When Dota 2 team Geek Fam announced that the organization was saying good bye to Marc Polo “Raven” Fausto, it came as a sort of surprise for those in the SEA region. After all, Raven had been part of a team that recently won two tournaments in the region and was starting to gain a foothold.
However, there were eagle-eyed fans who noticed that a few hours prior, Fnatic had made the decision to release Nuengnara “23savage” Teeramahanon. It was also a surprise considering he had been performing well and, days prior, became the second player to 11,000 solo MMR.
It didn’t take long for many to put two and two together. A little later Fnatic confirmed that, indeed, Raven has returned to the team.
In releasing Raven, Geek Fam said in a post that “he has given us a lot of joy throughout the time that he has been part of Geek Fam and definitely leaves us on a high.” The team thanked him for his efforts and ended by saying that “Once a Geek, Always a Fam.”
This isn’t the first time Raven has been with Fnatic as he joined the team back in 2016 just after TI6. For those who remember, that was the TI where Raven was part of the TNC team that eliminated OG. The stint with Fnatic didn't last long as he was gone barely four months later. One reason was despite the high expectations, Fnatic at the time wasn’t really going anywhere.
That was four years ago, and Raven has since become one of the best carries in the SEA region. Fnatic admitted as much saying that during his time in both TNC and Geek Fam, he was a guaranteed headache.
With Raven now part of Fnatic, team manager Eric “Reinnnn” Khor said in a statement that they welcome the SEA’s most promising carry for the second time as they move to build a super team and dominate the region. He added that Raven is sure to “bring a new dimension to the team and add some firepower to our already stacked roster.”
Raven joins Kam “Moon” Boon Seng, Daryl Koh “iceiceie” Pei Xiang, Djardel “DJ” Mampusti, and Anucha “Jabz” Jirawong.
The question now is, how are the other SEA teams going to respond?
