Despite being Major finalist with G2, Audric ‘JACKZ’ Jug is happy to take the step down to lower levels of Counter-Strike if it means competing. In fact, the Frenchman is spending time that would traditionally be a honeymoon in Kettering competing at EPIC45.
The FUT roster, which features former Vitality players Kévin ‘misutaaa’ Rabier and Nabil ‘Nivera’ Benrlitom, are hungry to climb the Valve Regional Standings and secure invites to future competitions, in order to match the ambitions of the new org, FUT Esports – a multi-game Turkish giant.
Esports News UK talked to JACKZ about his experiences with FUT and NiP, as well as his thoughts on Vitality’s year and whether Belgian legend, Adil ‘ScreaM’ Benrlitom may return as part of this roster.
Interview with JACKZ at EPIC.LAN 45
How are you finding EPIC.LAN?
We are good in UK LAN. The weather was good yesterday, so we are a bit surprised, but at the end, the real weather of the UK is back.
We are feeling good here.
What about the food? Have you been managing to find food you can eat?
Yeah, we’ve had pizza and burgers from the truck, so we are trying just that for now, but let’s see. We haven’t been to a restaurant or catering yet to eat, so we’ll see.
The guys were really good with me, but we didn’t do practice together. I was just here to play the official games.
JACKZ on his time with NiP
About your year. You played with NIP at the start of the year for VRS reasons. How did you find that?
First, they came to me because of the VRS system and I was a wildcard player because I played with Vitality and we got top eight during BLAST.
So, I was a wildcard player and they have just Snappi and sjuush, if I’m not mistaken. So, they need three guys to get some VRS points, so they come to me and ask me if I can stand in for them.
What was the experience like in the team? Obviously, that wasn’t necessarily the team that you were going to be in long term, so how is it working with another team?
It was really good, great atmosphere. The guys were really good with me, but we didn’t do practice together. I was just here to play the official games.
It was like maybe one hour before the game, we’d go on the server, they’d show me the strategy, we have a small talk with the staff to be a bit ready, but it was not… oh, I can’t say that in English.
I think if I have more practice with them, for sure the experience is going to be better. But at the end, it wasn’t ideal, I knew I wasn’t going to do practice with them, so I just played and I enjoyed it.
So, now moving into this FUT roster. First of all, how did you find your new organisation?
It was because they are a really good team on Valorant and they know Nivera and his brother ScreaM, our legend, and so they first got into contact and they were interested in coming into CS with a new lineup.
They chose us because they didn’t want to enter CS directly with a tier one lineup. At this moment, we had a lot of maps and we are playing a lot on HLTV and it was good for us, I think.
My wife is my best support on CS so she totally understands that, and she told me even just before the wedding, during the week just before, ‘don’t forget to practice’
JACKZ on spending his honeymoon at EPIC.LAN
Are the organisation helping you? Have you found a positive experience with the organisation so far?
Yeah, seriously. We went to Istanbul in Turkey, to the FUT house. It’s like a big family, you know? So that was really good.
Just on the competition things, we didn’t have so much opportunity to compete for now because we’ve only had one event in Sweden, Jönköping [Glitched Masters 2025: Open Qualifier], but it was really bad conditions.
After it was a break. Me, I had my wedding and we have like just two qualifiers online between some breaks and things. Now we are here to play in UK, but we didn’t have like big opportunity to really play like we did the first part of the season.
Speaking of your wedding, how did your now wife react to the fact that you’re going to Kettering for your honeymoon?
My wife is my best support on CS so she totally understands that, and she told me even just before the wedding, during the week just before, ‘don’t forget to practice, play individually, blah blah blah’, no worries about us.
After the wedding directly, we have three days of practice and after we are here. It was fast, quite fast.
We know and we can see that he has a lot of potential, but we don’t know yet if he’s at his best.
JACKZ on Nivera’s form returning from Valorant
So now you’re able to play more together, you can play some officials. What do you think is the kind of potential of this roster?
Our goal here is to win VRS points because now without VRS, you do nothing. So we are here to get some points and to get some invites and to do the maximum that we can. We’re going to do the small tournaments online.
If we do well, we’re going to have points and we’re maybe going to get invites at CCT and every tournament we can have on internet, and if we have some LANs, like EPIC.LAN, or we can get some points, we’re going to do it. If we have the budget to do it.
You mentioned Nivera coming back from Valorant. Do you feel like he’s back at his best in Counter-Strike?
It’s hard to say this. We really don’t know because he stayed two or three years in Valorant. We know and we can see that he has a lot of potential, but we don’t know yet if he’s at his best. I think he’s still young.
He has a big margin of progression still. So it’s good for us.
For me, CS is a competition. If I’m here or if I’m in studio or in arena, the game is still the same.
JACKZ on his drive to compete
Outside of the roster, you have ScreaM on the bench as a content creator. He announced on Twitter that he would like to compete again. I don’t know if you guys are in touch with him. Do you have any updates? Do you think he’s gearing up to competition?
With us, we know Adil [ScreaM] wants to come back to CS, and we gave to him one year to play individually and have a feeling again with the game, but with FUT, normally he will be a content creator and sixth player if someone of the team can’t play.
But for sure, there’s always this door that can be opened if we need to do a change, and if Adil is ready to play and he has a good feeling with the game, let’s see about the roles and this stuff.
But yes, it can be a solution.
You mentioned earlier your stint with Vitality, the stand-in stint with Vitality last year. Vitality have had a historic year. I’m not going to say that it was all because of mezzii….
He’s the GOAT, he’s the GOAT.
But seriously, I wanted to ask, from your point of view, you’ve been in touch with those players, did you expect this kind of year with ropz joining?
I have a lot of information, because Dan is one of my best friends, but yeah, I know because they have some stuff with Lotan, with Spinx. So inside of the team was not the best mood.
When ropz came, I knew it was going to be like a huge upgrade, and Lotan is a really, really, really good player.
Just inside of the team, when you stay two or three years, I think, some things happen and it was a needed change, and ropz was the best guy to fit into this puzzle.
Personally, you’ve played in the Major final, the final of Katowice, the final of Cologne. What is it that’s bringing you to attending these LANs and trying to grind your way up again?
For me, I like it. It’s like when I was young, I was doing this like almost every weekend. So I like this atmosphere and in UK, you can really feel it. For me, CS is a competition. If I’m here or if I’m in studio or in arena, the game is still the same.
And I enjoy this game.
Darragh Harbinson is an esports writer specialising in Counter-Strike. He has written for Esports News UK, Esports Insider, UKCSGO, Dexerto, and Rush B Media.