iBUYPOWER drops Nitro to make room for Hiko

The dominoes continue to fall in the North American Counter-Strike scene.

Following his departure from Cloud9’s Counter-Strike team, Spencer “Hiko” Martin has transitioned to fellow top team iBUYPOWER.

Martin’s place at iBUYPOWER isn’t yet assured over the long term. He’ll be playing with the team on a temporary basis through the qualifiers for Major League Gaming’s first Counter-Strike: Global Offensive tournament, which will be hosted at X Games Aspen in January.

The move gives iBUYPOWER a roster that has been called a “dream team” by some fans following Sam “Dazed” Marine’s return as captain after a brief spell away.

Martin has already impressed in his debut with iBUYPOWER, as he was dominant in the squad’s opening round win in MLG’s qualifier bracket.

In order to make room for Martin, iBUYPOWER has officially parted ways with Nick “Nitro” Cannella.

Cannella had hinted at the move before the news hit.

Not gonna lie, pretty disappointed right now.

— Nick Cannella (@Liquidnitr0) December 15, 2014

While iBUYPOWER making room for a player of Martin’s caliber is understandable, recent results actually show Cannella to be in better form. While Martin had struggled in Cloud9’s most recent competitions, Cannella was impressive in his international debut with iBUYPOWER.

But like Martin, Cannella has found a temporary home that may solidify in the future.

Cannella has joined Torqued, the team formed by Joshua “Steel” Nissan after his own departure from iBUYPOWER, in order to play in the same MLG qualifier that iBUYPOWER is participating in.