Oscar "Mixwell" Cañellas Colocho has signed with G2 Esports to play on their newly-formed professional VALORANT team.
Mixwell, a former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive pro for the likes of OpTic Gaming and Cloud9, has been one of the standouts in the European VALORANT scene since the game went into its closed beta phase on April 7. During that period, the 24-year-old from Spain won various online tournaments, making him one of the most valuable free agents on the market, drawing interest from organizations in North America and Europe before ultimately signing with G2.
"G2's history shows that they are competitive in every game they've been part of and their content is also top, most of my fans are also G2 fans so it makes even more sense for me," Mixwell told ESPN. "The goal is to be the best VALORANT team in the world and I want to be the best player in the game, have fun representing the fans around the world, and I am sure we can do it together."
Although this is their first official VALORANT signing, G2 Esports have been active in the game's world since the closed beta was released. They hosted two online tournaments, European Brawl 1 and 2, in which Mixwell competed, and are going to host the first-ever Ignition Series tournament beginning on June 19 in collaboration with Red Bull. G2 is also no stranger to VALORANT publisher Riot Games, with their League of Legends team having won seven domestic championships and reached the finals of the 2019 League of Legends World Championship in Paris. The team's owner, Carlos "ocelote" Rodríguez Santiago, was one of the pioneers in the early days of League of Legends in Europe, having himself played at the 2012 world championship in Los Angeles as part of SK Gaming.
"VALORANT really is an amazing game I enjoy both playing and watching," ocelote said. "G2 will have a world championship-winning team and it all starts with Mixwell. Many top organizations fought hard for him and we are delighted he's put so much trust into letting us build a killer lineup alongside him. Now, you MF'ers stop poaching him already."