G2 trent on Chilean crowd: "Thank you to the Chilean fans; you make this so fun for us"

G2 Esports player Trent "trent" Cairns walks into the VALORANT Champions Tour 2026 - Masters Santiago 2026 venue with sunken eyes and a headache. Just two days before their match against Paper Rex, trent had been in the hospital nursing a severe illness. Yet as he began to take in the energy of the Chilean crowd through quick selfies with fans and positive exchanges, he felt the support overtake his body.

All of a sudden, a car drives past that immediately catches the entire team's attention.

“G2! G2! G2!” The passengers in the car shout before driving off. It was a moment that brought an immediate smile to his face during a stressful stretch of days.

Ever since landing in Santiago, Chile, time has been at a premium for trent. If he wasn’t practicing for the tournament, he was doing his best to recover and rest before their stage games. Yet every single moment trent felt the Chilean energy, a sense of excitement entered his body.

“Usually, the environment can be dull if I’m being honest, so you have to adjust slowly to everything,” trent said. “Here, you step right into the venue, and you feel the energy immediately.”

Fans in Santiago swarmed into the venue as their eyes fixated on the middle of the stage. All attention was on the rematch between Paper Rex and G2 Esports. Many saw this as the most exciting opening series of the tournament. Instead, it was all about Paper Rex, who dominated the Americas second seed 2-0.

Immediately after the series, trent and G2 Esports walked off the stage and faced the media about their series against Paper Rex.

Immediate reflections centered on minor mistakes that cost the team in key moments. Despite their 2-0 record, both G2 Esports and Paper Rex battled closely, but key moments proved decisive, resulting in a tough outcome for the team.

“We knew the game plan and what we wanted to do, but we weren’t doing these things together as a team,” trent said. “There were moments where we were slightly off, and that resulted in us losing situations we would usually win.”

G2 Trent on Masters Santiago Crowd

Another factor that affected the team was adjusting to the excitement of playing in a packed arena of Chilean fans. While trent has experienced multiple venues throughout his career, capitalizing on them has been a challenge. However, despite their struggles against Paper Rex, it’s something that is a motivating factor for trent to succeed.

“The Chilean crowd is amazing, though, and I don’t want that energy to change at all. It makes it so fun being a pro,” trent said. “We will be better and improve from this because the environment has been incredible.”

G2 Esports will face off against XLG Esports in round two of the VALORANT Masters Santiago Swiss Stage, where the loser will be eliminated from the tournament. As one of VCT Americas’ most consistent teams, G2 Esports will be looking to qualify for yet another international playoffs. While they face an uphill battle to get there, trent has his sights set on a bounce-back. Before closing out the interview, he took one final moment

“I just wanted to say thank you to the Chilean fans,” trent shared. “You make this so fun for us. All of the fans who greeted us this week have made us feel so welcomed and special, so thank you so much.”

It will be interesting to see if G2 Esports can use their series today against Paper Rex and improve throughout the remainder of VALORANT Masters Santiago.

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(Photo by Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games)