In a Twitter post Thursday, 2017 Evolution Championship Series Street Fighter champion Hajime "Tokido" Taniguchi confirmed that his contract with Echo Fox was not renewed. Tokido's departure from the organization leaves Echo Fox, once one of the best fighting game teams in the world, without any Street Fighter players.
I announce my contract with Echo Fox has expired. It was great experience for me. Thank you for everything!! エコーフォックスとの契約が満了したことをお知らせいたします。 とても素晴らしい経験をさせていただきました。面倒を見てくれたチームの皆さんありがとうございました！！
— Tokido / ときど (@tokidoki77) January 31, 2019
"We both worked very hard to get a new contract," Echo Fox president Jared Jeffries said in a statement. "In the end, it just didn't work out."
Tokido is one of the most dominant players in all of Street Fighter. The veteran has been in the scene since he was in high school and has taken home not only an Evo title, but Canada Cup 2018, ELeague Street Fighter V Invitational 2018 and Brooklyn Beatdown 2.
Echo Fox made waves in 2017 when the organization scooped up top talent from across the fighting games space. Overnight, it had arguably the most powerful fighting games roster in esports, with top contenders in Street Fighter V, Mortal Kombat and Super Smash Bros. A month later, the team added two heavyweights in Tekken as well, cementing its dominance.
But late in 2018, Echo Fox made drastic cuts, dropping players like Justin "JWong" Wong, Cho "Saint" Jinwoo and their entire Gears of War and Call of Duty rosters as a part of strategic reorganization to realign their portfolio.
Despite this latest departure, Echo Fox co-owner Khalid Jones had good things to say about the Street Fighter champion.
"Tokido was a true professional and represented the organization not just with victories but with class and dignity," Jones said in a statement.
Echo Fox are still involved in the fighting games space with players in Super Smash Bros., Dragon Ball FighterZ and Mortal Kombat.