Smash Bros. Pro Dropped After Beerio Kart World Cup Incident

Joseph “Mang0″ Marquez, a long-time Smash Bros. player and two-time Evo champion, isn’t getting invited back to the next Beerio Kart World Cup. The esports pro was banned for inappropriate behavior during the livestreamed event and subsequently dropped from his team, Cloud9. “I’m sorry everyone,” he wrote afterwards. “Wish I was better. I had it all and fucking tossed it in the trashcan.”

The Beerio Kart World Cup event was organized by Twitch streamer Ludwig Ahgren and, for anyone unfamilliar with the general concept, featured various online personalities competing in the recently released Mario Kart World while driving under the influence. People got more inebriated as the tournament progressed, with Marquez in particular eventually ditching his Wario costume and walking around shirtless.

A clip from the livestream at one point showed him appearing to drunkenly dry-hump behind Twitch streamer Maya Higa who was sitting next to Emily “ExtraEmily” Zhang while they talked to the livestream camera. Multiple other clips show him seemingly continue to act inappropriately toward the pair at other points during the event. The livestream shows various people calling out Mang0’s behavior during the Mario Kart tournament, though it’s not clear that any of the organizers intervened at the time.

“I reached out to anyone who I thought might have felt uncomfortable and talked to them but also, and I already told Mang0 this, no longer inviting Mang0 to Mogul Moves events,” Ludwig said in a June 22 livestream, referencing his company that organized the tournament. “It’s a privilege to go to an event, the whole point of an event is it’s a fun thing to do, to have a good ass time and if somebody appearing jeopardizes somebody else having a good time that just can’t be a thing.”

On June 23, Marquez acknowledged the incident and said he had a problem with alcohol. “Sorry to everyone I’ve let down or hurt,” he wrote on X. “I know it just looks like I’m trying to save face but I genuinely feel so awful about it.. all I’ve done is reflect on my life and realized I’m a broken human I will try and redeem myself over time as I always do Gonna stop drinking immediately and get it together.”

Later that day, however, Cloud9, the team which Marquez has been representing in Smash Bros. tournaments for over a decade, announced it was parting ways with the esports player. “Following an internal evaluation, we have made the decision to release mang0 from Cloud9,” it wrote in a statement. “Regardless of tenure or accomplishments, the behavior demonstrated is entirely unacceptable and directly conflicts with our organization’s core values. We maintain a zero-tolerance stance regarding harassment or any other form of inappropriate conduct.”

It’s unclear how the Beerio Kart World Cup incident will impact Marquez’s involvement in the Smash Bros. competitive scene moving forward. One of the next big events, Supernova 2025, takes place in August. Currently ranked third among all Melee players, Marquez suggested he might be taking a break. “C9 dropping me. Probably getting banned from tourneys. Fucking shit man,” he wrote on X. “No one to blame but myself but man. Never though I could hit this low. Probably won’t hear from me for a while I’m sorry everyone.”

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