Paper Rex, the reigning Masters Toronto champions, have been enjoying a near-flawless run in the VALORANT Champions Tour (VCT) Pacific Stage 2, dropping only a single series while already securing their spot in the Grand Final. But this final could turn unexpectedly more complicated due to a visa issue involving one of their players.

The player in question is Patrick “PatMen” Mendoza, whose participation in the Stage 2 Grand Final is now in doubt. The Filipino Initiator has already secured a visa to travel to Tokyo for the event, but he has yet to receive his Schengen visa, which he will need to attend VALORANT Champions 2025 in Paris. The catch: while his application is still being processed, he cannot leave the country—effectively preventing him from flying to Tokyo to play the VCT Pacific Grand Final.

Any solutions in mind?

In an effort to resolve the issue, Paper Rex’s long-time head coach, Alexandre “alecks” Sallé, has even sent a call for help to the French embassy in an attempt to resolve the situation: “So if anybody from the French embassy hears this, please help out.” While there’s still hope that the situation could be cleared in time for PatMen to travel, nothing is definitive yet. If he is unable to make the trip, PRX will be forced to field a substitute against the winner of Talon Esports and Rex Regum Qeon.

That substitute may already be waiting within the organization itself. Aaron “mindfreak” Leonhart, a cornerstone of Paper Rex during their transition from Counter-Strike to VALORANT, remains under the PRX banner. The 25-year-old Indonesian Initiator—who was replaced earlier this year by PatMen—has been officially listed as a restricted free agent since July 14.

mindfreak’s last official appearance dates back to May 25 at the HERO Esports Asian Champions League 2025 (ACL). Since then, he has yet to reach an agreement with another team, which means he could be readily available to step in to help Jason “f0rsakeN” Susanto and the rest of PRX should PatMen remain grounded. It is important to note that this is not the only solution for the team, but it could be considered.