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FlyQuest benched aliStair

CS212/20 17:56

The Australian team is looking for an international AWPer in the off-season transfer window.

FlyQuest has announced that they have decided to bench Alistair "aliStair" Johnston. This is the first change to the Oceanic team since they joined the North American organization in March 2024.

With aliStair on the bench, the Australian team is now looking for a new shooter. According to information from HLTV, FlyQuest will follow TALON and enter the international market to find a replacement for the vacant AWP position.

This decision was made after the team had a disappointing performance at the Shanghai Major, where they were eliminated in the opening round. FlyQuest started off promisingly, overcoming Complexity and BIG in BO1 matches, but then lost in BO3 series against Liquid, paiN and MIBR.

Overall, this has been a difficult and disappointing season for the Australian team. After showing some positive signs in the first two tournaments under FlyQuest, they experienced a series of declines with only one win in four international tournaments (IEM Dallas, Esports World Cup, IEM Cologne and ESL Pro League 20).

A win at ESL Challenger Atlanta brought much-needed optimism and confidence into the season finale, as aliStair received widespread praise for its stellar performance in the final against BIG. "My teammates always encouraged me, never blamed or blamed me," he shared after the match when asked about criticism. "I'm happy that I could give a good performance for them today."

FlyQuest then struggled at Asia RMR, where they lost to TALON in the first round and just barely avoided defeat to DRILLAS in the qualifying match. At the Major, they were eliminated by MIBR after a series of only winning a total of nine rounds.

"Alistair has demonstrated an incredible drive to become the best version of himself during his time at FlyQuest," said FlyQuest President and CEO of Gaming Christopher "PapaSmithy" Smith. "I have never met a player who is so focused on perfecting both in and out of the game towards victory.

"Without Ali's brilliance, we wouldn't have been the first Australian team to win an international title since 2017 at DreamHack Atlanta, nor would we have been able to return to the Major after losing in Copenhagen.

"Even though we choose to go in a different direction today, Alistair will always be an important part of FlyQuest's CS2 history, and we wish him the best in his next journey."