“It’s really bad” - M8 marteen slams meta after loss against FUT
The first week of VALORANT Champions Tour 2026 - EMEA Stage 1 has kicked off, and fan favorites are returning to the stage after weeks of preparation. One player who started the year strong, and has had all eyes on him since Kickoff, is Martin "marteen" Pátek on Gentle Mates. He broke records and impressed every region, finishing as the highest-rated player at VALORANT Champions Tour 2026 - Masters Santiago 2026.
Gentle Mates faced FUT Esports in their first match of Stage 1, but couldn’t secure the win against the Turkish squad. THESPIKE had the opportunity to speak with marteen after the game, and he had plenty to say about the current meta and his journey in the VCT as a Duelist.
Lost their opening match against FUT Esports
Similar to Kickoff, Gentle Mates were matched up against FUT in their opening game of Stage 1. The series started in M8’s favor with a win on Pearl, but they lost momentum, allowing FUT to take the next two maps and close out the series 2–1.
Looking back at the match, marteen felt the team failed to capitalize on their plans and gave FUT too much room to operate. He also believes the team needs to refocus on rediscovering their identity moving forward.
“We just couldn't capitalize on our things and we lost the grip kind of on Haven. We let them do too many things. Our team changed a little bit and we need to work on it, I think. It's gonna be much better.”
_1756289283293.png&w=64&q=75 "VALORANT Champions Tour 2026 - EMEA Stage 1")
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Doesn’t like the current meta
Marteen has been a Duelist player for over three years and, by his own admission, has a history as a Yoru one-trick. However, the current meta shifts away from Yoru, favoring faster agents like Neon and Waylay. When asked about the state of the meta, marteen didn’t hold back.
“I think it's really bad. This Waylay and Neon, it's just “run it down” and it's hard to hold. There's not that many answers as in normal comps I would say. When it gets nerfed I think it's gonna be more enjoyable to play and watch.”
In the match against FUT, marteen played Phoenix and Waylay, agents he actually enjoys despite his long history on Yoru. He also likes running a double Duelist comp alongside Taranvir "bipo" Singh. Still, he feels the current meta doesn’t fully suit M8 as a team and wants to see nerfs coming to certain agents, especially to Neon.
“I would say the accuracy when sliding and maybe killing people when sliding. With the judge especially, that needs to be nerfed, either the gun or the agent. And with the new Waylay change already I think It's not that, you know, OP anymore. You can't abuse it anymore.”
His growth as a Duelist
Early in his VALORANT career, marteen was a Breach player. As he gained recognition for his aim, he transitioned into the Duelist role, fragging for teams like Karmine Corp. While many see Duelist as a straightforward role — just aim and frag — marteen emphasizes the depth behind it and how much work goes behind being able to perform at his level.
“I improved my decision making, talking, and everything year by year. There is a lot that goes into being a Duelist, not just all aim. It's a lot of talking and a lot of planning. I would say I have a pretty big role in decision making and fights mostly, how we're gonna fight or what we're gonna do in the panic situations."
For now, marteen plans to keep rotating between different Duelists depending on the map. While Yoru may still appear in certain situations, he’s focused on expanding his pool to fit the current meta.
Pressure and starting slow
Since the start of the year, marteen has gained significant attention after emerging as one of EMEA’s top Duelists. He broke the all-time kill record at Kickoff and finished with the highest rating at Santiago. With that level of recognition comes pressure, but it’s not something he lets affect him.
"Obviously, there is always pressure and maybe there's a little bit more [at international events], but I didn't think about it when I was playing. I wanted to win, it wasn't really pressure on me. Like I didn't care. I wanted to win Masters, I didn't think about any records."
For marteen, results are what matter in the long run. One match doesn’t define a stage, or a season. While he didn’t perform at his usual level against FUT, it’s not something he dwells on. He has experience with slow starts and doesn’t let that stress him out. Marteen also believes upcoming patches could shift the meta back in his favor.
“In Kickoff I also didn't start like insanely good. It's no worries for me to be honest. I know I'm a good player. I know based on scrims, based off of my past, how I'm playing. So it's no worries for me. With the meta change it's gonna favor me again. So for me it's not a problem.”
Gentle Mates at Masters Santiago. Photo: Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games.
Gentle Mates winning second seed in EMEA Kickoff. Photo: Wojciech Wandzel/Riot Games.
Finding their identity once more
With one loss on the board, M8 still have four matches left in the Stage 1 group stage. Despite their strong Kickoff performance, marteen stresses that the team still has work to do before reaching that level again.
“I think we're gonna have a team talk about how we should run things and do things better and more efficiently. And again you know next week is gonna be different comps again so we need to prepare.”
While M8 were competing in Santiago, other teams had time to iron out issues and come back stronger for Stage 1. The competition is tougher than ever, but marteen isn’t worried. Santiago gave the roster much needed international experience and he’s confident the squad will once again establish itself as one of the best teams in the region. Next week, they will meet marteen’s old organization, Karmine Corp.
For more interviews and VALORANT-related news, stay tuned to THESPIKE.GG.
Featured image source: Wojciech Wandzel/Riot Games.
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