The PGR (Panda Global Ranking) ranks the top 50 Smash 4 Players every season. This season is much different than others, because the greatest player in the world (Gonzalo “Zero” Barrios) retired at the end of last season. With the top spot now up for grabs many (including myself) have speculated who will take the thrown this season. There are a few players that have been favorites to become the new “best player in the world” and rightfully so. But out of all these usual suspects on the PGR I believe NRG Nairo will rank number one this season.
Nairoby “Nairo Quezada is a smash player who needs no introduction. Representing NRG Esports, Nairo is a very flashy player who is always a fan favorite. Don’t let his flashy play style fool you though, he is one of the most deadly players ever to grace the game. Nairo has been very consistent with his PGR rankings; placing 3rd for the past three seasons.
Nairo sporting his NRG Esports Jersey
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With his trusty Zero Suit Samus, he runs through tournament brackets and rarely places outside of top 8. One of the biggest reasons Nairo remains so consistent is how much he practices. You’ll find him streaming over on twitch almost every day, and his streams always attract a lot of dedicated viewers. He has such great game awareness which can definitely be chocked up to him practicing so much.
No matter the tournament, Nairo will almost always have the crowd on his side. This was seen most during what was maybe the highlight of his career back in 2015. During the MLG World Finals in 2015, Nairo became the first player to ever beat zero to win a tournament. This win ended Zero’s streak of over 50 tournament wins in a row. It was Nairo’s crowning achievement, but I believe that he will soon have a new accolade to add to his resume.
The closest Nairo ever got to being ranked number one on the PGR was when he was ranked number two back in the PGR V1. Since then he has been ranked number three every season, but I think that’s going to change.
The Day Nairo Ended Zero’s Iconic Streak
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With Zero gone things are going to be a lot different, that’s for certain. Many speculate that Leonardo “MK Leo” Perez will be the next number one player, and rightfully so. MK Leo was one of the few players who could at least somewhat consistently beat Zero. Leo has been dominating as of late and definitely could become the next Number 1. But With Nairo already having a set win over MK Leo early in the season, I think he has an edge.
Nairo also gave Zero a lot of tournament trouble and has taken quite a few sets off of him. Now that we are in a meta where Zero no longer attends tournaments I think Nairo might just get over the 3rd best player hump and ascend to the top spot. This isn’t to say that he couldn’t do it if Zero was still playing; but the fact that Zero isn’t playing gives him a huge boost.
Nairo is one of Smash 4’s most clutch players and it shows every time he plugs his controller in. He plays so many characters at such a high level, that it’s almost impossible to counter-pick him. Nairo delivers impressive results and is rarely seen outside of top 8, sometimes coming from the depths of losers bracket to win a tournament. When you combine all of these factors with the fact that one of his toughest opponents is no longer playing; it’s not hard to picture him being crowned the best player in the world.
One of Nairo’s biggest achievements, defeating Zero in Brawl at Apex 2014.
Will he stand tall once again?
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Featured image courtesy of Twitter.
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