It’s reasonable to say that not even the Into the Breach squad themselves believed that they would be ending April as Major Legends. In our first interview with volt, he told us: "I expect minimum to win 1 or 2 matches. Going out 0-3 would be disappointing, but whatever the result, I will still be happy that we were able to reach this stage. Many other deserving teams failed to reach the RMR, so the opportunity to play it is great"
Understandably then, when we asked him how he felt now they had qualified, he had this to say: “ It’s unbelievable to have qualified for the Major and even more that we have made it as Legends. It’s difficult to describe the feeling; it’s nothing like I’ve felt before.”
Alongside UK stalwart Thomas and wonderkid CYPHER, the trio have become the first (and only) UK core to have ever made a Major in CS:GO, an achievement that isn’t lost on the former fnatic Rising player. “It makes it extra special being a part of the first UK core to make the Major in CS:GO. Looking back to when I started, I would’ve never imagined that I would be in the first core to do it.” volt told BLAST.tv.
While volt had already showcased his skills in his former team's winning run in the WePlay Academy League Season 5, the RMR was a breakout event for CYPHER.
Photo: Michal KonkolInterview with volt
CYPHER played out of his mind this event; how important was it to have one of the players come online in such a way?
volt: “It was really nice to see him activate the way he did. He bounced back after the NAVI match really quick, he only had some hours to do it. He didn’t miss a shot. I’ve watched his POV in all the games and he looked unstoppable and so crisp.
I don’t know where it came from so suddenly, but at least now everyone including himself knows he has it in him to play like this. If he continues to have the same level of confidence and doesn’t overthink, I believe he will do it again and again. As long as he doesn’t change his settings every game that is!”
You defeated the core that won the previous Major, how big of a win was that for the teams’ confidence?
volt: “Huge confidence boost for sure. At the time it looked a bit unfortunate for us to first have to face NAVI and then VP in the 3rd round but we were happy with the map pool against them and we knew we had a very good chance to land on a decent map. We kind of allowed them back in that game in the second half, but we recovered and closed the map in time.
The way we played caught them out for sure, we were just running at them. It was a masterclass from CYPHER and rallen for sure. Beating them was crazy, but after that game we were only one best of 3 away from qualifying so there was a lot of hype. I don’t think anyone in the team had any doubts we wouldn’t qualify after that game.
Of course, actually playing in the Major will be a different beast to the RMR environment they have just played in. The rMR might be a melting pot of pressure for the biggest teams in the game, but teams like ITB have no need to feel pressure. At the Major, pressure is unavoidable.
Right now at least, that pressure isn’t phasing volt. At least not when he’s thinking about which opponents he’d like to face. “I would like to play vs FNATIC, maybe even NAVI to try to get revenge for the overtime loss. Otherwise I don’t really mind, whatever team comes our way.” volt told BLAST.tv. With the two names being two of the quarter-finalists at the previous Major, there aren’t many more difficult opponents he could pick to want to face."
Photo: Michal KonkolWhat’s up next for you in the meantime between now and the Major?
volt: "The plan is to bootcamp again, just like before the RMR. I think we will also play in an online tournament which should keep us warm leading up to the major. Other than that just lots of team and individual preparation. I don’t think I did enough individual work before the RMR so now I’m making sure that I’ll be fully ready. Hopefully an even better ITB will show up at the Major."
What are your expectations for the Major?
volt: "I want us to upset the tier 1 teams. Winning 3 games in the Legends stage may seem impossible and I’m certain the majority are predicting us to lose every game. There is no pressure, just take it one game at a time. Whatever happens, it will be an invaluable experience for the team and we will learn a lot. We made history qualifying for the Major, we can make history again."