Patrick Mendoza, the Filipino rookie player known in the esports world as “PatMen” and a member of Paper Rex (PRX), showed no signs of slowing down as his team trounced China’s Wolves Esports (WOV), 2-0, on June 19 to punch their way into the grand finals of Valorant Masters Toronto.

The Singapore-based PRX, the last representatives of the Pacific region, pulled out all the stops to take a decisive overtime win in Lotus, 14-12, before hounding the wolf pack in their own map pick, Ascent, with a 13-8 closeout in the Upper Bracket.

Read how Valorant, a 5v5 tactical shooter video game, is played in “VCT Pacific: Filipino squads look for rebound after Week 2 misfires.”

While mainstays Jason “f0rsakeN” Susanto and Khalish “d4v41” Rusyaidee led the full display of W Gaming’s play style of pure aggression, each dropping 40 kills across two maps, “PatMen” Mendoza answered the call in setting his team mates up for success.

The rising star flexed his reliability again, generating a series-high 23 assists to go along with 25 eliminations using Fade and KAY/O, respectively, with a couple of clutches to boot against an unrelenting WOV squad.

Mendoza, 23, is the first homegrown Filipino to play in a Grand Final on the international stage. It will be PRX’s second Finals appearance in a Masters event.

Mr. Consistency

PatMen’s arrival has been nothing but impactful for the Paper Rex squad in their journey to Toronto. After suffering their earliest exit at VCT Pacific Kickoff, PRX signed up the Filipino player, a former NAOS Esports initiator, days before Split 1 started last March.

Mendoza has one goal in mind for every team he has played: provide the support they need to succeed. And for PRX, it’s nothing different.

PatMen showed promise in his debut in the regional stage but came up short against Boom Esports, with Paper Rex sent deeper into a 0-3 hole in Group Alpha.

Banking on consistency to deliver, he delivered back-to-back series-highs 40 and 17 assists against Detonation FocusMe and Global Esports, respectively, to clinch the final ticket to the playoffs.

From then on, the Asia Pacific (APAC) titans caught a second wind, running through the gauntlet just enough to settle for the third seed heading to Masters Toronto.

In his international debut, PatMen picked up a 30/18/9 series KDA (Kill-Death-Assist) in their victory over Team Heretics, announcing his arrival as a key cog in the PRX engine. He has been posting a solid Average Combat Score (ACS) of 192.6 and a 28% Clutch Success Rate (ranking eighth among all players within the tournament).

PatMen Paper Rex advanced to the playoffs at the expense of Team Liquid, took down Americas’ top-seed G2 in the quarterfinals before defeating Filipino American duelist Zachary “zekken” Patrone and Sentinels in the semis.

Standing on business

The latest addition to the APAC squad has shown nerves of steel in the high-stakes battle, unfazed by the celebrations of the WOV players getting up from their seats since the match started.

“Ako tinatawa ko na lang, like hindi na ‘ko nagpapa-distract…Tumatayo rin kami (I just laugh it off. I don’t let myself get distracted. The counter is that we also stand up to celebrate,)” Mendoza said during the post-game interview.

He said that being Filipino, instead of being demoralized, he pushed harder in closing out with a sweep. “Syempre, lalo Pinoy tayo, sanay tayo sa mga ganoon [taunting], ’di ba?” he said with a laugh.

Down 1-4 early in Ascent, Mendoza’s quadra kill in the fifth round became the catalyst to ignite a 9-0 PRX run, eventually pulling away and closing out the series with a thrifty buy at Round 21.

The 4k also gave him the confidence boost he needed after a slow start in Lotus. “I think the one thing that helped me get back my confidence again on the second map, maybe after the clutch, is the boys still believe in me and they’re all trusting me,” he said.

Duelist Ilya “something” Petrov also found his footing in Ascent, returning to his signature pick Jett and listing 19 eliminations in his name.

Coach’s help

Playing in one of the most respected teams in the Pacific, PatMen relishes every moment with the squad, reiterating his consistency stemming from the trust he gained from the veterans.

“I always try to be open to everyone,” he said in Filipino. “I show my vulnerable side to them so they can know me better, and after that I became closer to the team. They helped me become better inside and outside the game, and because of that I can play better and call the shots properly.” 

He praised their head coach, Alexandre “alecks” Sallé, who stands up to become their “big brother” and brings out the best within them.

“I think that’s just his [explosive] character that you see on camera, but when it comes to practices and the team, he’s super helpful and encouraging inside and outside the game,” Mendoza said.

Sallé gave his props to the young star, explaining the pressure of being the newest addition in a tightly-bonded team like PRX.

“In the past, yes, he has [struggled with] imposter syndrome because suddenly the world’s eyes are on [him]. There’s a lot of pressure, but I think he has overcome it already, as a part of the [PRX] boys, and I think he’s naturally a very self-confident person,” the tactician said at the post-game press conference.

Asked how they are going to celebrate the win, PatMen answered with a chuckle: “Jollibee, maybe, order some Filipino food again.” 

From a disastrous start, Paper Rex are now just one series away from securing the second international trophy for the Pacific.

They will take a short break during the Lower Bracket Finals between Europe’s Fnatic and Wolves Esports on June 22, with the grand finals set on June 23.