Palafox

Palafox
Palafox
Background Information
Name	Cristian Palafox
Country of Birth	; United States
Birthday	July 8, 1999 (age 25)
Residency	AMEAmericas
Prev Residencies	NANorth America
Competitive
Team	⁠⁠Shopify Rebellion
Contract Expires	2026-11-17
Role	; Mid Laner
Favorite Champs	; ;
Soloqueue IDs	NA: Palafoxy ; KR: Palafox ; Dont stop ; Ryusei
Social Media & Links

Overview

Tournament Results

Stats

Match History

Cristian "Palafox" (▶️ listen) Palafox is a League of Legends esports player, currently mid laner for Shopify Rebellion.

Team History

Combine Role Swaps:No|Yes

Dates:Approx|Exact

	Team	Start	End		Notes
NA	⁠⁠Team Blaze	≈Apr 2016≈2016-04-23	≈May 2016≈2016-05-01	≈8d	ejel
NA	⁠⁠Team Brickz	Nov 20172017-11-18	Nov 20172017-11-24	6d	Pickup Team ejel
NA	⁠⁠OpTic Academy	Jan 20182018-01-03^[2]	Nov 20182018-11-19^[1]	10mo 16d	ejel
NA	⁠⁠GG Academy	Dec 20182018-12-18^[4]	Nov 20192019-11-20^[3]	11mo 2d	ejel
NA	⁠⁠C9 Academy	Nov 20192019-11-20^[6]	Nov 20202020-11-16^[5]	1yr 26d	ejel
NA	⁠⁠FlyQuest	Nov 20202020-11-23^[8]	Jul 20212021-07-06^[7]	7mo 13d	ejel
NA	⁠⁠FlyQuest Academy	Jul 20212021-07-06^[7]	Jul 20212021-07-27	21d	ejel
NA	⁠⁠FlyQuest	Jul 20212021-07-27^[10]	Nov 20212021-11-17^[9]	3mo 21d	ejel
NA	⁠⁠CLG	Nov 20212021-11-19^[12]	Apr 20232023-04-06^[11]	1yr 4mo	ejel
NA	⁠⁠NRG	Apr 20232023-04-06^[14]	Sep 20242024-09-26^[13]	1yr 5mo	ejel
AME	⁠⁠Shopify Rebellion	Dec 20242024-12-04^[15]	Present	6mo 8d	ej

	Team	Start	End		Notes
NA	⁠⁠Team Blaze	≈Apr 2016≈2016-04-23	≈May 2016≈2016-05-01	≈8d	ejel
NA	⁠⁠Team Brickz	Nov 20172017-11-18	Nov 20172017-11-24	6d	Pickup Team ejel
NA	⁠⁠OpTic Academy	Jan 20182018-01-03^[2]	Nov 20182018-11-19^[1]	10mo 16d	ejel
NA	⁠⁠GG Academy	Dec 20182018-12-18^[4]	Nov 20192019-11-20^[3]	11mo 2d	ejel
NA	⁠⁠C9 Academy	Nov 20192019-11-20^[6]	Nov 20202020-11-16^[5]	1yr 26d	ejel
NA	⁠⁠FlyQuest	Nov 20202020-11-23^[8]	Jul 20212021-07-06^[7]	7mo 13d	ejel
NA	⁠⁠FlyQuest Academy	Jul 20212021-07-06^[7]	Jul 20212021-07-27	21d	ejel
NA	⁠⁠FlyQuest	Jul 20212021-07-27^[10]	Nov 20212021-11-17^[9]	3mo 21d	ejel
NA	⁠⁠CLG	Nov 20212021-11-19^[12]	Apr 20232023-04-06^[11]	1yr 4mo	ejel
NA	⁠⁠NRG	Apr 20232023-04-06^[14]	Sep 20242024-09-26^[13]	1yr 5mo	ejel
AME	⁠⁠Shopify Rebellion	Dec 20242024-12-04^[15]	Present	6mo 8d	ej

News

2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024

NA	⁠⁠BLAZ	April 23 (approx.), sha bi, Kazahana, W0WFIXZ, Saranghamnida, and 909101 join. e
NA	⁠⁠BLAZ	May 1 (approx.), sha bi, Kazahana, W0WFIXZ, Saranghamnida, and 909101 leave. e

NA	⁠⁠BKZ	November 18, Ssita, rhubarbs, Palafox, Jurassiq, Winter, and Brickz (Coach) join as a pick-up team for Tyler1 Championship Series 2017. The team will be considered disbanded at the tournament's conclusion on November 24. e
NA	⁠⁠BKZ	November 24, Team is disbanded following the conclusion of Tyler1 Championship Series 2017. Ssita, rhubarbs, Palafox, Jurassiq, Winter, and Brickz (Coach) leave. e

