9z are up to sixth in the world after hoisting the trophy at XSE Pro League, and it was an unlikely MVP in the form of supportive rifler Matias "HUASOPEEK" Ibañez Hernandez.
But with a 1.37 rating in map wins, five standout playoff maps, and a team-high 1.19 rating, the Chilean became the first player from his country to earn an HLTV medal.
HUASOPEEK stopped short of saying that 9z's journey was finished, however.
"The team's goal is to make playoffs at every tier S event and try to win a tournament," he said. "But above all we want to qualify to fight for the Major in Argentina and win it."
XSE Pro League may be a medium-tier event, only just qualifying for an MVP, but it's another string in the bow of both 9z and 23-year-old HUASOPEEK himself.
Radar Chart Stat Glossary
Rating 3.0: HLTV's composite rating of kills, damage, survival, KAST, multis, and Swing
Swing Added: win probability added from positive actions
eKPR: eco-adjusted kills per round
eADR: eco-adjusted damage per round
eKPRW: eco-adjusted kills per round win
2k+: rounds with two or more kills
1k+: rounds with one or more kills
KAST: rounds with a kill, assist, survival, or death traded
Swing in RW Δ: round swing in round wins
eDmg Δ: eco-adjusted damage differential per round
eKills Δ: eco-adjusted kill differential per round
Round Swing: the win probability sum of a player's actions
dgt was a passenger in groups, but exploded in playoffs with a 1.22 rating, 1.05 KPRW, and by topping the scoreboard in the grand final.
He was also excellent in deciders against TYLOO and Alliance, dropping identical 20-10 K-Ds as 9z stormed to the grand final.
This represents dgt's second EVP of the year after PGL Astana, as he hits a rich vein of form since leaving paiN Gaming.
Like dgt, luchov is now a two-time EVP, and he can now set his sights on being the Rookie of the Year.
The Argentinian rifler was a pillar of consistency in Guangzhou, with 75% of maps above the 1.00 mark and a team-high 1.19 rating on T side.
He did not have as many peaks as his two teammates, hence why he sits in third place on this list, but he contributed in all but one series (he was quiet against MIBR) to build a heap of credit by the end of the event.
frozen's raw statistics are illustrative of the level he was at for much of the tournament. He posted a 1.26 rating (1.23 playoffs), with 1.06 KPRW and +2.23% Round Swing.
With FaZe in the duldrums, the Slovakian had not earned an EVP this year before breaking his duck here at XSE Pro League.
FaZe's opposition was not the toughest after they dropped to the 0-2 pool, but frozen led the way for his side with three maps above a 2.00 rating and the leading role against top 10 side BetBoom in the quarter-final.
zweih was PARIVISION's best player in China, and secured his EVP as early as the quarter-final against BIG.
He may not have had too much impact afterwards, but was on a 1.32 rating as the quarter-finals concluded and still finished the event with 1.01 KPRW.
Considering the manner of his Spirit exit, it's remarkable that this is his third EVP of the year — something only 14 players have managed – and he is set to be the biggest benefactor if PARIVISION's revival holds true.
Last but not least, Magnojez earns his debut EVP with a barnstorming 1.44 rating and 1.25 KPRW. Those are Danil "donk" Kryshkovets-level numbers from the Spirit star's buddy.
And while he did have a poor Cache against FaZe in the arena, he bounced back with a 1.52 rating on Ancient. That adds to a 1.55-rated group stage as BetBoom battled past Nemesis, BIG, and SINNERS, performances enough to secure his EVP beyond doubt.
The best players of XSE Pro League Guangzhou 2026, in order:
Honorable mentions
Vladislav "xiELO" Lysov was as good as zweih in groups and had a solid final, but only had a 1.14 rating in map wins (5th in PV) and lacked playoff peaks.
Vyacheslav "slaxejezzz" Vinokurov enjoyed himself on debut, with three standout playoff maps, but ended on a 1.05 rating.
Jason "JBOEN" Boe Nielsen came close, but credit had to be shared between FaZe for their lower bracket run, and the Dane struggled in playoffs.
Russel "Twistzz" Van Dulken was closer after a couple of decent playoff maps, but had a poor start in the BO1s and was less impactful in the quarter-final than it seems, given his 7-5 K-D in the 10-2 start on Cache and 1.03 rating in the same 10-2 scoreline on Ancient.
Jonatan "bobeksde" Persson destroyed Nemesis in the quarter-finals but fell to a 0.92 rating against top 20 teams.
Dongkai "Jee" Ji led TYLOO through groups (1.34 rating) alongside Su "Zero" Jingshen (1.33), but neither confirmed their EVP in playoffs.
Daniil "Sdaim" Tupov had a shout for an EVP but his map list gets thin beyond his three peaks.
