Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Brazilian Dota 2 team, NoPing e-sports, released its entire roster ahead of the 2022 Dota Pro Circuit season. The organization unveiled the news on Monday, October 18, announcing that they’ll be fielding a new roster next season.
NoPing Start Fresh
NoPing became the second South American esports organization to release its Dota 2 team by parting ways with its entire roster. The first team to decide for this drastic step was Thunder Predator, who cut ties with their players following The International 10.
“NoPing informs the end of the current Dota 2 team lineup. By decision of all players in the team, we will not continue with the current lineup,” read the statement.
“We respect the decision and wish success to the players that took the NoPing VPN name in various achievements in Dota 2. We thank each of the players who have fought with us and evolved as a team.”
Oscar David “Oscar” Chavez, Gonzalo “Darkmago” Herrera, Farith “Matthew” Puente, William “hFn”, Oscar Chavez, and Jose “Panda” Padilla Hernandez have all left the team and are no free agents. However, neither of the ex-NoPing players have yet to specify why the decision was made.
Regardless, seeing a team start from scratch following TI10 isn’t something new. The post-TI roster shuffles have become somewhat of a norm over the years, and while some rebuilding processes fall flat, others work out well.
Most of the time, the roster moves relate to the team’s poor showings at TI10, but not always. One exception to that rule was the Infamous roster in 2019, who left the team after TI9 despite finishing top-eight.
That said, NoPing roster’s decision to cut ties with the organization is likely due to the team failing to qualify for TI10.
Lack of Success Could Be the Reason
NoPing have had a solid season, but they fell flat when it mattered the most. The South American team started the year with a top-four finish in the first DPC event, to which they added a bronze medal from the BTS Pro Series Season 5: Americas.
In May, NoPing won the second regional DPC league and qualified for WePlay AniMajor. But unfortunately, they couldn’t make it far and had to settle for a ninth-12th place finish.
Although a solid showing from the perpetual underdogs, NoPing slipped when it mattered. They failed to qualify for TI10 in June, placing fourth in the South America qualifiers.
Regardless, NoPing have done well in the following months and even won two titles at Mobius.Bet Maestros and BTS Pro Series Season 8: Americas. Besides that, NoPing also claimed silver medals from BTS Pro Series Season 7: Americas and Movistar Liga Pro Gaming Season 10.
Since their failed run through the TI10 qualifiers, NoPing attended four tournaments and never placed worse than second. However, despite their relative success, the roster had higher expectations, which ushered in their departure from the organization.
What’s Next for NoPIng?
NoPing have yet to reveal their plans for the future; however, the South American organization will likely want to remain in the Dota 2 esports scene. With many players leaving their teams in the post-TI era, NoPing will have plenty of free agents to choose from.
Meanwhile, the ex-NoPing roster has not announced whether they wish to play together or go their separate ways. Both scenarios seem likely, but since there were no public announcements, it’s fair to assume that hFn, Darkmago, Oscar, Matthew, and Panda will not be sticking together.
They’re all looking for a new home, which they likely won’t struggle to find due to their domestic success in 2021. Meanwhile, the former Thunder Predator roster have unveiled that they’re looking to play together in 2022.