After two tough series, FURIA nerve reflected on his Masters Santiago debut, the incredible crowd, learning Portuguese, and more.
The VALORANT Masters Santiago stage is heating up as the tournament approaches its final week. After a tough series against Paper Rex, FURIA had one last chance to stay alive against BBL Esports. For FURIA’s Michael “nerve” Yerrow, Santiago marked his first international experience, making the run even more meaningful.
Unfortunately, FURIA couldn’t secure the win and were eliminated from the tournament. In an interview with esports.gg, nerve reflected on the experience, the lessons he’s taking into Stage 1, what it means to compete alongside his best friends, and more.
I think I let my team down in a lot of different ways today, in small situations, so I want to be sure that those things never happen again.
FURIA nerve
A new way of playing VALORANT
VALORANT is constantly evolving, bringing new metas, agents, and map rotations. At the beginning of the 2026 season, we’re experiencing a meta focused on fast-paced games, fewer abilities, and more raw aim. Due to the initiators’ nerf last year, duelists have been popping off, with Waylay, Neon, and Yoru having a huge impact on a match.
This gameplay favors certain teams, such as Paper Rex (PRX) and BBL Esports, who came on top due to their frivolous and aggressive playstyle. The most difficult part is understanding how to counter their gameplay, and FURIA was not able to do it in the VALORANT Masters Santiago.
For FURIA nerve, winning only two pistols in two series didn’t help the team gain that initial momentum, which ended up making BBL even more confident. “They got a lot of momentum early, many ultimates and economy rolling, which always makes things hard for us. We are a resilient team, we trust each other a lot, which is why we almost came back in both series,” nerve explained.
According to nerve, it all comes down to preparation. Even in defeat, he believes matches like these are valuable learning experiences for him and teammates like Torogul “alym” Baidyldaev, as both are still rookies.
“In the Americas, there are maybe 50 people in the crowd, but here there are 4,000 standing right behind you. That definitely adds to the pressure,” he said. “I’ve already thought about so many individual things I want to work on, and I’m super motivated for the next stage. I want to play more events like this one. It was such a surreal experience.”
FURIA is known as a cursed organization, but I think the five of us are kind of like castaways or rejects from our past teams. No matter what we do, we’ll probably still be the underdogs, but we’re going to keep moving forward and getting better.
FURIA nerve
The “rat” play that brought FURIA back into the game
On Breeze, FURIA nerve showed off a new play that ranked players might want to try themselves. Tucked into a small corner on the B site, he took advantage of a tiny gap that BBL wasn’t expecting. The surprise caught them off guard, costing them the round and helping FURIA secure their fifth in a row.
“I actually saw it in a ranked game,” nerve laughed. “I wanted to try it, and it hasn’t not worked yet, so I did it twice in this Breeze game. Worked both time flawlessy. Maybe next time I won’t get so lucky, but it’s an amazing play that I saw, and I love doing it. It is so much fun.”
On the third map, we saw nerve changing his signature agent to a Tejo on the Abyss. For him, the double initiator composition adds a “different element to the game,” providing stronger executions. He believes his Tejo might actually be better than his Viper, even though he didn’t show it in the series.
“I’m new to the role in this meta, but there are so many things I can take away from these series and continue to get better. But I believe the meta will be changing soon and certain agents will be nerfed,” he added.
Riot Games has not given any hints surrounding a possible nerf to the double duelist meta. However, FURIA nerve believes that agents like Waylay and Yoru might be nerfed in the upcoming weeks. While he still believes the double duelist meta will persist, he thinks new duelists will appear.
FURIA nerve on his international debut
On his first international experience, FUR nerve revealed this was a very unique moment in his career. “The amount of fans and how energetic they were is insane, I’m definitely going to miss this crowd,” he added. “Everyone that I have been talking to said this was the best crowd they’ve ever seen.”
“Maybe London or Shanghai can beat it, but we will have to wait. I just really want to play in these events again. I’m motivated to do the right things and to push myself individually,” FURIA nerve reflected. “I think I let my team down in a lot of different ways today, in small situations, so I want to be sure that those things never happen again.”
Brazilian fan support
In his first year competing in Tier 1, nerve says he has felt incredibly welcomed by Brazilian fans, who he describes as “the most supportive, loyal, crazy fans you’ll ever meet.” They’ve been sending him lots of messages, and for him, that support has become a big source of motivation.
“FURIA is known as a cursed organization, but I think the five of us are kind of like castaways or rejects from our past teams. I’m just a tier-two bum,” he laughed. “Coming here and proving people wrong doesn’t really mean that much to me. But getting some wins for the fans. That’s amazing. No matter what we do, we’ll probably still be the underdogs, but we’re going to keep moving forward and getting better.”
As for his Portuguese, nerve has been learning some words. He even starts to comprehend some comms between Arthur “artzin” Araujo and the head coach, Ian “shaW” Jardim. “Since I know a little bit of Spanish, lots of words are similar, so I can understand a little bit. From the team, I am the one who knows the most, and I take pride in that. I’m a big fan of the Brazilian culture.”
FURIA nerve leaves a message on International Women’s Day
Yesterday was my mother’s birthday, I love her and I miss her a lot. I think the last few weeks have been pretty stressful for me. I definitely haven’t talked to her as much as I would’ve liked. So during this little break, I’m going to make sure I spend time with her and show her as much love as I can, along with the rest of my family and my girlfriend.
Happy International Women’s Day to my mom, my girlfriend, and all the women out there!
FURIA nerve
FURIA will be back at the VCT Americas 2026 Stage 1 on April 10. The groups have already been decided for all the regions, so don’t forget to check them all.