- Natus Vincere has renewed hopes for the 2023 competitive Halo season
- The team’s recent new acquisition reunites one of Europe’s oldest duos
- This is going to be the 10th anniversary of the duo’s first event
Having made his name alongside Jimbo, in the Halo 4 era, Sniperdrone is once again reunited with the player in NaVi’s renewed roster.
NaVi Signs Sniperdrone
Natus Vincere’s first year in Halo Infinite can be described as the game itself – troubled and not going as planned. The team didn’t achieve what it hoped for at the start of 2022, but a few decent performances in Raleigh and Orlando, as well as a last-minute qualification for the Halo World Championship, gives NaVi enough energy for the 2023 competitive season.
The Ukrainian esports organization recently announced its roster for said season. NaVi made one major change, swapping out Robert “Kimbo” Earl El-Zein Folk for ex-Acend star Michael “Snipedrone” Juchau. NaVi snatched the 28-year-old player after Acend’s roster split up, reuniting him with Jimbo in their revamped Halo Infinite lineup.
Players Reunited
Both players first teamed up together for Snipedrone’s first event in 2013 during the Halo 4 era. Jimbo and Snipedrone found decent success under the Epsilon Esports banner in Halo 2 Anniversary and Halo 5: Guardians between 2015 and 2016. Epsilon finished in the top eight in both the 2016 Halo World Championship and the X Games tournament in Aspen, held during the same year.
Since then, both players had just brief encounters with each other, playing together in scattered tournaments and lineups. While they have been separated since the beginning of Halo Infinite‘s competitive circuit, Sniperdrone helped Acend achieve victories at HCS 2022: Europe Super and HCS 2022: Europe Regional Championship. In fact, in one of these finals, Sniperdrone was instrumental in defeating NaVi.
In the summer of last year, NaVi acquired Dutch rookie Mighty, as well as British player Snakey. While this was the beginning of their recovery, the team still has a long way to go before reaching the heights that Sniperdrone’s last team achieved. Jumbo seems very excited about that probability, noting on Twitter that this is going to be the duo’s 10th anniversary since their first event.
“Today we in turn say our goodbyes to Kimbo, who has played for the club since the formation of the roster,” NaVi said about Kimbo in the team’s official statement. “We thank Robert for his professionalism and great matches as part of NAVI, and we wish him good luck for the next season.”
NaVi’s roster composition now looks like this:
- James “Jimbo” Bradbrook
- Liam “MIghty” Boerboom
- Arkel “Snakey” Brown
- Michael “Snipedrone” Juchau
- Harry “Wonderboy” Channon (coach)
- Mykhailo “M1ke” Palamar (manager)
