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Well here’s some unexpected news. Oscar “Mixwell” Cañellas Colocho has been benched by G2 Esports and he’s currently exploring his other options. For the longest time he’s been the poster boy of G2 Esports Valorant, and to see him dropped just as the new Valorant Champions Tour season started is shocking to say the least.
While Mixwell was clearly not working on Jett and was immediately replaced by Wassim “Keloqz” Cista, we still didn’t expect the organisation to completely abandon him just like that. But it’s not the end of the world and we’re sure he’ll find a new team soon. However, he might miss the first VCT stage completely, which will still hurt.
Mixwell getting benched from G2 Esports signals the end of an era for this Valorant squad. He was the first member and captain of the new G2 Esports Valorant team in 2020. Back then, they were one of the best teams in the world, if not the best. Mixwell was the only remaining member of that original 2020 lineup.
He must have felt a great deal of sadness and emotion once he received the news. In his Twitter post he said the following:
I was the last man remaining from the initial lineup that started everything. Thank you for your support G2ARMY.
It’s going to be difficult to move on after spending so much time in G2 Esports, but at the end of the day, it’s something he’ll have to go through. We’re not sure what the future holds in store for him. Maybe it’s another tier 1 Valorant team from Europe, or perhaps he’ll be offered an opportunity in NA that he simply won’t be able to refuse.
There’s always the option to return to CS:GO or transition to full-time content creation, but we believe these two options are still out of the picture, at least for now.
Surviving in today’s Valorant esports ecosystem is rough. Teams change from tournament to tournament, and all it takes is for you to have a single bad day and you’re off the team. No other organisation fits this description better than G2 Esports.
We’ve seen this when they released Davidp and many other previous members. They even did this with keloqz back in December, but then in January realised they actually made a mistake and brought him back into the active lineup.
It’s the same story with Mixwell. He was clearly not the best pick for a Jett duelist role, and was more suited for a support-oriented role where he can focus on leading his team. But he was given the chance to play Jett, underperformed, and was immediately benched.
I’m officially benched from G2.
I have permission to search for options and I’m open to any offers.
For more information, please contact G2’s Valorant Esports Manager @knok1 ([email protected])
— G2 m1xwell (@Mixwell) January 25, 2022
This begs the question whether G2’s approach is sustainable over a longer period of time. If they never let their players adapt and learn, they’ll eventually recycle all of them. Losing is a part of the process in the competitive esports, and sometimes bad times can create a stronger team.
G2 Esports could perhaps stave off disaster by making radical changes now, but what happens when this team underperforms in one of the future tournaments?
Will the people in charge focus on working through the problem, or will the current team be viewed as disposable and simply replaced with another random five players? It’s difficult to say, but the cycle must end somewhere, and hopefully the people managing G2 Esports Valorant know that.
The VCT: EMEA Stage 1 Challengers are just around the corner, and this Valorant esports tournament will be the real test for G2 Esports. Yes, they qualified through the second Closed Qualifier, but if we’re being honest, they didn’t really face the top tier teams from EMEA there. So we’d say it’s too early to relax.
This next tournament will make or break G2 Esports. If they qualify for VCT Stage 1 Masters, they’ll be safe for a little while. But if they don’t, who knows what’s going to happen with the current lineup by the time VCT Stage 2 arrives.
In any case, we can’t wait for the EMEA Challengers to start. It’ll be an exciting ride, and we’ll make sure to keep you up to date with everything.
Freelance writer with a passion for gaming and esports. Loves a good old-school RPG, and enjoys spending time with his dogs.
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