A great fighting game tournament, Genesis 9, which took place on January 20-23 in San Jose, California. Including the best talent from around the world Super Smash Bros. rivals Leonardo “McLeo” Lopez and Samuel “Dabuz” Buzby gathered at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center and played games like Guilty Gear Strive and Rivals of Ether. But for one Super Smash Bros. Melee pro, English player Elliot “Frenzy” Grossman, started the Genesis 9 tournament with an illegal taxi and claimed that he was close to kidnapping.
“I was cheated when I got out of an illegal taxi [the San Francisco International Airport] and almost got kidnapped,” Frenzy tweeted on Jan. 19 with a photo of his injured right hand. “I jumped out of the car after seeing the police chasing the car and luckily it crushed and bruised my hand and back. In the hospital [right now], [but I have] he doesn’t know how something works here [to be honest].”
You might be wondering what Frenzy is talking about because it sounds like some action movie with Tom Cruise or something. Apparently, Falco, on his way to the Genesis 9 tournament, ran into some… complications when he landed in California.
“So I just got off an 11 hour flight from London Heathrow Airport to San Francisco International Airport,” Frenzy said. my city in the email. “I was planning to take an Uber to my hotel in San Jose, but my phone battery died on the way, and Wi-Fi in airports is often spotty. “I decided to take a taxi instead and went to the taxi stand.”
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Frenzy is a pro Melee player for the British esports organization Reason Gaming. Hailing from England and maining Falco, he is UK’s second best player and 47th best Confrontation competitor in the world From 2022. However, his record speaks for itself. He is a regular top 10 bracket in most of the tournaments he competes in and has several first place wins under his belt, most recently Galint Confrontation Open: Fall Release 2022 back in november. A friend can play! But he wasn’t ready for the California transportation game.
“A driver approached me and asked if I was looking for a taxi, to which I said yes, and then asked me where I was going as usual,” Frenzy said. “He shows me to the car and opens the door for me to get in with my stuff and as I close the door and fasten my seat belt I look out the window and see a lot of police officers running towards guns and screaming. Stop the car!” and “Get out!” The driver ignores this and immediately speeds up while I’m still riding and wearing my seatbelt, at which point I know I’ve made a huge mistake. At this point, I decided that if I got out quickly enough, it would be safer than running away and being at the mercy of the driver, or getting involved in a police chase that could result in an accident at higher speeds.”
“When I turned around to put my seat belt on, I saw a lot of police running to surround the car through the window,” Frenzy said. “Their weapons were drawn. Then the driver increased the speed, slammed his foot on the ground and tried to drive away. That’s when I decided to escape. I was familiar with this sort of thing happening on the internet, but this particular attempt caught me completely off guard, so I knew exactly what was going on.
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Frenzy said he was on “such an adrenaline rush” that things became a blur. One minute he buckled his seat belt to go to Genesis 9. The next minute, he jumped out of the fake taxi and “rolled to the ground”. He said the car “didn’t land badly or anything else on the road” near him to cause more injuries as it rolled onto the pavement, going 15 to 20 mph. Still, he was in “pretty serious pain,” with the backpack cushioning his fall somewhat, and his right hand taking the brunt of the impact. Mills-Peninsula Emergency Department in Burlingame said Frenzy didn’t break anything, but had “really bad swelling, scrapes and bruises” on her right hand, as well as “friction burns” and “low blood pressure” on her back from rolling gravel. ” for a moment. He also contacted the police after the incident and quickly informed the police.
“The cops asked a lot about what the criminal’s exact actions were and explained that they had been after this man who had been running this scheme for a while,” Frenzy said. “They gave me some information about the case number and who to contact. I’m not 100% sure how they got hold of the vehicle or the criminal while I was recovering from the jump, but as I was being looked after, I saw him in handcuffs in the distance.”
This was reported by an employee of the San Francisco Police Department my city said by phone that while they could not provide specifics about the incident, Frenzy’s case is real and an “ongoing investigation” is currently underway. The officer also said my city that the investigator would call us back, but that has not happened yet.
“Schemes like this exist all over the world, and as a pretty experienced traveler, I’m usually aware of them,” Frenzy said. “However, without judgment and after a long flight, I was cheated. They try to trick you by parking near the legal taxi stands and even paint their cars in the same scheme as the legal ones. They will approach people, especially those who are alone or tourists, and ask if they are looking for a taxi and where they are going. So I usually try to use sharing apps when I travel, but this time my phone ran out of battery, so I was in a bit of a bind.”
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In the end, Frenzy made it to the Genesis 9 to play a bit Super Smash Bros. Melee thanks to the help of the organizers of the tournament. After taking a day or two to recover, he said he felt well enough to compete. He didn’t place as well, finishing 49th in the tournament. However, he said, “despite what happened, the event itself was amazing” and “he wants to be back in full form next year.” We hope you get there safer next time.