You're only 18, but you've already made a name for yourself in professional CS:GO. What does CS mean to you? What place does it hold in your life?

CS is number one in my life. I dedicate myself to it every day and try to improve day by day. I don't really know what I'd do without CS. It was my childhood dream, and now it's becoming a reality, but I need to continue working every day.

What do you like most about CS:GO? Is it the game itself or the competition?

I like the competitive process the most, dominating the opponent and showing good teamwork.

Tell us a bit about yourself. Where were you born? At what age did you start playing CS? How did you decide you wanted to become a professional CS:GO player?

I was born in Odessa. I became familiar with Counter-Strike at the age of eight with version 1.6. We went to my dad's friend's birthday party, and his son was playing some fast cup games there. I really liked it and wanted to play too. At first, my parents didn't react positively to this, but over time they allowed it, and every day it became more and more addictive to me. I devoted all my free time to it. I started playing CS:GO in 2016.

Are your parents supportive of your decision to devote your life to playing computer games now?

Now they are actually supportive. Every time we have matches, they watch them. They even know the positions, maps, teams, and players now. So they are fully invested in the game now, but it was difficult at first due to school. They used to say I should focus on my studies, but I still pursued my goal.

How did you come up with your nickname? The only thing I could find is that "rinkle" in English means "to wrinkle."

I also saw a translation that it means "wrinkle," but in reality, I wasn't inspired by anything in particular. I was playing a rating match on Nuke and sitting on a rock, and the name r1nkle popped into my head. The "1" in the nickname might have come from s1mple, but otherwise, it just came to me while playing on Nuke.

Which tier-1 snipers do you compare yourself to? Do you watch anyone's demos?

At the moment, I compare myself to three snipers - s1mple, ZywOo, and sh1ro. Sometimes I watch demos of other players to find new tricks and keep up with the snipers' meta.

Related: "I started to listen to players' opinions more”: Interview with Monte's LMBT after the team’s success at RMR CQ

Your performance was noted by FaZe Clan player ropz. He chose you as a young and promising player and also stated that you could make it into the top 20 players in the world, according to HLTV this year. Do you think this is an achievable goal, or is it still too early?

I think it's an achievable goal. I already know how to do it, how to achieve good results with my team. The most important thing is to think about Counter-Strike every day, live and breathe it, and give it my all. That's the most important thing, and then everything will work out.

In a recent interview, Kane said that you or Ganginho could become s1mple's successor in NAVI. What do you think about this? Do you see yourself in NAVI in, say, five years?

Honestly, I don't think about that. At the moment, my goal is to break into the tier-1 scene with B8. Right now, I'm not thinking about the future. I'm fully focused on winning with B8.

Last October, Hkta left the team. How was it for you to say goodbye to the captain, with whom you played for almost all your time on the pro scene?

It wasn't easy. The decision was made right after the RMR in Malta, when we lost. We parted on a good note, no one got mad. I wish him all the best in his career.

How did you come to the decision that the team needed changes and why specifically at the captain position?

At some point, everyone thought that we needed fresh blood and decided to replace Nikita.

OWNER returned to the team. Did he become the new IGL? What structural changes have occurred in the team?

Yes, he became the new captain and our gameplay changed fundamentally, as did our team's vision of the game. Now, not only he is responsible for everything, but everyone can suggest their own ideas.

How is the training process structured in B8?

We wake up at 10 a.m. every day. We have an hour for warm-up: to talk, shoot bots, and so on. On some days, when we have map analysis, we have theory. It can last an hour, two, or three, depending on what the coach thinks is necessary. After that, we play as many scrims as possible. Sometimes we replace scrims with official matches on ESEA.

In a comment to HLTV, ropz mentioned that FaZe Clan and B8 Esports played a lot of scrims in 2022. How were the training sessions against FaZe? Was it difficult?

We never paid attention to who we were playing against. They were the number one team in the world at the time. We just worked on our strategies and tried to see what worked against them. In some matches, we closed them out very well. Of course, most of the time, they closed us out. (laughs)

With whom else from tier-1 teams do you regularly practice?

