Virtus.pro to field academy AWPer b1st at CS Asia Championships 2025; ICY to miss event but remains on main roster

Virtus.pro will play the CS Asia Championships 2025 with a different primary sniper: Vladimir “b1st” Krasikov, promoted temporarily from the club’s academy lineup VP.Prodigy. The organization confirmed that b1st will stand in as the team’s AWPer specifically for CAC 2025, while Kaisar “ICY” Faiznurov will skip the tournament yet remains part of the main roster and is not being benched. 

The decision, according to Virtus.pro, was made jointly by players and coaching staff with two goals in mind: testing a new AWPer in official LAN play and giving a promising academy player international stage experience. 

Event details: dates, place, opener

The CS Asia Championships 2025 (CAC 2025), organized by Perfect World, will run October 14–19 in Shanghai, China. Liquipedia lists the event as A-Tier (Valve Tier 2) with a $400,000 prize pool and 16 teams in attendance. Bracket play features a double-elimination group stage (best-of-three) with group winners to the semifinal and 2nd–3rd placed sides to the quarterfinals, followed by a single-elimination playoff (BO3 with a BO5 grand final). 

Tournament schedules show Virtus.pro opening against Legacy on October 14 at 03:00 UTC, one of the first matches on Day 1. 

Who is b1st?

b1st (Vladimir Krasikov) is a 17-year-old AWPer in VP’s academy program VP.Prodigy. His public profiles identify his primary role as the sniper, and he has been a fixture of VP’s youth project since late 2024, breaking through national and regional competitions across 2025. 

Current Virtus.pro lineup & recent changes

HLTV’s team overview lists VP’s main five as FL1T, Perfecto, fame, ICY, tO0RO (with Ivan “F_1N” Kochugov as coach). In early September, VP promoted Vadim “tO0RO” Arkov from VP.Prodigy after a successful trial as an anchor, and—crucially—announced Perfecto would assume IGL duties for the remainder of the season. 

Those moves followed a busy summer: on June 25, VP signed Ilya “Perfecto” Zalutskiy, describing him as one of the world’s elite anchor players; at the time, the club’s plan was to stabilize roles and improve long-term consistency. Later, on August 29, Denis “electroNic” Sharipov was moved to the bench as VP reshaped leadership and roles again. 

The club also loaned David “n0rb3r7” Danielyan to HOTU at the end of August for two months (a move unrelated to the upcoming CAC roster). 

Why this stand-in matters

Bringing in b1st offers VP two immediate benefits:

1. Role-specific look at a different AWP profile. ICY has been the team’s sniper since late 2024, but the organization explicitly states this is an experiment to “test a new AWPer” in a top-tier LAN. The club stresses ICY has not been benched; this is a one-event stand-in to gather data and give the academy star a runway.

2. Accelerated development for VP.Prodigy talent. VP has leaned into its academy pipeline throughout 2025 (e.g., the mid-season promotion of tO0RO). A controlled trial for b1st at CAC aligns with that broader philosophy.

The backdrop: missed ESL Pro League & the need for reps

The switch also comes after an unusual setback: Virtus.pro were forced to miss ESL Pro League in Stockholm due to border-control issues related to medical insurance, which led to entry denial and visa revocations for three players. The club is appealing the decision with local counsel. Missing that event reduced high-level stage time during a crucial stretch, making CAC 2025 an even more important touchpoint for this lineup’s trajectory. 

Where Virtus.pro stand entering Shanghai

• Direct invite confirmed: VP were directly invited to CAC 2025, as the organization announced on August 1.

• Ranking & roster stability: HLTV currently lists VP around the edge of the top-20 (rank data fluctuates weekly), with the team sheet reflecting the FL1T–Perfecto–fame–ICY–tO0RO core under coach F_1N. b1st’s appearance in Shanghai will temporarily replace ICY in the AWPer role for that event only.

• Recent form: The squad’s results have been mixed since the summer rebuild. VP exited FISSURE Playground #2 with a 2–3 Swiss record (9th–11th place) in mid-September, which underlined the need to keep iterating on roles and cohesion.

What to watch for at CAC 2025

1. How the AWP is integrated: With Perfecto now calling, VP’s approach to the sniper role may emphasize economy management, late-round trading, and structured mid-rounds—areas Perfecto is known to stabilize. Whether b1st opens rounds aggressively or slots into a more contain-and-trade style will be pivotal in Shanghai. (Context on Perfecto’s move and IGL status via VP’s official releases.)

2. Opening day vs Legacy: The Legacy matchup will immediately test how well the stand-in chemistry translates to stage play; it is set for Oct 14, 03:00 UTC. A win would ease pressure in the double-elim groups, while a loss would send VP into a lower-bracket path with little margin for error.

3. Event field & format: CAC brings a 16-team field in Shanghai with a $400k purse and a format that rewards early stability; group winners go straight to semifinals, while 2nd–3rd place teams fight through quarterfinals—placing additional value on opening matches.

A note on the academy pipeline

VP’s academy has steadily produced pieces for the main roster. tO0RO’s rise from VP.Prodigy to the senior squad this September—after months of internal testing—was framed by VP as proof the pipeline works. Moving b1st into a one-event trial at CAC follows the same logic: pressure-testing youth talent in official LANs to inform medium-term choices without making premature permanent changes. 

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Summary

• Confirmed: b1st (VP.Prodigy) will stand in as AWPer for Virtus.pro at CS Asia Championships 2025; ICY misses the event but remains on the roster.

• Event: Oct 14–19, Shanghai; 16 teams; $400k; A-Tier; VP open vs Legacy (Oct 14, 03:00 UTC).Context: VP recently promoted tO0RO, made Perfecto the IGL, and benched electroNic; they also missed ESL Pro League in Stockholm due to border/insurance issues.

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