Over 130 of the best Magic players from Australia and New Zealand came together in the marvelous city of Melbourne last weekend, all vying for their chance to compete at the Pro Tour, with 12 slots up for grabs. Also on the line was a seat at this year’s World Championship, which was ultimately claimed by the Kiwi superstar, Zen Takahashi, piloting his Grixis Midrange deck!
Grixis was a very popular deck choice in Melbourne, with almost a third of the field choosing to play it. In the finals, however, Takahashi came up against Ben Tudman in the finals, who had been undefeated all weekend with Esper Legends - a deck Tudman considered to have the edge over Grixis. Takahashi was able to take Tudman down 2-1, however, and so secured his spot at the World Championship.
Takahashi is no stranger to success when it comes to high-level Magic: he has five GP Top 8s and has competed at multiple Pro Tours. He’s never played at a World Championship before, however, and is excited to test his mettle on Magic’s biggest stage.
Takahashi’s deck, Grixis Midrange, didn’t propel just him into the Top 8. In total, five of the eight Top 8 players were on Grixis, with the other three seats rounded out by Rakdos Midrange, Jund Reanimator, and Esper Legends.
The Australia and New Zealand region will be represented at the next Pro Tour by the players who finished in the top 12. It’ll be great to see them later on this year at MagicCon: Minneapolis!
Players attacked the Standard format from all angles this weekend, with many people looking for an edge against the format’s top deck, Grixis Midrange. While some decks, like Esper Legends, looked great against Grixis, nonetheless a large percentage of the field adopted an “if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em” approach and gave into Grixis.
Magic fans of all kinds had a terrific time gathering in Melbourne for a weekend filled with competitive action and casual fun. Everyone had a great time testing their skills on the battlefield, cracking packs, and reconnecting with friends. If you want to be a part of the next Regional Championship, be sure to find a qualifier happening near you, and we’ll see you in Sydney in June!
