FNC Razork: "Elyoya was taunting me, saying, 'I can't believe my bald top laner was the only one with the balls to pick Nidalee'"

Iván "Razork" Martín Díaz and Javier "Elyoya" Prades Batalla, respective junglers of Fnatic and MAD Lions KOI in the LEC 2024 Season.

"In my opinion, Elyoya, Yike, and I are the three best junglers in Europe. Any of us can out-jungle the others. It’s just about having a good day."

With tickets to Munich punched, Fnatic is now preparing for yet another attempt at securing a title for the first time in six years. At the helm, Iván "Razork" Martín Díaz continues to lead the squad as they charge toward their final challenge in the LEC 2024 Season Finals before heading to the League of Legends 2024 World Championship. In an exclusive interview, the jungler discusses the jungle meta, facing MAD Lions KOI, Europe's best junglers, and more.

How do you feel after today's match, and were you expecting MAD Lions KOI to perform this strongly?

Razork: I was kind of expecting it to be a close series. I saw that people were putting us as the favorites. I thought we were going to win, but I knew MAD Lions KOI is actually a pretty strong team. So, I was expecting a lot of fights and intense moments. I didn't expect us to lose the fourth game; I thought we were going to close it out 3-1. But I also didn’t expect us to win the third game. It was just back-and-forth comebacks from both teams. I'm pretty happy that we ended up winning.

Were you ever worried at any point, or did you always believe you would win?

Razork: I think the third game was tough because we had a really strange composition that I didn’t like much. I thought it was going to be a hard one. But after we won the third game, I thought we were going to win 3-1.

We got a lead in the fourth game and I was pretty confident that we would close it out but then, we lost and I got a bit scared. We knew that we should have won that game and that we threw it pretty badly. But I stayed calm, focusing on that fifth game. We’ve played many game fives this year and usually do well.

The early game didn’t start well, and we were really behind, but we kept fighting and trying to make comeback plays. I think Oscarinin stepped up a lot. I’m not sure how we won, but we did.

Do you think Elyoya is one of the top junglers in Europe right now? He was struggling in recent splits, but now he's performing well. Do you see the conversation shifting from you and Yike to you and Elyoya as the top junglers in EU?

Razork: I think Elyoya wasn’t playing too well before. Maybe he wasn’t confident or something, but he was underperforming a lot. I know he’s a really good player and capable of much more. I think around 2-3 weeks ago, he started playing really well and got back to how he used to be. Right now, in my opinion, Elyoya is probably in the top 3 junglers. I’d say it’s me, Yike, and Elyoya. Any of us could out jungle the others depending on the game, champion, and meta. It’s just about having a good day. All three of us are very good, in my opinion, including myself.

Razork, preparing for his series against MDK. Credit: Wojciech Wandzel/Riot Games

Elyoya mentioned in his interview that he doesn't see MDK losing to G2 or Fnatic in Munich and suggested you should pick Nidalee against him in the finals. Do you have a response to that, and do you think MDK has what it takes to win the season finals?

Razork: He was taunting me in the chat, we were laughing a lot. We're good friends, and he was saying, "I can't believe my bald top laner was the only one with the balls to pick Nidalee. What about you? Pick her in Game 5." He was just taunting me. We didn’t see an opportunity to pick Nidalee, so we didn’t do it. But if he wins against G2 and makes it to the finals, maybe he’ll get the pleasure of seeing it in Game 5. We’ll see!

Fnatic has been in three finals this year but hasn’t secured a title yet, with struggles often linked to mental blocks, especially against G2. What will you do differently in the upcoming season finals in Munich to overcome this?

Razork: Yeah, it wasn’t very enjoyable to lose all three games in the final against G2, especially since we were ahead in all of them. We need to stay relaxed in stressful situations and be more patient because we were making rushed plays, which allowed G2 to come back. Personally, I don’t mind playing in front of big crowds, and Noah, who had some stress issues, is working hard on it. I think today he was very calm. If he keeps improving, I don’t think it will affect us much on a big stage or in the finals. Against G2 or any other teams, we need to remember that even if we’re behind, like today, we can always come back and win.

The jungle meta has been stagnant, with AP and supportive junglers like Ivern and Zyra dominating. With Worlds coming up and patch 14.17 changing AD midlaners, do you think the meta will shift or stay the same?

Razork: I think there might be some changes, but honestly, I’m not sure exactly what they’re planning. The buff and nerf list looked pretty big. I do feel the AD role is completely OP, and Riot needs to address that. They’ve nerfed some already, but not enough. Every game, there are AD champions in mid, sometimes even on top, and they dominate the ban list with 5 or 6 AD bans because they’re just broken. Riot should definitely do something because if the enemy has an AD champ in mid and you’re stuck with an AP champ, unless it’s someone strong like Azir, the AD champion is way better—scales better too, in my opinion.

Razork, taking home the victory with his team. Credit: Wojciech Wandzel/Riot Games

With the Worlds Swiss Stage being held in Berlin at the LEC studio this year, do you think the event will feel less special compared to previous international locations?

Razork: I think it will be less special. Worlds is always about wanting to win, but part of the excitement is traveling with your team. I've been to China, Korea, New York, and Mexico, and those experiences were really motivating. Playing in Europe is good, but it feels different when you're playing in the same studio where you compete all year. It’s always exciting to play against top players, though, so it will still be hype.

Do you have any final messages for Fnatic fans?

Razork: Yeah, it was a mega stressful series. I’m sorry you had to go through this. It wasn’t our intention, but we did what we could to make it entertaining. I hope we can bring the first title in a while for Fnatic next week.

Header Photo Credit: LEC Broadcast / Riot Games