SSBMRank 2016: Day 6 © Melee It On Me

We are now down to the remaining 50 players on this year’s SSBM Rank 2016.

As a quick reminder, the SSBMRank panelists are comprised of a large group of players, figureheads and community volunteers that rate the placers. Voters rated players based on the following criterion:

Given the quality and quantity of work in 2016 (From Genesis 3 to Eden), if everyone entered 100 tournaments, who on average would place the best?

Panelists voted on a 1-10 scale with the best player receiving a "10" and the worst player on the list receiving a "1." Ballots that were not scaled properly were rescaled using an algorithm to place the best player at a "10" and the worst player at a "1." With over 50 panelists this year, we also decided to remove the two lowest and two highest ratings before taking the average in order to reduce the variance.

Rank 50: Mafia © Thomas Tischio

Rating: 6.397

SSBMRank 2015: 91

Other Placements:

2nd: Apex 2016, 2nd: Battlegrounds 3, 7th: Fight Pitt VI

Although his entry into Smash Summit 3 was controversial, James "Mafia" Lauerman has quietly made a case for being one of the most improved players of 2016. Along with taking sets off Axe, KJH, and Mike Haze, Mafia had a stellar doubles performance with Leffen during Smash Summit 3, with the two of them beating PewFat and PlupBox to finish 3rd.

Written By: Anokh Palakurthi

Edited By: Noam Radcliffe

Rank 49: Crush © SleepyK

Rating: 6.419

SSBMRank 2015: 96

Other placements:

2nd: Emerald City IV, 13th: DreamHack Austin 2016, 1st: New England Invitational, 25th: CEO 2016, 7th: Super Nebulous 4

Jack "Crush" Hoyt cemented his status as his region's most dominant player this year. Rarely dropping sets to other New England players, he won the New England Invitational, GUTS 4 and nearly every local he entered. His performance on the national level is nothing to scoff at either — with wins over players like The Moon, Zain, dizzkidboogie, Bladewise and Ken, Crush is primed for an even better 2017.

Written by: Anokh Palakurthi

Edited by: Aidan Lilienfeld

Rank 48: Ryan Ford © Matt Seal/JuggleGuy

Rating: 6.484

SSBMRank 2015: 51

Other placements:

1st: DreamHack Montreal 2016, 9th: Canada Cup 2016, 17th: EGLX, 1st: Frozen Phoenix, 2nd: LAN WAR X

As one of Canada’s veterans, Ryan Ford ’s sturdy style of organized combat contrasts sharply with many new-age Foxes. Nevertheless, his flexible roster and penchant for disciplined play continue to stand the test of time, having granted him wins over Zhu, dizzkidboogie, KJH, DruggedFox and n0ne this year.

Written by: David Macdonald

Edited by: Aidan Lilienfeld

Rank 47: Infinite Numbers © Matt Seal/JuggleGuy

Rating: 6.560

SSBMRank 2015: N/A

Other Placements:

5th: New England Invitational, 2nd: Mega Mass Madness

One of the fastest rising stars of 2016, Jason "Infinite Numbers" Gauthier exploded onto the national scene at Pound 2016, defeating DJ Nintendo, Alex19, MacD and Mike Haze to secure ninth place. He later finished a respectable Top 48 at Shine 2016, Evo 2016, and The Big House 6. Ranked No. 1 in New Hampshire and No. 4 in all of New England, Infinite Numbers also has wins over Laudandus, The Moon and Westballz, and shows great potential heading into 2017.

Written by: Michael Forde

Edited by: Anokh Palakurthi

Rank 46: Connor © Thomas Tischio

Rating: 6.586

SSBMRank 2015: 72

Other placements:

3rd: Super Smash Sundays 49, 4th: NorCal Loves Teams

Arguably the biggest voice in the MIOM conspiracy, Connor "Connor" Nguyen had a solid 2016. He performed well on a national level, placing 17th at Genesis 3, but he really shined at locals, where his wins over players like Mike Haze, The Moon and MacD propelled him to seventh on the SoCal Power Rankings. One half of the successful "SSBM Tutorials" team on YouTube, Connor continues to push not only his own game, but also the community’s.

Written by: Henry Fellner

Edited by: Aidan Lilienfeld

Rank 45: Captain Faceroll © Matt Seal/JuggleGuy

Rating: 6.607

SSBMRank 2015: N/A

Other placements:

3rd: OUTFOXX'D, 5th: NorCal Loves Teams, 3rd: Rubicon 11, 2nd: SoCal Colosseum 1, 17th: Smash N' Splash

Griffin "Captain Faceroll" Williams keeps improving, and he's already defeated several of last year's SSBMRank Top 20 in sets. Faceroll’s tank of a Sheik shows fortitude, an unmovable force skyrocketing through the ranks and refusing to stop for anyone. At the beginning of the year, he listed his three future goals: Get ranked at least 10th in SoCal, place in the SSBMRank Top 100 and become the best player in the world. After today, he’s two-thirds of the way there.

Written by: Hector Arzola

Edited by: Henry Fellner

Rank 44: Trifasia © Electric/The Hypest Team

Rating: 6.611

SSBMRank 2015: N/A

Other placements:

5th: B.E.A.S.T. 6, 5th: Eclipse 2, 5th: Heir 3, 7th: DreamHack Winter

Spanish smasher and green Peach player Alvaro “Trifasia” Garcia Moral, currently ranked sixth in Europe, makes his debut on SSBMRank this year. Highlights of his year included upset victories over MacD and Abate, along with multiple wins over Amsah and Zgetto. A relative newcomer to international play, Trifasia has seen great improvement from attending many larger events this year, and his 2017 promises more of the same.

Written by: Henry Fellner

Edited by: Aidan Lilienfeld

Rank 43: Santiago © Thomas Tischio

Rating: 6.617

SSBMRank 2015: 42

Other placements:

1st: Zotsmash Biweekly 21, 4th: Super Smash Sundays 39, 2nd: UCl 24

Santiago "Santiago" Piñon is a strong Fox main from the powerhouse that is SoCal. Even though he wasn't very active this year, Santiago took out many of the SoCal greats including Westballz, Lucky, MacD and HugS, and placed eighth on the SoCal Spring Power Rankings. He's also well known for his Twitter, where he voices his outrageous opinions on the metagame including his belief that Falco is by far the best character in the game.

Written by: Henry Fellner

Edited by: Matt Knutson

Rank 42: Prince Abu © Thomas Tischio

Rating: 6.699

SSBMRank 2015: 55

Other placements:

9th: Smash N' Splash 2, 13th: WTFox 2, 7th: Canada Cup 2016, 2nd: Kings of the North V, 33rd: CEO 2016

Known across the Melee community for being the go-to Jigglypuff practice partner, Abhishek "Prince Abu" Prabhu is often overlooked for his own skill. His 2016 was quiet but consistent; he showed that he's one of the best Jigglypuff mains in the world with Top 32 placings at EGLX 2016, GOML 2016, CEO 2016 and Shine 2016, all while farming wins over players like Professor Pro, Kels and n0ne. As Hax said, Prince Abu may just be the answer to stopping 666XX.

Written by: Mitchell Keller

Edited by: Henry Fellner

Rank 41: Gravy © Thomas Tischio

Rating: 6.788

SSBMRank 2015: 62

Other placements:

4th: Battlegrounds 3, 7th: Frame One, 33rd: CEO 2016

Best known as one of the pioneers of the 20GX movement, Dustin "Gravy" White and his knowledge of frame data have greatly contributed to Captain Falcon's toolkit in the modern era of Smash. After an impressive 17th at Evo 2016, he took a short hiatus from Melee before returning to the game with a new character and a controversial new controller. Look for Gravy and his Smashbox-powered Fox at Genesis 4 in January.

Written by: Daniel Lee

Edited by: Noam Radcliffe

Credits

Head Editor: Andrew "PracticalTAS" Nestico