FURIA defeated paiN 2–0 in the BLAST Rivals 2025 Season 2 semifinal and advanced to the grand final. After the match, kyotostxr spoke with Mareks YEKINDAR Gaļinskis about his preferred opponent in the final, preparing for repeated matchups, the use of Russian and Portuguese within FURIA, his return to a high individual level, and the team’s plans before the Major.
Congratulations on the win! This is another final for you. Who would you like to face in the deciding match?
Falcons. We played Vitality very recently, and before a possible final we had already played another best-of-three against them at this event.
— YEKINDAR
I would not really want to face the same team three times in a row. So I would prefer to play Falcons.
This season, you have beaten almost every top-ten opponent, some of them multiple times. How difficult is it to face the same team repeatedly within a short period? Do you need to change a lot?
G2 are a good example. If I remember correctly, we have faced them six or seven times this season.
— YEKINDAR
The veto can change each time, and the preparation reaches another level. It is not enough to know the opponent’s strategies—you also have to try to outsmart them.
That takes more preparation time. It is therefore better to face opponents you have not yet had the opportunity to play.
How common is Russian within the team, and how much does everyone know? It sounded as though sidde was already speaking almost without an accent.
sidde constantly shares a room with molodoy, and he is also learning Russian through Duolingo. So he is gradually improving in that regard.
The others know the most basic phrases, such as “hello” and “how are you,” along with a few bad words that molodoy has taught them.
