Shift’s 10 biggest rumours of 2020

Written By Ben Hurst
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It’s been a pretty big year for everyone here at Shift. Since starting back in April, we’ve broken some of the biggest pieces of news this year, including roster moves, tryouts, org changes and more. Here are the Shift team’s top ten biggest rumours of the year.

#10: Ronaky signs with Team Liquid

Just five days after he was officially released by FC Barcelona, world championship quarter-finalist Aldin “Ronaky” Hodzic had already signed with a struggling Team Liquid side. After surprisingly failing to reach the Fall Major with some disappointing regional performances, Francesco “kuxir97” Cinquemani had been removed just one day prior after holding his spot on the lineup for five years.

#9: Version1 trying out Forky and Comm

Ask any North American player what the one question they hate being asked is and your answer will most likely be something along the lines of ‘what are your thoughts on Forky?’ Having made his name in the 1v1 and freestyling scenes, upon becoming eligible for RLCS competition he was a hot topic among many in the community. In fact, after Alexandre “AxB” Bellemare was apparently off of the roster, he almost ended up on Version1’s star-studded lineup. Also trying out with the ex-Cloud9 duo was Robert “Comm” Kyser, himself a Rival Series veteran with two seasons of experience under his belt. Ultimately, Comm would secure the spot on V1’s lineup and quickly made a strong impression as V1 took down both Spacestation Gaming and Kansas City Pioneers in the Winter Split’s first regional.

#8: Dignitas in talks with Rix.GG over ApparentlyJack

Until the early months of 2020, Jack “ApparentlyJack” Benton was unknown to the vast majority. A top-three run at the Rising Stars Supernova LAN in Paris (alongside now-teammate Joris “Joreuz” Robben) put him on the map and strong runs on Stormtroopers ended up with the team being signed by British organisation Rix.GG. Although the newly-signed trio missed out on the Fall Major, top teams had taken notice and soon enough Dignitas were in contact. The world champions, having rebuilt their roster around captain Jos “ViolentPanda” van Meurs, were replacing Yukeo after a dismal Fall Split. In the end, Joreuz’ former teammate was the replacement they ended up needing to win their first title since March in the second Rocket League Summit.

#7: WondaMike joins eUnited

In the off-season after Season 9, eUnited had already made one roster change. Bringing in Michael “Memory” Moss in Raul “Roll Dizz” Diaz’ place, their results stayed roughly in line with the previous season. However, the North American organisation was looking for more. Thanks to some impressive Rival Series performances earlier in the year, Michael “WondaMike” Santoriello was on eU’s radar, and ultimately they made the move shortly before RLCS X kicked off. Memory would actually go on to see plenty of success himself, planting himself at the top of NA after rejoining his old teammates on the Kansas City Pioneers.

#6: Scrub trying out for Giants

Vodafone Giants had an explosive start to the RLCS X season. Firmly establishing themselves as a top-four roster in Europe, the Spanish side placed strongly in just about every Grid and regional event. But not all was well in the Giants camp, as Shift reported star player Damian “Tox” Schäfer’s imminent departure from the roster. Although Kyle “Scrub Killa” Robertson was one of the first to be given a tryout, it was ex-FC Barcelona third Amine “Itachi” Benayachi who would claim the vacant spot as the Giants continued their strong season into the Winter Split.

#5: Cloud9 in talks to acquire Firstkiller

Since signing The Muffin Men back in 2017, Cloud9 had made just one change to their Rocket League side - bringing in recently-retired Jayson “Fireburner” Nunez as a coach. With a failed attempt to bring in Colby “hockser” James to replace Kyle “Torment” Storer following a dismal Season 8 run already falling through, another change was attempted when C9 bombed out of the Season 9 regional championship. Rogue’s young prodigy Jason “firstkiller” Corral had put in a strong performance in his debut season and Cloud9 attempted a transfer. However, put off by Rogue’s high buyout, the Season 6 world champions would ultimately back away from the move.

#4: Scrub trying out for Singularity

He certainly likes his tryouts, doesn’t he? The second rumour on the list featuring Scrub Killa, this one ended up coming to fruition (albeit after the initially-reported Spring Series qualifiers) as the Scot replaced Godsmilla on Singularity’s Rocket League lineup for the first of two times this year. After his ugly departure from mousesports, Scrub found success on the SNG lineup, signing with David Beckham’s Guild Esports before ultimately being replaced by David “Deevo” Morrow.

#3: Kronovi departing Rogue

The mountain himself, Cameron “Kronovi” Bills is easily one of the most recognisable players in the Rocket League scene. Having made a name for himself early on as one of the game’s top players (and picking up a world championship along the way), his removal from an underperforming Rogue roster was a surprising one to be sure. Additionally, his replacement by ex-Plot Twist player Alexandre “Taroco” Reis Pedrogam was revealed here, four days before both moves were officially announced.

#2: Cloud9 leaving Rocket League

For almost three years, Cloud9 had been a permanent fixture at the top of the Rocket League world. With a world championship and several major titles under their belt, the veteran trio (having not made a single change across those three years) was in for a shock when Cloud9’s imminent departure from the esport was revealed. With Torment and Jesus “Gimmick” Parra sticking together and joining Version1, the stage was set for Mariano “SquishyMuffinz” Arruda to make the leap back to the top of North America.

#1: Squishy replacing Turbo on NRG

My, my, my, what a bombshell to end on. Due to Season 9’s LAN being cancelled, NRG were still the reigning world champions in July. However, after their disastrous Season 8 resulted in the team nearly being relegated, G2 Esports struck back with a vengeance. Winning five events in a row (including the RLCS regional championship) left a salty taste in NRG’s mouth, and adding the game’s most popular professional player was certainly one way to recover their lost form. NRG brought in Squishy to replace four-time world champion Pierre “Turbopolsa” Silfver. Undoubtedly the biggest move of the year, Squishy’s signing ended up with NRG sticking at the top of NA. The new trio is currently sitting in third place in the RLCS X standings, barely behind Spacestation Gaming and Team Envy at the top.

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So, there you have it. Ten blockbuster moves over the course of just one year. It’s been a fantastic year for Shift, with many other equally-insane rumours being unearthed - what were your favourite rumours we reported on this year?

Ben Hurst

Journalist for various publications, Tournament Organiser for APL Esports, and Broadcaster for Top Blokes.

https://twitter.com/notblondemonkey
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