Valorant star earns three Esports Awards nominations after stellar rookie season

The Esports Awards nominees for 2023 have been announced and a Valorant player has been nominated in three categories.

On September 20, The Esports Awards unveiled the complete list of finalists for the 2023 edition. The categories include Esports Game of the Year, Esports Breakthrough Player of the Year, and others.

One notable esports player has managed to secure three nominations across different award categories. Max ‘Demon1’ Mazanov, an Evil Geniuses Valorant player, will wrap up his impressive debut season with a world championship title, MVP award, and potentially, multiple Esports Awards.

The only other players matching his nomination tally this year are Alexis ‘Zen’ Bernier from Team Vitality Rocket League and Seth ‘Scump’ Abner in the content creator category.

Valorant player from Evil Geniuses secures three nominations at Esports Awards

Demon1 is nominated for Breakthrough Player of the Year, PC Player of the Year, and is part of the nomination for Team of the Year under Evil Geniuses.

Demon1 debuted for Evil Geniuses in the VCT Americas in Week 2 on April 10. Since then, he secured third place in the VCT Americas playoffs, landed second spot at VCT Masters Tokyo, bagged the Valorant Champions 2023 title, and won the finals MVP award.

Without Demon1, it’s arguable that Evil Geniuses wouldn’t be nominated for Team of the Year as the team struggled without his contribution at the beginning of the season. Yet despite his achievements this year, Demon1 might be seen in different team colors in 2024.

Recent reports suggest that Evil Geniuses has asked its Valorant players to accept a substantial salary reduction or face a market buyout.

There is no news yet on whether Demon1 will switch teams following his notable rookie season. However, the Valorant Champions Tour off-season is in progress and final decisions on team formations are yet to be made.