crown the Third. Onin will be representing the controversial DLC Smash Bros character here though, and he’s always worth watching in these events.
Those are some of the key players. Sparg0 will be looking to take another consecutive major win for the year, but it’s set to be one of the most exciting Ultimate events for the month.