Virtus.pro promote tO0RO following BLAST Open London exit

Kieran Lynch, Senior Editor

Last Updated: 02/09/2025

Virtus.pro has announced that they are promoting Vadim ‘tO0RO‘ Arkov to its main Counter-Strike 2 roster.

The news comes just days after the team’s elimination from the BLAST Open London.

Virtus.pro finished last at the event after suffering a 2-1 defeat in the lower bracket to M80.

The Russian esports organisation made changes to its line-up just hours after the defeat at the tournament in London.

Ilya ‘Perfecto’ Zalutskiy became the team’s new in-game leader after Denis ‘electroNic’ Sharipov was benched from their Counter-Strike 2 team.

Why Virtus.pro have promoted TO0RO?

Virtus.pro have explained their decision to promote TO0RO in a statement on their social media accounts.

“Over the past few weeks, the club has been testing players from the academy roster in search of the best fit,” said Virtus.pro.

“Vadim impressed in the anchor role and for now the choice has fallen on him.

TO0RO was part of the VP.Prodigy team that finished second at the RES Showdown Fall 2025, beating Team Liquid and FUT Esports along the way.

Why was Counter-Strike 2 player electroNic benched?

ElectroNic became the third Counter-Strike 2 player to be benched by Virtus.pro in 2025, after their BLAST Open London exit.

He spent over a year and a half with the team, and there had been a lot of excitement when joined Virtus.pro having been a four-time HLTV Top 20 player.

However, after a difficult year, Virtus.pro decided to make a change. In 2025, the organisation has placed no higher than the top-six in the past eight months.

Commenting on electroNic’s departure from the CS2 team, CEO of Virtus.рro Nikolai Petrossian said: “Denis is one of the most experienced and decorated players in the world. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to build a team together that could consistently fight for top positions at the biggest tournaments.

“I’d like to thank him for the journey we shared, no matter how difficult it was at times.

“Big thanks to Denis for his genuine motivation and his readiness to take on the responsibility of being the team’s captain.”

What’s next for Virtus.pro?

TO0RO will be able to show off his abilities when the new look Virtus.pro lineup will be in action at FISSURE Playground 2.

The event takes place in Serbia from September 12th to 21st. It will give teams the opportunity to earn Valve Regional Standings Points.

The promotion of TO0RO might have a positive impact for Virtus.pro when it comes to their Counter-Strike betting odds.

Virtus.pro are ranked 17th in the August VRS, and will hope TO0RO can bring success to the team ahead of the StarLadder Budapest Major in November.

Kieran Lynch, Senior Editor

Kieran Lynch is an esports journalist who writes about several games including EA Sports FC 25, Call of Duty, Rainbox Six Siege, and more. He previously worked as a sports journalist for MailOnline.

All Posts By Kieran Lynch