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Evil Geniuses sign Momochi, ChocoBlanka and fLoE

Posted by Catalyst — July 12, 2011 at 7:42 p.m. PDT

Justin Wong and Ricky Ortiz have a few new teammates on team Evil Geniuses now. Here's a bit of the official press release announcing the newest additions.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA. – July 12th, 2011. – Today Evil Geniuses (EG), North America’s premier professional gaming team and a world leader in e-Sports, have announced the official signing of top Japanese Street Fighter player Yusuke “Momochi” Momochi, the world’s top female Street Fighter player Yuko “ChocoBlanka” Kusachi, and top American fighting game player Ari “FloE” Weintraub.

The news of the roster additions comes only a few weeks after EG reached agreements internally with Justin "JWong" Wong and Ricky "PrettyRicky" Ortiz to extend each of their respective contracts.

Evil Geniuses’ fighting game division will now consist of five of the world’s most established and publicly recognized pro gamers. The division, which includes the likes of Justin “JWong” Wong and Enrique “PrettyRicky” Ortiz, will travel internationally to events throughout the coming year with an increased focus in Japan and other parts of Asia.

“With the signing of Momochi, ChocoBlanka, and FloE, Evil Geniuses is more prepared than ever to expand our fighting game reach internationally,” stated Scott Smith, CEO of Evil Geniuses. “It’s an honor to welcome the three players to the team and we’re excited to witness their evolution as both players and individuals under the EG name.”

Spotted via Justin Wong's Twitter.

Comments

Sakura said on July 12, 2011 at 7:43 p.m.

Marn isn't EG anymore?

Kaqn said on July 12, 2011 at 7:44 p.m.

OMG! EG Momochi? Team Madcatz just got some competition. They need to sign Poongko next.

vsDenjin said on July 12, 2011 at 7:45 p.m.

teach me how to floe.

jesuslovessatan said on July 12, 2011 at 7:47 p.m.

wow! i'd like to see a Mad Catz vs Evil Geniuses competition!

rudiano said on July 12, 2011 at 7:47 p.m.

@ 1 Marn hasnt been EG for ages now
@ 2 Madcatz is still much stronger then EG, despite having 2 less players Daigo, Tokido & Mago>Wong, Ricky, Momochi, Choco, Floe
I stil LOL at them signing Choco, she's free in every tournament...only got signed because she's Momochi's gal pal

excalibur said on July 12, 2011 at 7:48 p.m.

I wonder how much those contracts are worth?

Youone said on July 12, 2011 at 7:49 p.m.

Beat SRK by 3 minutes.

excalibur said on July 12, 2011 at 7:50 p.m.

@5 I guess its who you know not what you know...

bananainsaneface said on July 12, 2011 at 7:52 p.m.

Shoulda signed Poongko instead of the guy that lost to him.

Maxoplata said on July 12, 2011 at 7:55 p.m.

ChocoBlanka is "the world’s top female Street Fighter player"? I think that title belongs to Kayane right now...

#10

Von_Kunlun_BOOF said on July 12, 2011 at 8:02 p.m.

Poongko would be interesting. I still think Daigo is going to be the one to take Evo. I'm saying that because I like how he doesn't act like tough sh*t when he wins and also he seems to be taking AE very seriously. He's putting A LOT of time into AE and he knows every match-up for Yun VERY well. I'm rooting for him.

#11

Firegod said on July 12, 2011 at 8:03 p.m.

everyone needs a team aparently...oh well congrats to them all.

#12

Afropower said on July 12, 2011 at 8:07 p.m.

The world's top gay male Street Fighter is Ricky Ortiz

#13

ricefarmer said on July 12, 2011 at 8:08 p.m.

dam they should have signed poongko and put him in evo already.. chocoblanka wtf?

#14

CaptainKangaroopimp said on July 12, 2011 at 8:12 p.m.

@10 No way, Kayane is like amateur hour compared to ChocoBlanka.

#15

kpxcho said on July 12, 2011 at 8:26 p.m.

guys guys, we need to get our priorities straight here.

Its not important whos the top female street fighter player, its a trivial fight

we should be discussing who should be the topLESS femal street fighter player :-)

#16

Endgame said on July 12, 2011 at 8:30 p.m.

When did Ricky Ortiz start going by "PrettyRicky"?

Though it is fitting.

#17

shichi said on July 12, 2011 at 8:31 p.m.

@10

Kayane vs ChocoBlanka at EVO?

#18

BalrogWill said on July 12, 2011 at 8:40 p.m.

