Ioann "Edward" Sukhariev has now been confirmed as the final member of the CIS-based dreamteam Astana Dragons, whose roster was partly leaked yesterday.

Yesterday saw Virtus.pro remove their CS:GO squad while Yegor "markeloff" Markelov departed from Natus Vincere. They were rumoured to team up with former Virtus member Dauren "AdreN" Kystaubayev in a new Kazakhstan based project.

Now Sukhariev has been confirmed as the fifth player in the roster, proving early reports of Sergey "Fox" Stolyarov or former DTS and Virtus player Emil "kucher" Akhundov joining being incorrect.



Edward rounds up Astana Dragons

Now the team funded by Kazakhstan E-Sports Federation has been announced with the name Astana Dragons. The roster consists of three former Virtus.pro members and Na`Vi's two biggest stars.

The team will be housed in Kiev, Ukraine, similar to how Natus Vincere got started in 2010. Their first event will likely be DreamHack Bucharest, and they plan to attend all the big events that are coming up.

Astana Dragons: Dauren "AdreN" Kystaubayev

Kirill "ANGE1" Karasiow

Mihail "Dosia" Stolyarov

Ioann "Edward" Sukhariev

Yegor "markeloff" Markelov

Sergey "lmbt" Bezhanov will continue his job from Virtus.pro, working as the squad's manager. Below is his official statement regarding the new Astana Dragons squad:

"I am really happy that I have invitation to stay with my friends and to work with them and I am sure that we will build our future step by step here in new organization and will have great time together."

In-game leader of the squad, Kirill "ANGE1" Karasiow also chimed in with his statement to explain the motives behind this move:

"Hard times, hard decisions. Main goal for uniting all of these players, is to be the best, other options are not acceptable. And I believe that our new organisation wants the same, and will give us all conditions to reach it."

Finally, we also received an official statement from the president of the E-Sports Federation of Kazakhstan, Ilyas Sarsenbayev:

"We have great players, I'm sure that we will have good results very soon. We will do our best to become one of the leading esports organizations in the world, so we have great work to do. I hope all of you will enjoy spectating our games and stay tuned for the updates."

This move means Natus Vincere are now down to just three remaining members on their roster, although Arseny "ceh9" Trynozhenko's earlier tweet suggested they will be okay.

Natus Vincere: Arseny "ceh9" Trynozhenko

Sergey "starix" Ischuk

Daniil "Zeus" Teslenko"

Ioann "Edward" Sukhariev also left a statement on Navi-gaming.com regarding his departure form the team that dominated the Counter-Strike world in 2010:

"I'm leaving Na`Vi. It feels like leaving a home which I grew up in. This is an incredibly difficult decision, one that I didn't make lightly, but it is time for a change, time for something new for me. I will fondly remember all that happened in our team in these three and a half years, especially how it all began, our first victory.



"Thanks to Arbalet for his invaluable contribution to the beginning of our journey. Thanks to all my guys for all the victories and defeats that we experienced together. Thanks to Alexander who built this organization, which I hope in the future many more will call their family."

The newspost also states that the organization does not plan on announcing more news regarding the Counter-Strike squad before Monday, July 22nd.