The 2025 Esports World Cup has ended after many intense battles, competitions across esports titles, and strategic plays, including the Street Fighter 6 competition. Forty-eight players faced off against each other, with the numbers being whittled down one by one until there were two left – and only one could be the winner.

This Esports World Cup saw Zeng “Xiao Hai” Zhuojun, a 36-year-old from China, win the Street Fighter 6 tournament. Known as the best King of Fighters player, Xiao Hai has also continued to show his skills in Street Fighter. Xiao Hai has now won back-to-back Esports World CUp titles. 

While he is known for his Cammy, he also plays strategically, picking fighters with whom he knows he can have good results. So, it comes as no surprise that this year, he picked Fatal Fury’s Mai to win the competition.

Xiao Hai dominates Street Fighter 6 tournament at EWC

Xiao Hai faced off against some very prominent players in the Street Fighter scene, including Victor “Punk” Woodley, whoi nearly ended Xiao Hai’s run within the first group matches. Punk outplayed him brilliantly, but Xiao Hai managed to pull off a reverse sweep that won him the set and saw him advance to battle other competitors.

While he predominantly played Mai Shiranui in these matches, M.Bison did make an appearance in some of the matches, particularly in the Grand Final where he faced off against the young prodigy, Derek Blaz. Hailing from Chile, Blaz is only 15 years old, but Xiao Hai showed that the old guard still has it. Ultimately, Blaz took second place in the Street Fighter 6 tournament this year, losing to someone more than twice his age. 

It was a fierce competition between Xiao Hai and Blaz, with Blaz netting some of the games with his Ryu plays. However, Xiao Hai made the decision to swap from M. Bison into Mai Shiranui, which helped apply the pressure and bring his score back up. So much so, it even saw Blaz swap from Ryu into Ken. But unfortunately for him, it was enough for him to win the competition. 

Xiao Hai clutched the win and took first place in the Street Fighter 6 competition for the second year running, with his wife there to support and celebrate with him. As a result of winning, he got to go home with $250,000 from the prize pool, as well as the knowledge that he is the third person in EWC history to win a back-to-back championship.

“It’s an amazing day. Finally, I get the SF6 world championship. EWC is the most important tournament that I have ever won,” Xiao Hai said on X. “I have never cried because I won the championship, only this time, and more because I proved myself on the SF6. Thank you, EWC.”