GIANTX benches runneR and tomaszy in mid-season roster shake-up

GIANTX has announced a significant overhaul to its VALORANT lineup midway through the ongoing VALORANT Champions Tour 2025 - EMEA Stage 1. The European organization has decided to bench Emil "runneR" Trajkovski and Tomás "tomaszy" Machado following a string of disappointing performances.

The team has struggled to meet expectations this year, with only one series win across both the VALORANT Champions Tour 2025 - EMEA Kickoff and Stage 1 so far. According to GIANTX, their results this year 'have not been a reflection of the standards we want to hold ourselves.

“After attempts to rework our current roster, we are now in a position where we feel the need to make more drastic changes.”

The changes come in the form of Karel "Flickless" Ivo Maeckelbergh and Eduard-George "ara" Hanceriuc, two rising stars from GIANTX’s affiliate club UCAM Esports. Their consistent performances in the Challenger’s League earned them a call-up through the VCT Affiliate Partnership Programme.

“We see the hard work and the performances they put out in the Challengers League and feel it could be what we need to reignite our performance and competitive momentum.”

Changes to the Lineup Structure

With Flickless and ara joining the roster, runneR has been moved to the role of sixth man and will stay with the team in Berlin, while tomaszy has been fully benched and will return to his home country of Portugal.

GIANTX expressed gratitude to both runneR and tomaszy 'for their hard work, individual effort, team contribution, and unwavering commitment to the organization despite the results.'

The new lineup now consists of

• Kirill "Cloud" Nehozhin
• Seymon "purp0" Borchev
• Miłosz "westside" Tomasz Duda
• Karel "Flickless" Ivo Maeckelbergh
• Eduard-George "ara" Hanceriuc

Playoff Hopes Still Alive, But Slim

GIANTX still holds a slim chance of qualifying for the Stage 1 playoffs. This new roster is set to debut on April 17 against Fnatic at VCT EMEA Stage 1. The path forward demands nearly flawless performances and favorable outcomes from other teams like Natus Vincere. Even then, map differential could become the deciding factor.

The coming weeks will test whether this bold gamble can save GIANTX’s 2025 season.

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Featured Image Source: Wojciech Wandzel/Riot Games