California is Yu-Gi-Oh! country, and today, Championship Dueling returns to the Golden State!

In 2018 an impressive 1411 Duelists gathered here to compete for their shot at Championship gold, in the first-ever Yu-Gi-Oh! Championship Series in Pasadena. It was a hotly competitive event, but in the end Shunping Xu soared over the field and claimed victory with Sky Strikers. One year later in 2019, even more Duelists came to Pasadena to test their mettle: 1607 competitors took their shot at the title, and Kobe Short came out on top with another win for Sky Strikers.

Today we’re back, and it’s been three years since the last Yu-Gi-Oh! Championship Series was held here in Pasadena. SoCal is undisputed as one of the world’s greatest Dueling communities, and in true California fashion this event has shattered records for previous YCS tournaments in the territory, with a current player count of 1716 attendees! 

Two weeks ago we saw the Championship debut of the Darkwing Blast booster set at YCS Minneapolis, ending in a stunning fourth YCS win for legendary Duelist Chris LeBlanc. It was like watching destiny in motion: LeBlanc captured his fourth title almost exactly ten years to the day after his first win at YCS Providence in 2012. In a weekend-long war between Spright and Tearlaments, LeBlanc united both strategies into one Deck; his build went all in on Darkwing Blast with cards like Tearlaments Rulkallos, Spright Sprind, and Kashtira Fenrir. The result was a decisive victory in the Finals, where LeBlanc clipped the wings off Michael Tamez’s Floowandereeze to take home his trophy. 

But time marches on! This weekend marks the first Championship appearance of Magnificent Mavens, ushering in new support for Witchcrafters, Mayakashi, and Sky Strikers! With a legacy of victory on these hallowed Dueling grounds, a third win for Strikers would be epic. But the tournament hall is abuzz with talk of newer strategies, and Sky Strikers are far from the crowd favorite: instead, it’s the new Earth Fairy cards – inspired by Ishizu Ishtar – that are the focus on the floor this morning. Ishizu Tearlaments are squarely seen as the deck-to-beat this weekend.

MAMA’s home, and the game is about to change. How will it play out? We’re about to see, as we get ready for Round 1 here at the Pasadena Convention Center.

Welcome back to California, and welcome to YCS Pasadena!