DRX
DRX
Korea
Rank #2
Flashback
Cho Min-hyuk (조민혁)
MaKo
Kim Myeong-gwan (김명관)
has bid farewell to long-standing player Yu "BuZz"
Byung-chul (유병철). They have also allowed Jung "Foxy9"
Jae-sung (정재성), and Kang "BeYN"
Ha-bin (강하빈) to explore their options as restricted free agents.
BuZz has been a pinnacle of Korean Valorant for almost its entire existence. Joining
Vision Strikers
Vision Strikers
Inactive
stax
Kim Gu-taek (김구택)
Rb
Goo Sang-min (구상민)
Zest
Kim Ki-seok (김기석)
BuZz
Yu Byung-chul (유병철)
MaKo
Kim Myeong-gwan (김명관)
in 2021, he helped bring them to their first international event at Masters Berlin. They would prove themself as a prominent force internationally, being one of the few teams outside of North America and EMEA that could compete with the best. At Berlin, they would make it out of their group without dropping a map before they would fall to the eventual winners in
Gambit Esports
Gambit Esports
Inactive
Redgar
Igor Vlasov
Chronicle
Timofey Khromov
d3ffo
Nikita Sudakov
sheydos
Bogdan Naumov
nAts
Ayaz Akhmetshin
.
In 2022, DRX acquired the Vision Strikers roster that would go on to become a mainstay in VCT. BuZz, along with
MaKo
,
Zest
,
stax
, and
Rb
, were untouchable in Korea. Apart from one series loss to
Incheon On Sla2ers
Incheon On Sla2ers
Korea
Rank #16
Gravity
wezzy
VaNish
froz
XirZz
, DRX rarely even lost a map against their domestic competition. At international events, their legacy would become that of dominating the group stage and then falling in the top six of playoffs, as they did at Masters Reykjavík and Masters Copenhagen. It seemed they were doomed to repeat this fate in Champions, when they were facing another top six elimination against
FNATIC
FNATIC
Europe
Rank #2
Boaster
Jake Howlett
Chronicle
Timofey Khromov
Alfajer
Emir Ali Beder
. However, they would finally break through that barrier when they defeated Fnatic as well as
FunPlus Phoenix
FunPlus Phoenix
Inactive
SUYGETSU
Dmitry Ilyushin
Zyppan
Pontus Eek
ANGE1
Kyrylo Karasov
Shao
Andrey Kiprsky
ardiis
Ardis Svarenieks
in the following round. They would then be eliminated in a five map thriller against
OpTic Gaming
OpTic Gaming
Inactive
, but a third place finish was a new height for the organization.
One of the most historic rosters of the pre-partnership era of VCT (Photo by Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games).
Heading into the partnership leagues, DRX signed
Foxy9
, hoping to have him join the active roster in place of Zest. However, they had trouble integrating him into their system, and would not start at LOCK//IN. Instead, the original five from 2022 would earn a top four finish and continue their reign as the best team from Pacific. Foxy9 would debut in the regional league, where he would help DRX earn an 8-1 record. In playoffs, however, their Pacific dominance would come to an end when they were defeated by
Paper Rex
Paper Rex
Asia-Pacific
Rank #1
mindfreak
Aaron Leonhart
Jinggg
Wang Jing Jie
f0rsakeN
Jason Susanto
d4v41
Khalish Rusyaidee
something
Ilya Petrov
. Foxy9 would make his international debut at Masters Tokyo, but when DRX lost to
Evil Geniuses
Evil Geniuses
North America
Rank #17
Derrek
Derrek Ha
NaturE
Nicholas Garrison
supamen
Phat Le
Apoth
Vincent Le
in the group stage, he was subbed out for Zest and would not play another game that year. With their roster troubles, DRX would fall in the first round of playoffs. In Champions, the original five members played their final tournament together, completing one last top six finish.
In 2024, DRX released Rb and Zest, making Foxy9 and
Flashback
permanent additions of the starting roster. With this new roster however, DRX failed to qualify for Masters Madrid, their first time missing an international event since 2021. Shortly after their loss, Flashback had to temporarily step down from the roster, allowing
BeYN
to take his place. BeYN had been part of
DRX Prospects
DRX Prospects
Korea
Unranked
Leviathan
for some time, but was finally getting a shot on the main roster. His addition revitalized the team, as they went a flawless 5-0 in stage one, but fell just short of making it to Masters Shanghai. Stage two saw yet another change, as another of their long-standing members, this time the IGL stax, was released, and Flashback returned to the active roster. This new combination of players would take DRX back to the international stage at Champions, where they would once again finish in the top six. DRX's resurgence maintains their Champions streak, as well as making MaKo and BuZz two of very few players to attend every Champions event.
Foxy9 found his first win at Champions this year (Photo by Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games).
With these roster changes, MaKo remains the lone original member of DRX. He along with Flashback will be the only two members returning from the 2024 roster.
DRX
DRX
Korea
Rank #2
Flashback
Cho Min-hyuk (조민혁)
MaKo
Kim Myeong-gwan (김명관)
is now:
Discord