Why Did Ivan Burazin Get Good at Soul Calibur?

Ivan Burazin got good at Soul Calibur out of personal spite after an older next-door neighbor kept beating him and making fun of him.

The neighbor owned the console and would lean back and win. Ivan Burazin had little money, made a bit, and bought a PlayStation 2. He stayed away for 2 or 3 weeks and played for 2 weeks straight until the thumbprints on his thumbs were gone. He went back, the neighbor leaned back and started playing, then accused him of cheating. He beat the neighbor, entered a tournament, and won it. A line of about 50 kids formed, the winner stayed on, and he kept winning for an hour or two before handing the controller to a kid who had been watching.

Soul Calibur was the only game where he could theoretically have gone pro, but there was not much of a financial path around it. He practiced to beat the neighbor.