Bwipo explains how FlyQuest’s LCS roster could change NA forever
Marv Watson/Riot GamesDexerto caught up with FlyQuest’s Bwipo, the best top laner in the LCS, to ask what kept him motivated through his break from pro play last year and why he’s back stronger than ever. He’s got faith this team can shed NA’s worst traits and put the LCS back on the map.
After FlyQuest invested heavily in putting together the best LCS team they could last year only to fall short in 2023, LCS fans were a bit trepidatious when it came to putting faith in the organization again for 2024. But they’ve found their winning roster.
With their decisive win over Cloud9, FlyQuest are looking like the best team in the LCS, and Gabriël ‘Bwipo’ Rau is a huge part of that momentum. Widely regarded as the best top laner in the region by his fellow pros and most analysts, he’s come back from his break to dominate the league without missing a step.
Bwipo’s regained much of his confidence as a pro player, to the point where he believes FlyQuest has a chance of righting the wrongs other LCS teams have had before them and is confident going into MSI. It’s been a while since NA did well at an international, but that could very well change in 2024.
FlyQuest is bringing Bwipo back to his career peak
When Bwipo sat down to speak with us following their one-sided win over Cloud9, he was beaming. It’s easy to see why considering just how resounding his redemption arc has been and where he is now.
“I did actually struggle with self-doubt,” Bwipo admitted. “I did wonder like, am I really – I always knew I was good enough. But I think, deep down, I felt like I wasn’t clearly the best. And, because I wasn’t clearly better, that made me doubt whether I was actually better. Does that make sense?”
Bwipo clarified that he wouldn’t be satisfied until he knew he could be better than every other top laner in the region and keep pushing himself past his 2022 showing on Team Liquid, a showing that he didn’t want to leave as his last mark on the LCS.
“Better laner, better teamfighter, better at making plays. Better at everything, just in general. Every situation one walks into, I come out on top. I don’t think I was able to display that in 2022, which is why I think people in 2023 didn’t recognize me as great. This year, I set out to change that, you know? Make sure that people recognize that, to get the better of me, you have to make a significant effort.”
And, though Bwipo’s feeling good about his play at the moment, he spent much more time in this interview praising his teammates and them granting him the freedom to play patiently, confidently, and with purpose in every match.
“Even when I make mistakes, I’m confident that my team is stalling and we’re looking for the same angles together. And that is what I think has enabled me to play much like a lot of players and fans will remember me playing way back in the day on Fnatic. I think that I’ve always tried to catch up to that performance, in 2018, 2019, 2020. I think a lot of people always considered those to be my highest years, and they absolutely were. And I think that kind of… that patience that I displayed where I could do nothing for 15 minutes, and then the next three minutes, I might make two or three game-winning plays in a row.
“I think that’s exactly the Bwipo that showed up today. And, even when I try to make those game-winning plays – I might make a game-losing play, I might put the game in jeopardy. But, despite that, I still have confidence in my teammates, and I’m able to play my best game,” he said.
Bwipo’s time away from pro play changed his perspective in many ways, most of which have to do with the way he views his role on a team.
“Let’s say I want to win LCS, so my goal is to win LCS. And then that’s the only goal I set for myself. That’s a very useless goal. Because how do you define winning LCS? What are the steps I need to take to win LCS? There’s a lot, and you can make up a lot of different things that could be the reason. However, fundamentally, my goal should just be to play well individually. Because, if I just play well individually, pieces will fall into place.
“I made my time in Team Liquid so much about winning the next series, winning the next game, and all my decision making when it comes to preparation was geared towards trying to cheese wins, and like, you know — ‘How do I have the easiest time winning on the day?’ Rather than spending my energy and focus on being the best player I can be individually because that is ultimately what’s going to give my team the best chances of winning,” he said.
Bwipo believes one FlyQuest member is fixing NA
Though Bwipo didn’t go out of his way to throw NA under the bus, he does believe the region has its fair share of issues that are keeping it from flourishing internationally. This isn’t a new problem, but Bwipo claims FlyQuest has an actual solution: Kacper ‘Inspired’ Słoma.
“I had a really strong feeling that Inspired especially was going to make sure that people are going to play up to a really high standard, higher than what NA sets. So, I think that’s like a number one trait that makes success in NA, is when you can level up past NA without getting dragged down by some of the bad habits that region tends to have. And I’m not trying to belittle the region, I think there are a lot of players that play individually well. However, as a team, there are a lot of team fighting concepts and general micro gameplay that aren’t clear enough. What I mean by that is, like, when is your opportunity to try and play the game? When are you supposed to defend? When are you supposed to attack? Whenever you’re supposed to attack, I think there’s a lot of hesitation in the region. And I think it makes the game much slower as a result, which is what we’re used to seeing from the LCS.
“However, I think FlyQuest and Team Liquid have made a huge effort to try and kind of beat that standard and push further, which is why a lot of people, including us at FlyQuest, believe Team Liquid is actually the second-best team in the LCS rather than Cloud9,” he claimed.
Bwipo had praise for all of his teammates during our time together, and he claimed that all of them were playing exceptionally well, even conceding that he thought Jensen may be playing even better than him right now. But Inspired is the one he’s been pointing to as the man who’s got FlyQuest into a good enough spot to win a championship.
And, now that FlyQuest have locked in their spot for MSI regardless of how the split shakes out, Bwipo’s feeling extremely confident in the team’s chances.
Stefan Wisnoski/Riot Games“I mean, there was a point in my career where I wasn’t sure if I was going to make it back, you know? I realized that playing internationally is what makes me really want to come back and [play again]. International events are what really motivates me to push further beyond, and getting to put my foot in the door, once again, is — It’s just a huge privilege. Like, since day one of me trying to play competitively, it’s just because I watched the best players in the world play and thought… ‘I can do that.’ You know? It’s gonna be hard when I have to put in a s***load of effort to get there, but I can do that. Every time I get to go international, that’s an opportunity to prove that I can do that.
“That is what justifies the sacrifices I have made in my life, and my family has made, to allow me to pursue this job. So for me, it is just, it’s insanely meaningful, more so even than winning a title or playing nationally. That’s just the way my brain works, I guess. But, having ADHD, the reward structures are a bit different from other normal people. So, for some reason, international events just… They just trigger certain drive in my brain, and it makes me want to work so much harder, and really prove that I can be the absolute best.”