NA	⁠⁠OPT.A	January 3, ⁠⁠OpTic Gaming Academy is formed. Dhokla, Kadir, Palafox, Andy, and Winter join.^[2] e
NA	⁠⁠OPT.A	November 19, Palafox's contract expires.^[1] e
NA	⁠⁠OPT.A	December 18, Palafox's departure is confirmed.^[16] e
NA	⁠⁠GG.A	December 18, Hard and Palafox join.^[4] e

NA	⁠⁠GG.A	January 4, Hard's contract is updated in the GCD, expiring on 16 November 2021. Palafox's contract is updated in the GCD, expiring on 17 November 2020.^[17] e
NA	⁠⁠GG.A	November 20, Palafox leaves.^[3] e
NA	⁠⁠C9.A	November 20, Palafox joins.^[6] e
NA	⁠⁠C9.A	November 22, Palafox's contract is updated in the GCD, expiring on 15 November 2022.^[18] e

NA	⁠⁠C9.A	November 16, Palafox and Diamond leave.^[5] e
NA	⁠⁠FLY	November 23, Licorice, Palafox, and Diamond join.^[8] Licorice and Palafox's contracts are updated in the GCD, expiring on 15 November 2022. Diamond's contract is updated in the GCD, expiring on 21 November 2023.^[19] e

NA	⁠⁠FLY	July 6, Kumo, Nxi, Triple, Tomo, Diamond, and Phantiks (Assistant Coach) join from academy roster. Licorice leaves. Josedeodo, Palafox, Johnsun, and Dreams leave for academy roster.^[7] e
NA	⁠⁠FLY.A	July 6, Josedeodo, Palafox, and Johnsun join from main roster. Dreams rejoins from main roster.^[7] e
NA	⁠⁠FLY.A	July 27, Josedeodo and Palafox leave for main roster. e
NA	⁠⁠FLY	July 27, Josedeodo and Palafox join from academy roster. Nxi and Triple leave for academy roster.^[10] e
NA	⁠⁠FLY	October 30, Palafox is allowed to look for opportunities with other teams.^[20] e
NA	⁠⁠FLY	November 17, Palafox and Kanani (Head Coach) leave.^[9] e
NA	⁠⁠CLG	November 19, Jenkins, Contractz, Palafox, Luger, and Poome join.^[12] Jenkins, Palafox, Luger, and Poome's contracts are updated in the GCD, expiring on 19 November 2024. Contractz's contract is updated in the GCD, expiring on 21 November 2023.^[21] e

NA

⁠

⁠CLG

November 29,
Dhokla,
Contractz,
Palafox,
Luger, and
Poome will remain with the team for 2023.^[22]

e

NA	⁠⁠CLG	April 6, Dhokla, Contractz, Palafox, Luger, Poome, Thinkcard (Head Coach), Croissant (Strategic Coach), 1onz (Analyst), Gunaso (Analyst), Rudeclaw (Manager), Rush (Streamer,Content Creator), Adrian Riven (Content Creator), Damonte (Positional Coach), Nemo (Content Creator), soaZ (Positional Coach), and Apollo (Positional Coach) leave.^[11] e
NA	⁠⁠NRG	April 6, CLG's LCS infrastructure transfers to NRG. Dhokla, Contractz, Palafox, Luger, Poome, Thinkcard (Head Coach), Croissant (Strategic Coach), 1onz (Analyst), Gunaso (Analyst), myra (Manager), Rudeclaw (Manager), Damonte (Positional Coach), and soaZ (Positional Coach) join. Apollo (Positional Coach) joins as substitute.^[14] e
NA	⁠⁠NRG	April 14, Dhokla and Apollo (Positional Coach)'s contracts are transferred to ⁠⁠NRG in the GCD, expiring on 21 November 2023. Contractz, Palafox, Luger, and Poome's contracts are transferred to ⁠⁠NRG in the GCD, expiring on 19 November 2024.^[23] e

NA	⁠⁠NRG	September 26, Dhokla, Contractz, Palafox, Juves (Coach), Chuz (Assistant Coach), and Croissant (LCS Strategic Director) are removed from the GCD.^[13] e
AME	⁠⁠F/A	October 31, Palafox changes residency from NA North America to AME Americas. e
AME	⁠⁠SR	December 4, Fudge, Contractz, and Palafox join. Bvoy's contract is extended.^[15] e
AME	⁠⁠SR	December 5, Fudge, Contractz, Palafox, and Bvoy's contracts are updated in the GCD, expiring on 17 November 2026.^[24] e

