Back in the grand finals of the League of Legends EMEA Championship (LEC), G2 Esports are now in a strong position to reclaim their throne — and they’re hoping for a rematch against Karmine Corp, should the team manage to climb back through the lower bracket. However, the finals are shaping up to be anything but easy, especially with a scenario eerily similar to the Winter Split: having won the upper bracket, G2 could once again fall short in the Finals. In an exclusive interview, the team’s jungler, Rudy “SkewMond” Semaan, reflects on qualifying for his very first international tournament, the current level of the LEC, the momentum of the lower bracket, and shares his thoughts on the All-Pro Team.

You’ve just qualified for your first international tournament. How does it feel to reach that milestone and to be heading into another final on top of that?

Rudy "SkewMond" Semaan: Honestly, it feels amazing. We’ve earned it with all the work we’ve put in since the end of the regular season. We gave it everything in scrims these past two weeks — in terms of preparation, in our talks, and in how seriously we tried to improve. Personally, I’m really happy to have qualified for MSI. It hasn’t completely sunk in yet, but the thought of facing the best players in the world is just crazy. I’m super excited. But for now, we’re staying focused on the finals — we’ve still got one really important best-of-five ahead of us, and this time, we want to bring the trophy home.

A lot of people expected you to face KC in the semifinals — even some of your teammates hinted at that. Had you prepared just as much for KOI? And were you surprised by their win?

SkewMond: We weren’t 100% sure Karmine Corp would make it through, but if we had to bet a million euros, we definitely would’ve put it on them. That said, MKOI absolutely earned their win. They played really well against KC, who I believe underperformed a bit, but MKOI played to their strengths with comps they’re clearly comfortable with. They showed a really solid level of League of Legends. So yeah, it was a surprise, but we were prepared for both teams, and we showed that today.

At the end of the match, we saw you hitting your keyboard — did you type something in All Chat?

SkewMond: I did write something in All Chat. They did quite a bit of trash talking after winning Game 3, so I felt like I had to respond — at least a little. Talking smack when you’re winning and are literally on the enemy Nexus isn’t exactly sportsmanlike. So I allowed myself a small reply at the end. Nothing toxic — just something like “XD nice gameplay,” something along those lines. I don’t remember the exact words, but I definitely typed “XD” and something right after.

Today’s series against MKOI was probably one of G2’s cleanest performances this year. Even though there were a few hiccups late game, the team seems to have hit its stride since the group stage losses. How do you feel about G2’s current form?

SkewMond: I’d say we’re in a really good spot right now. But the most important thing is to stay focused on the finals. We’ll have a week and a half of downtime, while the team we’ll face will be coming off a best-of-five the day before. So they’ll already be in game mode, and it’s really important for us to maintain the momentum we’ve built. I don’t think we’re playing at our peak just yet. We’re playing well, but there’s still a lot we can improve. What’s good is that we’re all aware of that, and we’ll be working on it these next two weeks. Going into the finals, we need to stay humble, treat our opponents like they’re the best team in the world, and give it everything we’ve got.

Many people pointed out your individual improvement this split, but it didn’t show in the All-Pro Team — you didn’t even make the top three. Did that affect you, or were you more focused on proving your value elsewhere?

SkewMond: Exactly. Honestly, I saw the result, thought about it for 15 seconds, and just went: “Okay, whatever.” For me, that kind of award doesn’t mean much. What really matters is which team wins in the end. Whether you’re first All-Pro or not on the list at all, if you win the LEC, that’s what people remember. No one’s going to say six months from now, “Hey, remember the split when you didn’t make the All-Pro Team?” What sticks is the title. So my goal now is to prove they were wrong — and the best way to do that is by winning the finals.

It’s always tough to self-assess, but do you think you’re capable of aiming for the title of best jungler in Europe right now?

SkewMond: There’s a pretty clear top four among European junglers. As for who’s number one, that really depends on consistency and who shows up on the day. That’s why this final is so important to me. I’ve had good games against players like Razork (Iván Martín Díaz) and Elyoya (Javier Prades Batalla), and they’re clearly part of that top four. But if I flop in the finals, I can’t claim to be the best. Even now, I’d rather not call myself the top jungler. I'd say I’m in the top four, sure — but it’s in the finals that I need to prove I deserve that number one spot.

You’ve mentioned it before: the LEC’s top four is really well-defined right now. Tomás “Melzhet” Campelos Fernández told us he thinks it’s healthy for the region, because on any given day, any of the four teams can beat one another — and that’s raising the level of play across the board. Do you agree? And how would you rate the level of the LEC right now?

SkewMond: He’s right. Even though we’re in the finals, on a bad day, KC can beat us, Fnatic can beat us, and so can MKOI. We even lost to GIANTX during the regular season. So I agree — there isn’t one team that’s just dominating the others, and that naturally pushes the level up. No match is ever a free win — like we saw with MKOI upsetting KC yesterday. That kind of competitiveness forces everyone to improve and makes the league stronger overall.

Europe isn’t in a bad spot right now. KC, for instance, showed at First Stand that we can take games off the best teams in the world, like Hanwha Life Esports. Still, Gen.G is terrifying. If they make it to MSI, they’ll probably be the scariest team there. But we’ve got what it takes — we can definitely compete, and maybe even beat some of those teams.

Do you keep up with what’s happening in the other regions? And if you could pick one team to face at MSI, who would it be?

SkewMond: Of course. T1 would be a dream matchup — even though they’ve still got a bit of work to do to qualify. Otherwise, I’d say Gen.G. Across all five roles, they probably have the best players in the world. No question — individually, they’re insane, and their team play is what makes them so scary. From the LPL, I’d say BLG — mostly for the symbolism. Since I’m on G2, it would mean a lot to get revenge against them.

You’ve got a week and a half before the final, and no best-of-fives to play in the meantime. That means you won’t be in the same competitive rhythm as the team coming from the lower bracket — and that hurt you in Winter. Are you planning to approach things differently this time?

SkewMond: Definitely. Even individually, I’ve been in this kind of situation before. Last year in the LFL, for example, I won the upper bracket final against KCB in Spring, then lost 3–1 in the grand final. In Summer, they 3–0’d us in the upper bracket, we came back through lower, and we won in the end. Then this year in the Winter Split of the LEC, same thing: we won the upper bracket and then lost in the finals. So I’ve experienced this multiple times, and this time I really don’t want to have any regrets.

It’s clear the lower bracket team will have a slight edge — they’ll have just played, they’ll be warmed up, they’ll be in rhythm. It’s not going to be an easy match, no matter who we face. But for our part, we’ll go into the final with humility, stay up to date on the meta, adjust what needs to be adjusted, and give it everything. I really don’t want to go through another 0–3 finals.

Any final words for the fans?

SkewMond: Just a huge thank you to all the fans who support us — and me especially — whether that’s on social media or during streams. It really means a lot to see so much support, especially when we haven’t always been the best team during the regular season, and our split has been kind of up and down. Even so, we’ve made it back to the final, and that’s thanks to you, too. I can’t thank everyone enough who stuck with us — even when some of our games were kind of sus. So thank you. Thank you to everyone who still believes in us. I hope we can make you proud in the final.