ZETA DIVISION have parted ways with Ukrainian coach Ivan “Johnta” Shevtsov after a disappointing last-place finish at VCT Pacific Kickoff.
JAPAN – ZETA DIVISION have announced the departure of Ivan “Johnta” Shevtsov as their head coach after just four months.
His contract has expired, and the Japanese organization has decided to reinstate Hibiki “XQQ” Motoyama as head coach—a role he previously held for three years before transitioning to a content creator position in 2024. Carlos “Carlão” Mohn will continue serving as ZETA’s assistant coach.
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Johnta joined ZETA DIVISION as part of a package deal alongside CLZ, Xdll, and SyouTa from FENNEL, one of Japan’s top-tier Challengers teams alongside RIDDLE.
With Johnta at the helm, supported by Carlão as assistant coach and XQQ as associate coach, ZETA DIVISION made a relatively strong OFF//SEASON run at the 2024 Red Bull Home Ground APAC Play-In, reaching the grand finals before falling to Korean powerhouse T1.
However, ZETA DIVISION struggled against a higher calibre of opposition at the 2025 VCT Pacific Kickoff, finishing in last place without securing a single map. They fell to Nongshim RedForce (Split 9-13, Haven 9-13) and Paper Rex (Lotus 5-13, Fracture 8-13), with Johnta notably absent from the coaching booth in Seoul.
ZETA DIVISION will be looking to rebound from their underwhelming performance, especially as DetonatioN FocusMe emerge as Japan’s new rising force in VALORANT.
Next up, ZETA DIVISION have been placed in Group Omega for VCT Pacific Stage 1, where they will face T1, TALON, Nongshim RedForce, RRQ, and Team Secret—a group that seems less daunting compared to the more stacked Group Alpha.
ZETA DIVISION are now:
- 🇯🇵 Yuma “Dep” Hashimoto
- 🇯🇵 Shota “SugarZ3ro” Watanabe
- 🇯🇵 Hikaru “CLZ” Mizutani
- 🇯🇵 Shota “SyouTa” Aoki
- 🇯🇵 Yuto “Xdll” Mizomori
- 🇯🇵 Hibiki “XQQ” Motoyama (Head coach)
- 🇧🇷 Carlos “Carlão” Mohn (Assistant coach)
- 🇯🇵 Shuhei “gya9” Takasaki (Analyst)
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Cover photo courtesy of HLTV
