I'll open with a confession: I'm just a regular player who yells at my monitor when a smoke misses by two pixels. So when paiN Gaming benched David 'dav1deuS' Tapia and Franco 'dgt' Garcia right after the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025, I felt that weird mix of 'I saw this coming' and 'wait, already?' It's like watching a teammate get kicked mid-match — harsh, but sometimes necessary.
Cast your mind back to the BLAST Austin Major. That was paiN Gaming at their absolute best. They cracked the top four. I remember thinking, 'Okay, these guys are not here to make friends.' biguzera and the squad looked like they had finally figured out how to turn controlled chaos into wins. The map pool seemed clever. The synergy was real. For a moment, the Brazilian project felt like a genuine dark horse for every big event.
Then the second half of 2025 arrived, and someone clearly misplaced the script. paiN failed to reach the BLAST Open London playoffs. They made early exits at IEM Cologne 2025 and IEM Chengdu 2025. Suddenly, the brave CS2 I had praised became a coin flip. It was not just bad luck. It was a pattern. The team's Valve Regional Standing slipped from 11th in February to 15th by December. For an org with real ambitions, that is a gut punch. A few spots may not sound like much, but in the VRS world it can mean worse seeds, tougher brackets, and more sleepless nights.
Here is a quick look at the rollercoaster:
| Event/Period | Result |
|---|---|
| BLAST Austin Major | Top 4 ✅ |
| BLAST Open London | No playoffs ❌ |
| IEM Cologne 2025 | Early exit ❌ |
| IEM Chengdu 2025 | Early exit ❌ |
| BLAST Rivals Fall 2025 | Semifinals ✅ |
| Budapest Major 2025 | 1-3, eliminated in third stage ❌ |
That semifinal run at BLAST Rivals Fall 2025 gave everyone hope, including me. On paper, the Budapest Major looked like a chance to reset the narrative. paiN started from the third stage and beat 3DMAX confidently in their first match. I thought, 'Great, here we go.' Then G2 Esports and NAVI decided to play like G2 and NAVI. They crushed the Brazilians. In the fourth round, B8 completed the misery with a 0:2 loss. Final record: 1-3. Prize money: about $20,000. For a roster that reached a Major top four, that is not just disappointing. That is the kind of result that makes an org open the transfer market app at 2 a.m.
So now dav1deuS and dgt are out of the starting lineup. Two slots are open. And oh boy, the community is already doing what it does best: naming every free agent with a pulse. People are spamming 'insani please' across forums. There is also real hype around vsm, if you trust the insiders. I won't pretend to know who the perfect signing is. But I do know that changing two players will not fix everything. Tactics, the role of coach rikz, and the way this mostly Brazilian roster communicates all need a serious look. Some fans are joking with 'tier3 incoming' or blaming some mysterious 'root cause snow.' Honestly, the problem is probably less poetic: the team simply stopped doing the little things that made Austin special.
Here is my humble player take: one Major run does not make you stable. You need people who can deliver in February, March, and November, not just one dream week. paiN must learn that lesson fast. The esports transfer market is wide open right now. Several teams are expected to shuffle rosters after the Budapest Major to prepare for the new season. The 2026 calendar kicks off with BLAST Bounty Winter from January 13 to 28. That gives paiN a few weeks to sign new players, fix the mood, and maybe convince me not to throw my headset during their next match.
The big question is balance. Do they go for experienced names who can calm things down? Or do they gamble on fresh blood with huge upside? Fans clearly want the Austin paiN back. So do I. But I also want them to understand that replacing dav1deuS and dgt is only step one. Step two is rebuilding trust in the system. Step three is proving it over an entire season, not just one event.
For now, we wait. The transfer window is hot. The Brazilian scene always has surprises. And if paiN actually signs one of the hyped names, I will be right back here writing another overly emotional take. Maybe with fewer pixel smoking complaints. Maybe.