Indepth Breakdown of The Class
After a couple of years with little to no word on the status of new talent being brought into URL, a blockbuster 10 person class was announced. A departure from the 6 person classes we’ve came to expect in the Crucible era, with names also being implemented from the Smack Track one night tournament.
A lot of the issues regarding the talent development system in years prior was the lack of timely access or promotion of the Crucible footage. Battles weren’t coming out until basically Final Exams names were already picked and it just wasn’t handled in a way that got fans invested in these guys earlier. With this new focus in the last month on the newer talent, in a lot of ways the 2026 class is setup for success in ways that the recent classes before them weren’t. On November 9th, its Crucible vs Smack Track warfare at Initiation 3. The question is though: are they good enough to take advantage?
OPPA: #1 RANKED PROSPECT/QB1
By far the most accomplished and proven person in the class. From his 1,000+ day reign as iBattle champ to having great performances against Rum Nitty, Bigg K, A Ward, and Soul Khan, he’s no stranger to facing higher levels of competition either.
Opportunities to excel:
Doing a pros for him is almost kind of silly because in the ring, he genuinely does everything at a high level. He might not be a master of any category, but Oppa does everything strongly and I can’t say anyone else checks off multiple boxes like he does. His style is all his own, he’s a very fluid rapper in terms of his pace and being able to weave in different patterns, his comedy is legitimately compelling and does an effective job diffusing opponents, his punches are very creative, he’s proven to be a strong angler and one of his best traits is his storytelling. In his own way, Oppa feels a guy in the mold of other greats like Pat Stay, Ill Will and John John Da Don, where what makes them great is their grasp and understanding of battle rap as a whole, not just keying in on one singular attribute.
Challenges that may surface:
The potential flaw for Oppa isn’t anything to do with his skill, it’s going to be the opportunity to take control of a battle from Oppa by leaning into aggression and rapping with more grittiness and conviction. For as incredibly talented as Oppa is, battling with the “nerd” stigma on him is going to very much be a real thing going forward. Oppa had other personal matters going on heading into his Muuuwop battles, but there’s something to be said about maybe someone who can lean into that stylistic difference being able to nullify all of Oppa’s qualities. That makes the Justise battle extremely compelling.
JUSTISE: #2 RANKED PROSPECT/ ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
The leading choice for 2025 rookie of the year and it shouldn’t even be a debate. Justise has been gaining steam and momentum for years now, falling short in the Crucible process years prior and now turning himself into something undeniable.
Opportunities to excel:
Hungry. Justise is a walking haymaker. The best in his class at crafting a room shaking bar. He’s proven himself to be a very strong puncher and a guy who doesn’t seem out of place facing people who could have been perceived as above him at the time. When getting the spotlight to battle the likes of Quban, Hansel, Lu Castro and Woosaah, Justise took full advantage of the situations every time out. He doesn’t waste opportunities and that will take him very far. When you couple that with his elite projection and delivery, the punching being A1 and the ability to get into a little of angling and a more introspective bag in a way that’s a little reminiscent of Saflare Sole, Justise might have the highest ceiling in the class.
Challenges that may surface:
Maybe it’s just me, but for as great as Justise is, I have a hard time imagining a battle that right now to me seems like the perfect logical goal to work towards for his progression. He’s a guy that has all the talent in the world to get to these big stages, but nothing immediately stands out to me as what I’d want to see that opponent be and I do find that a little concerning. I knew Yunus vs Chess was the perfect big battle for Yunus, everyone is still clamoring to see Woosaah vs Suge and would have loved to see it on Summer Madness. Hopefully it comes with time but if Justise is held back by anything it’s going to be some of the bigger matches he could get not popping on paper.
ZEKE: #3 RANKED PROSPECT/ MAKE A STATEMENT
Zeke has been a favorite of mine for awhile now. A standout at the OSBL talent factory and someone I’ve believed in for some years. Even with 95% of this last Crucible being a mess, Zeke was always a no brainer to me as a guy who needed to be brought into the fold at URL with some real purpose in how he’s utilized. That time has finally come.
Opportunities to excel:
Zeke already shows the chops of a high level performer. If you threw this event in a room with 500-600 people, I’d probably feel the most confident in Zeke to be the most ready and comfortable in that scenario. Zeke can be extremely funny and witty, has excellent gear shifting with his flow and pace and can rock rooms effortlessly. He has a great voice for battle rap and he’s very naturally a performer.