Despite ChocoBlanka being free, I think it's good to have a big name girl get sponsored, even if it is because of who she's with.

Also, I'm having nightmares where Poongko gets signed to Team MadCatz...

#19

Creeper said on July 12, 2011 at 8:44 p.m.

Yusuke "Momochi" Momochi is almost as silly as Mike "Mike Ross" Ross.

#20

okay said on July 12, 2011 at 8:51 p.m.

Is Justin "Marvelous" Wong in love with Momochi? He did give his dog the same name. =/

#21

Von_Kunlun_BOOF said on July 12, 2011 at 8:51 p.m.

@16

#22

klyz806 said on July 12, 2011 at 8:51 p.m.

@19 , me too. but we all know if he gets top 4 in another major in japan, aulstralia or North america he will get signed by someone big. its only a matter of time and wether he will get signed by EG MadCatz or someone else.

#23

Grimmjow316 said on July 12, 2011 at 9:12 p.m.

I think the madcatz has the best chance of getting Pongko. I would like to think that Hori would have tried to recruit him had they been able to make it or Gootecks team who atm i can't remember the name. I think the EG signing of Momochi & Floe has probably been in the works for quite some time considering how well Justin knows them Choco was an added bonus.

#24

crispylinks77 said on July 12, 2011 at 9:13 p.m.

Yeah...... still waiting on Poongko getting signed.

There's still 3 weeks left :/

#25

Mutlak said on July 12, 2011 at 9:22 p.m.

Off-topic slightly, but what happened between BLG and Filipino Champ?

#26

DumbDLC said on July 12, 2011 at 9:25 p.m.

I can see Momochi but Choco is just PR if she wasnt hot I dont see any reason they would hire her. And for those who say she is the best female SF player it doesnt really matter if you are the best in the world if only 3 play (im not even sure 3 girls play)

#27

L45R said on July 12, 2011 at 9:27 p.m.

Very good sign with Choco...she's pretty hot for pro gamer..much better to look at in streams. =P

Ya Poongko needs to be signed...

#28

xeraton said on July 12, 2011 at 9:29 p.m.

Fchamps contract was bought out by Col.cc

#29

Darkyellow said on July 12, 2011 at 9:32 p.m.

I have no idea what Choco does in tournaments to get out of pools, but good for her since her Blanka is nothing special at all. Good for her getting that fight money too.

#30

Crysalim said on July 12, 2011 at 9:51 p.m.

Wow. Pretty cool stuff here. This looks to be the first internationally sponsored SF crew! (Correct me if I am wrong)

#31

JasonLee said on July 12, 2011 at 9:54 p.m.

@31

Team Hori.

#32

TakeBusFace said on July 12, 2011 at 9:56 p.m.

choco got signed because shes the best female player around.

#33

okay said on July 12, 2011 at 9:57 p.m.

@ Crysalim
Traveling Circus had Tokido (Japan), Gamerbee (Taiwan), and ToXy (Australia)
Team Hori has Sako (Japan), Tatsu (US), AndyOCR (US), and Warahk (US)

#34

Grimmjow316 said on July 12, 2011 at 9:59 p.m.

of the top of my head
Sherry
Kayane
Burn Your Bra
Choco
Guilty

#35

Grimmjow316 said on July 12, 2011 at 10:02 p.m.

there are others but cant remember there names.

#36

androks said on July 12, 2011 at 10:45 p.m.

Congratulations to Momochi, it's about time someone has recognized how gdlk he is. Looking forward to seeing him at Evo.

#37

kara said on July 12, 2011 at 10:57 p.m.

floe is...
third wheel... you know what i mean

#38

Kid_Kuma said on July 12, 2011 at 11:07 p.m.

Choco got signed??? I mean don't get me wrong she's good, but still no one has signed poongko yet?

#39

VegaSota said on July 12, 2011 at 11:15 p.m.

I congratulate these pro street fighter players for getting sponsored.. getting there flights paid to enter tournaments around the world. they are hungry for victory, to be number 1.. what makes you think the word "Team Mate" will stop them from becoming that. "Nothing personal, but your in my way of me becoming Champion. don't expect me to go soft on you just cause we represent the same "brand"

#40

phatphob said on July 12, 2011 at 11:27 p.m.

@10, yes but kayane is a tranny which doesn't count.

#41

anon1010 said on July 13, 2011 at 12:03 a.m.

Momochi? Really? I'm actually not sure how I feel about that.

#42

DynaDASH said on July 13, 2011 at 12:15 a.m.

I dislike when us girls get ranked by sex instead as normal players.

