Sacy and pANcada will carry the love of the Brazilians for their new team
The second week of VCT: LOCK//IN São Paulo is at full speed and this Friday, Sentinels will make its debut in a Tier 1 tournament with its brand new line-up. They will be playing against Fnatic but will have a boost that was unthinkable one year ago: the Brazilian crowd.
For the 2023 franchise league, Sentinels maintained Tyson "TenZ" Ngo and brought Zachary "zekken" Patrone and Rory "dephh" Jackson from XSET. They closed the roster with the big additions of Gustavo "Sacy" Rossi and Bryan "pANcada" Luna, who won Masters Copenhagen and VCT Champs 2022. And these two players will bring the roar of the Brazilian crowd.
No hard feelings from LOUD's fans
Covering VCT LOCK//IN directly from São Paulo, Esports.gg's Igor Oliviera talked with some LOUD fans to know their feeling on having to see pANcada and Sacy playing for another team. In general, they would prefer that the two of them had stayed on LOUD, but they are happy with the replacement the Brazilian squad made.
"Sacy was the mentor of this project (LOUD), alongside Saadhak, and pANcada was the best Brazilian controller, still is. Two very important pieces that LOUD lost, but two very good guys were hired to their places. I mean, the loss was huge, but the replacement was excellent", shared Braga Filho.
Braga may be one of the most passionate fans of LOUD since he traveled 3,500 kilometers to see the team play in São Paulo. But he is not alone in that passion and his "forgiveness" towards Sacy and pANcada. Camila Yukari is right there with him in terms of love for the players and LOUD.
"I understand their departure, so much so that when I already had the announcement that they were going to leave, I even made a little letter and sent it to them, thanking them for everything they did for LOUD in 2022," Camila said.
It's safe to say that even though every LOUD fan was hurt when Sacy and pANcada announced their move to Sentinels, they understood the players' actions. Still, for Gabriel Barra, in terms of competitiveness, the Brazilian team lost a lot.
"As a fan, it was very difficult because they were fundamental for Brazil to win the Champions. And I thought that their departure makes a big difference in the team. The team is still good, but it's not the same as before, but LOUD managed to keep the base, so it's great", he said.
If not against LOUD, Sentinels will have Brazilian support
Talking to the LOUD fans was curious since we discovered that, even though FURIA is still in the running in the LOCK//IN, Sentinels maybe will have bigger support from Brazilians. And that says something about the importance of Sacy and pANcada for the local VALORANT fanbase.
But, it was not easy to cheer for the North American team. During the last years, some of the former players of Sentinels were not that kind towards Brazil. And, for Braga, their departure from the line-up made everything easier.
"I believe that with the departure of some controversial players from Sentinels, the reception will be good. Sentinels have reformulated the way to communicate through social networks. Zombs and ShahZam left the team, so I believe that the reception of the Brazilians will be good. Not being against LOUD, I'll cheer for Sentinels, but against LOUD they will whiff the shots", Braga shared, laughing at the possibility.
For Gabriel Barra, the feeling is the same. The Brazilian explain that moving away from LOUD doesn't erase everything that Sacy and pANcada did for the scene. At the end of the day, they're still born and raised in Brazil.
"Like it or not, they are much-loved people around here. They didn't start in LOUD, they are very old people in Brazilian VALORANT. So, we as fans, not only of LOUD, but we like them a lot, as Brazilian fans. I love them both, and I follow them to this day, even though they left the team I like. May they pass the stage, but not bump into us until the final. But in the final... I'm sorry Sacy, but it's all ours", he said.
After all the conversations, maybe one of the most interesting matchups of LOCK//IN would be not LOUD against Sentinels, but FURIA against Sentinels. In the end, how will the crowd react to this match?
Stay tuned to Esports.gg for more esports news and head over to the VCT LOCK//IN results page for everything you need to know about the tournament.