North American esports organization Splyce has signed fighting game player and Evo 2012 Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 champion Ryan "Filipino Champ" Ramirez as its first expansion into traditional fighting games, the organization and player announced Tuesday.
The move comes after Filipino Champ announced his departure from Panda Global, his previous team. Delaware North, the parent company of the Boston-based venue the TD Garden and NHL franchise the Boston Bruins, recently invested in esports org Splyce.
"I'm really happy to start this new chapter of my career," said Filipino Champ in a statement. "I'm so humbled and amazed how Splyce and the Bruins have rolled out the red carpet for me."
Filipino Champ is one of the most well-known North American fighting game players after his time in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom, where he was one of the top players. Due to his character and high profile, he is the only fighting game player to receive an endorsement from Bud Light as a part of its Bud Light All-Stars esports campaign in 2016.
He's also seen a long string of top performances across multiple games, including a recent pivot to Street Fighter V. He took first place at Genesis 4's Street Fighter V side tournament in January, as well as third overall at Combo Breaker 2016 and TORYUKEN 5 (he also took first in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3). He took thirteenth overall at the Capcom Cup, the world finals for Street Fighter professionals, in December.
He now joins Splyce, which has made a name for itself in League of Legends, World of Warcraft, Overwatch and other games since its launch in 2015. The organization qualified for the League of Legends World Championship in its first year in the League Championship Series and took first overall at the 2016 World of Warcraft Arena World Championship at BlizzCon in November.