Biography

Palafox is from Redwood City, California. He played for Team Ocean Drake in the 2017 NA Scouting Grounds, where he worked with OpTic Gaming coach Zaboutine. Despite Palafox having little competitive experience compared to many other players at the event, Zaboutine signed him to OpTic Gaming Academy. However, Palafox and the rest of OpTic Academy played from a team house in Texas with limited access to computers, which hampered practice and performance. After an unsuccessful year, Palafox moved to Golden Guardians Academy. His new team, which contained many ex-LCS players, faced issues with team cohesion; according to Palafox, "There was a lot of egos on that team."^[25]

After his third straight split finishing near the bottom of the academy standings, Palafox did not look like a top prospect. The mid-season additions of Darshan, FBI, huhi, and coach Inero turned the struggling academy team around and gave Palafox the opportunity to showcase his talents on a skilled team. After finishing 2nd in both the summer regular split and playoffs, Palafox was signed to the successful Cloud9 Academy for the 2020 season. C9 Academy was dominant that year and Palafox turned heads as a top North American prospect.

2021 Season

For the 2021 season, Palafox was signed to FlyQuest as an LCS starter. Alongside players such as Licorice, Josedeodo, and Johnsun, FlyQuest was projected to be a dark horse team with a shot at contesting the top organizations.^[26] However, FlyQuest struggled the entire year, finishing the season with a record of 14-31. Near the end of summer, Palafox was even dropped back down to academy and replaced by Triple, although he did return to the main roster for its final three games.

2022 Season

Palafox received another chance as an LCS starter, this time for CLG. CLG's roster consisted of many North American players who had once been considered top prospects but who had struggled recently, such as Contractz, Poome, and Palafox himself. In spring, the team finished 8th, close to expectations. However, with the addition of Dhokla, the summer split ended with a 4th place regular season finish and a record of 11-7. Palafox in particular stood out as an impressive performer. Although the team was eliminated in playoffs by Team Liquid in a close 3-2 series, the improvement CLG and its players showed over the course of the year left many optimistic about the team's future prospects.

Trivia

Although he was born in California, he spent the first few years of his life in Mexico.
Reached Rank 1 on the North American server in 2020.
His favorite pro player is Rookie.
Is from the same city as Contractz; they went to rival high schools.
Nicknamed "Palafaker" by fans when playing well.
Is part of the copypasta "I have met him in a scrimmage, and my opponent, midfielder Palafox, is powerful and seems like a genius," which originates from a poorly translated quote by Xiaohu.
Began his pro career favoring control mages, but later branched out to become proficient on melee assassins like Akali.

Pentakills

Date	Region	Tournament	Team	Vs	Champion	Pos	W/L	KDA	SB	VOD
2025-06-01	AME Americas	LTA North 2025 Split 2 Playoffs			Viktor	Mid	W	8/0/7	Link
2020-04-10	NA North America	NA Academy 2020 Spring Playoffs			Kassadin	Mid	W	17/2/7	Link	Link

Click here for a full list of pentakills by all players.

Tournament Results

This table shows up to the 10 most recent results. For complete results, click here.

Palafox Tournament Results
Date	Pl	Event	Last Result	Team	Roster
2025-05-18	4	LTA North 2025 Split 2	0 : 2⁠⁠TL	⁠⁠SR	Fudge, Contractz, Palafox, Bvoy, Ceos, Reven, Damonte
2025-02-09	5 - 6	LTA North 2025 Split 1	0 : 2⁠⁠TL	⁠⁠SR	Fudge, Contractz, Palafox, Bvoy, Zeyzal, Reven, WildTurtle
2024-08-23	6	LCS 2024 Championship	2 : 3⁠⁠DIG	⁠⁠NRG	Dhokla, Contractz, Palafox, FBI, huhi, Thinkcard, Croissant
2024-08-11	6	LCS 2024 Summer	2 - 5⁠⁠RR	⁠⁠NRG	Dhokla, Contractz, Palafox, FBI, huhi, Thinkcard, Croissant
2024-03-16	5 - 6	LCS 2024 Spring Playoffs	2 : 3⁠⁠100	⁠⁠NRG	Dhokla, Contractz, Palafox, FBI, huhi, Thinkcard, Croissant
2024-03-10	6	LCS 2024 Spring	6 - 8⁠⁠RR	⁠⁠NRG	Dhokla, Contractz, Palafox, FBI, huhi, Thinkcard, Croissant
2023-12-03	5 - 6	CBOLÃO Season 6	0 : 1⁠⁠100K	⁠⁠NA	Licorice, Spica, Palafox, Reven, CoreJJ
2023-11-02	5 - 8	Worlds 2023	0 : 3⁠⁠WBG	⁠⁠NRG	Dhokla, Contractz, Palafox, FBI, IgNar, Thinkcard, Croissant
2023-08-20	1	LCS 2023 Championship	3 : 1⁠⁠C9	⁠⁠NRG	Dhokla, Contractz, Palafox, FBI, IgNar, Thinkcard, Croissant
2023-07-21	5	LCS 2023 Summer	9 - 9⁠⁠RR	⁠⁠NRG	Dhokla, Contractz, Palafox, FBI, IgNar, Thinkcard, Croissant

