max after 9z Team’s elimination from the 2026 Esports World Cup in CS:2: “We have a lot of work ahead of us.”
9z Team rifler Maximiliano “max” Gonzalez shared his thoughts in an interview at the Esports World Cup 2026 following his team’s elimination from the tournament, discussed the reasons behind his team’s loss to magic on the Inferno map, and spoke about the South American squad’s goals for this season.
On being eliminated from the Esports World Cup 2026
It’s disappointing to be eliminated so early, especially since the Esports World Cup is our first tournament after the break. We finished last season with a victory at the XSE Pro League, so failing to make the playoffs here feels twice as hard. We have a lot of work ahead of us. We need to figure out what went wrong, correct our mistakes, and move forward.
On the loss to magic on Inferno
We were down 3-9 on Inferno, but after the side switch, we took 6 rounds in a row. Then our team lost a force buy on A… We read the situation perfectly and went out as a trio, but we couldn’t outgun magic. After that, we had two very bad rounds in a row on the B site. That’s all.
On 9z Team’s goals for the season
I hope we’ll win another major tournament and make it to the Major playoffs. Our main goal is to keep improving every day, no matter what. I think we’re heading in the right direction right now.
9z Team lost to magic 1–2 in maps in the match to advance to the Esports World Cup 2026 playoffs. max’s team finished the tournament in 17th–24th place and earned $20,000. The team’s next tournament is the BLAST Open Porto 2026.
Photo: PGL.