Finally, Felipe "insani" Yuji was in as brilliant form as ever with a 1.24 rating and 1.24 KPRW despite MIBR's group stage exit.
All-Star
With the top three EVPs and the standout in-game leader, it's clear that 9z left their mark on XSE Pro League.
But only three can make it into our all-star list, and the gap between Maximiliano "max" Gonzalez and the next best in-game leader was larger than the gap between dgt and frozen in the closer category.
max is joined by teammates luchov and HUASOPEEK, who has the unusual status of being both MVP and anchor of the event.
Then, with no AWPing EVPs, JBOEN pips Jee to the post to garner a justified reward for his great start to life in FaZe.
Multi-award winners
zweih, dgt, and luchov climb the list.
The EVPs of 2026
- Bounty S1
- Cluj-Napoca
- Rotterdam
- Rio
- Astana
- CAC
- XSE PL
- Krakow
- EPL S23
- Bucharest
- Rivals S1
- Atlanta
- Cologne (M)
Ivan 'zweih' Gogin
Daniil 'Sdaim' Tupov
Vladislav 'xiELO' Lysov
BIG
Johannes 'tabseN' Wodarz
Jon 'JDC' de Castro
Josef 'faveN' Baumann
Benjamin 'blameF' Bremer
Gleb 'gr1ks' Gazin
Sebastian 'xenn' Hoch
FaZe
David 'frozen' Čerňanský
Russel 'Twistzz' Van Dulken
Jakub 'jcobbb' Pietruszewski
Jason 'JBOEN' Boe Nielsen
Niclas 'enkay J' Krumhorn
Franco 'dgt' Garcia
Jason 'JBOEN' Boe Nielsen
Spirit
Dmitry 'sh1ro' Sokolov
Boris 'magixx' Vorobiev
Andrey 'tN1R' Tatarinovich
Myroslav 'zont1x' Plakhotia
Danil 'donk' Kryshkovets
Sergey 'hally' Shavaev
Alliance
Simon 'twist' Eliasson
Sean 'eraa' Knutsson
Jonatan 'bobeksde' Persson
Markus 'upE' Johansson
Arvid 'avid' Åberg
Simon 'Hawk' Vävinggren
Matias 'HUASOPEEK' Ibañez Hernandez
paiN
Vinicius 'vsm' Moreira
Rodrigo 'biguzera' Bittencourt
Guilherme 'piriajr' Barbosa
Rafael 'saffee' Costa
João 'snow' Vinicius
Henrique 'rikz' Waku
Su 'Zero' Jingshen
Russel 'Twistzz' Van Dulken
Nemesis
Ivan 'SELLTER' Miroshnikov
Evgeny 'r3salt' Frolov
Alemkhan 'mag1k3Y' Moldakamalov
Philipp 'tex1y' Moskvitin
Daniil 'Sdaim' Tupov
Maksim 'NMV' Naumov
Dongkai 'Jee' Ji
Kirill 'Magnojez' Rodnov
Jonatan 'bobeksde' Persson
Vyacheslav 'slaxejezzz' Vinokurov
David 'frozen' Čerňanský
Luciano 'luchov' Herrera
Felipe 'insani' Yuji
Danil 'donk' Kryshkovets
PARIVISION
Ivan 'zweih' Gogin
Abay 'HObbit' Khassenov
Dzhami 'Jame' Ali
Vladislav 'xiELO' Lysov
Vyacheslav 'slaxejezzz' Vinokurov
Dastan 'dastan' Akbayev
9z
Maximiliano 'max' Gonzalez
Franco 'dgt' Garcia
Ignacio 'meyern' Meyer
Luciano 'luchov' Herrera
Matias 'HUASOPEEK' Ibañez Hernandez
Bruno 'BIT' Fukuda Lima
MIBR
Linus 'LNZ' Holtäng
Lucas 'nqz' Soares
Breno 'brnz4n' Poletto
Felipe 'insani' Yuji
Carlos 'venomzera' Eduardo
Nestor 'LETN1' Tanić
TYLOO
Yi 'JamYoung' Yang
Dongkai 'Jee' Ji
Jingxiang 'Mercury' Wang
Qianhao 'Moseyuh' Chen
Su 'Zero' Jingshen
WeiJie 'zhokiNg' Zhong
Maximiliano 'max' Gonzalez
BetBoom
Kirill 'Boombl4' Mikhailov
Aleksandr 'zorte' Zagodyrenko
Pavel 'S1ren' Ogloblin
Daniil 'd1Ledez' Kustov
Kirill 'Magnojez' Rodnov
Artem 'Fierce' Ivanov
SINNERS
Sebastian 'beastik' Daňo
Max 'SHOCK' Kvapil
Mădălin-Andrei 'MoDo' Mirea
Kamil 'kisserek' Banak
Jordan 'stressarN' Manevski
Jakub 'Bfull' Kokoška