d3ffo to play with BOOM Esports at APAC Predator League 2026
BOOM Esports unveil a new-look five for APAC Predator League 2026, headlined by ex-Gambit winner d3ffo.
INDONESIA – BOOM Esports will field former Gambit Esports player Nikita “d3ffo” Sudakov at the upcoming APAC Predator League 2026, Acer India has confirmed.
For d3ffo, the move continues a career that has taken him across Asia since his peak years in CIS winning VALORANT Masters Berlin 2021. After previously competing in China with Gank Gaming in 2023 and returning again with Octagonal Disposition Gaming in 2025, he now steps into Southeast Asia with BOOM for one of the first cross-regional storylines of the year.
While BOOM are set to return to the VALORANT Challengers SEA circuit this season, it remains unclear whether d3ffo’s inclusion is a one-off for Predator League or a longer-term deal. The Indonesian squad have also listed former NAOS Esports and Alter Ego player Alehandro “Nakya” Fabian to complete the lineup alongside Sheldon “NcSlasher” Andersen, Hildegard “Shiro” Arnaldo, and recently-added Jonathan “naTz” Adiputra from RRQ Academy.
d3ffo is best known for his run with Gambit Esports, one of the defining rosters of 2021. That Gambit lineup dominated the CIS circuit, captured the VALORANT Masters Berlin 2021 title, and later finished second at VALORANT Champions 2021, cementing themselves as one of the strongest teams of the early VCT era.
The following year brought a major shift. With sanctions affecting Russian organizations, the roster competed under the M3 Champions banner in 2022. Results did not match the previous highs, as the team failed to qualify for international events and eventually disbanded, sending its players into different teams across EMEA.
Since then, d3ffo has bounced across multiple competitions, including stints in Europe with Team Valiant in VALORANT Challengers France Revolution and HGE Esport in VALORANT Challengers Spain Rising in 2024, and more recently VALORANT Challengers NORTH//EAST with SweetNsour. In 2025, he joined Octagonal Disposition Gaming in China’s National Competition tier-two circuit, but he did not appear at Ascension CN.
BOOM’s decision to bring in another overseas name after dos9’s departure arrives in the middle of a wider reset for the organization. The team will return to the Challengers circuit after missing out on a VCT Pacific comeback through VCT Ascension Pacific, where they fell only to the eventual top two finishers, SLT Seongnam and Nongshim RedForce.
With three players from their VCT Pacific period no longer on the team, BOOM now face a challenge toward a route back into the tier-one. BOOM will be hoping to qualify into VCT Pacific Stage 2 and, if they are competitive enough, keep a Champions Shanghai run within reach.
APAC Predator League 2026 will serve as the debut event for BOOM’s new-look roster, with 16 teams set to compete in New Delhi from January 10-11. BOOM have been drawn into a group with Team NKT, India’s GGEZ, and LIT Esports, who feature d3ffo’s former ODG teammate Tsai “W1nner” Hung-wei. Only the top team from the group will advance to the semifinals.
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Cover photo courtesy of Riot Games