I felt like I had a claim to number 3 in the world, minus Leffen – IBDW from Panda Global talks about his Riptide Melee Victory

Panda Global’s iBDW sat down with Esports.gg’s Will English IV after his Riptide Super Smash Bros Melee victory.

Riptide just took place last weekend, one of the first Smash Majors back from the pandemic. We covered T1 MKLeo’s victory in Smash Ultimate, but now we get to focus on what happened in Melee. The Top 8 bracket for Melee included some brand new faces, including Panda Global’s IDBW. The only representative from the Melee Gods in the Top 8 bracket was Liquid’s Hungrybox, and he got 3rd place at the event.

Grand Finals was the Winner’s Final rematch between two Panda Global’s representatives: Plup and iBDW. The Winner’s Final match went the distance at 3-2 in iBDW’s favor, and Grand Finals was just as close with iBDW pulling it out at 3-1.

iBDW was very emotional after the match, and rightfully so. He had a lot to prove coming into Riptide, and he explained his mindset coming into the event with me after his win.

Will English IV, Esports.gg Correspondent: So again, congrats on winning Smash Bros Melee at Riptide.  Let’s start with the particulars. Who is iBDW, and where does he come from?

Panda Global Cody “iBDW” Schwab: Yes, my name is Cody Schwab. I am a Panda's iBDW. I’m from the tri-state area, specifically New York, and I play Fox in Super Smash Brothers Melee.

English: Awesome.  So I know this happened a few minutes ago, but how do you feel RIGHT NOW about your win here at Riptide?

iBDW: I just keep reminding myself, It just happened. Every few seconds, I have to remind myself that it actually just happened. And it just feels incredible. No way around it.

English: What were your expectations coming into Riptide? 

iBDW: I really wanted to win! I was peeved by the seeding. I don't mind getting a tougher bracket. But I felt that it kind of was a smack in the face because I did so well in the online era. I only had one subpar tournament, 5th place at Smash Summit 11, which is not a bad accomplishment.  I felt it was a slap in the face to be seeded so low. So I came to Riptide wanting to prove people wrong. It’s nonsense that my results at Smash Summit 11 all of a sudden, I’m not even one of the top eight players in the world at this point.  It’s ridiculous.

English: That is crazy. I’d take 5th place at Smash Summit 11 over anything else! Do you think from the Smash Summit event to now that your rank will go up a bit?

iBDW: I think so! I felt like I had a pretty strong claim to 3rd in the world, minus TSM FTX Leffen, during the online era.  Obviously, I can’t compare myself to Leffen.  But my performance at Riptide this weekend, I feel like I’ve solidified that claim today, which I’m very happy about.

English: Awesome! What do you think was your toughest matchup this weekend? You go as far back in the bracket as you would like.

iBDW: Toughest matchup? Probably just Panda Gaming’s Plup. Plup played super well. Well, maybe not super well; he played well. I think I was playing very well. I think he played okay. The thing about the Sheik / Fox matchup is if you're not 100% on point, it's going to be hard for you to win. And that's effectively what happened. He dropped a few too many punishes. I’ve seen him tech chase a little bit better, be a little bit cleaner. And I think there are nerves, etc. But I think Plup was almost certainly my toughest matchup. 

iBDW: When I played against Liquid’s Hungrybox, I felt like I kind of threw one of the games. I don't want to discredit it. But I think I kind of threw the game that I lost. And I probably shouldn't have. But that's alright, I will learn from that. In that exact situation, I know I have a very vivid recollection of what happened and what I can do next time to prevent that. So I would just say Plup was my toughest matchup behind throwing a game to Hungrybox.

English: Transitioning from the online era to playing offline at Riptide, did you do anything special to prepare?

iBDW: Yeah, I just tried to take the lessons I learned from Smash Summit 11 about how I put too much pressure on myself. I put myself in a better mental state in the bracket instead of pressuring myself to do better. It’s good to prepare for the tournament beforehand with practice, grinding, analyzing, etc., and good self-care and nutrition.  But once I get in the bracket, I have the mindset that I’ve done everything I can to prepare. It’s time just to focus, let it rip, and have fun.

English: I like that attitude! It makes no sense to cram for a performance. You either have it, or you don’t. There’s nothing else you can do, right? That’s the benefit of discipline.

iBDW: There’s nothing else you can do.

English: I absolutely love it. Last question, anything you’d like to say to your fans, haters, etc.?

iBDW: I just love all of you. I feel like I have nothing else to say. The haters? They always exist. If I ever have enough of a platform to the point that I have that many haters, I'm doing something right,

English: Much respect my friend. Thank you for speaking with me, and again, congratulations!

Stay tuned to esports.gg for more Super Smash Bros coverage.