Jacky "Stewie2K" Yip has announced his return to professional esports, cutting ties with Evil Geniuses to become a free agent.
Stewie2K leaves Evil Geniuses
The 25-year-old player has spent the past eight months as a VALORANT streamer, following his departure from Evil Geniuses' CS:GO team. In his tweet announcing his status as a free agent, Stewie2K hinted that he could be open to returning to the CS:GO scene.
"It’s been a long 7 years being contracted & now I’m officially a free agent," said Stewie2K. "I’d like to thank EG for the time and support while I was there.
"It’s been a rough time period away from competing but I was also able to regather myself and streaming have [sic] been a crucial part of it. Thanks to the fans who continued to support my stream and me. Streaming kept me grounded and I will continue to push my streams. However during this down period, grinding Valorant brought the competitiveness back and I’m ready to compete in general.
"Being away from CS doesn’t mean I closed the doors. I’m ready to grind, always loved it, and if the time comes where I need to grind again and compete at the highest level I’m ready to do so."
Stewie2K's status as a free agent brings his time with Evil Geniuses to an end, after he joined the team in January 2022 alongside his former Cloud9 teammates William "RUSH" Wierzba and Timothy "autimatic" Ta.
Unfortunately, he didn't last for long on Evil Geniuses' active roster. His time with the team was marked by disappointments at multiple events, a failure to qualify for PGL Major Antwerp, and the public falling out between coach Damien "maLeK" Marcel and in-game leader Paolo "EVY" Berbudeau.
After he stepped away from the CS:GO scene, Stewie2K shared his feelings about maLeK, revealing during a live stream that “the only mistake I feel like I made was teaming up with a coach that I never believed in.
"This guy basically threw in a threat that he's going to prove to me that I was throwing scrims and stuff, I don't know what else to say. You can ask any of my ex-teammates, any of my past coaches, they'll never say any of the things these guys have said."
It remains to be seen if Stewie2K will make his return to the CS:GO scene, perhaps in anticipation of the upcoming Counter-Strike 2, or if he will attempt to join the VALORANT professional scene. Should he return to Counter-Strike, you'll be able to follow along with his future career via our upcoming CS:GO match schedule. And with IEM Rio 2023 coming up on the horizon, there's never been a better time to sign up for a Luckbox account to boost your CS:GO betting experience with a free 100% bonus!
