Q: You won the first match of the last week of the regular season with a clean 2-0. How do you feel now?
Canyon : First of all, I am very happy to win the match cleanly with a 2-0. Next, we will face HLE, and it feels even better to win a match before that.
Q: GEN had already secured the top spot in the regular season. What aspects have you been focusing on in terms of performance and results recently?
Canyon : Since the playoff version is different from the regular season, we are now thinking more about which champions perform better in version 14.16. However, even though we have secured the first place in the regular season, we still try our best.
Q: Some people were expecting GEN to try some novel picks in the matches. In fact, you chose Skarner in the second game. I know that in the LPL, Kanavi also used Skarner against NIP. Can you talk about your thoughts on Skarner?
Canyon : I also saw Kanavi from the LPL using Skarner and thought it was pretty good, so I tried it a few times in practice matches. There are fewer tank junglers now, and Skarner feels like a viable option. So I used it in today's match and felt it performed well in the early stages.
Q: I noticed that Kanavi chose Grasp of the Undying and Heartsteel, which is quite unique. Can you explain this rune and item build in detail?
Canyon : Since Skarner's abilities have some health scaling, increasing health is beneficial. I saw some players in solo queue choosing the Grasp of the Undying and Heartsteel build path, so I tried it. Although it indeed increased damage significantly, it's a pity that it didn't cover magic resistance, but I still chose to increase health for better resistance.
Q: When I saw you pick Blitzcrank, I couldn't help but remember a long time ago when GRF used Thresh with Skarner. Do you remember that?
Canyon : Hmm, I think I have some impression of it. Although the combination is not as strong now, back then, Skarner and Thresh were a very certain combination. But today, because Lehends was very accurate with his hooks, we cooperated very well.
Q: Speaking of different champions, sometimes GEN players warm up their fingers on stage before a match. I heard that recently you and Chovy have been warming up with a 1v1 in the top lane instead of other positions, which seems to have sparked some discussion?
Canyon : I think this has become a routine since the spring season. Before the match, I only use Aatrox to go to the top lane, while Jihun picks some random champions, like Master Yi, and then we have a 1v1. I feel that my proficiency with Aatrox is slowly improving because my win rate with Aatrox in solo queue is not high. Through this 1v1 method, I am trying to improve my proficiency as much as possible.
Q: As a jungler, you still pay attention to Aatrox's win rate in solo queue. That's interesting?
Canyon : It might be because I am often assigned to the secondary role in solo queue recently, rather than the primary role, especially since there are many junglers, so the probability of being assigned to the secondary role is very high. Therefore, I need to have a few champions I am good at in every position. Frankly speaking, practicing jungling in solo queue doesn't make much sense.
Q: Indeed, team matches and solo queue are different. I still remember you once climbed to the top rank in Europe using Jayce. Also, I know that Chovy is quite confident in the top lane. Who do you think is stronger in the top lane, Chovy or you? After all, neither of you is in your main role, so this question should be easy to answer, right?
Canyon : I still think Jihun's laning ability is stronger. As for me, how should I put it... I rely more on some small tricks to play, so I really can't beat a true laning expert.
Q: Another point might be that as a jungler, you should know the timing of jungle ganks better than anyone else, right?
Canyon : But now everyone basically knows the timing for jungling. Now it's pretty much fixed when to come gank and what to do, so there's nothing particularly special about it. But I do understand the needs of the jungler better.
Q: In this good atmosphere, GEN seems to be accumulating victories continuously. However, unfortunately, GEN didn't achieve an undefeated season. Although I know that for players, such records are not as important as the final results, the recent loss to KT indeed surprised many people. KT is a very unpredictable team. How do you view this loss?
Canyon : First of all, I think I made a lot of personal mistakes, especially at the beginning where there were a few big problems. I believe this was the main reason for our failure. I reviewed my performance, watched the match replays and the BP phase together, and prepared for the next match.
Q: KT picked a very strong late-game composition at that time. Did you consider this during the BP phase?
Canyon : I think KT was better prepared than us. I should say they found very good choices. In the mid to late game, team fights were much harder than I imagined. I think they performed very well, and there are indeed many things to think about.
Q: KT might also be your opponent in the playoffs, which will start in two weeks. What are your prospects for the overall situation?
Canyon : I can't really talk about prospects because we haven't had any scrims on version 14.16 yet. After the regular season ends, we need to quickly prepare in the remaining time. So, it's hard to say anything about prospects at the moment.
Q: Because I recently also interviewed Kiin, and he mentioned that although the next match, including the current matches, are very important, his primary goal this year is the World Championship, followed by the current LCK Summer Split. He also added that after all, this team is gathered with players who are eager to win the World Championship, so everyone can resonate more on this point. Canyon also seems to be very motivated on this point. Can you talk about your views on this?
Canyon : To be honest, all players, as players, naturally desire the World Championship, but I don't think our team's desire in this aspect is weaker than other teams, maybe even stronger. I strongly agree with this point, and because of this, everyone in our team works even harder. I think this is a good thing, and it motivates me not to fall behind my teammates, so I will work even harder.
Q: Last question, what are the chances of GEN winning the championship?
Canyon : If we play well, I think the probability is still very high.
Q: 60%? 70%? 80%? 90%? 100%?
Canyon : I'm not sure either, hahaha.
