Yawi made an appearance in the Echo and Blacklist International match and cleared rumors about his Echo farewell.
Balik Pinas si i-i-i-dolo!
All the way from Indonesia, former Echo roamer Tristan "Yawi" Cabrera made a surprise appearance during the clash of the Orcas and Blacklist International at the Shooting Gallery Studios in Makati City Sunday.
Yawi, now with Aura Fire Indonesia, made the trip to show his support in person to Echo.
The star roamer commended Echo’s stellar performance despite substituting M2 Finals MVP Karl “KarlTzy” Nepomuceno and M4 Finals MVP Frederic "Bennyqt" Gonzales out with Jhonville "Outplayed" Villar and Justine "Zaida" Palma.
“Kahit sino pong maglaro dun sa reserve na jungler at sa gold lane, malakas po. Kasi lagi po namin silang nakaka-scrim,” Yawi said, referring to Outplayed and Zaida.
Last year, Echo announced the departure of Cabrera from the team.
However, the big departure certainly left some unanswered questions.
After the 2023 MSC campaign, Yawi his spot in the main lineup to Jaypee “Jaypee” Dela Cruz during the MPL Season 12, sparking an uproar among disappointed fans.
They speculated that Echo’s team manager, Mitch Liwanag, was favoring her husband, Jaypee, to take part in the main lineup.
In the M5 World Championships, during the showdown against Blacklist International in the lower bracket finals, Echo made the decision to let Yawi play in the crucial game three.
Unfortunately, Blacklist International denied Echo of a chance to repeat as world champions with a victory via a sweep.
That last-minute decision again drew flak, as enraged fans thought that Yawi was set up to catch the blame for Echo's failure to extend the series further.
Fast forward to his visit to the MPL-PH arena on Sunday, Yawi shared his thoughts on parting ways with Echo and promptly addressed the “Yawi out, Asawa in” allegations.
“Gusto ko po mag explore po ulit sa development po sa akin since first time ko rin po mapupunta sa ibang bansa tapos nagkaroon ng offer. So gusto ko po siya i-try since feel ko po nagawa ko na po yung part ko sa Echo,” Yawi said on his career growth.
“Hindi naman totoo ‘yun kasi sabi nga po ng coaches namin since naglabas po sila ng statement di ba, na based on team decision po talaga. Nirespeto ko na lang po yung team decision, since lahat po sila nag majority. So syempre tiwala po ako na yung decision nila para po sa team,” Yawi emphasized the squad’s collective decision that assigned him as the sixth man.
While Yawi embarked on his new ML:BB journey, he says he already put the past behind him but remained empathetic to fans.
“Nasaktan lang po siguro talaga sila. Syempre po marami rin kaming pinagsamahan, so feeling ko po ayaw nila na mawala ako sa Echo,” Yawi explained.
“Kapag may nagyari sa isang team, intindihin niyo nalang din kasi walang permanente sa teams, may maalis talaga,” he added.