We play with other tier-1 teams, but not as often as with FaZe.

I saw your blog from Serbia. How important is it to devote time not only to playing CS, but also to physical preparation and working with a psychologist?

To be honest, all of this will work when you reach a high level. It doesn't matter if you are putting together some mix. But yes, we have sports and psychology when needed. Such activities help us keep ourselves in shape, come to training fresh, and not deteriorate mentally.

Are you living together now or separately?

I've been in Poland for nine months already. I moved here when I was still 17. And I'm still here. The other guys moved to a boot camp in the Kyiv region with electricity and internet.

When was the last time you saw your teammates?

Since the guys are at boot camp, they spend every day together, and I haven't seen them for a long time. Before the RMR, we should have a joint boot camp with everyone, where we'll meet up and chill.

Before the last RMR, you had a boot camp in Serbia. How much did it boost the team's game? Did it help achieve a better result than you predicted before the start of the competition?

Yes, 100% it helped. Because during the boot camp, we felt each other very strongly, worked a lot on chemistry in the team, and started to understand each other without words. We did everything together, and it gave a very strong boost to the RMR.

In 2023, you had fewer official matches than most other teams from the same closed RMR qualifier. Was it a deliberate decision to take time to prepare for the RMR or were there no invites yet?

After the RMR, we struggled to find a replacement for Hkta, and when we finally found OWNER, massive power outages occurred throughout Ukraine. The guys had no power for 8-12 hours a day, and when the power was on, it was at different times for everyone. Under such conditions, we couldn't train properly. We tried to come up with solutions, but nothing worked. We were basically AFK for two months, and no one was practicing except for me. As a result, we lost our ranking, the player situation was uncertain, everyone was in limbo, and there were no invites. We started training with a new player about a month ago and then made it to the RMR.

You made it to the RMR again, playing almost the maximum number of maps. After a few days, can you say that it was difficult to start the qualification, or were your opponents just too tough? Or was it all due to the unpredictability of the BO1 format?

If we talk about the entire qualification and preparation, we had very little time. Plus, a new player with a very important role in the team. Our play style also changed drastically, making it difficult to absorb everything and fix all the mistakes before the start of the qualification. We played in limbo. Thank God we made it.

If we specifically talk about the closed qualifier, yes, we started 0-2. We suffered a painful comeback against HAVU on the Ancient map because we played poorly on the CT side. That caused us to struggle in the next game, but we managed to come back against IKLA, LDLC, and Tricked in a BO3.

You can read more about how Cover.gg forms the rating of players at the link.

A little bit about the match against IKLA. You have several guys from the former Esports Club Kyiv on your team. Did that affect the match in any way? Perhaps you had a special motivation?

We just wanted to win and prove that we were ready to make it to the RMR even with such minimal preparation. However, that match was super fun. Both teams made a lot of silly mistakes on the third map, but we were able to come out on top in the end.

On RMR before IEM Rio Major 2022 in the match for the Major slot, you lost to GamerLegion. What did the team lack at the time? Was it just the lineup?

There were no particular gameplay moments that we lost ourselves. I think we just didn't approach the match the right way. In all the previous matches, we were very emotional, shouting and celebrating round and clutch victories. But for the last match, we decided to approach it calmly, and that's what ruined us. On the first map, we became very closed off, lost, and then just fell apart.

You landed in Group A for the upcoming RMR. Among your opponents are such famous teams as NAVI, FaZe, and the champions of the previous Major, Outsiders. Who would you like to play against, and who would you prefer to avoid? Which match are you looking forward to the most?

Of course, I would like to play against NAVI. If we continue to train as hard and fix our mistakes, and we would have enough time for that, then we could certainly beat NAVI. There are no teams that I wouldn't want to play against. I believe that with sufficient preparation and good gameplay, we can beat everyone.

How do you assess your chances of qualifying for the Major?

Personally, I believe that our chances are high. We have a very good group. And in general, everything changes a lot in the team, our understanding of the game, and so on. I think we will show a worthy result.

I would like to say to the viewers and fans that if we lose, don't get angry. Thank you very much for your support before each match and tournament. It is very much appreciated.