#43

bokosaki said on July 13, 2011 at 1:25 a.m.

choco got signed because shes the best looking female decent player around. *fixed

#44

Grimmjow316 said on July 13, 2011 at 1:41 a.m.

Oh yeah add Kayo Police to that list yeah I know that's a stretch supposedly she's coming to EVO.

#45

sharva91 said on July 13, 2011 at 1:51 a.m.

now that Momochi has EG behind him, is he coming to EVO?

#46

DumbDLC said on July 13, 2011 at 2:37 a.m.

Im loving how everyone is saying Choco is the best female player but no one would give a damn if she was uggo. Honestly Poongko is WAY better someone should pick him up quick.

#47

voodoochild346 said on July 13, 2011 at 3:15 a.m.

@#41 you're thinking of kayo police. kayane is a legit girl.

#48

voodoochild346 said on July 13, 2011 at 3:17 a.m.

@#45 kayo police is NOT a she. born a he always a he.

#49

MANDINGO said on July 13, 2011 at 4:17 a.m.

http://kotaku.com/5627165/you-are-loo...
nuff said

#50

tokyobassist said on July 13, 2011 at 4:50 a.m.

I haven't about Gamerbee for a while. Is he still winning?

#51

thethrillisgone said on July 13, 2011 at 5:16 a.m.

Good for floe!

#52

RandomDP said on July 13, 2011 at 5:26 a.m.

@#13 Ricky Ortiz is gay?

#53

SAMURAI said on July 13, 2011 at 5:35 a.m.

Choco only getting signed because she's Momochi's girl.
Should've signed Poongko instead.

#54

JDM98Ferio said on July 13, 2011 at 5:36 a.m.

@ #53 Yes Ricky is Gay! Its common knowledge and he has talked about it many times. He goes by HelloKittyRicky! LOL

#55

Gutter_Trash said on July 13, 2011 at 6:17 a.m.

This is a great signing for EG. It's not always about the best player but, also player image. I'm pretty sure they'll be able to gain some new fans in Japan and other countries a like with the signing of Choco. I always thought Floe would sign with EG he is Justins training partner for most games. Signing Momochi definitely makes their team stronger now as he's one of the best in SSF4 AE.

#56

SAMURAI said on July 13, 2011 at 6:23 a.m.

Indeed, Momochi is perfect for EG. Counterpicker just like Justin.

#57

lolasaurus said on July 13, 2011 at 6:49 a.m.

@41 So what if she's a transsexual. Are you saying that because she MIGHT have been born a boy that she has some sort advantage which should be discounted?

#58

CMAyhem said on July 13, 2011 at 7:11 a.m.

guys i might sound sexist , but...
every top female player is free compared to justin, daigo, ricky etc...

#59

Sharpie84 said on July 13, 2011 at 7:19 a.m.

lol @ the people that think Choco was signed for her Street Fighter skills and not for the obvious marketing potential

#60

LukeSky92 said on July 13, 2011 at 7:27 a.m.

@57 just like ricky ortiz only got passed vangief counter picking with chun

#61

Sasuga said on July 13, 2011 at 9:03 a.m.

@lolasaurus : Kayo Police is not transsexual, he's a crossdresser. I really like seeing that in the FGC.

#62

ksrenuan said on July 13, 2011 at 9:43 a.m.

@60 total agree.

#63

voodoochild346 said on July 13, 2011 at 11:06 a.m.

@#62 you really like seeing cross dressing in the fgc? WHY? do you like surprises that much? girls who are really girls not "exciting" enough for you?

#64

Ruiz said on July 13, 2011 at 6:31 p.m.

@62: Actually, I believe he is transgender. Just a little bit a surgery and viola... officially a female (for the most part.)

But none of this even matters. Why the hell isn't anybody signing Poongko. GET HIM TO EVO.

#65

DynaDASH said on July 13, 2011 at 6:37 p.m.

Yeah, people making a ruckus out of this, Marn is also a tranny, look at this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnZR1P...

#66

Annon said on July 13, 2011 at 7:23 p.m.

@43
Unfortunaly that's life for you. While the average woman might be just as competent or more than the average men, the best men in a competitive sport or e-sport will always be better than the best women. While it sounds sexist, it's still a fact. Because watching girls play is often dull compared to what the finest boys can do, having men rank the female players by sex appeal rather than their sub-par performance is inevitable.

Gals can still be great, but they'll never be elite.

#67

DynaDASH said on July 13, 2011 at 8:17 p.m.

Many of the best players of Counter-Strike are women.

#68

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