Dragon Ranger Gaming Dragon Ranger Gaming China Rank #4 Flex1n Lo Rui (罗瑞) vo0kashu Ilya Ushakov Akeman Zhang Haoran (张浩然) Nicc Shao Yi-qun (邵逸群) SpiritZ1 Lin Dingyu (林定宇) 's Ilya "vo0kashu" Ushakov has announced that he will be missing the entirety of Champions Paris.

"Visa is no longer an option for me; I am not going to participate in the tournament of the year this time," he said. "I want to say sorry to my fans and especially my team and teammates, I didn't want to put you in such circumstances, but even though I feel really bad about it - I know you guys [are] gonna make it anyways."

In anticipation of vo0kashu dealing with visa issues, DRG signed free agent and former world champion Demon1 , who is now expected to start for DRG. The Champions 2023 MVP was released by LEVIATÁN LEVIATÁN North America Rank #9 Sato Eduardo Kenzo Nagahama Sato kiNgg Francisco Aravena earlier this year, playing the Duelist and Controller agents for the side until he was benched at the end of Stage 1.

With Demon1 in its ranks, DRG will attend its second international event as an organization since its ascension in 2023. Their first event was Masters Shanghai, where the team was eliminated early on in the Swiss Stage. At Paris, DRG will be playing for their right to stay in VCT, racing against Xi Lai Gaming Xi Lai Gaming China Rank #2 Viva Lifan Ran (冉立凡) NoMan James Man Rarga Arthur Churyumov happywei Deng Minwei (邓闵维) coconut Colin Patrick Chung (钟弘祖) to a higher finish — the team that finishes with the higher placement will automatically keep their VCT China slot, while the other must fight for their spot at China Ascension later this year.

"Sucks to finish the year on this note with the journey we passed together, but it is what it is," vo0kashu said. "I did my best, my friends, just life has different plans for me, so I simply have to stay positive and strong, probably…. I am gonna do my best to support my team from home; and big thanks to Demon1 for stepping up, great to have Champs aura on the team! GOOD LUCK!"

With Demon1 stepping in to fill vo0kashu 's shoes, Dragon Ranger Gaming Dragon Ranger Gaming China Rank #4 Flex1n Lo Rui (罗瑞) vo0kashu Ilya Ushakov Akeman Zhang Haoran (张浩然) Nicc Shao Yi-qun (邵逸群) SpiritZ1 Lin Dingyu (林定宇) 's full roster is now:

  • Shao "Nicc" Yi-qun (邵逸群)
  • Lo "Flex1n" Rui (罗瑞)
  • Zhang "Akeman" Haoran (张浩然)
  • Max "Demon1" Mazanov
  • Lin "SpiritZ1" Dingyu (林定宇)
  • Zheng "Cangshu" Yujun (手郑宇峻)
  • Wang "Ying" Chenxu (王晨旭)
  • Deng "NaThanD" Senqiao (邓森侨) (Head coach)
  • Fei "JKH" Han (Assistant coach)
  • Huang "1t" Biaohong (黄彪宏) (Assistant coach)