KC Yike: "I came into this year with the mindset that I’m going to trust and listen to myself more"

Karmine Corp’s strong start to the LEC Versus split has left little doubt about where they stand in the league's hierarchy. With playoffs already secured, KC still has two best-of-ones left to play, leaving the players a bit of room to loosen up and keep the momentum rolling before Fearless Draft, and Patch 26.03, disrupts the meta.

In an interview with Sheep Esports, KC jungler Martin “Yike” Sundelin discussed the chaos of the current LEC standings and why he’s excited to finally move on from best-of-ones. His personal growth since last season impacted how he is working closely with his team, and now Yike believes this version of KC has an even higher ceiling heading into playoffs.

Martin "Yike" Sundelin: "I feel good. Even though we had this loss against Vitality, we had a very good talk after it, and the mood was much better for the next two games we played. I’m really happy that we bounced back from that loss.

Yike: I don’t know. The standings are really weird right now. I’m happy that we are in first place, but the rest is so clumsy. It feels random what’s going on.

Yike: Yeah, MKOI haven’t been looking too hot recently. I would still probably say they’re one of the more scary teams because they’re always going to show up going into playoffs. I know they’re a good team, so if we meet in the playoffs, I know they’re going to be strong.

Yike: We’re practicing more BO3s and BO5s now. That’s probably what we’ve been looking forward to the most, at least for me. BO1s are very random. Anyone can beat anyone, and I’m not a big fan of them. So I’m happy that we can start practicing for BO3s and BO5s. We’re hopefully going to look even better there, because I think we’re looking very good right now and I want to keep it up.

Yike: It’s been very, very good. Both of them are helping me a lot. Personally, Reapered comes to me and helps me with how I should play the game and how I should play jungle. That kind of feedback is important for me, because right now I feel like I’m playing very well. I’m happy with how I’m playing, and I want to keep this level and keep that standard.

Zeph and I also walk home together every day, and we always talk about drafts and about how we should play certain things. They're both helping me a lot. I think that’s probably one of the reasons why I’m playing well right now.

Yike: The offseason was for sure very long. It was a very sad summer and end of last year. I’ve been reflecting a lot and working on myself, and I came into this year with the mindset that I’m going to trust and listen to myself more. I think that’s what makes me very good, and that’s what I did back when I was playing at my best. I played my own game and trusted myself with my plays.

Last year, I wasn’t really like that anymore. I was listening more to others and trying to adapt to them. This year, I want to stay confident, and that’s how I’ve been playing. For example, I wanted to pick Jayce. Everyone’s been playing Jayce, I hadn’t played him yet, and I just wanted to play him and carry the game. I’m happy that I could do it.

Yike: Good question. [pauses] For sure, it impacted me a lot after losing, because I missed out on Worlds—my first time missing Worlds. I also knew that the 2025 lineup actually had a lot of potential, so I was very sad with how it ended. We could have gone much further than we did.

Reading stuff on social media didn’t help, so I try not to do that because it feels pointless. No matter if people flame you or support you, it shouldn’t affect you. The main thing for me is staying in my own bubble with my team. I want to talk to my teammates, my coaches, and my loved ones, my family—that’s what I focus on. If I do this, I know I can play well and be the best player I can be.

Yike: For sure. The year I joined G2, I was just there, you know, reacting, listening, taking in everything from everyone and learning as much as I could. And now, I feel like I have a lot of knowledge, which is very good for me. I feel like I can give my opinion, have strong opinions, and use them well to play around it.

Yike: That’s the goal, right? I want to be the best in the West as a jungle–support duo, and so far it’s been going very well with Busio. Our synergy is just getting better and better. The way we talk, both inside and outside the game, is great. He’s very open-minded, and it’s very easy to communicate with him and learn from each other. We have good communication, good feedback for each other, good reviews when we talk, and yeah, I think it shows in the games we’re playing.

Yike: It’s hard to definitively say what the differences are, because I’ve only played with Busio for a month or two, and I played with Targamas all year, so I know all of his strengths and weaknesses. I feel like Busio really likes to communicate and ask questions—not only with me, but with Caliste (Caliste Henry-Hennebert) and other players too.

He’ll walk up and talk about a play, like, ‘What can I do here? What about there?’ He’s trying to learn the best way to play—asking kyeahoo (Kang Ye-hoo) how he should play when he needs help mid, asking me how he should react if I want to invade or need help. I think he really enjoys doing this, and it’s very good for a support to ask questions like that and try to improve.

Yike: Yeah, for sure. The ceiling is very high with this team. I just want to keep playing and see how far we can go.

Yike: Yes, the mission is to win the LEC Versus, go to First Stand, and win it. After that, continue winning LEC splits, go to MSI, and finally go to Worlds. That’s what we have to do compared to last year. We’re on a good path with the way we’re working together.

Yike: The main thing for me, as I said before, is that no matter if we win or lose a split, I want everyone on the team staying in the same bubble. We talk to each other, stick together, give feedback, and don’t stay negative. Just keep working together, keep communicating, and make sure we continue winning and improving.

Yike: Yeah, for sure. We lost in Spain last year and didn’t qualify for Worlds, so that was a very sad moment. I want to go back there and make it better this time.

It will be so fun to go to Barcelona. I was there once when I was pretty young, like 11 or 12, so going back will be very fun. Playing a final there will be amazing. It’s been two splits since I was in a final, so I want to go back and have a good match—maybe against MKOI as well. Spain versus France would be very fun.

Yike: I’m very thankful. I’m happy that we can show you guys some good improvements and that we are a strong team so far. I want to keep working hard and make you guys proud. So thank you for always supporting us."