The Riot Games One Pro Invitational, beginning on December 2, promises us exciting matchups featuring teams with new rosters. But this will now have to take place without star player Yay.
The Riot Games One Pro Invitational is about to kick off shortly, but it has now been announced that Team Bleed Esports will be competing without yay. On the other hand, NaVi can showcase its potential with the new, or rather returning player Ardiis.
Riot Games One Pro Invitational: Details About The Valorant Event And Yay's Absence
The Riot Games ONE 2023 takes place from December 2 to December 4. The format is straightforward, with 4 teams competing against each other for 2 days in a total of 8 BO1 (best of 1) matches. It will take place in the K Arena in Yokohama, Japan.
The participating teams are as follows:
- Bleed Esports from APAC
- DetonatioN FocusMe from Japan
- Natus Vincere from EMEA
- ZETA DIVISION from Japan
To the schedule:
Day 1 Matches — December 2
- Bleed Esports vs Natus Vincere (09:00 CET/03:00 PM EST)
- DetonatioN FocusMe vs Natus Vincere (10:20 CET/4:20 PM EST)
- DetonatioN FocusMe vs ZETA DIVISION (11:40 CET/5:40 PM EST )
Day 2 Matches — December 3
- ZETA DIVISION vs Bleed Esports (09:00 CET/03:00 AM EST)
- DetonatioN FocusMe vs Bleed Esports (10:20 CET/4:20 AM EST)
- ZETA DIVISION vs Natus Vincere (11:40 CET/5:40 PM EST)
Bleed Esports Have One Notable Absence
The talented US professional player Jaccob “yay” Whiteaker was essentially 'imported' into the Singaporean team Bleed Esports. Yay, known for his prowess during the Chamber meta era, shared a similar reputation with Ardiis, who's now back with NaVi. Fans were excited to see these two players face off, anticipating an interesting clash.
Also, it would have been interesting to see how the overall Bleed roster, with yay, would have fared against the other teams.
Unfortunately, Bleed Esports has now announced that yay will not be able to participate due to health reasons. Fans will now have to wait longer to witness Bleed Esports in full bloom. We wish yay a swift recovery!
Bleed Esports Press Statement pic.twitter.com/QnmTjeIgPC
— BLEED Esports (@ggBleed) December 1, 2023
To fill the void left by the star player, coach Nikola “LEGIJA” Ninić, renowned for his past in Counter-Strike with mousesports (now MOUZ), NRG Esports, BIG, and Team Envy, will step in. LEGIJA is familiar with encounters against Kyrylo “ANGE1” Karasov, having frequently faced him during their Counter-Strike days when the Ukrainian IGL of NaVi was a part of HellRaisers.
Nevertheless, we can still look forward to NaVi, who delivered impressive performances with Ardiis in the former FunPlus Phoenix roster.
Recently, they appeared somewhat weaker in international events compared to their earlier dominance, where they consistently secured top positions in major Valorant esports events, often claiming first or second place.
