makazze on his poor performances: “I’ve had some personal issues.”
Natus Vincere rifler Drin “makazze” Shakiri, in an interview at BLAST Open Porto 2026, assessed his performance in recent tournaments and also spoke about visa issues.
On personal issues at the IEM Cologne Major 2026
I didn’t get off to the best start at the Major because I was dealing with some personal issues and couldn’t fully focus on the game. On top of that, I was afraid that, due to visa problems, this tournament might be my last and I wouldn’t be allowed back into Europe. I don’t know how to explain this properly in English, but as someone from Kosovo, I’m only allowed to stay in Europe for a maximum of 90 days. In the end, I stayed there for 91 days and received a warning. I don’t want to use this as an excuse, but during the matches I was constantly thinking about this situation, and it even kept me awake at night.
On my performance at the 2026 Esports World Cup
In Paris, I don’t think I performed at my best, but overall, I did decently. A lot depended on the map, since on some of them I had to play in positions where it’s hard to get kills. For example, when I’m holding the “banana” on Inferno, I lose about 60 health points almost every round from grenades. After that, it’s hard to engage in firefights when my opponent has 100 health and I only have 40. But I’m continuing to work hard and trying to improve my form.
Right now, Natus Vincere and G2 Esports are playing a knockout match at BLAST Open Porto 2026. The first map was Ancient, which was picked by Aleksi “Aleksib” Virolainen’s team. At the time of writing, G2 Esports has taken the lead.
Photo: Esports Foundation.
