Having defeated its nemesis, Movistar KOI, Karmine Corp advances to the winner's bracket finals against G2 Esports, Europe's most decorated team. Despite the challenges ahead in the League of Legends EMEA Championship (LEC) playoffs, the French organization marches on undaunted. In an exclusive interview with Sheep Esports, KC's support, Raphaël "Targamas" Crabbé, discusses his growth, recent form, the team's goals, his upcoming match against G2, and shares a message for his fans.

How does it feel to be voted MVP and win such a dominant 2-0 victory over KOI?

Raphaël “Targamas” Crabbé: "I'm happy simply because I was really eager to play that BO5 next week, especially with Fearless Draft as well. Watching other regions and seeing the picks from international teams makes me even more excited to experience it myself. Plus, it's a LEC playoff BO5 and the Winner's Bracket Finals, so it's a crucial match. It’s been a while since I’ve had the opportunity to play a game like this.

As for the MVP, it’s a nice bonus, but not the main focus. Still, it’s rewarding on a personal level and boosts my confidence, especially after everything that’s happened. Winning two series and earning MVP twice is a plus, and it’s promising for the future.

You've said you've never really lost confidence in yourself, but how do you feel about your current level? I imagine these performances must feel good.

Targamas: Mechanically, I feel great in scrim and official matches. Since the start of the season, we've been playing really well with Caliste (Caliste Henry-Hennebert) in botlane. Our staff has been telling us that we've had very good stats as a duo.

Do you think you're at your peak right now?

Targamas: I don't know, I hope I haven't reached it yet. But one thing's for sure: we've got good scrim stats and I feel good mechanically. I feel I'm doing the right things. Also, playing BO3s or BO5s really frees you up on stage, whereas BO1s are more stressful and limited. In this format, I can really express myself to my full potential.

In our last interview, you mentioned wanting to become the best botlane in the LEC with Caliste as quickly as possible. Based on your performances, would you say you're already at the top?

Targamas: I think we still need to prove it in the last few matches of the playoffs, especially against G2. They had a rough start to the year, but recently, they’ve looked very solid and are on a strong winning streak. Fnatic, despite losing 0-2 today, is still a great team with a very strong and aggressive botlane. We still have a lot to improve. I also hope we’ll get to face Asian and North American botlanes to see how we measure up and keep progressing. I believe we have a huge margin for improvement. But for now, I’m really happy with the two matches we just played.

You're currently in great form and are ready to face off against G2 next week. Do you feel the need to keep the team grounded and remind them there's still work to be done?

Targamas: Yeah, definitely. We all know that the teams to beat are Fnatic and G2, and we haven't beaten them in a proper series yet. Fnatic stomped us in the last week of the split, and I think that still lingers in everyone's mind.

We know we're not the best team yet—we still have to prove it. These playoffs are our chance to do that, so it's a crucial step. Everyone is super motivated for the next two weeks. We know we're capable of winning, and that's what matters most. I'm excited to see how it plays out, and I'm confident that in two weeks, we'll come out on top.

This match against G2 must feel special for you, given that it's your former team. How are you approaching it? Do you see yourselves as favorites, or is G2 still ahead on paper?

Targamas: On paper, it's a 50-50. G2 is on a great run, and they have players like Caps (Rasmus Winther), BrokenBlade (Sergen Celik), and Hans (Steven Liv), who have won multiple times and always step up in playoffs—we saw it again today in their match against Fnatic. Plus, they handle the Fearless format really well, which could be an advantage in a BO5. Even in BO3s, they pulled out surprising picks, so in a BO5, they probably have even more in store.

We've scrimmed against them a lot, so we know what to expect—but they also know our drafts and recent strategies. That said, we’ve beaten them at Red Bull and in the group stage already, so it's 2-0 for us right now. They’re a team we enjoy facing; we know their strengths and weaknesses. Our scrims against them have always gone well, and we’ve consistently found ways to win; we know how to beat them. I’m excited to see how it plays out in a BO5—it’s going to be a big match.

How would you compare KC and G2? Do you see similarities in your playstyle, or are you very different?

Targamas: I think we’re quite different. G2 has that element of unpredictability, especially with BrokenBlade and his picks—maybe even SkewMond (Rudy Semaan) as well. Their botlane, on the other hand, plays very stable with meta champions, just like we do. But for us, it might be the opposite: Canna (Kim Chang-dong) is the stable player who excels at meta picks, while with Caliste, our botlane might be a bit more unpredictable than theirs. So in the end, our approaches are kind of opposites.

In BO3s, you didn’t have many opportunities to showcase a wide variety of picks. Are there still any surprise strategies that KC fans can expect in a BO5?

Targamas: Yes, of course. Even we still have plenty to think about. We've mostly trained for BO3s, and it’s quite different: we play three games, reset the picks, and then start over. So, we’ve never been able to test what might happen in games 4 or 5. The first few games tend to be quite stable, and sometimes, in game 3, there might already be some surprises, but that depends on what’s been picked before. This week, we’ll be focusing on what we want to play if we get to game 4 or 5.

But yes, we’ve already prepared some things, and we’ll try to explore all of our options. I think we have players who can adapt to a lot of different styles. Now, we just need to "cook" the right strategies, like G2. They’ve shown this week that they know how to prepare drafts that work well together, and we need to do the same.

Do you have some closing words for your fans?

Targamas: I'm really grateful because, even though I haven't been active on social media this year, I still see what's going on. I notice there's a lot of support, with people trying to balance out all the criticism and hate I received last year and even this year. It really feels good to see so many people sending me support. So truly, thank you, I’m really grateful."