Blacklist International CEO Tryke Guttierez said that the break that Johnmar “OhMyV33NUS” Villaluna and Danerie “Wise” Del Rosario took back in Season Nine was a gamble that proved to be worth it in the team’s championship run in the MPL Philippines Season 10.
Speaking in front of reporters just moments after his team copped their third MPL title in four seasons, Tryke said that he has seen championship teams crash immediately back to the ground right after winning back in his time with Dota 2.
(C) MPL PH
“Ako personally talaga, when we decided to rest V33Wise during the Season 9 feeling ko it was a pivotal decision for the whole of the team because I’ve been in esports for a long time now and I’ve seen teams like fail because there are always certain cap to the pressure,” Tryke said during the post-game press conference.
“There’s always a certain cap to the arguments that happens in a day-to-day. Iba yun eh, so parang ako sa Dota 2 experience ko ang dami kong nakita na raratsadang team after manalo ang taas ng pressure papasok sa isang bagong season tapos matatalo tapos magkakaron ng fallout tapos maghihiwalay,” he added.
Tryke also said that V33Wise’s decision to take a break was actually in line with the organization’s goal of winning back-to-back world titles.
It was also a well-deserved one for the formidable duo as they have been grinding ever since they entered the league back in Season Four.
(C) MPL PH
“So in away, parang yung foresight namin dun when we talked to them was baka ito na yung perfect to rest muna in Season 9 kasi kailangan na rin naman na talaga nila so that actually everybody is ready to go again pagpasok ng season na ito and going to the M4 because our goal was really a back-to-back World Championship, yun yung personally nakita kong direction for them,” the former Dota 2 shoutcaster said.
With V33Wise out, Blacklist International struggled mightily in Season Nine, coming up with only three wins in 14 regular season outings which caused them to miss the playoffs for the first time since the organization debuted in Season Four.
The crucial break started to pay off when the dynamic duo returned to the MPL Philippines stage in Season 10 where they led Blacklist International to the title once again while also booking their return trip to the M-series.
Now, Blacklist International has the chance to become the first team to win back-to-back world titles. And they have that grueling, but rewarding Season Nine to thank.
