Cigarettes leaves Paper Rex

Movements continue in the VALORANT competitive scene, currently in one of the most active offseasons in recent years. This time, Patiphan “CigaretteS” Posri decided not to renew his contract with Paper Rex, so the Thai is now exploring his options to join a new team.

This becomes a somewhat unexpected move, considering Paper Rex’s prominence and great season in 2023. Recall that the team won the VCT Pacific League, finished third in the Masters Tokyo, and were runners-up in the VALORANT Champions 2023. As a result, the fact that the team failed to retain one of its players is something we did not expect.

Paper Rex announce that CigaretteS is not renewing his contract with the organization

Through a post on their Twitter account, Paper Rex announced that CigaretteS decided not to renew his contract with the team for the 2024 VCT season.

With the conclusion of VALORANT Champions 2023, Patiphan ‘Cgrs’ Posri/Kla has decided not to renew his contract and will depart Paper Rex to pursue new endeavors.

Kla has worked with the team throughout the 2022 Off-Season, debuting with Paper Rex at the Riot ONE Invitational… pic.twitter.com/F6L8Ezozxd

— Paper Rex (@pprxteam) September 11, 2023

All of us who followed the VCT Pacific League throughout 2023 noticed that Paper Rex had to make several changes to its VALORANT starting lineup in the middle of the season. However, the players’ talent allowed the team to star in international events and, most importantly, win the VCT Pacific League. In addition, Paper Rex surprised everyone by qualifying for the VALORANT Champions Grand Final, but, in the end, they lost to Evil Geniuses.

PRX in the VALORANT Champions

There is no doubt that the odds were not in PRX’s favor in the VALORANT Champions despite winning the VCT Pacific League and finishing third in the Masters Tokyo. However, the team beat KRÜ Esports and EDward Gaming in the Group Stage to qualify undefeated for the playoffs.

Then, in the definitive stage, the team’s level continued to rise, as they managed to beat LOUD (VALORANT Champions 2022 champions) in the Upper Bracket semifinals and, finally, defeated EG in the Upper Bracket Final. However, PRX could not beat the North Americans in the tournament’s Grand Final rematch and had to settle for second place.

THE WINNING MOMENT! @EvilGeniuses #VALORANTChampions pic. twitter.com/zHBv8eLqOe

— VALORANT Champions Tour (@ValorantEsports) August 26, 2023

CigarreteS did not play recently with PRX

The last time we saw CigarreteS play in an official VCT match was at the VCT Masters Tokyo 2023, where his team finished in third place. The Thai player did not have the best stats in this tournament, but remember that the player arrived at the last minute after the Russian Ilya “something” Petrov could not attend the tournament.

Similarly, CigarreteS thanked all those who supported him while he was part of Paper Rex in recent months through the farewell video on Twitter.

The VCT is in its off-season stage, but this does not mean that we will not have actions and emotions. Riot Games announced a calendar that includes dozens of tournaments until the start of VCT 2024, so teams will want to close their squads as soon as possible to prepare themselves best for the start of the next season.

Header: Colin Young-Wolff | Riot Games