Japanese team Crazy Raccoon had a whirlwind of a 2021 VALORANT Champions Tour (VCT) campaign, having turned heads at VCT Masters in Reykjavik. Although qualifying for VCT Champions Berlin was a feat in and of itself, the team is looking to make an even bigger splash in the upcoming season. Crazy Raccoon has now released most of its players, gearing up for quite the roster rebuild as it heads into 2022.
While based in Japan, Crazy Raccoon had benefitted from the combined strength of Japanese and Korean VALORANT talent, and was a force to reckon with on the international stage. However, at VALORANT Champions, Crazy Raccoon had not quite lived up to the expectations they set for themselves.
They crashed out of the group stage in very disappointing fashion. Crazy Raccoon dropped both of their best-of-three series against Brazilian side Team Vikings and then fellow Asian representatives Team Secret—getting swept in both matchups without even picking up a single map win.
While competitive VALORANT is still in its early stages, teams have shown that they are unafraid to make roster moves when needed. Throughout VCT 2021, fans already witnessed several squads—whether the leaders of the pack or the underdogs scraping for wins—undergo roster shuffles in hopes of ultimately improving their performance. With the off-season nearing its conclusion, we're seeing even more roster changes unfold before the teams take to the stage in 2022.
For Crazy Raccoon, the changes are sweeping ones. As announced on Tuesday, the org is parting ways with four players plus head coach Yusuke “mun” Ota. The players making their exits are: Park “Bazzi” Jun-ki, Hideki “Fisker” Sasaki, An “Medusa” Min-cheol, Daiki “Minty” Kato. This leaves only Yusuke “neth” Matsuda on the Crazy Raccoon lineup, but fans can expect further roster announcements soon.
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