Southern California Super Smash Bros. Melee player Michael "Mike Haze" Pulido has signed with Obey Alliance, a popular gaming YouTube network and esports team.  Mike Haze will begin competing under the Obey Alliance banner in Smash competitions as well as create content, something he's become known for on his own, with the team. 

Editor's Picks

"Obey recently has focused its development into the world of esports," Obey Alliance CEO Julian Castro tells ESPN about the team's new pickup. " We have been evaluating the scene as well as the various communities that thrive within it.  When approaching the Smash scene, we loved the passion and dedication of the players and the fan bases around it.  During the scouting process, we ran across Mike, who from the start was appealing given his professionalism and value as an individual.  Not only is he a great competitor, but he also has a great following behind him with a strong passion of growing himself as an entertainer." 

Mike Haze is currently ranked 40th on the Melee It On Me annual Super Smash Bros Melee rankings, as well as fifth in the Southern California rankings below the likes of Joseph "Mang0" Marquez, Weston "Westballz" Dennis, Johnny "S2J" Kim, and Joey "Lucky" Aldama.  This year, he took 25th at Genesis 3, 17th at Get On My Level 2016, 25th at Evolution 2016, and 33rd at last weekend's The Big House 6. 

"I had a few different options to choose from but decided to go with Obey because of the passion I felt from everyone I've spoken with," Mike Haze tells ESPN. " They truly care about their esports players and I feel that type of passion will make for a good relationship between myself and Obey.  I absolutely think being with Obey will help me grow into a better player overall.  Being a part of a team makes competing a lot more stress free.  It feels good to know I'll be able to invest my time fully into the game without additional outside pressure." 

Outside of competition, he is also known for content creation.  For the past few years, Mike Haze has created tutorials in various Smash games as well as hosted the Elite Four tournament series in Southern California.  Recently, he's become known for his diss tracks surrounding rivalries in the Smash scene. 

He hopes to bring some of that talent to Obey Alliance, who have primarily been a YouTube collective for various content creators, primarily in gaming. 

"[We've] spoken about potentially producing content for the team channel so I've been brainstorming ideas for unique and engaging content for those who might know about Smash but don't necessarily follow the game," Mike Haze says.