Talon Esports Enters the Dota 2 Scene with Former Evil Geniuses Captain Fly
Talon Esports, a renowned organization based in Hong Kong, is set to make its debut in the Dota 2 scene. The organization, known for its competitive teams in League of Legends, Overwatch, and Arena of Valor, as well as its involvement in Street Fighter and Tekken, will be participating in the upcoming Dota Pro Circuit through the Southeast Asia region. The team will be based in Manila, Philippines.
According to Talon Esports CEO Sean Zhang, “Dota 2 has been a game that we have long sought to enter and finally in 2021, we have arrived. The Philippines will be the home of our new squad, and we look forward to embracing the passionate fan base of the country. We have put together a supremely talented roster with the goal of contending for majors and, of course, the International next year.”
In addition to signing Fly, Talon Esports has recruited former TNC Predator duo Gabbi and kpii, as well as former BOOM Esports standouts Rafli Fathur “Mikoto” Rahman and Brizio Adi “Hyde” Putra Budiana.
Fly, who previously captained Evil Geniuses, led the team to multiple iterations of The International, including a third-place finish at TI8. During his time with EG, the team achieved great success in the North American region. Despite finishing second at both Majors in the 2021 DPC, EG fell short at TI10 and underwent restructuring.
Both BOOM and TNC had less successful runs during the last DPC season, failing to qualify for TI10 despite the competitiveness of the SEA region. The addition of the two cores from these teams, along with Fly’s guidance, is expected to shake up the power rankings in the region.
As for Talon’s approach to the 2021-22 DPC season, it remains unclear. Currently, the new team is expected to compete in the open qualifiers for a spot in the lower division of the first tour. However, there’s a possibility that the organization may acquire another team’s slot in one of the divisions, although Valve’s stance on this is not known.
With regards to Evil Geniuses, it remains to be seen who they will sign to replace Fly. The situation with Dendi and B8, where they merged with another team to take on a team slot in the second season of the DPC, suggests that anything could happen. We’ll have to wait and see how this announcement unfolds.
Talon Esports, Dota 2, Evil Geniuses, Fly, roster, Southeast Asia, Manila, Philippines, TNC Predator, Gabbi, kpii, BOOM Esports, Rafli Fathur Rahman, Brizio Adi Putra Budiana, Dota Pro Circuit, majors, The International, power rankings, 2021-22 DPC season.