Report: World champion Pyosik joining Team Liquid for LCS 2023

Another player from DRX’s roster is parting ways with the organization to join another team. According to investigative reporter Alejandro Gomis, Hong “Pyosik” Chang-hyeon will become the newest member of Team Liquid.

Pyosik will play as the team’s starting jungler in the upcoming League of Legends Championship Series. Team Liquid’s new roster is full of Korean-speaking players, with Park “Summit” Woo-tae joining the organization as the top laner after leaving FunPlus Phoenix.

The roster will also include the Australian player Harry “Haeri” Kan as the mid-laner and the American player Sean “Yeon” Sung as the ADC. Team Liquid has also confirmed that Jo “CoreJJ” Yong-in will be the starting support.

Pyosik’s career

Pyosik has been a professional player since 2019. He had been with DRX since the start of his career. Before becoming a professional player, he was a Grandmaster-level player with Kindred as his favorite champion.

He was invited into DRX’s academy team after the organization noticed him through his highlight clips on social media. He was later promoted to the main team with his debut in the 2019 KeSPA Cup.

The player had his first interview as a professional player with Inven Global in 2020. The player said he wanted to be an approachable player for fans. He also shared his main goal as a pro player.

“My goal is to win Worlds. I need to believe in myself, and I think it’s possible if we all do our best,” Pyosik said.

He fulfilled his dream this year by helping DRX win the World Championship after beating a fellow Korean team, T1. Despite the success, DRX’s main team members decided to go on their separate ways.

AD Carry Kim “Deft” Hyuk-kyu joined DAMWON Gaming, while mid-laner Kim “Zeka” Geon-woo and top laner Hwang “Kingen” Seong-hoon signed contracts with Hanwha Life Esports. The only one who remains with DRX is support Cho “BeryL” Geon-hee.

Pyosik revealed his decision to leave DRX in a stream, saying that his next team would have good work benefits and “a good environment for players.” Liquid General Manager Kang “Dodo” Jun-hyeok previously said that he planned to create the “hardest working environment” to promote the growth of the team’s young players.

Team Liquid will announce its official roster on Friday, December 2. The organization will also open an AMA on the official Liquid subreddit where fans can directly ask the team questions.

Bwipo fails to find new team

While Pyosik quickly found a new team, top laner Gabriël “Bwipo” Rau is the opposite. The Belgian-French player was a part of Team Liquid for the 2022 season. Although his contract has not expired, the organization has allowed him to find a new team for the next season.

On a Twitch stream, Bwipo revealed that he had a tough time during the off-season.

“I reached out to all 10 LCS teams, they did not want me,” Bwipo said.

Rau added he got a “great offer” from Team Vitality. However, he did not want to return to the EMEA region yet. He said he had given a verbal agreement but changed his mind afterward, saying he wanted to explore the LCS market first.

“Because I moved my whole life here because I expected to stay on Team Liquid,” Bwipo said.

“[This] was supposedly going to be the case going to this offseason too, but when push came to shove they decided to go into a different direction.”

Although Bwipo will not play in the Championship, the player will become a content creator for Team Liquid. He plans to grind solo and champion queues to prepare for the Summer Split.