“We weren't able to shoot back” — NS Dambi opens up on mouse issues against XLG

Nongshim RedForce lives to play another day at VALORANT Champions Tour 2026 - Champions Shanghai as they send Xi Lai Gaming packing 2-0. THESPIKE had the opportunity to interview one of the best Neon players in the world, Lee "Dambi" Hyuk-kyu on Nongshim RedForce, after their win against the Chinese team.

Close Map Scores in Tough Match

Even though NS won the series against XLG without dropping a map, the two maps played were close, with both ending 13-11. Going into the match, Dambi expected it to be a bit easier. One factor that made NS have to fight harder was that all of the players had to play with wired mice.

Because of some technical issues on stage, Riot Games recommended that every team use wired mice while playing on stage. For a Neon player who relies on fast movement, this caused Dambi some trouble.

THESPIKE: Why do you think it was so close today?

Dambi: “Well, I don't know if I can openly say this, but, we had unfortunate circumstances with the mouse that we were using. So I think it affected me and Park "Ivy" Sung-hyeon, particularly in the beginning of the match and the rest of the team of course too. But I don't want to take anything away from XLG because I think they played really well today.”

THESPIKE: I was going to ask about the mouse issues. Do you think it affected your gameplay?

Dambi: “Especially in the beginning, we weren't able to really shoot back with our good form because we had to get used to it, especially me and Ivy, as I said. And that kind of affected us because we weren't able to shoot back. And then that affected our mini games inside the server. Technically speaking, me and Ivy, we both have big movements when we swipe our mouse. So yeah, I think it did affect us. And we realized how because of the big movement, the cables would come off sometimes and tech pauses happen too.”

VALORANT Champions Tour 2026 - Champions Shanghai

Xi Lai Gaming

0

X

2

Nongshim RedForce

Group D - Elimination Match, Best of 3 - October 1, 2026 - 12:15PM

11

Summit

13

11

Sunset

13

Xi Lai Gaming

player

Rating

ACS

K/D/A

+/-

K/D

KAST

ADR

HS%

FBSR

FB

FD

Lysoar

1.04

215

36/34/16

+2

1.06

68.8%

137.5

33%

29%

2

5

happywei

1.03

215

38/33/9

+5

1.15

77.1%

145.7

28%

50%

3

3

Rarga

0.94

189

35/37/5

-2

0.95

62.5%

117.9

22%

40%

4

6

WsLeo

0.89

162

27/33/19

-6

0.82

68.8%

100.4

29%

64%

7

4

NoMan

0.64

153

24/41/10

-17

0.59

54.2%

98.3

38%

43%

6

8

Nongshim RedForce

player

Rating

ACS

K/D/A

+/-

K/D

KAST

ADR

HS%

FBSR

FB

FD

Francis

1.44

293

50/31/7

+19

1.61

72.9%

168.8

24%

69%

11

5

Rb

1.13

214

36/32/19

+4

1.13

79.2%

132.2

31%

43%

3

4

Xross

0.99

197

32/26/13

+6

1.23

79.2%

132.6

35%

67%

2

1

Ivy

0.89

184

31/33/11

-2

0.94

72.9%

129.2

32%

25%

2

6

Dambi

0.89

185

29/38/13

-9

0.76

66.7%

112.1

23%

57%

8

6

Back on Neon

In VALORANT Champions Tour 2026 - Pacific Stage 1, NS moved away from the composition that served them so well at VALORANT Champions Tour 2026 - Masters Santiago 2026. Instead of Dambi playing his beloved Neon, fans saw him on Phoenix instead. The comp change turned out to be a misplay, as NS bombed out of Stage 1 and missed VALORANT Champions Tour 2026 - Masters London 2026.

For VALORANT Champions Tour 2026 - Pacific Stage 2, NS went back to the old reliable Neon and instantly started finding success again, earning the second seed in the Pacific region.

THESPIKE: Why did you guys lean off from neon? Was it because of the nerf that came after Santiago?

Dambi: “Well, honestly, after winning Master Santiago, we weren't really able to get a hold of the meta quick enough, and we felt like we needed to make a change. It's not because I was an extremely good Phoenix player. It's just we thought Phoenix has those flashes. That becomes very practical when it comes to the duels inside the game. So we made the decision. And since Kim "Francis" Mu-bin is so good with the operator, we thought, hey, why not give him the operator on the Neon? So that was the decision process.”

THESPIKE: Is it nice to be back on Neon?

Dambi: “Frankly, it's not about being back on the Neon. It's about winning the games. That feels really good. So if we win, then I would play any other Agent.”

THESPIKE: There’s a little bit of talk on social media that maybe more Neon nerfs are coming. What are your thoughts on that?

Dambi: “Well, yeah, when I heard about the Neon nerfs, honestly it sucks a little bit, but at the same time, the meta keeps changing and it keeps shifting as well. But I think even after the nerf, if Neon is still viable, I would still be running her. And I think if it weren't for the nerves in the future, then people would still be using Neon as the mainstream Agent too. So I think I'll still be using it if she's good enough.”

Focusing on communication

NS lost their opening match in Group D to NRG. After the loss, they had five uninterrupted days to prepare for XLG. During that time, they focused on improving their communication, which was lacking during the NRG game.

The form that NS showed against XLG is something Dambi wants to maintain for their next matchup against Karmine Corp, minus the mouse issues.

“I think back in the NRG series, there was a little bit of a stumble with communication and I think we kind of brought that loss onto ourselves. So we really worked hard to kind of translate our scrim form onto the stage. And that's what really went well today. So given that it worked today, we're just going to keep maintaining this form and the way we brought our screen form on the stage to face KC, and I think we can expect really good results.”

THESPIKE: Do you see KC as a big threat and a good team?

Dambi: “KC is a good team. But when it comes to Dastan "dos9" Zhumagali, he's never beat us. Even in the Pacific and even in Ascension. So, given that I think we're going to have a good game.”

For more VCT player interviews at Champions Shanghai, stay tuned to THESPIKE.GG.

Featured image source: Riot Games