The Brazilian scene is potentially in the most competitive era it has ever been in, with FURIA, Imperial, paiN, and MIBR all making waves internationally and going on great runs. Well, maybe not FURIA, but that doesn’t matter right now. 

One of those teams, MIBR, recently won an event at ESL Challenger Melbourne, largely thanks to their star Felipe “insani” Yuji and his incredible performances during the event.

Although they couldn’t carry that momentum into CCT Global Finals 2024, it is impossible to say that MIBR aren’t a team on the rise, so we spoke to their captain Raphael “exit” Lacerda about what it will take for the team to become the number one team in Brazil. 

“We're on the right track and we're making our own path”

Bo3: Take us through your first game against BetBoom - map one was close but then the next two maps were 13-0, 13-1, what happened in those two maps? Did the veto go differently than you expected?

exit: The Vertigo map against BetBoom was very good for us, we destroyed them on the T side. We didn't bring that confidence or the aim to Nuke though, and we lost a lot of important rounds we shouldn't have. Our economy wasn't good and we needed to eco a lot, so it wasn't a good map for us. We need to step up on that map for sure.

Bo3: What about the game against BIG? The maps were a lot closer so how were you working through the series with it being so back and forth?

exit: It was a crazy game, for sure, and it was hard to play against them. We knew their playstyle would be very different to BetBoom, they play a much slower style, but I think our communication was much better in that series and it worked for us. 

Unfortunately, we couldn't close out Ancient and ended up losing it in overtime, but we knew that we were playing way better than we did against BetBoom so Anubis and Vertigo were a lot better for us and helped us get the win.

Bo3: There are a lot of top teams in CCT and you guys have been on the rise yourselves, what does the event mean to you?

exit: It means a lot. We were saying to each other before the matches that we need to prove we belong here in tier one and, of course, we need to improve in a lot of aspects but we're on the right track and we're making our own path. This kind of event is the type of event where we need to get some good wins against good teams in order to get to the level we want to get.

“[saffee and drop] needed to adapt a lot after coming from FURIA”

Bo3: It's been roughly a year since you picked up saffee and drop - how has the team developed in that year?

exit: They're a lot used to the playstyle now, they needed to adapt a lot after coming from FURIA who play very differently from us. I think we are still improving daily, and we still need to keep doing so, but we're getting there.

I like both of them a lot and they've been playing very well recently, I hope it can continue and we can keep up our momentum. 

Bo3: A more recent change to the team was within the coaching department, what has that change done behind the scenes?

exit: BIT and nak have a great chemistry, they have known each other for a long time and they really respect each other. Behind me, I now have two excellent coaches, two people who know a lot about CS, and that is helping me a lot.

nak helps me more with the mental stuff and BIT is still doing the work he is doing before, so I think we have a strong coaching lineup. 

Bo3: insani is the big star on your team and has been very hyped up internationally, how has he changed as a person since he joined the team and got more used to the professional aspect of CS?

exit: Last year when we played at Katowice, it was his first official tournament with us. It's a big tournament of course, so before the game, we told him that it's the same game that he's always played, he told us after the first game that he realised that was true when he got a headshot within the first rounds and knew that he'd be able to play exactly the same way he does at home.

He's a good guy, he always listens to us when we say something to him. He's very good at the game and he's extremely dedicated, but the most important thing is that he's a good person who always makes sure he will listen to the improvements people tell him to make. He's becoming a great player and I'm very happy for him.

Bo3: Has it been difficult to keep a hold of him?

exit: I don't have too much information about it, to be honest, stuff like that is kept to management. Maybe some teams have enquired about him, but as I said, he's very important to us and MIBR is a big organisation so they don't want to lose their best player.

“The best Brazilian teams right now are all at the same level”

Bo3: The Brazilian scene is in an interesting state right now; FURIA is presented as the premium team but they've been bad for a while, then you have yourselves, Imperial, and paiN all going on great runs occasionally, how are you all viewing the domestic scene? Does it seem like there is a possibility for one of the other teams to become the new premium team in Brazilian CS?

exit: The best Brazilian teams right now are all at the same level, and I think Brazil has never had a moment like this. There's a lot of fire in our scene right now, a lot of players who are coming into the top level, and I'm very happy about that.

I don't think that we have a 'best team' right now in the sense that we used to have FURIA in that place, but it's good that we have a lot of teams that can go and perform at these tournaments. 

I guess all of these teams need to play more of these types of tournaments at the tier one level, and we need to prove ourselves in those tournaments because it's everyone's dream to beat great teams and win a tier one tournament.

Bo3: Do you think experience is all it will take for one of the teams to take the top spot then? Outside of FURIA, the three other teams often seem to take it in turns to qualify for these international events, so to speak.

exit: I think so, yes. We need the experience so that we can prove ourselves in tier one, and then when we do that we can see who is the best team in the scene.

Bo3: What are your hopes for the rest of the year? Is it to become the best team in Brazil in the remainder of the year?

exit: I hope so, yes. I hope that we keep evolving as we are right now and I believe we're doing a good job towards that. We'll need to step up to go higher on the rankings, but I think we can do that.