Following a strong run in Stage 2 of the Overwatch League, which saw them narrowly missing the playoffs following an expected loss to the Boston Uprising in the final match of the week, the Los Angeles Gladiators have signed a new player for the remainder of the season.

After being rumored for some time, the transfer of Kang “Void” Jun Woo from Kongdoo Panthera to the Overwatch League side was announced yesterday by the Korean organization. With the league on a one-week break following the end of Stage 2 – which saw the New York Excelsior claiming the title after a narrow 3-2 win over the Philadelphia Fusion -  the player is expected to debut in the first weeks of Stage 3, which will be starting on April 4th.

Considered one of the best off-tanks players in the world during last year, he reached the finals of APEX Season 3, and claimed a third-place finish in APEX’s final season defending the colors of Cloud9 Kongdoo, but was left out of the London Spitfire line-up following Cloud9’s acquisition of the London spot for the inaugural Overwatch League season due to disagreements with the North American organization’s management.


In Los Angeles, Void will be joining former teammate Chan-hyung "Fissure" Baek, who after being acquired by the Gladiators last month, quickly established himself into one of the most solid members of the line-up.

And Fissure actually can be the main reason why Void is receiving an opportunity in the Overwatch League: while streaming last night, the player claimed (in Korean), that “I told (the Gladiators) to scout Void because he is good at D.Va and can handle Roadhog and Zarya.”

With the scouting successfully leading to the player’s acquisition, having a pre-established synergy with the star tank can play in Void’s favor as he seeks to gain Hyung-seok "Bischu" Kim’s spot in the Gladiators’ line-up. With the latter not really playing to his fullest potential lately – as shown for instance on Saturday against Boston – we could see a similar situation following Fissure’s arrival repeating, when he out-casted then starting tank Luis "iRemiix" Galarza Figueroa, who is yet to play since the Korean’s arrive.

Another possibility of course would be seeing both players sharing playtime, which would enhance the team’s capabilities to adapt to certain match-ups, while adding a new level of unpredictability. Besides, having the chance to freely swap players if the other is simply not having a good day is also a factor that should be taken into consideration.

But despite the relative hype surrounding Void’s arrival, nothing will be certain until the start of Stage 3, which will see the Los Angeles Gladiators playing an all-Californian match against the San Francisco Shock in the opening day.


(Photo courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment)