{{Infobox sport tournament | name = 2009 Evolution Championship Series | year = | image = Evo Championship Series logo cropped.png | caption = | location = Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | start_date = July 17 | end_date = 19 | administrator = | tournament_format = Double elimination | venues = Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino | participants = | purse = | champions = | attendance = | previous = 2008 | next = 2010 }} The '''2009 Evolution Championship Series''' (commonly referred to as '''Evo 2009''' or '''EVO 2009''') was a fighting game event held in Rio Las Vegas on July 17&ndash;19. The event featured major tournaments for various fighting games, including ''Super Street Fighter IV'' and ''Marvel vs. Capcom 2''. The release of ''Super Street Fighter IV'' drew many new players to the tournament scene, and Evo 2009 is remembered as one of the biggest years of Evolution's growth.<ref name=oral>{{cite web|url=https://www.vg247.com/the-oral-history-of-evo-the-story-of-the-worlds-largest-fighting-game-tournament?page=3|work=VG247|title=The Oral History of EVO: The Story of the World's Largest Fighting Game Tournament|last=Learned|first=John|date=2017-07-17}}</ref>

==Event overview== {{quotebox|width=32%|"The mix of white, black, Hispanic, and Asian players seems so even it doesn't seem like anyone is a minority anymore. And also unlike most game-centered events, long hair, tattoos, piercings, and muscles abound. ... The view down the wall makes the players at over 2 dozen monitors look like a NASA crew. Each station has a dozen or two people crowding around, players waiting to hear their names be called, supporters not wanting to miss the match of a friend."|&ndash;Michael Walbridge, GameSetWatch<ref name=GameSetWatch>{{cite web|url=http://www.gamesetwatch.com/2009/07/the_game_anthropologist_evo_2009.php|work=GameSetWatch|title=The Game Anthropologist: EVO 2009 --You Just Don't Know|last=Walbridge|first=Michael|date=2009-07-19}}</ref>}} Evo 2009 was held on July 17&ndash;19 in the Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino. It was the biggest instance of the event up to that point, featuring over 1,000 competitors for its ''Street Fighter IV'' tournament. 23,000 people watched the event through a live feed.<ref name=GameSetWatch /> Capcom made the latest version of ''Tatsunoko vs. Capcom'' available to be played at the event, and revealed their first public build of ''Marvel vs. Capcom 2'' for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.<ref name=O-Network>{{cite web|url=http://t-ono.net/Events/Evolution-Championship-Series-2009-Report/If-you-build-it.html|work=The-O network|title=Evolution Championship Series 2009 Report|last=Fan|first=Davis|date=2009-08-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140325020953/http://t-ono.net/Events/Evolution-Championship-Series-2009-Report/If-you-build-it.html|archive-date=2014-03-25}}</ref><sup>:2</sup> Bandai Namco had set up a handful of TVs for attendees to demo the to-be-released ''Tekken 6'', and Aksys Games held a signing session. ''Street Fighter'' players Mike Ross and Mike Watson interviewed early 1990s ''Street Fighter 2'' champion Tomo Ohira.<ref name=GameSetWatch /> The organizers of the event, Tony and Tom Cannon, were interviewed by Victor Ratliff, who bestowed the two brothers the "Cannon award" in recognition of their work organizing Evo, running the website ''Shuryuken'', and creating a GGPO netcode that allowed the community to play games such as ''BlazBlue'' online.<ref name=O-Network /><sup>:5</sup>

Mad Catz-brand arcade sticks began hitting the market in 2008, and reached unprecedented popularity among the fighting game community after the release of a ''Street Fighter IV'' range of products in 2009. Mad Catz employee Mark Julio said he was blown away seeing the community "flooded" with Mad Catz ''Street Fighter IV'' arcade sticks at Evo 2009.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.polygon.com/features/2017/4/9/15231966/mad-catz-markman-fighting-game-community-fightsticks|work=Polygon|title=More than 'joke' controllers, Mad Catz forever changed the fighting game scene|last=Stark|first=Chelsea|date=2017-04-09|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170426050618/https://www.polygon.com/features/2017/4/9/15231966/mad-catz-markman-fighting-game-community-fightsticks|archive-date=2017-04-26}}</ref>

==Tournaments== [[File:Evo 2009 - 3731301896 - Super Smash Bros. play.jpg|thumb|right|People playing ''Super Smash Bros. Brawl'' at the "bring your own console"-area.]] Evo 2009 featured major tournaments for various fighting games, such as 1v1 tournaments of ''Street Fighter IV'', ''Marvel vs. Capcom 2'', ''Soulcalibur IV'', and ''Guilty Gear XX Accent Core'', both a 1v1 and 2v2 tournament of ''Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix'', a 2v2 tournament of ''Street Fighter III: Third Strike'', and a 1v1 invitational tournament of the then-unlocalized game ''Tatsunoko vs. Capcom''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.joystiq.com/2009/02/03/evo-2009-championship-series-coming-to-las-vegas-in-july/|work=Joystiq|title=EVO 2009 Championship Series coming to Las Vegas in July|last=Hinkle|first=David|date=2009-02-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090207085058/http://www.joystiq.com/2009/02/03/evo-2009-championship-series-coming-to-las-vegas-in-july/|archive-date=2009-02-07}}</ref>

Nearly half of the "bring your own console"-area at Evo 2009 was dedicated to ''Super Smash Bros. Brawl'' tournaments, run by AllisBrawl.com. Unlike the previous year, the ''Brawl'' tournaments at Evo 2009 were held with a community-defined ruleset, which was favored by the competitors. Other side-tournaments at the event were held by companies such as Bandai Namco and AkSys Games, who received a lot of support from Evolution's organizers. Unlike previous years, both the ''BlazBlue'' and ''Tekken 6'' tournaments were held on the final day of the event, so they could be displayed on the big screen alongside the ''Marvel vs. Capcom'' and ''Street Fighter IV'' finals.<ref name=O-Network /><sup>:4</sup>

Tournaments held on a PlayStation 3 set-up experienced various technical difficulties, such as wireless controller synchronization issues, dangling cables of wired controllers disconnecting during matches, and software glitches. Delays were also a big issue during the event, with some tournaments starting much later than planned.<ref name=O-Network /><sup>:6</sup>

===''Street Fighter IV'' finals=== thumb|right|Competitors playing ''Street Fighter IV'' on day 1 of the event. The Evo 2009 ''Street Fighter IV'' finals were defined by Justin Wong and Daigo Umehara. Wong had lost to Umehara two times before; once at the GameStop tournament in San Francisco earlier that year, and before that during their renowned match at Evo 2004. Wong lost to Umehara again at Evo 2009, but made his way to the grand finals of the tournament through the losers' bracket to meet Umehara again. Justin Wong was playing with Abel against Daigo Umehara's Ryu, but after losing his first game in the grand finals, Wong switched to the character Balrog; a character he had never been publicly seen playing before. Wong won three consecutive games with Balrog, earning him his first set and a bracket reset.<ref name=GameSetWatch /><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.redbull.com/us-en/get-hype-with-some-of-the-best-evo-moments|work=Red Bull|title=Get Hype with the Best from Evo's Past|last=Walker|first=Ian|date=2016-07-12}}</ref>

In the last set of the grand finals, Wong and Umehara both won two matches, and the title hinged on the fifth and final match of the set. Both players were throwing out safe crouching attacks from a distance in order to chip away at the other's vitality with minimal risk. Wong cautiously played more aggressively as the match continued, but Umehara gained and retained the lead by parrying and punishing several of Balrog's "dash punches." In the end, both characters had very little vitality left and Wong decided to jump in for the final blow, a move Umehara countered with a jump-kick to Balrog's chest. Umehara defeated Wong again and took home the $7,000 USD cash prize.<ref name=GameSetWatch />

==Results== {|class="wikitable" |- !colspan=4 |{{center|'''''Street Fighter IV'''''<ref>{{cite web |url=http://evo2k.com/?p=491 |title=Evo2k.com |publisher=Evo2k.com |accessdate=October 20, 2013 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100213003555/http://evo2k.com/?p=491 |archivedate=February 13, 2010 |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://kyosuke.kun.free.fr/Ranking/tourneys/brackets/?id=EVO20094 |title=EVO 2009 SFIV Top 32 Bracket |publisher=ssfranking.com }}</ref>}} |- ! style="width:50px;"| Place ! style="width:180px;"| Player ! style="width:150px;"| Alias ! style="width:300px;"| Character(s) |- |1st |{{flagicon|Japan}} Daigo Umehara |Daigo |Ryu |- |2nd |{{flagicon|USA}} Justin Wong |JWong |Rufus, Balrog, Abel |- |3rd |{{flagicon|USA}} Ed Ma | |Akuma, Zangief |- |4th |{{flagicon|USA}} Sanford Kelly |Santhrax |Akuma, Cammy |- |5th |{{flagicon|USA}} Long Tran |ShadyK |Akuma |- |5th |{{flagicon|Puerto Rico}} Eduardo Pérez-Frangie |vVv Scrub |Balrog, E. Honda |- |7th |{{flagicon|Japan}} Takashi Hukushi |Dan |Ryu |- |7th |{{flagicon|USA}} Ricki Ortiz |HelloKitty |Rufus |}

{|class="wikitable" |- !colspan=4 |{{center|'''''Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix'''''}} |- ! style="width:50px;"| Place ! style="width:180px;"| Player ! style="width:150px;"| Alias ! style="width:300px;"| Character(s) |- |1st |{{flagicon|USA}} Hung Nguyen |Afro Legends |Balrog, Dee Jay |- |2nd |{{flagicon|USA}} John Choi |Choiboy |Ryu |- |3rd |{{flagicon|USA}} Damien Dailidenas |Damdai |Ken, Zangief |- |4th |{{flagicon|USA}} Graham Wolfe |GWolfe |Balrog |- |5th |{{flagicon|Canada}} Louis Paquin |Thelo |E. Honda |- |5th |{{flagicon|USA}} David Sirlin |Sirlin |Fei Long, Cammy, M. Bison |- |7th |{{flagicon|USA}} Alex Valle |CaliPower |Ryu |- |7th |{{flagicon|USA}} Alex Salguero |SiN |Guile, Dhalsim |}

{|class="wikitable" |- !colspan=4 |{{center|'''''Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes'''''}} |- ! style="width:50px;"| Place ! style="width:180px;"| Player ! style="width:150px;"| Alias ! style="width:300px;"| Character(s) |- |1st |{{flagicon|USA}} Sanford Kelly |Santhrax |Storm, Sentinel, Captain Commando |- |2nd |{{flagicon|USA}} Justin Wong |JWong |Storm, Sentinel, Cyclops |- |3rd |{{flagicon|USA}} Michael Mendoza |IFC Yipes |Magneto, Storm, Psylocke |- |4th |{{flagicon|USA}} Bill Wellman |Deus | |- |5th |{{flagicon|USA}} Marc Ansay |MadBooFace |Magneto, Sentinel, Captain Commando |- |5th |{{flagicon|USA}} Sooyoung Chon |SooMighty |Magneto, Storm, Psylocke |- |7th |{{flagicon|USA}} Jay Son |Ytwojay |Magneto, Storm, Psylocke |- |7th |{{flagicon|USA}} Erik Arroyo |SmoothViper | |}

{|class="wikitable" |- !colspan=4 |{{center|'''''Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus'''''}} |- ! style="width:50px;"| Place ! style="width:180px;"| Player ! style="width:150px;"| Alias ! style="width:300px;"| Character(s) |- |1st |{{flagicon|Saudi Arabia}} Abdullatif Alhmili |Latif |Eddie |- |2nd |{{flagicon|USA}} Martin Phan |Marn |Eddie, Jam |- |3rd |{{flagicon|USA}} Peter Susini |FlashMetroid |May |- |4th |{{flagicon|USA}} David Lardiere |Hellmonkey |Baiken |- |5th |{{flagicon|USA}} Mike Boczar |Elvenshadow |Faust |- |5th |{{flagicon|USA}} Alex Tsakanikaas |Senkei |Faust |- |7th |{{flagicon|Japan}} Dong Yim |Wuku |Testament |- |7th |{{flagicon|France}} Philippe Tanovan |Joe Higashi |Chipp |}

{|class="wikitable" |- !colspan=5 |{{center|'''''Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike''''' 2 vs. 2 Teams}} |- ! style="width:50px;"| Place ! style="width:180px;"| Player ! style="width:150px;"| Alias ! style="width:216px;"| Character(s) ! style="width:80px;"| State |- |1st |{{flagicon|USA}} Justin Wong<br>{{flagicon|Japan}} Issei Suzuki |jwong<br>Issei |Chun-Li<br>Yun |New York<br>Japan |- |2nd |{{flagicon|USA}} Jimmy Tran<br>{{flagicon|USA}} Rommel Macatangay |Emphy<br>Rom |Urien<br>Yang |California |- |3rd |{{flagicon|USA}} Mark Rogoyski<br>{{flagicon|USA}} Ryan Harvey |Mopreme<br>Fubarduck |Ryu<br>Chun-Li |Texas |- |4th |{{flagicon|USA}} Alex Valle<br>{{flagicon|USA}} J.R. Rodriguez |CaliPower<br>J.R. |Ken<br>Akuma |California |- |5th |{{flagicon|USA}} Lee Cephas<br>{{flagicon|USA}} Jaime Morin |Cephas<br>Starboy |Dudley<br>Ken |Texas |- |5th |{{flagicon|USA}} Amir<br>{{flagicon|USA}} Thomas |Amir<br>The Pad Player |Chun-Li<br>Ibuki |California |- |7th |{{flagicon|USA}} Hsien Chang<br>{{flagicon|USA}} Ricki Ortiz |hsien<br>HelloKitty |Yun<br>Chun Li |Texas<br>California |- |7th |{{flagicon|USA}} Mike Zaimont<br>{{flagicon|USA}} Alex Sanchez |Mike Z<br>Sanchez |Makoto<br>Alex |California |}

{|class="wikitable" |- !colspan=4 |{{center|'''''Soulcalibur IV'''''}} |- ! style="width:50px;"| Place ! style="width:180px;"| Player ! style="width:150px;"| Alias ! style="width:300px;"| Character(s) |- |1st |{{flagicon|France}} Jonathan Ledy |Malek |Ivy |- |2nd |{{flagicon|USA}} Phillip Atkinson |KDZaster |Cassandra, Astaroth |- |3rd |{{flagicon|USA}} Joseph Freire |Thugish_pond |Amy, Hilde |- |4th |{{flagicon|USA}} |Ceirnian |Hilde |- |5th |{{flagicon|Dominican Republic}} Norman Sainz |Omega |Zasalamel, Nightmare |- |5th |{{flagicon|USA}} Robert Combs |RTD |Hilde |- |7th |{{flagicon|USA}} |AlphaMale |Voldo |- |7th |{{flagicon|USA}} Delnar Diaz |Dreamkiller |Amy |}

==Legacy== Though the Evolution Championship Series had been growing steadily for years, Evo 2009 saw the most significant surge in attendees of its era. Organizers Joey Cuellar and Tom Cannon remembered there being a strong divide between the existing playerbase and the newcomers, especially online. Older players coined the term "09er" to describe the people who started playing after the release of ''Super Street Fighter IV''. Cannon said the divide diminished at live events such as Evolution. Competitor Peter Rosas remembered the novelty of spectators attending Evo 2009, as previous tournaments were exclusively attended by fellow competitors. 2009 is seen as the end of a "dark age" in the fighting game community.<ref name=oral />

Evo 2009 was the first Evolution event where match footage was made easily available on the internet. Cuellar stated that while they had set up a bootleg livestream at Evo 2005, the organization went all out at Evo 2009 with commentators. This live showcase of the competitions resulted in much more growth than presenting matches on DVD had.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/esports/story/_/id/17016092/the-evolution-world-largest-fighting-game-tournament|work=ESPN|title=The evolution of the world's largest fighting game tournament|last=Smith|first=Wynton|date=2016-07-12}}</ref>

==References== {{commons category|Evolution Championship 2009}} {{reflist}} {{Evo}}

Category:Evolution Championship Series Category:2009 in sports in Nevada Category:2009 in esports