Cloud9 signs up for week one of HCS Pro Series with FaZe Bound instead of Renegade

Following rumors that have circulated over the past few weeks that Cloud9’s Halo Infinite roster was seeking to make changes, we have the first official signs that those rumors might carry some weight. The HCS has announced the 16 teams competing in the Pro Series this week, along with their respective rosters.

While FaZe Clan is absent from that list, one player from that team is not. FaZe’s rookie player Bound is playing for C9 in place of Renegade.

Dexerto reported that C9 was seeking to make this specific move last week, but players from the roster and their fellow competitors have repeatedly downplayed the suggestion. C9’s Eco and Pznguin both replied to one tweet sharing the article with joking comments like “Wait really?” and “What did I wake up to?” but Renegade himself has been quiet on social media throughout the majority of May. Pznguin even posted the exact same fake shocked response in reply to a later post that showed C9 had signed up with Bound to play in the Pro Series last night.

FaZe has had a rough string of tournament performances throughout Halo Infinite‘s lifespan, with a promising start at the Raleigh Major only converting into worse and worse placings as they now struggle to remain in the top eight. Bound has routinely been seen as a standout young talent on the roster despite this, and with FaZe Snip3down confirming his intent to split his competitive career between both Apex Legends and Halo Infinite, Bound may be targeting a move to a more dedicated roster.

Related: Snip3down plans to compete in both Halo and Apex Legends

Renegade’s intentions with this move are unclear if Bound’s presence is anything more than a temporary substitution. C9 have dominated the majority of Halo Infinite‘s tournaments, both online and in LAN environments. Only recently did cracks begin to show in their armor when OpTic Gaming took a convincing victory in the online FaZe Invitational and C9 were then swept by Sentinels in the grand finals at HCS Kansas City. Second place is nothing to scoff at, but potential inner turmoil caused by recent failures may have prompted more changes.

With all of the players involved playing coy with the team lineups that everybody can see on social media, it’s hard to say how permanent any of these moves are. FaZe, Sentinels, and eUnited are all absent from this week of the Pro Series, despite being partnered teams, which only adds to the uncertainty around the situation. But eUnited’s absence is less surprising considering the fallout with Spartan.

Fans can catch all of the action and see where the North American teams currently stand later today at 5pm CT when week one of the NA HCS Pro Series split two will be live on the official Halo Twitch channel.