Challenges that may surface:
Zeke could have a hard time separating himself from established DMV/OSBL acts. For as many different styles are fostered there with unique people like Gary Alston and Northeast Tay, there is a bit of house style at OSBL. Which isn’t a bad thing, these guys have all gotten picked up and have been a lot of the best prospects in battle rap, but a lot of that area is very clearly influenced by Ace Amin, Sheed Happens and Swervoo and it reflects sonically. Not to say that Zeke is influenced by those guys, it’s more me saying in the eyes of the battle rap who aren’t as familiar or able to notice the small differences in styles, it’ll be important for Zeke to establish an identity early.
LA MONSTA: #4 RANKED PROSPECT/THE DARK HORSE
La Monsta hasn’t gotten all the same coverage that some of the other names has gotten, but his talent level should not be overlooked. He has been impressive time in and time out all year and only shows signs of developing even more.
Opportunities to excel:
Explosive puncher. A very strong case for being the best puncher in his class. Has a great knack for building a haymaker. Monsta probably had my favorite line of the whole Smack Track event with his John Wick bar. Facing competition like J2, Lady Caution and Danny Myers he’s only gotten better and better. There’s a lot of upside with Monsta.
Challenges that may surface:
Still learning, but he is prone to some dry spots from time to time in his material. He shares a lot of concerns I have with Ghostt funny enough, which makes their matchup even more interesting. Monsta projects out as a guy who’s more from the Ave tree of punching stylistically and that’s a guy who also added more skills later on as he developed, gaining more gears and becoming one of the better anglers in the game.
RAH: #5 RANKED PROSPECT/CAN YOU DO IT AGAIN?
Rah has been battling for a good amount of time. Making his way up down the east coast, battling often times in his home state of Florida but also making a battle rap home as OSBL. The Smack Track is where his star burned the brightest it ever has.
Opportunities to excel:
It wouldn’t be hyperbolic to say that after the events introducing the new talent, that Rah was the one to be the most excited about. He came in as a relative unknown in the Smack Track and left being so much the talk of the event that it felt like he got celebrated more than Oppa who won! And that’s a testament to the impression he left on everyone. Tons of energy and charisma, he felt almost Brizz Rawsteen like in some of his mannerisms and performance. He has a story to tell and weaves that with a lot of creativity and technical rapping skills. His 2nd round vs Malpractice is a prime example of how well he can pen things.
Challenges that may surface:
The biggest question is if the Smack Track was an outlier performance from Rah. I’ve seen Rah plenty of times and I’ve always thought he was good and had potential, but he never really stood out or captured my imagination as much as he did on the Smack Track. Are these highs replicable? Because if they are, Rah could easily be the star of the class. Maintaining that form will be crucial for him.
YOUNG L: #6 RANKED PROSPECT/FEAR THE UNKNOWN
Young L, similar to Rah, came in as an underdog and left being one of the bright spots of the Smack Track event. With how electrifying and captivating he was, can he continue to build off of this momentum is the pressing question.
Opportunities to excel:
Sometimes you just watch a battler and know they have “it”. And that might just be the case with Young L. The grit in his voice and projection, the infectious energy he has. It’s a hunger that feels reminiscent of Franchise, Mack Mel and Chess. Really driven by punches and a lot of street talk, L doesn’t have to reinvent the wheel to be captivating.
Challenges that may surface:
Young L isn’t a “new” battler, but he is newer to battling acapella and that makes him a fascinating prospect. Because I really have no clue what he projects to be without a lot of relevant tape. What we saw at Smack Track was electrifying, am I willing to bet on that being the standard going forward? I’m not sure. L is a first to watch someone transition from being primarily on-beat to the acapella world and if he sees success I wonder if more people start to make that switch.
GORILLA MONSOON: #7 RANKED PROSPECT/TOO SOON OR ON TIME?
For the limited experience he has, it seems like it’s been impossible to escape the name Gorilla Monsoon if you’re someone who’s around the general battle rap discourse on Twitter. More than anyone with that level of experience, he’s kept his name on people’s minds, put himself in line for opportunities and turned into a no brainer for a look on the Smack Track
Opportunities to excel:
Gorilla is probably already near the top of the best self-promoters in the class. He knows how to keep himself visible and relevant and that genuinely is a very important skill. For how new he is, Gorilla feels extremely poised. When I see him on camera, Gorilla just looks and comes across as a professional. His pace and delivery are strong suits of his, as well as his enunciation on his bars feeling very Yung Ill like. When Gorilla gets rolling there’s a lot of creative and slick wordplay in his raps, leading to him being able to be competitive with a battle tested name like Awthentic . His performance vs Gary Alston is a new high for him and is reason for genuine excitement for what he could become.
