Sagat in Street Fighter 6: Gameplay, story, and legacy

The Street Fighter series has a few really iconic characters, and Sagat sure is one of them. He may not have the good-guy vibes of Ryu, but the powerful man doesn’t care about that much. Sagat started as a villain, but then he shifted to the side of the protagonists. Perhaps, motives are secondary for him, and the fights themselves matter the most.

As a DLC character, Sagat will be available in Street Fighter 6 starting from Aug. 5, 2025. The community is glad to have him back, and this legacy choice feels like a clever decision by Capcom.

The Emperor brings his classic moves to the newest game. SF6 Sagat pressures his opponents with far-reaching punches and kicks. As a Muay Thai fighter, he uses his knees to deal damage: Sagat even holds the opponent’s head for this.

The legendary Tiger Uppercut is here, as well as powerful fireballs. Take a look at the showcase of Sagat gameplay in this Street Fighter 6 character trailer.

Big Normals and some target combos are highlighted in the Sagat gameplay trailer. The range is clear, and the damage should also be massive. 

One of Sagat’s Supers, a fire projectile, beats Ryu’s Level 1 — it has more hits, so that should work against other characters too. His Special projectile, Tiger Shot, is somewhat simplified in the variety of its versions, and the community is theorizing that it was made to complement the Modern Controls standards.

Tiger Knee, a jumping knee attack, is pretty high and can go through projectiles. Sagat has some launching and juggling moves, from Command Normals to Specials.

Street Fighter 6 introduces a new Special for Sagat. It’s a knee hit with three different follow-ups: an overhead, a plus-on-block high one, or a launcher.

Sagat’s Level 2 Super comes with four different endings: high damage, on-top positioning, side switch, or a launcher.

Capcom has a tradition to publish official guides before character releases. When one is available for Sagat, we will add it to this section.

Sagat is part of the SF6 Year 3 Character Pass, which costs $29.99. In addition to Sagat, you receive three more characters.

Also, you can buy Sagat individually inside the game. Street Fighter 6 sells DLC characters for 350 Fighting Coins.

He is a tall, muscular man who towers over his opponents in fighting matches. This physical appearance dictated the very fate of Sagat.

As a kid, he fought a lot on the streets — sure, a typical street fighter. Back then, Sagat injured his right eye. To bring more discipline into his fights, the guy went for professional Muay Thai training. Natural strength and full dedication helped Sagat achieve quick success.

At one of the tournaments, Sagat faced Go Hibiki. This opponent noticed the injured eye, attacked from that side, and eventually took it out. Since then, Sagat has been wearing an eyepatch.

One particular loss affected Sagat tremendously. Young Ryu made it to the Thai scene and became a threat to the strongest fighters. Sagat challenged him and lost. Ryu defeated the mighty opponent with one of his signature moves, Shoryuken.

Sagat retreated from the public after that and looked for revenge. He joined Shadaloo and M. Bison specifically for his purpose. However, when he actually met Ryu, Sagat did not get satisfaction from that win. Emptiness inside motivated him to leave Shadaloo and look for self-perfection through hard training.

Ryu left a big scar on Sagat’s body. Moreover, he affected Sagat’s personality.

Dan Hibiki was left alive when he dared to attack Sagat to avenge the death of his father. Villain tendencies evaporated, and Sagat just wants to follow his title as the Emperor of Muay Thai and fulfill the expectations of Thai people.

The Emperor of Muay Thai was introduced in the very first Street Fighter game. Back then, Sagat was the main boss.

The series received a playable version of this character with one of the Street Fighter II updates, Champion Edition. 

After that, Sagat hit quite a few other Street Fighter games: the Alpha sub-series, the Street Fighter X Tekken and Capcom vs. SNK crossovers, Street Fighter IV, and SFV.

You can play the earlier games with Sagat via the freshly released collections.

Street Fighter IV and V are available on modern platforms.

Sagat is playable at Evo Las Vegas 2025, from Aug. 1 to Aug. 3, but not in the official competition, sure. Some time is needed for pro players to take Sagat to top-level SF6 esports events. Potentially, this can happen at Evo France 2025 from Oct. 10 to Oct. 12.

If you enjoy Muay Thai fighting style, you may get interested in Fahkumram from TEKKEN 8. He’s based on Sagat!

For all Street Fighter 6 news and updates, stick around on esports.gg.