Banner Image: Ubisoft / João F. @itsmeERROR
Following the signings of William "Spoit" Löfstedt and David "iconic" Ifidon, many fans expected M80 to present a solid challenge to other international teams. Although the Brazilian-majority squad obtained great results in North America and even finished in second at the Gamers8 2023, the team only won one of six matches at BLAST R6 Majors.
Eventually, the team decided to make a change before the Six Invitational 2024 as they benched Leonardo "Kyno" Figueiredo to play with Evan "Yoggah" Nelson. When we talked with Matheus "Budega" Figueiredo regarding the change, the coach made it clear that the door was still open for the support. “He could still come back in the future, that’s still a question.”
Following the conclusion of the Six Invitational 2024, M80's new roster was unveiled and it not only included Kyno but also Gabriel "cameram4n" Hespanhol, Adam "nudl" Hryceniak, and Ben "CTZN" McMillan.
Since then, M80 finished in second place of the North America League 2024 Stage 1 and have already won more matches in Manchester than they did in Copenhagen and Atlanta combined.
"Being benched was probably the best thing to ever happen to my career," admitted Kyno in a written interview with SiegeGG following M80's 7-0 victory against Into the Breach. "I learned I'm nowhere near the top and need to work my ass off to reach it."
M80's first match in Manchester was against Team Liquid, who had just beaten G2 Esports and Geekay Esports to qualify for Phase 2. As expected, the game was extremely close, and, eventually, M80 secured an overtime win to start their Manchester run on the right foot.
Precisely, cameram4n was the best player in the match with a SiegeGG rating of 1.25 and a K-D of 13-7 (+6). According to Kyno, the former FaZe Clan player knew what the Brazilians were up to. "With all the counter strats planned, we had a good game plan. He was also shooting that game, felt like he was 18 again."
However, Day 1 in Manchester wasn't all laughs and smiles for M80. The team's second match ended in a 5-7 defeat against Team Bliss on Bank, where the North America League team could only win one of their six defenses.
"The main problem was not playing with confidence, we gave so much map control with barely any pressure. We were scared and it showed in the result. I do believe that game was in our hands and we let it slip," Kyno admitted.
Fortunately for M80, the team's answer on Day 2 was exactly what the team needed. Following the team's defeat against the Australian side, the green roster secured a flawless win against Into the Breach.
"Winning 7-0 will always be a confidence and momentum booster," Kyno admitted. "It’s a way to show that our team is still good and there’s more ahead. If we keep our energy high and play as a team, the future is bright for us," he concluded.
M80's next match will take place later today at 5 PM GMT as the Gamers8 2023 grand finalists will play against Bleed Esports for a chance to qualify for the BLAST R6 Major Manchester Finals.