🎙️ Wizards & Warriors – Episode 7: RayDay Reigns at PinMasters + Tourney Rundown, New Pins, and Community Shoutouts

We're back! After a short break, your favorite competitive pinball podcast returns with one of our biggest episodes yet. Join hosts FriscoPinball (Hadi) and JL4nd (Joe) as we dive headfirst into the action-packed world of competitive pinball, fresh off a whirlwind of tournaments and exciting machine releases.

🛠️ In This Episode:

1. • We recap dozens of tournaments from late February through April 2025, including Starfighters Pinball Festival, IFPA North American Championship, Texas Pinball Festival, Silverball Rumble, and many more.
2. • Special in-depth segment on the 2025 PinMasters, where Raymond Davidson (aka RayDay) .
3. • Exclusive interview with RayDay: We talk about his pinball journey, his mindset going into PinMasters, how he handles pressure, what his go-to strategies are, and why he still loves the game.
4. • Hadi and Joe reach Pro rankings and share some reflections on competing at Starfighters.
5. • We cover new pinball machine releases: King Kong, Dune (Barrels of Fun), Merlin’s Arcade (Turner Pinball), and tease the rumored Harry Potter reveal.
6. • Shoutout to Drew Sych and the Manitoba Pinball Championship — thanks for the viewer submission!
7. • Quick hits on upcoming tourneys including Yegpin, The Amazing Pinball Race, and the Brisbane Masters.

🧠 Strategy Breakdown:
We go deep on PinMasters game-by-game action with Ray, analyzing match play highlights and sharing insights on:

• Countdown: How drop target strategy and bonus multipliers made or broke rounds

• World Cup Soccer: Ultra scoring modes, jackpot stacking, and magnetic multiballs

• Foo Fighters Pro: Multiball stacking and van mode synergy

• Demolition Man: MB timing, claw control, and clutch play under pressure

🔥 Rapid-Fire Round with RayDay:
Banjo or Kazooie? Favorite city for tourneys? Best Rare game? Find out Ray’s takes in our fun end-of-show lightning round.

📺 Watch the full video episode on YouTube at [FriscoPinball]
🎧 Now streaming on Spotify Video, Apple Podcasts, and more!
📩 Got a question, a shoutout, or a tourney you want highlighted? Email us at [email protected]

Thanks for listening—and flipping—with us. Let’s keep pushing pinball forward!

Chapter Breakdown:

• 00:00 – Intro: What We've Been Up To, Pinball News, Moving From TPN/Admin News

• 16:57 – Tourney Recaps: Feb–April 2025 (Viewer Request, Starfighters, TPF, IFPA events & more)
• 41:15 – Upcoming Tourneys (Yegpin, Amazing Pinball Race, Brisbane Masters, Sweeper City Open)
• 49:40 – Raymond Davidson joins us to talk about his pinball journey, competitive mindset, approach to comebacks, thoughts on the PinMasters format, his favorite machines, pre-game rituals, working at Stern, handling pressure, and his goals for 2025.
• 1:19:40 – Game 1: Countdown (Drop Target Strategy & Results)
• 1:40:26 – Game 2: World Cup Soccer (Ultra Modes, MB Stacks & Goals)
• 2:00:05 – Game 3: Foo Fighters Pro (Mode Strategy, Overlord MB)
• 2:21:19 – Game 4: Demolition Man (Big Bonuses & Clutch Multiballs)
• 2:44:21 – Final Standings & RayDay Victory Recap
• 2:50:10 – Rapid-Fire Round + Wrap-Up

PinMasters footage courtesy of Backhand Pinball: twitch.tv/backhandpinball