We had a chance to chat with Gaspar “stizzy” Rosalen Andres right after the Open 5 qualifier. Vitality is on top of the leaderboard, despite the most recent shaky matches. Synergy within the roster promises great results in the following events. Fans expect quite a lot from Team Vitality at the Rocket League Paris Major, a home-country tournament for this esports organization.
For stizzy, the recent Boston Major became the second grand final presence in two years. The player certainly aims for more with Vitality!
Boston success and the shock loss to Kaydop Corp
The RLCS 2026 Boston Major was, hands down, crucial for Team Vitality. There was a big roster change ahead of this season, and the Kickoff Weekend performance wasn’t too exceptional.
The players did great at that event! Vitality reached the grand final, defeating huge opponents: Team Falcons and NRG, the reigning World Champions.
“I think it’s, of course, kind of sad,” reflects stizzy on losing the Boston Major grand final to Gentle Mates. “It’s always better to win, but I’m still very happy about the result, because it means we still did a really good job. I’m very happy about that. I think it’s fine. We made the top two. Of course, it’s better if we win, but the top two is still the second best team in the Major, so it’s still insane.”
Shock loss at Open 5
Everyone was looking forward to Split 2, and the Paris Major qualifier series had a very good start for Vitality. They won Open 4, defeated Karmine Corp and NiP on the way.
Open 5 did not go Vitality’s way. They fell to the lower brackets after a match versus Ninjas in Pyjamas and then were eliminated after a super close battle against Kaydop Corp, one of the smaller teams in the regional competition.
“I think we just didn’t perform as well as we can, and I think it’s normal,” says stizzy. “ It’s normal, everyone has an off day. I’m not worried, I think we just have to work more than the previous four weeks to perform very well at the last regional, and qualify for Paris.”
Stizzy elaborates more on the loss to Kaydop Corp: “It was more like we didn’t perform really well that week. We didn’t play as well as we could have, and it wasn’t our best tournament.”
“I think if we just played the last two weeks, the first round, we would play better, and we would get a better result.”
Team Vitality | stizzy
LAN vs online qualifiers: Vitality’s stizzy on the preferred RLCS format
At the start of 2026, we were treated to an awesome Kickoff Weekend. The LAN event combined an international clash and offline regional finals.
For the viewers, that was a great experience, as seeing the live reaction of the players is truly priceless. What about the competitors?
“For me, it’s a good thing if we play the regionals on LAN”, says stizzy. “If I could choose something, it would be that. If we can play all the regionals on LAN, it will be so good!”
“But I also like to do bootcamps with the team, like us alone in the Vitality office. I think I don’t really mind doing bootcamps with Vitality, but I will be happy either doing LAN for the regionals.”
Team Vitality | stizzy
The RLCS 2026 Paris Major, a home-country event for Team Vitality
Rocket League tournaments in France are special. The crowd creates an explosive atmosphere — we all had a chance to witness that during the World Championship 2025.
This season, RLCS 2026 makes another big stop in Paris, with the second Major.
“I’m very happy to play [in Paris],” says stizzy. “ We’ve not qualified yet, and we still have to work for the last regional to qualify. But if we qualify for Paris Major, I will be very happy to play the biggest Major ever in Rocket League in Paris, the capital city for Vitality. So it will be soon, and if we can make a very good result or even win the event, it would be crazy!”
Preparation for different teams, from different regions
One of the thrills of big Rocket League esports events is a rare opportunity to see the best teams from different regions playing together. That doesn’t happen too often during the year. How do Vitality guys prepare for facing opponents from across the globe?
“We don’t really have a game plan for regions,” explains stizzy. “We don’t have game plans against Oceania or, for example, South America or MENA. We normally make a game plan for every game. So it doesn’t matter which region we play or which team we play, we want to play the same. So we just try to play our game plan.”
Rocket League teams evolve throughout the seasons, and their preparations can be surprising during regional and international events.
“In Boston, the team I expected less from, it was Gentle Mates,” shared stizzy. “I think they played really, really well, so I didn’t expect them to play like that.”
“And this Split, I think, R8 Esports from MENA [surprised the most]. They most likely qualify for the Major. They surprised me a lot, as they beat Falcons twice. They still have to play one Open, and I think they’re playing very well.”
Team Vitality | stizzy
Improvements in the stable meta of Rocket League
Compared to some other competitive games, Rocket League doesn’t receive regular meta-changing patches. In this stable environment, focus on skill improvement becomes extremely high, especially for professional players.
“We don’t really have new meta in new seasons, but there is one thing in which the level of the players is always improving. All the players are always going high in skills and on a personal level. So it’s kind of a new meta because you always have to play better and better to be at the top. You always have to improve, so if you don’t improve, you’re going to fall lower.”
A perfect collaboration car in Rocket League
Most players’ garages are filled with so many cars. Some of them we like more — for the actual performance or just for a cool-looking body.
Esports pros are usually on Fennec or Octane. What would be a perfect combo for stizzy, a real-world collaboration car and Rocket League hitbox?
“For me, the best car ever is Fennec at the moment. If I could get a new car, I think it would be maybe a Porsche or something. A sports car.”
Volleyball in Rocket League?
In addition to many cosmetic offers, Rocket League occasionally rolls out some interesting game modes. For instance, Heatseeker was promoted to the ranked playlist during Season 21.
What if stizzy could add any new mode to the game, what would it be?
“I’ve been thinking a lot over the years about one game mode. I don’t know why Epic Games didn’t put it in yet, even in casuals or something. I think it would be so good if they add volleyball.”
Time in Vitality
Gaspar “stizzy” Rosalen Andres joined Team Vitality in October 2025. It’s been quite a big period for the player to analyze his experience with this organization.
“I feel very comfortable with the team right now. At the beginning, it was kind of hard, because both my teammates, ExoTiiK and zen, they didn’t make teams with an English-speaking player, as it was French for them before. So it was kind of weird at the beginning, because it was new for them. Now we are all very comfortable.”
“And about Vitality, I think it’s the best org in the world. So I’m very happy to be here. They treat me so well, and I’m so happy to be here.”
Team Vitality | stizzy
Rocket League Team Vitality play the final regional qualifier, Open 6, from April 24 to April 26. You can check out details of the entire RLCS 2026 Split 2 series here.
The Paris Major itself happens from May 20 to May 24.