Virtus Pro’s Major-winning lineup is finally getting a firepower upgrade in the form of Nikolay ‘mir’ Bityukov, a Russian CS:GO player who has garnered a reputation for his undeniable ability, alongside other less favorable traits.
The Russian org announced mir’s addition on July 5, pointing to the Russian pickup’s “in-game role and personal skill” as key elements helping solidify the deal. VPCEO Nikolai Petrossian went on to praise mir’s experience before proclaiming his belief that mir will “realize his full potential” with the CIS roster.
Mir is set to play his first CS:GO match for Virtus Pro against 9z at FiReLEAGUE Battle 2023 in Buenos Ares. The 27-year-old joined the squad on July 1 and will replace David “n0rb3r7” Danielyan for the foreseeable future.
While mir has been a powerhouse in the CIS CS:GO scene, the Russian star has struggled to find solid footing on the majority of his rosters throughout his playing career. Rumors in the Counter-Strike community have suggested toxic behavior was part of why he’s found difficulty maintaining his spot on a collection of teams.
CS:GO roster leaker Overdrive went as far as calling mir one of the “most difficult teammates in any team” and hinted at a tense environment while mir was part of the Spirit roster, via a CSGO.com interview.
However, mir has been a deadly CS:GO player for years, and VP must be thinking they can cowl any issues with the star. The Russian rifler has been a consistent force since 2015, and hasn’t showed signs of slowing down yet. Mir sports a 1.10 rating throughout his entire career, with his only dip being in 2018, per stats on HLTV.
VP has been in dire need of a firepower boost after a series of poor performances at top-tier events since their 2022 Major win. The team placed first at ESL Challenger Katowice 2023 but then failed to progress past the BLAST Paris Major 2023 RMRs.
