An exclusive interview with Tonya and the full feature are available in our new blog.
Interviewer: Antonina, really glad to see you here at the arena. How does it feel? Did you miss arenas?
Tonya: Yes, actually I didn’t expect it, but I missed it a lot. When I watched the opening ceremony yesterday, it really touched my heart. I’m very, very happy to be here.
Interviewer: And I guess you’d like to see Inner Circle on the arena stage as well?
Tonya: Yes, of course I would. But what can you do — everything takes time.
Interviewer: And how much time does it take? Do you have any predictions or expectations?
Tonya: Listen, these are long-term plans. I don’t think it can be six months because the current Tier-2 and Tier-3 scene system makes it very difficult to qualify for tournaments. But the guys are trying and working hard. I think everything will work out.
Interviewer: Okay. I know you recently launched an academy. I sometimes talk with your academy manager — he’s everywhere, both there and here. He announced that academy so many times. What are the plans for it? What should come out of it? What results do you expect it to achieve?
Tonya: The academy is something all respectable organizations are working on right now, and we’re no exception. We strongly believe in the younger generation. Its main goal is to be a resource for the main roster — to develop our own talents for the main lineup and find the best young talents in Ukraine. That’s our priority since it’s a Ukrainian academy. Transfers and sales are not something we’re really focusing on right now. We want a strong academy that can provide resources for the main team.
Interviewer: Okay, got it. If it’s roughly six months before we can see Inner Circle at events, does that mean it’ll also take about six months for the academy to reach the level Inner Circle is at now?
Tonya: No, that’s too little. Look, it’s at least six months. Do I believe that in six months we’ll be playing on the stage of a Tier-1 tournament? No. But will we be closer to that? Yes, absolutely. And we’ll definitely be making steps toward it.
Interviewer: In fact, there isn’t that much left right now. You’re already playing in groups — you just need to win two more matches at the moment. After all, it’s Counter-Strike.
Tonya: Well, the main priority right now is to gain VRS points.
Interviewer: To have stability and receive invites?
Tonya: Yes, to have stability and invites — that’s it. As for the academy, they’re young, they’re not ready for Tier-1 yet. I think nobody is ready for Tier-1 at that age. They still need more experience and work. For now, they’ll develop at their own pace, in their own niche, and then we’ll gradually move forward. But if they pleasantly surprise us, I’ll only be happy.
Interviewer: And finally, I have a question I originally prepared for Alex before we couldn’t find him, so maybe I’ll ask you instead. There’s a certain pattern with Mykhailo “Kane” Blagin: whenever he leaves an organization, things start going terribly for that team. How are you planning to deal with that? Because we remember Passion UA — Kane left, and look what happened to them.
Tonya: Okay.
Interviewer: Another example is Gambit.
Tonya: And what happened to them?
Interviewer: They won a Major, kicked Kane — and that was it, they stopped winning.
Tonya: Well, then they had a rise again later.
Interviewer: That was when they opened their academy, right?
Tonya: No, that sounds like a far-fetched argument to me. I don’t think it’s a real stereotype. I don’t believe in it. Misha is great, Misha is top, but I think we’ll be fine. I don’t even want to think about it — you’re just making me overthink. Everything will be fine. We’re not superstitious.
Interviewer: If I understand correctly, things were fine with Misha, but as I was told, there simply wasn’t a specific role for him. There’s already a coach, there’s a manager — and it wasn’t clear what position he could take.
Tonya: Yes, something like that. I’m not really involved in the esports side of things, so it wasn’t my decision. But probably something like that.
Interviewer: And what are your responsibilities within the team?
Tonya: I mostly handle partnerships, media — that side of things. And also our side projects.
Interviewer: Got it. Thank you very much for the interview. Good luck!
As a reminder, The former NAVI academy roster has secured their spot at the Major