REX REGUM Qeon (RRQ) faces its biggest challenge yet in the upcoming Wild Rift Champions SEA (WCS) on April 23.
But for co-owner Calvin Thenderan, RRQ’s journey to the Philippines was already quite the learning journey.
“RRQ has built a strong presence in Indonesia, even in Thailand and other parts of SEA. But we have been looking at the Philippines for a long time," he said in a virtual press conference.
He added: "When WR was announced, we thought this game would be big in the Philippines. Being a League of Legends player and fan since Season 2, I already looked up to Riot and I believed WR was going to be big. Philippines and WR felt like a match made in heaven and it was really a no-brainer.”
RRQ holds the PH top seed
Coming into the WCS, RRQ will be holding the top seed from the Philippines after they bested FENNEL Adversity in the Grand Finals earlier this month.
The key to their resurgence? Their ability to mentally prepare themselves for the challenges.
“It was all about the mentality, especially in the playoff stage. Just before the playoffs we even hired a psychologist. It's not a matter of just skills. The players are young and emotions can get the better of them," he reflected.
"Mentality is key. Adjustments are very important as well and we always experimented with role swaps with the players until we finally found the winning formula.”
When asked who RRQ are looking forward to facing in the upcoming meet, Thenderan answered without hesitation.
“I'm looking forward to facing Flash Wolves because they are always strong. But I think every participating team is very strong. As a whole we’re looking at least a Top 4 in the WCS.”
He's got moonshot aspirations for his team, too. “In the many years to come for Wild Rift esports, our goal is to become a household name. We want to help build the ecosystem that Leo [Faria, Wild Rift global esports head] and Riot Games wants to achieve. We all want the competition to be elevated and have more eyeballs tuning into the region.”
The Wild Rift Champions SEA kick off on April 23.
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