23savage a free agent after parting ways with Vici Gaming
Thai carry player Nuengnara “23savage” Teeramahanon announced on Sunday (3 January) he had parted ways with Chinese team Vici Gaming, making him one of the biggest free agents in Southeast Asia ahead of the return of the Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) on 18 January.
23savage revealed that he was no longer with Vici Gaming (VG) in a post on his personal Twitter account, adding that he was looking to join a new team for the upcoming DPC and was willing to relocate in order to do so.
In a separate post on Twitlonger, 23savage explained that his departure from VG was brought about by the coronavirus pandemic, visa issues, and communication difficulties due to the language barrier between him and the Chinese team.
“I wish them the best of luck and even in short scrims with them I learned a lot. [Good luck to them] in the future,” 23savage said.
23savage joined VG in mid-September last year, but did not end up playing a single game for the team before they ultimately parted ways as he was unable to physically join them due to the aforementioned visa issues. VG has been playing with Yang “Erica” Shaohan as their stand-in carry player since then.
Despite being unable to play with 23savage since acquiring him, VG has remained among the best squads in China, notably placing in the Top 3 at the China Dota 2 Pro Cup Season 1 and taking the title at OGA Dota PIT: China Season 4 in October.
Prior to joining VG, 23savage was arguably the biggest rising star in Southeast Asia as the carry player for Fnatic, the team he joined in September 2019 for the 2019-2020 DPC season.
After last year’s DPC was cancelled by the coronavirus pandemic, 23savage helped Fnatic win five-straight tournaments from March to June to become the most dominant team in the region.
However, Fnatic released 23savage to make way for then-Geek Fam carry player Marc Polo “Raven” Fausto in late July in one of the most surprising roster moves of the year.
Despite being unable to play with VG after signing with them in September, 23savage did not remain idle while stuck in Southeast Asia.
In late September, he joined the temporary ‘Among Us’ stack alongside other Southeast Asian free agents and team-less players to compete in BTS Pro Series: SEA Season 3, where they finished in third place.
In December, 23savage joined Thai squad Motivate.Trust Gaming as a stand-in, helping the team finish in the Top 6 at BTS Pro Series: SEA Season 4 and in the Top 3 at the Moon Studio Carnival Cup.
While 23savage is no doubt the biggest free agent in Southeast Asia heading into the DPC restart, it is unlikely he will be able to join a team in time to participate in the first Major cycle.
The qualifiers for the DPC’s SEA regional league will begin on 4 January, with the first season of the league taking place over the course of six weeks from 18 January to 27 February.
For more esports news updates, visit https://yhoo.it/YahooEsportsSEA and check out Yahoo Esports Southeast Asia’s Facebook page.
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