Beyblade X UK Championships - Purple League & MCM Comic-Con 2026

I sit here on a crisp Monday morning, looking back at this last weekend in little less than complete awe at what I have achieved.

25 years ago, I acquired my first Beyblade - a Storm Dragoon. I would always be wearing a cap placed backwards, big chunky trainers and fingerless gloves as a way to mimic two of my favourite characters; Ash from Pokemon and Tyson from Beyblade. I was obsessed with both Pokemon and Beyblade, my life revolved around them. Every evening whenever either show aired, I’d be sat mere inches from our massive old CRTV with my best friend Luke, whilst my mum would say “if you keep staring at it that closely, you’ll get square eyes!” I didn’t care. I was 5 and the Beyblade anime in particular was the coolest thing I’d ever seen. So we started bringing them to school, and I was the coolest kid on the playground because I kept winning. Every combo I would make out of my dragoon, I always won. Until we got them banned (oopsie). In hindsight, performing “The Tyson Launch” in a playground full of children was not exactly a smart idea - because Beyblades bounce out of the stadium when launched with such force!

Roll on 25 years and three generations later, we find ourselves in the era of Beyblade X which funnily enough, I never even knew existed until 2 years into its release! I looked about online, made my first ever post on Reddit in early 2026 and made some connections. In my infinite wisdom, I handed over my contact details to “a random guy” who messaged me and was promptly welcomed into the Bristol Bladers community - where I was affectionately known as “The Reddit Guy’ for a little while.

I’ve had worse nicknames, but sure!

I’ve been coming down to the weekly meets for a few months now, engaging with competitive and casual formats alike and making friends throughout. Then roll on September of 2026. I hear there’s a competitive circuit, and I get invited along to play at Exeter Comic-Con. I jumped at the chance, bought my ticket and went down with my friends. we had a phenomenal time, and even though I didn’t make top cut - I still enjoyed it. Then the following week, there’s a tournament in Cardiff. Again, I think “why not?” and I place third. This is where I find out I’ve now officially qualified for the Purple League UK Championships.

“I’m sorry - what now?” I blurted out in disbelief. “If you want it, you’ve got a ticket to play in Purple Championships!” The organiser said once again.

It would be no semblance of a lie to say that my inner 5 year old cried with joy. How on earth did I manage that? What were the chances, what was the likelihood?

So of course, I took the chance.

Saturday October 24th, 06:00 am, we set off to London for Comic-Con. The tournament is Sunday, but we go up a day early to enjoy the con and prep, so I’m not exhausted on the day. Sunday rolls around, my friend Andy from No Surrender and his son Ted come and meet me and we go in. Whilst not as busy as the day before, its still packed. We find the side quest arena at 11:30. We have half an hour until the tournament starts, so we prep. We chat with other competitors, liaise and network with YouTubers and Content Creators alike, a couple cheeky plugs for No Surrender November - the big tournament we have been working on in the background for a little while now, and soon enough, the clock hits 12:00. The challenge for UK champion has begun.

We play our rounds of Swiss, with the top 4 going on to play for finals. Sadly, all of us Bristol Bladers were knocked out - but we put up a bloody good fight!

Goober, the guy you saw on the thumbnail of this post duked it out and played phenomenally to secure the title of Champion - alongside a shiny new belt and an electric scooter all to boot! A class player, a lovely bloke, and a very deserving win.

I may not have won, but I brought my best - and that’s what matters most. I got to see and play alongside people who mere months ago were nothing but strangers; yet now I consider them my closest friends. I got to meet some lovely new people, famous and friendly alike with some connections made that are sure to last a lifetime and at the end of the day? I couldn’t be happier. I was in my element, making that little Jordan proud - being the coolest version of myself I could be, and reinvigorated my passion for photography too. What more could I ask for?

Now, roll on No Surrender November. We’re gonna smash it Little Herridge!

Enjoy the slideshow below!