About Us

At Paintball Nerd, we love paintball. 

If you're looking for the latest in paintball news, product reviews, interviews and other great paintball content, you've found it. We’ve been in the industry for over 25 years and talk regularly with industry leaders, legends of the game, and your favorite pro players to share that content with you, our fellow Paintball Nerds. You can find us at most of the largest events either playing the game or engaging with the community.

Paintball Nerd supports and loves all brands, manufacturers, stores, fields, teams, tournament series, players, media outlets and influencers. If we do not carry a brand, it is only due to trade policies which some manufacturers may adhere to. We are still happy to review any and all products our fellow Paintball Nerds are interested in. We believe that the paintball industry is small, and therefore, we must be united. It is a fact that most paintball companies are owned and operated by people that, first, love the sport of paintball. Here are only a few examples:

  • Contract Killer was founded by Chris Corcino, SoCal legend known for keeping the mechanical format alive and well in SoCal.
  • CRBN was founded by Josh Turbin of legendary team The Family.
  • Dye Paintball was founded by Dave Youngblood of the Ironmen of Old. Their innovative line of paintball markers are made by Billy Wing who played for the Ironmen for nearly 20 years.
  • Field One was founded by the legendary Bob Long, who captained the Ironmen of Old, coached the Oakland Assasins and invented the ground breaking marker - The Intimidator. Field One is now run by Alex Fraige, Ryan Greenspan and Yosh Rau of Team Dynasty.
  • GoG (formerly Smart Parts) was founded by Adam and Billy Gardner who started the All Americans.
  • Gun Fighter Sports was founded by Ryan Podesta from Busckwackers, Bob Long's Blast, and Xpilicit. He takes home trophies in the 40+ league in the WCPPL 
  • HK Army was founded by Jason Pineda, Steve Nabi, Mark & Scott Kressin, and Josh Meyers - SoCal kids that turned a local movement into a global phenomenon.
  • Hormesis was founded by two of the game’s greatest players, Oliver Lang & Alex Fraige who started the Ironkids and eventually became Team Dynasty - The most successful team in paintball history.
  • Infamous was founded by Travis Lemanski of Image, Avalanche, Miami Effect, and now, Infamous.
  • KORE (Empire, JT, GI Sports, Tippman, Spyder, VForce) was founded by Richmond Italia and is ran by Billy Ceranski and Dave "Opie" Thomas of Image and Aftershock.
  • Liquid Paintball was founded by Brandon Lambertson of Ironmen, Miami Effect and Infamous. He invented the “Snatch Grip” and the screw-together 2-piece barrel.
  • Luxe Paintball was founded by Darryl Trent who played for the Ironmen of Old and dominated as coach for the All Americans in the NXL.
  • PbRetro is owned by John Dresser of Farside. He's played for over 30 years.
  • Planet Eclipse was founded by Jacko & Ledz of Banzai Bandits and Nexus in the UK.
  • Project Paintball was founded by Archie Montemayor and Ryan Brand; Founding Fathers of BKIT and X-Factor.
  • Push Paintball was founded by Bryon Benini who played on Aftershock and every iteration of the Ironmen, successfully establishing himself as a dominant pro player in every format in the history of competitive paintball. He was also Director of R&D at Dye Paintball for over 15 years, establishing the standard for quality in paintball gear we see today. Bryon also produced the most celebrated paintball documentaries in existence: PUSH and Sunday Drivers.
  • Recoil was founded by Mike Breto who grew up in the HK Army camp, helping push the SoCal movement to the global phenomenon it is today.
  • Sandana is owned and operated by Marc Berolo of Seattle Thunder and now Baltimore Revo.
  • Sunday Paintball was founded by Brandon Prideaux of Bushwackers and XSV.
  • Tank Dangle was founded by true Paintball Nerd - Randall Barnes
  • Tiger Wear was founded by Kyle Spicka and Alex Goldman, who have played for most top level pro teams, but currently San Diego Dynasty & Edmonton Impact.
  • Toprank was founded by Pep Escutia of Oakland Assassins who also created the legendary brand NXe.
  • Virtue is owned by Mike Newman who played on Tampa Bay Damage and Chris Williams who was a photographer for pbstar.com and worked at paintball mega-retailer Action Village.
  • WEPNZ was founded by Todd “Cash Money” Martinez of Ironkids, Ironmen, Avalanche, Dynasty, Aftershock and current coach of Houston Heat. He also founded Raza.

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There are several great companies that aren't listed. Look for the founder, and you'll likely find a Paintball Nerd. All these companies were created by people who first loved the game. They loved it so much that they worked to make it their career. If you do what you love, you'll never work a day in your life.

Paintball Nerd is thankful to those that support our mission, regardless of if their products can be purchased on this website. Use the gear you love, support the sport, and get out there and PLAY PAINTBALL!

Paintball Nerd is family owned and operated, and was founded by Zyzek Barro in 2021 with the help of paintball industry legend, Mikko Huttunen.

Zyzek began his fascination with paintball in 1995. From 2002 to 2008 Zyzek managed quality control and gun production at Dye Paintball and helped develop Dye's prestigious line of DM guns. From 2008 to 2011 Zyzek played a key role in developing the sport of paintball in Southeast Asia, traveling extensively throughout Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Philippines, and Taiwan to promote paintball for Dye. Zyzek joined Push Paintball in 2020 as General Manager and plays a key role in sales, customer service, and brand recognition.

Mikko has been playing paintball since 1996. From 2005 to 2014 Mikko worked in promotions at Dye Paintball and eventually became Vice President. In 2017, Mikko played a key role in the start up and growth of Push Paintball, working closely with Bryon Benini and helping with brand recognition. In 2022, Mikko joined Hormesis to help the powerhouse brand reach new heights.

In 2002 Zyzek helped rebuild the Los Angeles Ironmen, who at the time were going though a stage of growth. In 2005, Zyzek etched his name onto the short list of individuals who have won a Cup Championship - The NPPL Commander's Cup.

In 2004 Mikko joined the Russian Legion, the world's first full time professional paintball team, winning every tournament in Europe. In 2005, Mikko joined the Los Angeles Ironmen and became a dominating force, helping the team win multiple tournaments, including the NXL World Cup 2 years in a row - 2007 and 2008.

Mikko and Zyzek have 50+ years combined experience in the paintball industry, both reaching the pinnacle of the sport competitively and in business. Zyzek and Mikko, along with every other industry leader in this sport are simply Paintball Nerds. If you’ve read to this point, you’re one too!