Pinoy esports veteran Carlo "Kuku" Palad with his team, Flipster Talon. Mark Demayo, ABS-CBN News
MANILA, Philippines – Talon Esports has certainly exceeded expectations since its founding in 2021, according to its founder and CEO Xiao "Sean" Zhang.
In an interview with ABS-CBN News, Zhang shared how the Philippine-based Dota 2 division has hit its strides, eventually claiming a podium finish at a major tournament.
READ: GGWP! Kuku, Flipster Talon finish Top 3 in DreamLeague S26
Talon is now known as "Flipster Talon" after the global cryptocurrency trading platform Flipster secured its naming rights with the organization for the next year.
"I think we've definitely overachieved," said Zhang. "I think when we first started, we started in Division 2 of DPC, right? We had nothing. And then now, I guess we've established ourselves as one of the premier Dota teams here in Southeast Asia."
The Talon executive lauded Filipino Dota 2 star Carlo "Kuku" Palad, including his teammates Nuengnara "23savage" Teeramahanon of Thailand, Rafli "Mikoto" Fathur Rahman and Tri "Jhocam" Kuncoro of Indonesia, and Chung "Ws" Wei Shen of Malaysia for winning third-place at the recent DreamLeague Season 26, as well as a berth to the $3-million Esports World Cup.
"I think the boys have had some amazing results just recently. DreamLeague finishing third, third at Riyadh Masters as well. Had some amazing performances as well."
READ: Kuku and his love for Dota 2
His vision for the team included a wishful run to a Dota world championship at The International.
But those TI dreams will wait as the team failed to advance to the event itself this year, losing to Team Nemesis and Boom Esports at the regional qualifiers.
READ: Dota 2: Boom Esports dashes Talon's Aegis hopes, qualifies at TI 2025
READ: Dota 2: 5-man Pinoy Team Nemesis marches on to TI 2025
"Of course, the end goal is to see if we can win a TI, win an international trophy for this region. Because obviously, SEA typically, historically, has underperformed compared to other regions as well. So, if we can bring an international trophy back, that's always our objective," Zhang said.
(R) Youngsun Shin, Flipster's Head of Product & Partnerships and (R) Talon Founder & CEO Xiao "Sean" Zhang. Mark Demayo, ABS-CBN NewsMeanwhile, Youngsun Shin, Flipster's Head of Product & Partnerships said they had to pounce on the opportunity of the wide reach of esports, particularly Dota in the Southeast Asian region.
"I think Talon Esports in specific, we thought was a really great partner to start with given that there's a wider breadth of teams that Talon Esports is bringing to the table," said Shin.
"And then the presence across different regions, not only Hong Kong or Taiwan, they're expanding to Philippines as part of their Dota 2 headquarters. There's much more presence that we've seen."
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