With a win over LOUD under his belt, 100T Timotino is ready to dominate the VCT Americas mid-bracket on the road to Masters Santiago.
In the VCT Americas 2026: Kickoff Mid bracket, 100 Thieves (100T) stood out with a hard-fought 2–1 victory over LOUD. Despite a slow start, Timothée “Timotino” Lavigne Dupont never doubted his ability to bounce back, and that confidence proved decisive as 100T took control and delivered two dominant map wins.
In an interview with esports.gg after the match, the Canadian player spoke about his Tier 1 debut, addressing the challenges of inexperience, his belief that Waylay should be nerfed despite having abused her overpowered kit, and the advantage of playing alongside an experienced team he can rely on.
100T Timotino finds his footing after a slow start
Breeze returned to the map rotation with a full rework, and LOUD wasted no time selecting it in their match against 100 Thieves. One of the scene’s most talented Waylay players opted for Jett on Breeze, a choice that made perfect sense, given how much better suited the agent is for the map.
However, Timotino got off to a slow start on the map, struggling to find the openings and the picks he wanted to. “Jett has always been my favorite agent. I was super happy that Breeze came back just to play Jett again,” he said. “I didn’t have the best start, and being a Duelist is all about snowballing. It’s pretty hard to come back when you’re 1–9.”
But having a bad start did not scare him. In the second half, Timotino "woke up" to the game, helping the team win four rounds in a row. Despite the efforts, the time couldn't bring the closure they needed, and LOUD took the first map victory. "I think, individually, I did a good job coming back, and the map ended up being super close. We could have won it," Timotino reflected.
Why Waylay needs a nerf
The second and third maps were completely different. We saw a confident, entry fragger 100T Timotino in his comfort Waylay, who admits to abuse her current overpowered kit. "Waylay needs to be nerfed. I will say this every time, even if I abuse the character a lot, I don't think what I'm doing with the agent should be allowed in this game," he laughed. "It's so stupid. The buff they did on the ultimate made no sense to me."
In the VALORANT 11.00 patch notes, Waylay received significant buffs to her kit. Overall, her abilities are now faster and smoother, making her extremely difficult to counter once she takes flight. In Timotino's opinion, Riot took away the skill of using the Waylay ultimate correctly, allowing to be faster and more difficult to run away from. Even if her kits still demand a high level of mechanics and decision-making skills, they should nerf her, especially due to her power at a competitive level.
Timotino opens up about his Tier 1 debut
As a young player, nerves can sometimes take over. Despite securing his first VCT Americas victory against Leviatán in his Tier 1 debut, facing G2 Esports was an entirely different challenge. Beyond their roster of talented and experienced players, Timotino admitted he felt overwhelmed by the magnitude of the matchup. “I didn’t give myself that much credit. I respected them way too much,” he explained.
Entering the match against LOUD, Timotino stepped onto the stage with a different mindset. “If they pick an operator, even if they kill us, I’m still going to take that space and make a difference. I’m not going to be afraid of playing this game,” and that shift in mentality changed everything.
No matter how hard it gets, 100T Timotino knows he is surrounded by incredible teammates. He recognizes his position as a rookie, who can have trouble dealing with confidence and consistency. However, he is happy to play with people like Matthew "Cryocells" Panganiban because, despite his struggles in-game, Cryo will always be there to perform out of his mind.
"Both Asuna and Cryo are insane duelists. They teach me a lot about being a duelist, in and out of the game, and I'm really lucky to play with them," he added. The transition from TSM to 100 Thieves has been, in his opinion, "a really easy transition."
Regarding the triple-elimination format introduced in the 2026 Kickoff Stage, Timotino welcomed the change. He noted that not only do teams get more matches, but players also have greater opportunities to learn, adapt, and grow, especially when working with new rosters.
Can 100 Thieves reach the international stage?
For Timotino, there is no doubt that 100 Thieves will reach the international stage and qualify for the Masters Santiago. "We're learning game by game. As everyone could see, we adjusted our game plan on a lot of maps and improved," he stated. "I feel like with the more experience as a team, the more we're going to start rolling out and get even more confidence."
100 Thieves is now on their mid-bracket run, but that doesn't mean the challenges will be easier from now on. After sending LOUD to the lower bracket, they will now face Sentinels on Jan. 25. Their permanence in the mid-bracket will depend on a victory. However, in case of a loss, they will still have a chance at the lower bracket.
You can watch all the matches on the VCT Americas official YouTube or Twitch channels. In case you want additional commentary, look out for the official co-stream channels.
