The MongolZ coach, Erdenedalai “maaRaa” Bayanbat, will not be able to assist the team in person during the BLAST Bounty and Esports World Cup 2026 finals. The organization made this announcement. Despite his absence from the tournaments, the 36-year-old coach will remain in contact with the players and support the team remotely during the matches.
This isn’t the first time maaRaa has missed important matches for The MongolZ. Earlier this year, the coach was also absent from the ESL Pro League playoffs and the BLAST Open Rotterdam. In both tournaments, the Mongolian team was eliminated in the quarterfinals.
Now, The MongolZ will have to play without their coach during the decisive stage of BLAST Bounty. The team advanced to the finals after a successful run with Zolbayar “tikuak” Chimedtseren and Dugarsuren “DarkMeister” Iridu in the starting lineup.
The BLAST Bounty Season 2 finals will take place from July 30 to August 2. The prize pool for the finals is $740,000.
An even bigger challenge will be the Esports World Cup 2026, where The MongolZ will attempt to defend their championship title. In 2024, NAVI became the tournament’s first champion, and in 2025, The MongolZ claimed the trophy. This year’s champion will be determined in Paris from August 19 to 23, and the tournament’s prize pool will total $2 million.
The absence of maaRaa could pose a serious challenge for the team.