FUR Ayu on first CBLOL split: “It was my best moment”

After an intense run of international competitions, decided to change the way they prepared for the second CBLOL split. Unlike in 2025, when the team returned from long trips and maintained a heavier practice schedule, the roster opted for a more controlled pace this time around, with more time to rest and reset before making its debut in the Brazilian tournament.

In an exclusive interview with Sheep Esports following the win against on Sunday, August 9th, Andrey “” Saraiva spoke about what FURIA learned from last year’s experience, explained how facing some of the best AD carries and botlanes in the world helped the team improve, and discussed the importance of the series against in the team’s preparation.

Andrey “Ayu” Saraiva: "The main thing we learned is that we need to reset. Since the schedule is very tight, especially because of the travel, we came back with four days left before CBLOL started, but we already had a game. So we really chose to take more time to rest. We barely practiced before our debut against , and we only really started practicing the following week again, after taking some time off and coming back. There was also the issue of the night practice block last year, which no longer exists here in Brazil. It ended up hurting us more than helping us because we were already very exhausted and hadn't taken that much time off, so everyone was really tired. Adding that to practicing at night, it wasn't very productive for us. Sometimes it caused more disagreements and we didn't learn as much. We realized that and really took that time to reset this time around.

Ayu: I faced several AD carries who are now considered some of the best in the world, like (Kim Su-hwan), for example. Playing against them, what I notice the most is that they make very few mistakes. They play almost perfectly. When they have a lane advantage, especially when you're not playing the lane the way you should, or you're making a lot of mistakes, they keep punishing you and don't take their foot off the gas. They keep the pressure up and it's very difficult to come back. They don't give you many windows, and when they do, it's because they're trying to bait you. So one thing I'm trying to absorb into my game is this idea of having a strong lane, but at the same time having a lane where the opponents can't impact the rest of the game as much. A lane where I can apply pressure and, at the same time, make it so the opponents don't have anything they can do.

Ayu: It was definitely the series against T1. Because of the way they played, they did a bit of everything. I can talk about the botlane, but looking at all the drafts, there was a bit of everything. We took a lot from that series. We even set aside an entire day just to review it, looking at the way they played, how they pressured the lanes, how they were able to build a lead just through the lane, and how they viewed the game as well. That changed our perspective quite a bit on how to play around, especially, the botlane. That series against T1 was very important for our learning.

Ayu: I think it's kind of funny, but I agree. If you look at the numbers, it was definitely my best split and the one where I had the biggest impact. The meta also helped a lot, because champions like Nami, Lulu and Seraphine were very popular, those double-ranged picks where you can build a lead and carry the game, with a support helping a lot. I think it was definitely my best moment, and the meta helped a lot as well.

Ayu: It definitely does. When you have three players from the same team, you can have greater synergy. We already understand each other, so the adaptation ends up being more about the other players we'll be playing with. Obviously, it won't be the same as it is here at FURIA, and we'll also need to adapt to the toplaner and support. But we do have an advantage. That part of already knowing each other and knowing how people work will help us a lot there. The ENC is still a little ways away, and we don't know exactly how the end of the split will play out yet, but our intention is to arrive there in good shape.

Ayu: The beginning of this story was when we started watching basketball documentaries. There was the documentary about the United States national team, with Kobe Bryant playing, and that really stuck with me. The way he approached things influenced me a lot. He said that practice was essential and that you had to take practice seriously and prepare as much as possible. I really looked up to that, especially last split. I tried to take scrims seriously, prepare in the best way I could, and have that Mamba Mentality side, which is giving your 100% every day".