Second Wind 2025's Underdogs

INTRODUCTION


Second Wind 2025 is the biggest Smash Ultimate tourney in Wellington since Biggie III back in 2021. Although it isn't as stacked at the top as last year's edition (due to lacking players like RenSoul, Aluf and KFC), there are more top 16 seeds and contenders from regions outside Wellington, making the battle to even get out of pools more challenging. Here are some players who could exceed their seed and turn heads in Wellington.
(And no, before you ask, I'm not talking about those Underdogs.)

QIZOU ROB


Qizou, once an elusive online figure with rare offline appearances, has seen more consistent yet still uncommon offline attendance throughout 2025. Cementing himself as the top dog in Christchurch even while sandbagging, his local dominance alongside strong online results and a successful trip to Floating Point 2025 make the 9th seed a strong top 8 contender. He is a bit of a wildcard though - he has no offline sets against the top echelon of talent in New Zealand, so it's difficult to judge how well he fares against the best of the best.

PHOSPHOR1111 MinMin


One of three Australian Ultimate players traveling to New Zealand for Second Wind 2025, Phosphor1111's resume looks a lot more impressive since picking up Min Min. Finding recent set wins on P9, Slimboy17, vecc, LeoMcI and Aloly, Phosphor1111 almost looks poised to perform past expectations in Wellington. Another factor compounding this is that New Zealand has never really had a strong Min Min player, so practically every player there will be wanting for matchup experience. Only time will tell if Phosphor1111 can join SebPro101 and Mackarp for three Melburnians in top 8.

SQUINNSHER CaptainFalcon


Squinnsher is clearly in Hamilton's top two players, and is arguably the best player in Hamilton, with him or DuoFace winning almost every single Hamilton tournament. Similarly to Qizou, Squinnsher lacked results against New Zealand's best, with a game 5 set against timtam showing glimpses of promise. However, unlike Qizou, Squinnsher lacked the online pedigree to show that he could win despite his isolated region. This all changed in late June, when Squinnsher started consistently entering online tournaments and immediately found himself with wins on Ezycole, IcyK, AlastairBL, Mackarp and NiceFridge. Online wins, yes, but these players are used to online, and these wins show he can go toe-to-toe with the best in New Zealand. Come Second Wind, Squinnsher will hope to prove that he isn't just a big fish in a small pond.

CHIN KOOS Kazuya


Now for a player who is significantly harder to discuss, we have chin koos. He started entering in August 2024, and with just seven tournaments to his name, the Kazuya main has secured his spot as Palmerston North's #1 player, winning all but one of those tournaments. Given that Sayshi, Palmy's #2, has respectable results out-of-region, chin koos is truly an unknown variable. Accentuating this is that he didn't attend the one Palmy tournament with Wellingtonian travelers, so we have no clue how he weighs up to players like Unladen and IcyK. This wild card could buster out, or he could make a legendary run.

WALL-ACE Terry


You thought I couldn't find anyone harder to talk about length, huh? Well, dear reader, you are sorely mistaken. Wall-Ace is the best player in... French Polynesia. A completely isolated scene with no VODs. I only know they play Terry because one of the Tahitians joined the NZ Smash discord. I have no clue how good they are. They're just here because maybe Tahiti is secretly cracked?

ATOM HEART FATHER Ridley


Skilled at multiple platform fighters, Smash Ultimate may not be the most important game for atom heart father, as he has also found strong results in Rivals of Aether II and Project+. However, the Ridley main has found himself as a bastion of consistency in the Wellington scene despite highly limited attendance. With worst losses of mojobones and BLACKOUT22, and wins on both players and Smithereens (before he turned into Crayon Muncher), outperforming his seed to make top 16 seems likely. The question we should be asking is "can he go further?"

CONCLUSION


Please watch Second Wind 2025 on https://twitch.tv/btssmash, it's this weekend, okay thanks bye

by IcyK 07/08/2025 00:00:00

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