There was a tremendous uncertainty surrounding his future in the LEC following his release from G2 Esports; however, it appears Marcin “Jankos” Jankowski will return for 2023 under a new banner.

Jankowski gained notoriety and respect across his five year tenure with G2 Esports. He joined the organization in 2017 after multiple successful splits with H2k-Gaming and took on the mantle as the “The First Blood King” in the LEC. Jankowski was released from G2 alongside Victor “Flakked” Lirola Tortosa following their disappointing exit from Worlds 2022.

Leading Team Heretics

Rumors swirling around in the LEC offseason left every team except for Team Heretics without a jungler. Most teams retained their starters from 2022; however, a few key players, including Markoon and Xerxe have reportedly moved teams. With most teams having already filled their jungle vacancies, even players of the caliber of Jankowski had trouble finding a team for 2023.
Renowned leaker and League of Legends insider Brieuc “LEC Wooloo” Seeger announced Jankowski’s move earlier this week. His full announcement is as follows:

[Sources] Jungler Jankos will play for Team Heretics next year

Team Heretics is entering its inaugural split in the LEC come 2023. They acquired a majority share in Misfits’s LEC spot earlier this year, beating out KOI, Karmine Corp, and a few other interested parties.

While their roster is far from complete, the entirety of their Amazon European Masters Summer 2022 (AEM) winning roster is still listed in the GCD as competing in 2023. Rumors surrounding their roster indicate that only Jakob “Jackspektra” Gullvag Kepple will remain with the team as their ADC while the rest of their roster will be released.

Other rumors suggest Team Heretics will acquire Mertai “Mersa” Sari from their Misfits roster. The majority of the remaining Misfits players, Vetheo; Neon; and Irrelevant, are rumored to be joining Excel, Team Vitality, and SK Gaming. The last remaining Misfits player, Zanzarah, will not play in the LEC next year.

Who Replaced Jankos on G2?

Jankos has been one of G2’s star players since 2017. He is one of the most decorated LEC players of all time with accomplishments that include

  • First LEC Player with 300 Wins
  • Second LEC Player with 1000 Kills
  • Second LEC Player with 2500 Assists
  • First LEC Player with both 1000 Kills and 2500 Assists
  • Third LEC Player with 100 Playoff Matches
  • 2x LEC MVP (Summer 2019, Spring 2020)
  • 4x LEC First Team All-Pro (Spring 2019/2020, Summer 2019/2021)
  • 7x LEC Second Team All-Pro (Spring 2016/2017/2018/2022, Summer 2017/2021/2022)
  • 2x LEC Third Team All-Pro (Summer 2015/2016)

With such an impressive resume, replacing Jankos is no easy task. G2 Esports originally had their eyes set on MAD Lions’s jungler Javier “Elyoya” Prades Batalla; however, MAD rejected G2’s 800,000 Euro buyout. Scrambling to find a quality backup, G2 is rumored to have acquired Martin “Yike” Sundelin, an ERL player from LDLC OL. On LDLC OL, Sundelin placed 3rd/4th at AEM Masters Summer 2022, 1st in the LFL 2022 Spring and Summer Playoffs, and 2nd at AEM Masters Spring 2022.