nqz has temporarily stepped down to inactive status on paiN’s CS2 roster

nqz steps down from paiN active CS2 lineup

Brazilian AWPer of paiN Gaming, Lucas “nqz” Soares, has announced a temporary pause in his professional Counter-Strike 2 career. The 21-year-old esports player said that the decision is connected to personal reasons and the need to take time for himself after a difficult period.

The player himself emphasized that he is doing okay, but over the past few months he has been dealing with serious emotional burnout. According to nqz, the pause was not a spontaneous step - he had been thinking for a long time about the need to take a short timeout in order to recover and return in optimal form.

“First of all, I’m okay, and I’m really excited for the rest of the year, but I felt that I needed a moment to ‘cool off’ and take care of myself. This wasn’t a sudden decision - I had been thinking about it for a long time.

Overall, throughout the past year I suffered from accumulated stress and frustration for various reasons - both in and outside of the game - which led me to a state of apathy and loss of confidence. That’s why I asked paiN for a short timeout so I can return in my best form.”

At the moment, paiN organization has not yet announced who exactly will fill the vacant AWPer position. The uncertainty around the replacement comes at an important moment for the team, as the roster continues to compete at a high level on the international stage.

paiN currently rank 14th among the strongest Counter-Strike 2 teams in the world according to Valve’s rankings. Despite the roster change, the team will take part in the second stage of IEM Cologne Major 2026, where they will try to deliver a solid result without nqz in the active lineup.

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Current paiN roster: