It’s easy to plainly comment on how hungry one is for opportunities.

To bluster on social media in anguish of how unfairly distributed advantages are or shout at the preventative roadblocks that stand in the way of success — that takes no effort.

But grinding to reach those opportunities when they appear is the real test.

That is what Clasico and other players did by joining the US version of the Street Fighter League, a 3v3 team-based invitational Street Fighter V tournament that contains a mix of hand-picked Captains chosen by Capcom, winners from online qualifiers, and top selects from a vote-in system. The teams, crafted by the Captains picking from the other two pools, strategically maneuver their players around the character ban rule and fight towards supremacy every week.

The Chicago Urien player, undaunted by the possibility of failing, worked hard to enter the SFL, and plans to use this as a springboard for improving not only himself as a player, but the entire Midwestern fighting game scene.

Ryan “Saint Cola” Collins: What process did you use to qualify for the Street Fighter League?

Clasico: At first, I actually didn’t think I was going to get in. I was having internet issues, so I couldn’t participate in the online qualifiers. As a backup, I focused on throwing my name into the voting system. I asked a couple of players in Chicago to vote for me the first day, and realized I was in 3rd place the next morning.

I started working towards trying to get voted in and used the network of players, friends, and family that I had to my advantage. It was a 100% grassroots approach. I called people, text, and sent direct messages through Twitter and Facebook to reach out to everyone I knew to sign up and vote. It helped that the community of players at all these major events knew who I was, as I’ve spent almost three years traveling back and forth from SoCal and Chicago being active in both regions.

Once I had all of Chicago and all of California behind me, including NorCal due to LPN and Nacer, I knew I had what it took to get in.

And I did.

R: I didn’t see many well-known players attempt to enter the voting, including those from the Midwestern Region. What do you think prevented them from trying?

C: I couldn’t understand why people weren’t really promoting themselves, or the voting system, until I remembered that it was Final Round weekend. Almost everyone was just focused on the first Capcom Pro Tour event so I took advantage. Now that players understand how the process works and how the show operates, I expect a huge pool of players coming through next time.

I don’t think the turnout will be the same since many will now try to get into Season 2.

R: Opportunities like the SFL are country-wide affairs, but big-name tournaments, invitationals, and events are generally situated in the West and East Coast areas. How can players in spots like the Midwest who comparatively have less create a name for themselves and foster growth in a similar manner? What have you contributed to your community to facilitate improvement?

C: As far as my community, it’s hard to really say I’ve been doing all that I can. I want Chicago to thrive 100 percent, but also I feel the exact route I’m taking by traveling around, learning, and networking for my scene can’t be done by everyone. Even then, it’s still not easy.

I’m not signed based on me being active in the SoCal community and neither are many amazing players in that area. The community as a whole needs to stop focusing on the mindset that location fully determines success. Almost everyone is not doing all they can and that’s including myself.

The Midwest has so many amazing players and I will never not scream out Chicago over everything. The reality is, though, we won’t reach the success we all want until we, as a collective, put in more work. NLBC (Next Level Battle Circuit) and WNF (Wednesday Night Fights) have years of work. People don’t remember how the latter was started in the garages and homes of that community.

For example, one of the things the community can do to unify is to support other local streams and tune in. It’s easy to say ‘we need to showcase more talent’ but local people need to come through and watch. Supporting each other as much possible in methods like that is the way to make the Midwest stand out more.

That being said, there are people currently working hard for our region to promote visibility for the scene. The Midwest Movement, created by Zachinabox, is a great start in terms of creating a focal point of content. People like Noah (ncv) and Ryan (bgcallisto) work so hard to provide Chicago with local events and a Twitch platform. They are pretty much the gold standard. 2019 should be an amazing year for our players and toward the third quarter I expect a lot more to be happening with our local community that we can bring to the masses. We just need to consolidate more.

Chicago, in general, can become the hub for the Midwest and we can craft our own NLBC or WNF. The Red Bull events created the drive for our scene, and I know these guys will take it to another level this year and the years to follow.

Personally, I’m not able to always attend my locals due to life issues, and it’s something I take accountability for, but I try to make myself available to help out those in our scene when I’m prevented from showing up. Much of my networking is done so I can help connect our scene with other scenes, and I’m constantly trying to bring out-of-towners to our weeklies.

I also run sets offline to train and improve with the players in the Midwest.

R: What kind of experience are you planning to bring back with you from SFL that’ll help the Midwestern scene grow?

C: I plan to bring back all of the information I gained from talking to so many high-level players. Street Fighter V is not what everyone thinks it is at lower levels. The mental fortitude needed to be a champion is insane. From the conversations to the suggestions given to me, I’m just here to learn and relay the knowledge to my scene and peers. Also, I hope to use the connections I made to help build bridges from the Midwest to other regions.

This is all a process and I’m just a sponge soaking up all the game that’s being thrown at me and putting my own spin on everything. Am I the best player? No, but I’m learning to take accountability as to why and learning how to use the tools given to me in order to obtain some type of success for myself and the Midwest in this community.