Paper Rex continue their dominant run at the 2025 VALORANT Masters Toronto, handing Sentinels a rough 2-0 defeat in the upper bracket and sending the North American hopefuls down to face Fnatic in a do-or-die lower bracket clash. In the wake of the loss, Sentinels’ duelist Zachary “zekken” Patrone sat down with Sheep Esports to discuss the team’s mindset, the pressure of the lower bracket, and how he’s grown as both a player and competitor on the international stage. Despite the setback, zekken is clear: the dream of lifting the trophy is far from over.

A lot of people rated PRX highly, but given your head-to-head record, many expected a closer match. What do you think went wrong this time?

Zachary "zekken" Patrone: "I'm sad because we lost. On the first map, we had a slow start, and at the same time, they played super, super well. They're very, very good on Split, so we kind of just got dominated there. Then on the second map, we finally got our stuff together and were able to play the game the way we wanted to, but they just edged us out. It was a nice and close map. I kind of wish the first map had been more like the second one so we could’ve made it a good fight on both. They played really well today.

Do you see this loss as a cause for concern moving forward, or was it just an off day for the team?

zekken: If we can get better starts and fix our issues, not go down four or six rounds right away, then I'd say we're in good shape. We just have to hope that we can clean that up, and if we do, we're in a good spot.

Paper Rex is usually known for their innovative, unconventional playstyles. How did you prepare for them? Did they play as you expected today, or did they surprise you with anything?

zekken: Compared to the last time we played them, they’re a lot better strategy-wise now. They’re known as a crazy team, but they’re a lot less crazy than they used to be. They’re very together, playing very solid, and it was the best Paper Rex I’ve ever seen — the one we played against today. Definitely different from when we played them before. I do think we prepared for them well and had the right idea of what we wanted to do going in, but like I said before, they were just playing super, super well. We had the slow start, but it wasn't anything we didn’t expect. We knew how good they were coming in.

What did you think of Patrick "PatMen" Mendoza's impact today? Do you think that his addition to the team has been a big factor?

zekken: PatMen is the savior for the team. I’m not gonna give all the credit to him, even though I love him and want to give him all the credit. But as a group, they’ve just gotten a lot better overall. PatMen is a very good, stable player. He plays pretty similarly to mindfreak (Aaron Leonhart) to be honest — kind of like the rock of the team, the dependable guy.

You’ll be facing Fnatic next, a strong team. How do you feel about that matchup? Are you still confident in Sentinels making a run through the lower bracket?

zekken: I’m still confident in the Sentinels train. I hope we can make a good lower bracket run here. Playing against Fnatic is gonna be a lot of fun. I’ve been watching them, and Kaajak (Kajetan Haremskià) just looks incredible. It’s nice to see Crashies (Austin Roberts) again on the international stage after he hasn’t played for a bit. They’re gonna be a very fun team to play against, but I have confidence that we’ll do well.

If you beat Fnatic, you could face either G2 or Gen.G next. Given recent trash talking, how do you feel about a potential rematch against G2?

zekken: That would be a very, very fun matchup. My teammates would get very pumped for it. I’m not the biggest trash talker, but Zellsis (Jordan Montemurro) is definitely going to get in there for sure if we play against them. It should be very fun.

Were you surprised that Gen.G lost 2-0 to Wolves today? Many didn’t expect Wolves to perform this well.

zekken: I didn’t expect a 2-0. I thought it was going to be a close game. I thought it was pretty 50-50 because Wolves just looked so solid, even when they played against us and lost. They still played really, really well. I thought they were a great team. So I’m not too surprised; I just didn’t think they’d 2-0 them so fast like that.

How do you feel about your growth and skill level now? Do you think you’ve reached your peak, or is there still room to improve?

zekken: I still think there’s more room for me to grow. I am happy with my growth. I’ve gotten a lot better as time has gone on. If you compare my game now to 2022, the first time I played internationally, I look a lot less nervous. I have a lot more confidence in myself and my play. So I’m very happy with how I’ve been growing, but there are heights I haven’t reached yet, and I would like to reach them. So I’m just going to keep going.

What specific areas do you want to improve on going forward?

zekken: It’s the on-the-fly decision-making in those scrappy moments. When I’m at my best, I’m making the right decision, taking the fight at the right time when they don’t expect it, or making just the right play at the right moment in weird scenarios. If I’m able to perfect that, then that will be my peak. But for now, I’m still learning, still trying. I’m good at it, but I really want to get better.

I’ve noticed from your matches and comms that you’ve taken on a more vocal, but balanced, leadership role compared to 2023 and prior. Have you put effort into improving your communication and making it efficient with your team?

zekken: Yeah, I’ve put a lot of thought into it. It’s good to communicate, but you can also overdo it. Like, if I die, I don’t want to just be screaming in the mic or micromanaging my teammates. I’ve got to let them play. But I do my best to find the right moment. If there’s something I see, and maybe they don’t, I’ll call it and try to put people in the right spots. But yeah, like I said, you can definitely overdo it, so I’m trying not to go too crazy on them. It’s something I’ve worked on for sure.

Last year you won your first international title in Madrid. Now, many expect you to repeat that success, especially here in Toronto, your home crowd. How do you feel about this event and moving to the lower bracket?

zekken: I really love Toronto. I love the city a lot and I love the crowd a lot. Everyone is so nice and supportive. I’m so happy to be here. I’m really thankful we got to compete in this event. I would definitely like to add another trophy to the cabinet if possible. I’m just going to keep working hard, giving my best, and hoping that’s good enough to win.

Since you lost today, you need to bounce back quickly for tomorrow’s match. What’s the plan to prepare — will you rest, review, or do something else to reset?

zekken: We’re gonna go to the hotel and probably do some review and prep on Fnatic, but I think the big priority is getting a good night’s sleep. We’re not gonna completely go off work; we’ll probably do some prep right now, but at the end of the night, we’re gonna do everything possible to make sure everyone gets good rest. If anyone has things to say, we’ll say it early and get it off our chest. But yeah, just doing our best to keep working, then reset for tomorrow and be fully rested.

Pacific and China teams are dominating the scene right now, knocking out top teams like you and G2. What’s driving the rise of Asian VALORANT?

zekken: They’re just nice, man. Asian Valorant is just on the come up right now. They look so, so good.

Is there anything you’d like to say to your fans?

zekken: Thanks for supporting us. Sorry that we lost. We’ll do better next time."