donk: "I thought it would be more deserved for sh1ro to get the [Bounty] MVP"

donk says that while the MP9 is still better at close range after the last update, the FAMAS "is strong and you can make a difference."

Spirit secured their spot at the Spodek Arena in the final day of IEM Katowice's Stage 2 to continue their title defense. The No. 1 team in the world are hot off of a victory at BLAST Bounty, but couldn't get a clean run in Katowice as they were knocked down to the lower bracket by Natus Vincere and had to fight their way back with back-to-back victories in the final day of play against Liquid and GamerLegion.

Danil "⁠donk⁠" Kryshkovets took some time after Spirit's victories on the final day of the group stage to speak with HLTV and give his impressions on the loss against Natus Vincere on the previous day, as well as the victory against a feisty GamerLegion in the lower bracket final. He also gave his opinion on what he thinks of the off-season roster changes and the latest buff to the FAMAS.

Okay donk, you're going to the Spodek finally. Maybe it wasn't as easy of a series as we would have expected. I heard you say Anubis is just a shit map, so what happened?

They were good on the T side, but we knew what they were going to do. They made some bad decisions in micro situations, and we lost the anti-force round and got a shit score. We were 3-1, then we lost the force, and it went to like 3-4. I'd say it was unlucky, they were actually good, but anwyay, Anubis is a shit map.

They also surprised you on the CT side in the second half with those three-man pushes out of A. They caught you from behind in two or three rounds when you were getting ready to execute on B. Did it surprise you that they were so aggressive?

We knew they would be this aggressive. We saw the way they played on other maps and we understood that they would be aggressive on Anubis, but we didn't know the way it would happen and how to play against it. We played with zero demos and zero preparation on Anubis against them, so it was a tough match.

Yesterday, against NAVI, it was very close in the end. You had a good record against them last year, but it was getting closer the last time you played them at Bounty with a triple-overtime map. Are they getting closer to you guys?

Maybe yes, maybe no. I can't say about them getting closer to us. NAVI and us, as a team, we're becoming better and better with every tournament that we play. It was more about shape and what decisions we made, and we were just worse yesterday. So yeah, we lost deservedly.

Harry [NER0] said you were surprised you got the MVP at Bounty. Why was that?

I understand that I performed well against NAVI, but sh1ro was more consistent and he dominated the four maps against Eternal Fire. He had literally zero maps with less than 1 rating, so I thought it would be more deserved for him to get the MVP than me.

Are you happy with how you're playing here? You're always critical about how you play, you say you can play better. Are you happy with your performance in Katowice so far?

Sometimes yes, sometimes no. If you take today's matches I could get the overtime on Anubis in that 1vs1. We lost the round and it was match point for them. So, those moments make me feel bad and I want to not have them.

A lot of teams made changes during the off-season. Do you think those changes were for the better for those teams? Do you think some teams are a bigger threat this year compared to last year?

I think it's too early to say something. I think teams like Vitality, FaZe, and G2 have roles issues and they need some time to get used to the spots they have now and get some experience and get their own play styles. The first Major will show everything.

Do you think any team made a great move during the off-season?

Actually, I don't know. I like ropz to Vitality because it was unexpected, and it's just interesting how it will work.

Do you have any thoughts about the last update? Has it helped? Do you see more situations now where you can use the FAMAS and not prefer the MP9?

I think the MP9 is still better than the FAMAS in positions where there's a close distance, but in my spots, sometimes, against forcebuys, it's good to buy the FAMAS because it got buffed and is stronger now. You can feel it when you're shooting that this gun is strong and you can make a difference.