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NRG benches Verno and bonkar after unsuccessful Kickoff, add Mikes and brawk

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NRG has decided to switch up its VALORANT team, replacing Verno and bonkar with Mikes and brawk as they prepare for the beginning of Stage 1.

2025 VALORANT Champions Tour’s first major roster shakeup is upon us! Right after the VCT Americas Kickoff event, I’ve learned that my team, NRG, has placed players Andrew “Verno” Maust and coach Malkolm “bonkar” Rench on an inactive status. It looks like we’re in for some changes!

Originally, these two individuals were eagerly awaited additions to the team, with bonkar being renowned as the most coveted coach during the off-season. However, following their elimination from the Kickoff tournament, NRG has decided to part ways with this duo and have brought in Brock “brawk” Somerhalder and Michael “Mikes” Hockom instead.

Verno and bonkar benched by NRG, add former 100T coach Mikes and SR player brawk

As a dedicated VALORANT enthusiast, I must admit that I can’t always fathom the rationale behind early-season roster shifts. For instance, consider Cloud9 – a team that has frequently been the subject of humor in our community. Time and again, they’ve made swift changes that left many questioning their decisions.

As a gaming enthusiast, I can’t help but feel a mix of surprise and curiosity about the buzz surrounding NRG right now. Whispers are turning into reality with speculation that they might be benching their latest recruit and the head coach – all after our very first tournament of the season! It’s left many in the community scratching our heads, trying to make sense of such a move so early on.

It seems there were issues within the team, so NRG decided to part ways with Verno and bonkar ahead of the initial stage in 2025. Their goal is to accumulate Championship Points during this phase and secure a spot at Masters Toronto.

As I write this, there’s barely a month remaining before we reach Stage 1. Not long after the announcement of their benching, NRG unveiled their new lineup. The former coach of 100 Thieves, Mikes, is joining forces with brawk, a standout Challengers player who’s making the move from Shopify Rebellion.

A statement from NRG’s Chief Gaming Officer

Following the announcement about Verno and bonkar being taken off NRG’s main team, NRG Jaime, the organization’s Chief Gaming Officer, added his thoughts on the matter. It is important to note that both players remain members of the organization, but they are currently listed as inactive and not part of the starting lineup.

The primary concern discussed was a lack of unity within the team. Despite aiming to compete for global titles, they simply weren’t able to deliver. Here is a portion of Jamie’s commentary on the matter:

[Jamie’s commentary] “The team’s performance has been underwhelming due to a significant lack of unity and cohesion. We expected them to excel on an international stage, but their results have fallen short.

Securing victories in SEN City and SOOP may have postponed the problems, but they didn’t solve them entirely. With the team’s dynamics deteriorating, maintaining the same lineup of 5 players and head coach wasn’t viable anymore.

NRG jaime, Chief Gaming Officer

As a gamer, I’d suggest this: “I’ve got more details on Jaime’s X account about the situation with NRG. People were really hyped about their team because they won tournaments off-season. It was tough for the gaming community to accept the change when they benched Verno and bonkar.

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2025-02-16 22:11

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