Evil Geniuses and assistant VALORANT coach Tony “Zikz” Gray have gone their separate ways, the two parties announced on Sept. 8.
The announcement comes mere weeks after Zikz helped EG win VALORANT Champions 2023 in an electrifying run, which included beating LOUD in the lower final and Paper Rex in the grand finals. Zikz has been a part of EG’s coaching staff since November 2022, when he left NRG.
Zikz’s departure has left some EG fans surprised, but it’s possible he’s taking a head coach position elsewhere, given the way he talked about the news.
“There are countless memories that I will never forget for as long as I live,” Zikz wrote on Twitter. “Love all of you and wish the best for you guys, but now I am onto my next journey to win another one.”
The 30-year-old coach has a rich history in esports, having transitioned from being a head coach in the League of Legends’ LCS between 2015 and 2021 to taking an assistant coach position in VALORANT in 2022. As much as some NA fans want Zikz back in League esports, he already said he’s planning to stay in VALORANT.
All the other English-speaking teams in the VCT Americas League, however, already have a head coach signed until the end of 2024 or even 2025, according to the VCT global contract database, at time of writing. This means Sentinels, 100 Thieves, Cloud9, or NRG would have to part ways with their current head coach to sign Zikz, if he’s planning to be a head coach next year in the Americas League.
As for EG, it’s unclear if the organization is signing another assistant coach to help Christine “Potter” Chi run the team. EG also parted ways with its entire reserve roster on Sept. 6.
