Abai “HObbit” Hasenov is among a number of Kazakhstani players accused of match-fixing by former teammate Rustam “5TRYK#R” Älımqūlov, as reported by Dexerto. The matches in question occurred in late 2015 when both players were competing under the tag PARTY.
On May 6, 5TRYK#R posted on Russian social media network VK. In the post, he wrote that he’d received a serious health diagnosis that led to him reflect on his history in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.
“The situation due to illness is different, so I want to put my morale in order by telling the whole truth about the former PARTY team and live with peace of mind,” Dexerto’s translation of the post reads.
What followed was a slew of information and evidence put forward by 5TRYK#R that his team was involved in match-fixing. The evidence includes voice logs, chat logs and a breakdown of gameplay from the matches in question. Everything 5TRYK#R provided was an effort to substantiate the claim that PARTY spot-fixed (fixed a particular aspect of the game not related to the final match result) bets for their own financial gain.
The roster of PARTY at the time was as follows:
- Abai “HObbit” Hasenov
- Rustam “5TRYK#R” Älımqūlov
- Baqtiar “fitch” Baqytov
- Magjan “fANTASTIKA” Temirbolat
- Adlet “keeN” Nūrseiıtov
Specifically, 5TRYK#R’s alleged that PARTY purposefully threw their T-side pistol rounds in the StarLadder Regional Minor Championship closed qualifier for the Commonwealth of Independent States region. He provided a breakdown of three (1, 2, 3) pistol rounds during their matches, explaining a series of illogical decisions.
5TRYK#R compounded on this evidence with voice logs, chat logs and screenshots. The screenshots show bets placed on the website olimp.kz with HObbit saying, “Bet the house on gameplay, buy another one. Easy,” according to a translation by Dexerto. The matches in the screenshot were from the StarLadder Minor, but not the T-side pistol bets that 5TRYK#R alleges were made by the team.
5TRYK#R told Dexerto the team placed cash bets to avoid a trail that could be linked back to them. Ultimately, their attempt to earn out from match-fixing failed when fitch informed people outside the team and the bookmaker canceled all bets on the match, banning PARTY, according to Dexerto.
The most incriminating piece of evidence 5TRYK#R submitted forward was a prolonged conversation among the team. The conversation occurred on February 10, 2016 and led to the team disbanding. In it, the team discussed forgiving fitch for a situation with olimp.kz. They go on to discuss the outright throwing of matches to make money (translation by Dexerto):
5TRYK#R: Well, it’s because you and [HObbit] always talked like “we need money, let’s throw, let’s throw.”
keeN: Yes, “let’s throw,” I was all for it, [HObbit] was for it as well, guys wrote me and asked if something’s up, I told that I’ll ask the guys — I asked, fitch told he’s fine with it, he needs money, you, you told that you’re against it, that’s it.
5TRYK#R told Dexerto that he stopped playing with the PARTY roster because he was no longer comfortable with the idea of match-fixing, while the team still wanted to continue.
Match-fixing accusations against HObbit
The match-fixing accusation comes at a pivotal time for HObbit, who is currently competing at PGL Major Antwerp 2022 with Cloud9. At 1:30 p.m. ET on Monday, Cloud9 play an elimination match for their tournament lives.
HObbit replied to the accusations in a tweet. He said he has never been involved in match-fixing and that he is fully prepared to cooperate in any investigation launched by ESIC.
“All that I have achieved, I earned with my hard work and perseverance,” he said. “My reputation is above all to me.”
I have never been involved in match-fixing.
Fully prepared to assist in @ESIC_Official investigation.All that i have achieved, i earned with my hard work and perseverance. My reputation is above all to me.
— Abay Khassenov (@HObbitcsgo) May 16, 2022
HObbit has a massive legacy within CS:GO as a former major winner with Gambit Esports. Fitch also went on from PARTY to play with well-known organizations like Gambit Esports and AVANGAR. In contrast, outside of brief coaching stints with orgs like forZe, 5TRYK#R struggled to find roles on high-level CS:GO teams.
According to Dexerto, Cloud9 plan on conducting an internal investigation before releasing a statement.
Cloud9 did not respond to Upcomer’s request for comment by the time of publication.
