LoL - LPL: iyy, JiaQi, and hanghang join FunPlus Phoenix, with Mingzai as Head Coach

Ahead of LPL Split 3, FunPlus Phoenix have made changes to their League of Legends roster, parting ways with jungler Zhao "Shad0w" Zhi-Qiang, AD Carry Zou "Assum" Wei, and head coach Ye "chengz" Sheng-Liao. The team also announced on Thursday the arrivals of Ma "iyy" Chen-Shuo as jungler, botlaner Zi "JiaQi" Jia-Qi, support Huang "hanghang" Yu-Hang, and coach Liu "Mingzai" Ming.

According to rumors spread on Weibo, two FPX players clashed toward the end of Split 2, and everyone except the toplaner got involved. The conflict would have escalated beyond management’s control, resulting in the departure of the jungler, ADC, and head coach. The team then had to bring in two new players and a new head coach, as well as a young support, forming a six-man roster for the Summer Split.

FPX’s new roster clearly lacks experience. Xu "sheer" Wen-Jie in the toplane is only in his second year as a pro after a disappointing 2024 with JD Gaming. The jungle situation is even more uncertain: FPX replaced the seasoned and strong-performing Shad0w with iyy, who only competed in four BO3s during NEST 2024. Yang "Care" Jie remains in midlane, continuing his three-year stint with FPX. After two splits with RNG where he finished last, JiaQi has joined the roster. Sun "Jwei" Jun-Wei is expected to be the team’s main support, but FPX also signed a new support, hanghang, who has never played competitively before.

Despite this, FPX had a rather promising Split 2, winning the Last Chance Qualifier against LGD Gaming and Ultra Prime, which secured them a spot in the Ascend group and guaranteed their place in the LPL Summer Split. In the playoffs, the team edged out Ninjas in Pyjamas 3-2 in the Knight’s Rival to reach the Knockout Stage, where they first lost to Top Esports before pushing Invictus Gaming to a tight 3-2 battle in the Lower Bracket.

Although eliminated, FPX showed promising gameplay and strong synergy, especially between jungler Shad0w and support Jwei—a combination we unfortunately won’t see in Summer. According to LPL rumors, Shad0w is close to joining BLG after a challenging MSI performance from Yang "Beichuan" Ling.