Dota 2: Daxak kicked from HellRaisers despite helping them qualify for Lima Major
The carry player said in a statement that the kick was "a very funny situation, no wonder they told me to not play in HellRaisers"
Russian Dota 2 carry player Nikita "Daxak" Kuzmin has been kicked from HellRaisers despite helping the team qualify for the upcoming Lima Major and finish third in the 2023 Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) season's Winter Tour regional league for Eastern Europe.
HellRaisers announced the sudden roster change on Monday (6 February) and said, "These decisions are never easy, but team goes first."
Prior to HellRaiser's announcement, Daxak leaked that he was being kicked from the team in a statement on Telegram, where he said he will not be attending the Lima Major.
"It's a very funny situation, no wonder they told me to not play in HellRaisers, but anyways I think that I defended my point of view and can be proud of the work that I've done. Not everything in our life goes as planned," a machine translation of Daxak's statement read.
The Russian carry added that he will return to streaming and that he hopes to explain everything that happened with HellRaisers in an interview.
Daxak began his professional career in Heroes of Newerth before moving to Dota 2 in 2016. He is well-known for his unconventional carry playstyle that utilizes non-Agility carry heroes like Visage, Nature's Prophet, and Necrophos.
In the 2021-2022 DPC season, Daxak played for BetBoom Team and was a key figure in the organisation's success last season.
With Daxak playing his unorthodox style, BetBoom won Eastern Europe's Spring Tour Playoffs and finished fourth in the Winter Tour regional league. He also helped the team win the Eastern European qualifier for The International 11 (TI11), though they were unable to make it out of the tournament's Group Stage.
Daxak joined HellRaisers in December 2022 for the 2023 DPC season. He helped the team finish third in the Eastern European regional league with a 5-2 record, which earned them a place in the Lima Major.
HellRaisers have yet to announce Daxak's replacement, though their most recent matches in the BetBoom Universe: Episode I - Comics Zone event featured the likes of Igor "iLTW" Filatov and Alik "V-Tune" Vorobey as substitutes for their now-former carry player.
As a result of Daxak's kick and the subsequent addition of his replacement, any DPC points earned by HellRaisers in the Lima Major will be reduced by 60%, according to the updated rules for the 2023 DPC season.
The 120 DPC points HellRaisers earned for their third place finish in the Eastern European regional league were also reduced to 96 points due to the kick.
In order to earn a cut of the 1,900 DPC points up for grabs during the Lima Major, HellRaisers will first have to reach the Top 8.
The Lima Major will be the concluding event of the 2023 DPC season's Winter Tour and will feature 18 of the best teams from the circuit's six regional leagues. Up for grabs will be US$500,000 in prize money as well as 1,900 DPC points, which will go towards securing a direct invite to this year's iteration of TI.
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