EVER SINCE THAT controversial New Year's drama, Tristan "Yawi" Cabrera has been a trending discussion in social media.
From the memes to the criticisms, there was no stopping fans from expressing their thoughts about the ECHO PH roamer.
And even their M4 campaign began, Coach Harold "Tictac" Reyes benched his prized house of highlights maestro in their opener against storied MLBB franchise RRQ Hoshi.
Here's what Coach Tictac had to say about that decision from an earlier press conference.
“Yung pagka-bench kay Yawi, team decision...Sa amin wala naman problema. Diba may issue na nangyari? So wala, set aside namin. Lahat ng teammates naka-focus sa M4.”
Speaking to the press after ECHO PH bulldozed through their group to secure their upper bracket playoff spot, Yawi believes that it was the best decision that Coach Tictac made, especially since it gave the spotlight to MPL legend Jaypee "Jaypee" Dela Cruz.
"Naiintindihan ko po kasi siyempre ayoko naman ipilit sarili ko maglaro lalo na di po komportable teammates ko so iniintay ko lang maging okay na sila tas yun po malaki naman talaga tiwala ko kay Jaypee kasi malakas naman talaga siya," he said.
Is Yawi ready for M4?
Even during the match against Occupy Thrones, Yawi was nowhere to be seen .
But are the final game of the group, against RSG SG, Yawi was finally given the chance to showcase his skills.
It was a make or break moment for Yawi, who has been under scrutiny for the past couple of days. But a closer look at his Chou would reveal one thing: That Yawi was born to perform when needed.
The Singaporean squad struggled to deal with his timed engagements, and Yawi completely stomped their foes, earning him the match MVP honors.
For Yawi, this was a moment that could signal his redemption arc. However, he believes that the journey isn't done yet.
“Sobrang masaya po. Marami po nangyayari ngayon sa amin lalo na po sa akin. Pero focus ko parin talaga ang M4. Di ko hinahanap ang MVP at gusto ko lang naman talaga manalo," said Yawi.
“Una pa lang pangarap ko na mag-world stage tapos ngayon sobrang focused. Syempre kailangan ko rin isipin yung team kasi kailangan po namin mag-champion.”
Yawi did address the elephant in the room, albeit ever so slightly. His focus is undeterred and he and the rest of the ECHO squad are still gunning for their first ever world championship at M4.
If he manages to maintain his laser focus throughout the tournament still remains to be seen however. With fans and the media watching him closely, Yawi still has a long road ahead in this tournament.