Challenges that may surface:
Prior to the Smack Track tournament, Gorilla had less than 10 recorded battles. In today’s current battle rap climate where most guys who get called “new” have been battling for years and years before getting their foot in the door, it’s definitely a reason to pause with Gorilla. He was apart of Bags and Bodies and that footage never dropped in fairness to him. In his biggest opportunity to date he did choke vs Aeon on One Night Stand and that doesn’t define him, but it does still highlight the concerns with the inexperience. Gorilla isn’t a bad writer at all, but I don’t see him as this prospect who will turn into one of the best pens or punchers. It doesn’t mean he can’t be good or solid, but in order to get around that, he’ll have to develop into a heavier performer. He has all the tools to become a great performer but it’s not something he really implements yet and I think it could be a game changer for him.
GHOSTT: #8 RANKED PROSPECT/KEEP THAT ENERGY
Based on all reports of the process, Ghostt was a standout every step of the way at the Crucible. With Hustle not showing up for the final card, we didn’t get to see what Ghostt could have looked like against his scheduled opponent. That being said, after reportedly dominating in the early stages, should there be any questions about if Ghostt belongs?
Opportunities to excel:
With all the dialogue following the class selection, the person who showed the most potential to me as far as personality is Ghostt. His wit and energy really shined through when the Crucible guys were interviewed by 3Letterman. That can take him really far. He has a great voice and projection as his best skill as a battler already, his voice alone can capture a room. He’s shown chops of a quality puncher against an established guy like Young Kannon and he’s shown some depth in his content when he gets into a bit of real life talk whenever he decides to explore it.
Challenges that may surface:
Ghostt has one speed when he raps. He’s not a rapid pace guy, he keeps things in control. And that’s not a bad thing. But when his style as of now can be seen as sort of non-descript puncher, what he does isn’t unique enough to get past the lack of gears in his cadence and rhyme patterns. Taking some things from Ryda’s playbook and adding in some flow changes, speeding up the pace and maybe even adding in some angling like we saw Ryda do eventually. Ghostt has the talent, it’s going to be about adding other skills to make him stand out more.
P BLACK: #9 RANKED PROSPECT/THE BEST PEN?
Coming from OSBL where I think it’s easy for guys to have similar styles, P Black sounds like his own person. And that extends away from home and here in this new class, P Black stands alone with the most unique style of his peers.
Opportunities to excel:
If someone called P Black the best writer of this group, I don’t think that statement is far off from being true. He has a good vocabulary he chooses from and often times has a lot interesting words he chooses to end a line off of a build to the next rhyme with. His style is very methodical and he doesn’t really let battles get away from him. With the uniqueness he brings, Tink The Demon comes to mind when I hear P Black rap, even though Black doesn’t delve into the horror-core raps that Tink did. He’s great at using his pace to slow walk into a massive haymaker and his strong delivery helps land it even more. He’s been in front of legitimate competition like J Krooger and Holmzie The God did not look out of place at all
Challenges that may surface:
For all of Black’s positives, I can’t say he’s ever truly moved me or gotten my attention over years compared to a lot of his peers. That could be something in regards to not always being the most explosive or being prone to dry spots. I think a really good version of P Black does exist, I just need to see some things tightened up. P Black vs Young L is my most anticipated battle on the card.
TOPFLOOR LUT: #10 RANKED PROSPECT/SILENCE THE DOUBTERS
Topfloor Lut has a lot of eyes on him right now. After the outpouring of support for Miggs not being selected for the 2026 class, Lut seems to have taken that personally. Especially with being ranked last on the LTBR power rankings of this group.
Opportunities to excel:
Topfloor Lut is genuinely a really funny individual the times I’ve heard him speak and that translates a lot to his potential as a promotion guy. The way he speaks, the way he carries himself, he radiates confidence and you absolutely need that. His flow and cadence are strong points of his and I do think he has improved as a battler. I believe there’s things he could tap into to maximize his strong suits, maybe adopting more direct early Shotgun Suge-like style to take advantage of his voice and stature. The bully lane would work wonders for Lut.
Challenges that may surface:
It’s not going to be a shock to anyone to say that Lut’s biggest con is his writing. He’s not awful, but it’s definitely something that needs major work and improvement if he’s going to have any staying power. No one is asking or expecting him to become Illmac or something. But just a little bit of growth there can make a world of difference in his outlook on the league. There are plenty of people who didn’t come in as great writers and improved on that end, there’s no reason that with a little motivation and focus that Lut can’t make strides.
