Gen.G Esports, T1, and Hanwha Life Esports attended the '2026 LoL Champions Korea (LCK)' Finals Media Day held at CHZZK LoL Park in Jonggak on the 8th. The three teams expressed their firm determination to beat one another and win the championship, while engaging in a tense psychological battle as they acknowledged each other as formidable opponents.
At the Media Day event, each team was represented by their head coach and two representative players—uniquely, all three teams included their AD carry. Gen.G's Park 'Ruler' Jae-hyuk, Hanwha Life Esports' Lee 'Gumayusi' Min-hyeong, and T1's Kim 'Peyz' Su-hwan were asked to evaluate the other two players and share what they consider their own strengths.
From the perspective of 'Ruler' and 'Gumayusi', 'Peyz' is a player whose greatest strength lies in his mechanics. They praised his exceptional ability to create variables based on solid mechanics, as well as his teamfight focus. Conversely, 'Peyz' shared that both 'Ruler' and 'Gumayusi' possess vast data and convey an overwhelming sense of veteran experience whenever he plays against them.
'Ruler' described 'Gumayusi' as a player who is strong in the laning phase and frequently delivers clever plays. 'Gumayusi' noted that when he watches 'Ruler', his distinct damage angles, know-how, and seasoned play stand out. Furthermore, both players answered that their own personal strength lies in playing smart.
Ryu 'Keria' Min-seok, Seo 'Kanavi' Jin-hyeok, and Kim 'Kiin' Ki-in, who were also in attendance, received similar questions. 'Kiin' said, "'Kanavi' shows bold aggressiveness at unexpected timings, making him genuinely difficult to deal with. As for 'Keria', I am wary of him because his in-game movements and teamfight playmaking have an extremely high hit rate."
Explaining why the other two players are difficult opponents, 'Kanavi' said, "When 'Keria' picks champions like Renata, he creates even more variables than what normal skill alone should allow. As for 'Kiin', this is my first time facing him since coming to the LCK, and he handles every role exceptionally well, whether it's carry champions or tank champions."
'Keria' likewise spoke of 'Kanavi's unpredictability and 'Kiin's versatility. He shared, "'Kanavi's decisive plays at hard-to-predict timings catch opponents off guard, and his success rate is remarkably high. 'Kiin' is tough to deal with because of his versatility—he can handle various matchups and pilot whatever the team requires, whether it's a carry pick or a defensive pick."
The head coaches of each team were asked about the trickiest aspects of facing one another and which players they are most wary of. First, Gen.G head coach Yoo Sang-wook stated, "T1 is tough because their ability to create variables is very high, while Hanwha Life Esports is difficult due to their aggressive plays, such as bold attempts and tower dives." As for players to watch out for, he picked Choi 'Zeus' Woo-je from Hanwha Life Esports and the bot duo from T1.
Hanwha Life Esports head coach Yoon Sung-young answered that the AD carries are particularly tricky. In addition, he explained, "Gen.G is a solid team with an outstanding ability to turn unfavorable situations around to secure comebacks, so we have to handle them well. T1 is tough because they have recently been showing a lot of aggressive moves around the top side of the map."
T1 interim head coach Im Jae-hyeon stated, "We are wary of Hanwha Life Esports' ability to snowball when they grab early priority in the top side. As for Gen.G, all of their players organically show a lot of seasoned macro play, so we are keeping a close eye on that." He added, "From Hanwha Life Esports, players 'Zeus' and 'Gumayusi' are concerning due to their wide champion pools. For Gen.G, their mid-jungle duo is tricky."
