Passion UA brings Senzu and try, replacing hallzerk and nicx

Passion UA, the Ukrainian esports organization backed by footballer Oleksandr Zinchenko, made two changes in their Counter-Strike 2 roster with two high-profile moves: the signing of Santino "try" Rigal from Imperial and the arrival of Azbayar "Senzu" Munkhbold on loan from The MongolZ.

These roster changes come after a rough start to 2026, where Passion UA failed to pick up a single series win at BLAST Bounty Season 1 and fell short in IEM Kraków Stage 1. Those early struggles pushed the organization toward a lineup overhaul, aiming to inject fresh talent, firepower, and stability into the project.

The New Signings

Azbayar "Senzu" Munkhbold (19, Mongolia)

Senzu arrives on loan after he benched himself from The MongolZ in October 2025, a move reportedly linked to burnout concerns. Despite that setback, his 2025 campaign was a breakout year; he was one of the best players of the year and shined in multiple S-tier tournaments and strong performances overall. Landing Senzu is widely viewed as a major coup, giving Passion UA one of CS2’s most exciting young stars.

Santino "try" Rigal (21, Argentina)

try joins Passion UA as the new primary AWPer, marking his first venture outside of South American lineups. Over the past 18 months with Imperial, he became their standout performer, having strong performances in 853 maps. Passion sees try as an upgrade in the sniper role, bolstering Passion UA’s mid-to late-round consistency.

These additions, try and senzu, effectively replace Håkon "hallzerk" Fjærli in the AWP role and  Nick "nicx" Lee as a rifler, both holdovers from the previous roster core that joined from Complexity in August 2025.

The Complete Passion UA Roster

With the latest changes, Passion UA fields a truly international five-man lineup, featuring five different nationalities, led by coach Tiaan "T.c" Coertzen:

What to Expect from the New-Look Passion UA

Currently sitting at Valve #30 with a 51.9% winrate over the last three months, Passion UA has already shown glimpses of what this core can do. The team claimed a 9–11th place finish at the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025 and recently strung together a four-match qualifier win streak. Their map pool leans heavily on Overpass (81.8% winrate) and Inferno (66.7%), while Nuke (20%) and Mirage (33.3%) remain clear problem areas that opponents will look to exploit.

The arrival of try’s reliable AWP presence and Senzu’s high-ceiling rifling could be the push needed to turn Passion UA into a consistent top-10 contender, especially when combined with the existing firepower of Grim and Kvem, both hovering in aa high rating range, under JT’s steady in-game leadership.

That said, there are real challenges ahead: integrating Senzu into full English communication (an issue mentioned around his benching) and aligning practice and preparation for a lineup spread across five different cultures.

The first major checkpoint for this revamped roster will be Roman Imperium Cup V on February 19, where the full lineup is expected to make its official debut. If chemistry develops quickly, Passion UA could emerge as one of the scene’s most dangerous dark horses; if not, early results will reveal whether this ambitious global project is built to last or destined to fade out.

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Feature image credits: Passion UA

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