Kirk Gutierrez: I Don’t Care About My Haters
After ONIC Philippines’ Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Mid-Season Cup (MSC) 2025 campaign ended, hate came fast for Exp Laner Kirk Gutierrez.
It wasn’t subtle. It came in comments on different social media platforms. The one who underperformed. The weakest link. The reason why ONIC PH didn’t make it to the finals.
Despite the harsh comments, Kirk was calm.
“Pagdating sa mga nangba-bash sa akin after noong MSC run namin ay hindi ko na lang sila papansinin. Parang naghahanap lang sila ng butas para may masisisi,” he told ALL-STAR.
(“When it comes to those bashing me after our MSC run, I’ll just ignore them. It’s like they’re just looking for a flaw so they have someone to blame.”)
In esports, resilience isn’t optional—it’s mandatory. You either bounce back or get devoured. For Kirk, the choice was simple: the bash wouldn’t break him. It would sharpen him.
“Actually wala naman akong pake sa kanila, mas nagbibigay lang ito ng lakas at inspirasyon sa akin para mas mag-improve pa lalo sa mga next na tournament namin,” he continued.
(“I actually don’t care about them. If anything, it just gives me more strength and inspiration to improve even more for our next tournaments.”)
For the upcoming Season 16, what fuels him isn’t revenge for his bashers. It’s the memory from Season 14, when the whole ONIC PH lineup, which started at the bottom, lifted the championship trophy.
“Siguro ang nagbibigay sa akin ng inspirasyon ngayon is yung isipin na mag-champion ulit kaming lima na sama-sama katulad noong Season 14. Kasi sobrang sarap sa pakiramdam na makamit mo yung mga bagay na hinahangad mo kapag kapag kasama mo yung mga taong nagsisimula ka pa lang,” he said.
(“I guess what inspires me now is the thought of the five of us becoming champions again together, just like in Season 14. It feels incredible to achieve the things you’ve been striving for when you’re with the people who were there from the very beginning.”)
In Season 14, when Kirk first came to the boot camp he immediately felt the family feeling within the squad. There were no superstars. There was no hierarchy.
“Parang pamilya na agad ako sa kanila kasi inaalagaan na nila kaagad ako noong pagpunta ko sa bootcamp. Na-feel ko kaagad yung family sa kanila. Kaya parang sobrang ganda ng chemistry namin sa game, nag-click agad isang season pa lang,” Kirk said.
(“It felt like I was instantly part of the family because they took care of me as soon as I arrived at the bootcamp. I immediately felt that family vibe from them. That’s why our in-game chemistry is so good—it clicked right away, even in just one season.”)
However, if there were people he looked up to, they were Coaches Ynot and Haze.
“Actually wala akong tinitingala dito kasi pantay-pantay ang tingin namin dito sa isa’t-isa. Pero kung mayroon man, siguro yung dalawang coach namin. Ginagawa kasi talaga nila yung best nila para turuan kami sa lahat ng bagay, mapa-in game or outside the game. Iyong mga bagay na tinuturo kasi nila outside the game is ma-apply mo iyon inside the game,” he continued.
(“Actually, I don’t look up to anyone here because we see each other as equals. But if there were, it would probably be our two coaches. They really do their best to teach us everything—whether in-game or outside the game. And the things they teach us outside the game are things you can apply inside the game.”)
Season 16 marks Kirk’s third with ONIC PH, yet his gratitude still overflows as if it were Season 14 all over again.
“Sobrang nagpapasalamat ako sa ONIC PH kasi nakita nila yung potential ko tsaka kinuha nila ako kahit wala akong pangalan kasi normal na player lang ako noong una. Thank you sa pagtitiwala sa akin tsaka goodluck sa atin ngayong season. Salamat sa patuloy na pagtitiwala ninyo sa akin,” he concluded.
(“I’m really grateful to ONIC PH because they saw my potential and took me in even when I didn’t have a name yet—I was just an ordinary player at first. Thank you for believing in me, and good luck to us this season. Thank you for continuing to trust me.”)
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