C9 Fudge on pre-match tweets, why he’s called Fudge, and golden retrievers

For the western regions, going up against the League of Legends Pro League (LPL) and the League of Legends Champions Korea (LCK) was proving difficult with their appearance at the bracket stage. However, C9 did not plan on letting that stop them. By picking Nocturne in the first game and Sion in the next one, it was clear that C9 wasn't going down without a fight. After Ibrahim "Fudge" Allami claimed he was going to put BLG's toplaner Chen "Bin" Ze-Bin "in the bin," we sat down with C9's Fudge for an interview.

Question: On Twitter, you said something about putting Bin "in the bin." Any thoughts on this statement following the series?

Fudge: I mean, I obviously was aware he was a very good toplaner when I said that. I don’t regret saying it. Obviously, I think he played better than me, so it is what it is.

Question: We knew BLG would be very dominant heading into another series, but were you expecting them to be this dominant and aggressive?

Fudge: We had scrimmed against them probably the most out of the other teams here at MSI before we found out that we were playing them — and they were good in scrims. But I didn’t think they were unbeatable. They still made some mistakes, so it was playable for us. But they obviously played really well when it came to mid and late game throughout the series. I think that is something we can clean up to win our next series.

Question: How do you feel you fit into the C9 roster at this MSI?

Fudge: I think a lot of our players like to be the carries and have a lot of say in how the game goes. I'm someone who doesn’t care too much about that. I'm willing to play the weaker, more facilitator role. I think it helps my teammates a lot to have someone who is willing and okay with not winning lane or falling behind or whatever and just focus on helping the team win.

Question: You’ve previously played in the former OPL — now LCO. What was the transition across from the OPL to the LCS like?

Fudge: It’s a lot more structured in the LCS. There is a lot more supporting staff around you. Whenever you need anything, you can go and tell them and they’ll help no matter what. Obviously, there is way more money, which is nice. And there are a lot more fans. By having more fans, it makes it feel more important. More people care about it, so you care about it more.

But I also kind of miss Australia a little bit — destroying people a little bit in game. But I'm used to North America at this point, so I'm just going with the flow.

Question: As you’ve played in both NA and OCE so far in your career, do you want to try playing in EU as well?

Fudge: [Laughs] Maybe. You never know. I wouldn’t be opposed to it.

Question: On the broadcast, there is a clip of you talking about how you have previously taken being on the international stage for granted. With that in mind, how does it feel to be back on the international stage?

Fudge: I'm really happy I got another opportunity. This time around, I’ve been playing League literally all day, been thinking about League all day. I'm basically breathing League of Legends. I'm hoping the results will show this and be a bit better, but the main thing for me is that I tried my hardest. Last time, I didn’t try my hardest. And this time, I am. So that’s what’s important to me. I'm still happy that I'm putting in a lot of effort.

Question: So it has to be asked. Your in-game name is Fudge. What was wrong with other sweet treats? Why not marshmallows or something similar?

Fudge: When I was a kid and I started playing video games a lot and, you know, started swearing, my dad really did not like it. So my dad would yell at me whenever I swore. And so I started saying "fudge" instead of the obvious. And it just kind of stuck.

Question: What does being a pro player mean to you?

Fudge: For me, I would say it is a very high-stakes job in terms of the pressure and expectations, especially when you are on a top team in your region. So I enjoy it. Before the game, I was nervous and I don’t typically get nervous before I do anything, but the fact that I was nervous shows how much I care. And I'm happy I was nervous because it is good to feel that sort of emotion before playing a game.

Question: If you were an animal, what animal would you be?

Fudge: [Laughing] Golden retriever. I think golden retriever. Right? I can see it for sure, for sure, for sure!

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