Jinggg secures #3 at the VALO2ASIA Awards 2025
Two-time APAC Player of the Year Wang “Jinggg” Jing Jie returns to the Top 20, claiming No. 3 after a trophy-filled 2025.
The VALO2ASIA Awards 2025 is brought to you by Pulsar Gaming Gears.
SINGAPORE – Wang “Jinggg” Jing Jie has taken the No. 3 spot in the VALO2ASIA Awards 2025 rankings, completing a return to the Top 20 after missing the list a year ago. The two-time winner had to settle for an Honorable Mention in 2024, but this year’s placement shows Jinggg’s era is not something that belonged to 2022 or 2023. He is still here and still capable of shaping a season.
Few players in APAC have carried higher expectations. Being voted the region’s best in 2022 and 2023 did not just place Jinggg at the top of a list, it turned every season into a referendum: if Paper Rex were winning, Jinggg would be a front-runner; if PRX were stumbling, the spotlight would inevitably swing back to him. That cycle defined the year that followed, and in many ways, made 2025 the most important season of his career.
A year ago, the storyline had already begun to shift. Jinggg’s return to Paper Rex midway through 2024 was immediately met with optimism, and for good reason. PRX captured VCT Pacific Stage 1 soon after, reigniting belief that the 2023 roster iteration, the version that could overwhelm teams with pace and confidence all the way to making the VALORANT Champions LA Grand Finals, was back.
But international play remained a different story. PRX’s 5th-6th finish at VALORANT Masters Shanghai and 9th-12th placing at VALORANT Champions Seoul were respectable results in isolation, yet they fell short of Paper Rex’s own standard, especially compared to the year prior.
It was the kind of season that would be celebrated almost anywhere else. Podium-level domestic finishes, consistent qualification for global events, and a roster still widely regarded as one of the most talented in the world. But “good” has never been the target for Paper Rex, and it has never been the bar for Jinggg either.
The first half of 2025 only intensified the noise. Their Kickoff 2025 campaign ended in a 7th-8th place finish, most remembered by a 1-13 loss to DetonatioN FocusMe that quickly became one of the low points of the team’s modern era.
It is an uncomfortable reality for superstar players. You can be excellent and still be doubted if the results are not there. For Jinggg, that pressure is amplified by history, not because his individual ability disappeared, but because the outcomes around him were not matching the PRX legacy. When you have been crowned No. 1 twice, the conversation becomes less about “how good is he,” and more about “why is the team not winning if he is that good?”
Paper Rex’s reset came in a form that felt both simple and drastic: they found the right fix. The addition of Patrick “PatMen” Mendoza, coupled with the coaching influence of Laijhun “Panda” Cheng and Jacob “mini” Harris, gave PRX structure without stripping away identity. They still played their brand of aggression. But it was refined. Their mid-round calls looked clearer. Their risk-taking felt calculated, and simple mistakes slowly faded away. Their confidence also stopped being a coin flip.
The results that followed are why Jinggg is now No. 3. Paper Rex closed the season with one of the strongest trophy hauls in recent memory: a championship at VALORANT Masters Toronto, another title at VCT Pacific Stage 2, and a strong fourth-place finish at VALORANT Champions Paris. In a year where APAC’s elite teams were constantly trading blows and international parity looked stronger than ever, PRX re-established itself as a global contender.
Entry players almost never get labeled “consistent” because the role is designed to be chaotic. They are asked to go first, take the worst fights, soak utility, and create space so everyone else can play. When it works, it looks effortless. When it does not, it looks like straight inting. That is why Jinggg being one of the most reliable and decisive players all season actually means something. He embraced the job on a roster packed with stars, and he did it without PRX losing its identity, keeping their tempo relentlessly aggressive while still pushing against the current meta.
It is also why his impact can be underrated from the outside. When you play next to names that can take over any map, public perception tends to drift toward whoever is “hot” on the day. But over the full season, Jinggg was the steady thread.
Jinggg’s 1v2 clutch in VCT Pacific Stage 1, that round became one of the season’s defining plays. It stabilized PRX when they needed it most, and the confidence gained from those survival moments eventually carried forward into their Toronto championship run. Domestic-wise, Jinggg was the second-highest rated player in all of VCT Pacific throughout the 2025 season, with 1.13 VLR rating across 1078 rounds.
For a player who has already been at the very top, a No. 3 ranking might sound like a step down on paper. In context, it is a return to the conversation that matters. It is proof that Jinggg’s era is not something that belonged to 2022 or 2023. He is still here and still capable of shaping a season.
Placement over the years:
- 2021: #19
- 2022: #1
- 2023: #1
- 2024: Honorable Mention
- 2025: #3
Comment from judge(s):
Natasha "Tashbunny" Hashim: “I remember when he was under so much scrutiny and stress because of his performance but I'm glad he was able to recover. Moving him into different roles has helped him get a bit creative while still utilising his insane mechanics! Love seeing the growth.”
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Cover photo courtesy of Stefan Wisnoski/Riot Games