Palafox Showmatch Results
Date	Pl	Event	Last Result	Team	Roster
2019-08-30	2	OPL 2019 Split 2 Showmatch	0 : 1⁠⁠BLUE	⁠⁠RED	Pabu, Hard, Palafox, FBI, Rogue

Media

2021
2022
2023
2024

March 6, Palafox on the Azir ult bug, stacking up against LCS midlaners with Dan Smyth-Temple on Hotspawn
e
May 1, Don’t Call Him a Bust: Palafox’s Rough Rookie Split by Conor Atlas on The Game Haus
e
June 7, FlyQuest Palafox: “I think 100 Thieves and C9 are the two hardest teams to beat” with Pedro Romero on Gamezo
e
July 5, The Palafox Story: ‘If I think a play is good, I’ll go for it no matter what’ with Nick Ray on Upcomer
e

February 25, Palafox on win over C9, CLG's identity: "I think our team is just about playing the game slow." with Nick Geracie on Inven Global
e
June 26, CLG’s Palafox credits trust in teammates for early summer success with Warren Younger on Upcomer
e
July 4, Palafox oozes confidence as CLG prepare to shake up LCS: “We have potential to win” with Andrew Amos on Dexerto
e
July 5, CLG Palafox: “I think for a while now, the LCS pool has literally just been about names and not about people that actually play” with PiraTechnics on esports.gg
e
July 25, CLG Palafox: 'The old guard is overrated' with Travis Gafford on YouTube
e
July 26, Would YOU rather see BJERG or newer players at Worlds?! LCS is revived!? feat. CLG Palafox | HLL 232 by Travis Gafford and MarkZ on YouTube
e
August 24, Palafox talks about defying the history of CLG with Jay Silver on Gamelevate
e
August 25, Palafox on CLG's CRAZY 5 game series against Cloud9 with Travis Gafford on YouTube
e
September 9, Was this year a success for CLG? Palafox answers with Travis Gafford on YouTube
e
December 29, CLG in Korea: Palafox League of Legends Montage by CLG on YouTube
e

February 2, Palafox and Travis argue if CLG can survive an IMPROVED LCS with Travis Gafford on YouTube
e
February 15, CLG Mid Palafox on LCS 2023 Spring Losing Steak with Sage Datuin on Esports Illustrated
e
February 28, Palafox Discusses Recovering From A Slump, Mid Lane Meta and Dogs with Jay Silver on YouTube
e
March 3, CLG Palafox on his continued growth "If I look way back - I didn't REALLY get coached..." with dGon on YouTube
e
March 26, Palafox says every CLG player is better than every EG player with Travis Gafford on YouTube
e
July 26, NRG Palafox CALLS OUT the Other LCS Mids: "They Have Too Many Stinkers" with dGon on YouTube
e
August 22, Why Palafox was happy to BEAT CLOUD9 after being passed for Perkz with Travis Gafford on YouTube
e
October 21, Why Palafox and Contractz are CONFIDENT at Worlds after facing TL with Travis Gafford on YouTube
e
October 28, NRG Palafox on His Series Against G2: "We EXPOSED THEM, They Have to Think of Another Draft Strat" with dGon on YouTube
e
December 7, FLANALISTA, SPICA e PALAFOX - Da LCS para o CBOLAO - 2v1 Podcast #61 with 2v1 Podcast on YouTube
e

January 16, NRG Palafox: "People who slack will get punished a lot more this year." with Armand Luque on YouTube
e
February 5, What's wrong with C9? FlyQuest: Kings of Spring | PROS ft. Palafox, Sniper, & Tactical by Raz on YouTube
e
March 30, Can Pros name these LEAGUE OF LEGENDS CHAMPION ABILITIES? with Travis Gafford on YouTube
e

Post-Match Interviews

2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025

Date	Tournament	Match	Link
2018-06-30	NA Academy 2018 Summer	FOX.A vs OPT.A	Link

Date	Tournament	Match	Link
2019-07-26	NA Academy 2019 Summer	GG.A vs OPT.A	Link

Date	Tournament	Match	Link
2020-03-07	NA Academy 2020 Spring	C9.A vs TSM.A	Link
2020-07-10	NA Academy 2020 Summer	C9.A vs TSM.A	Link
2020-08-22	NA Academy 2020 Summer Playoffs	C9.A vs CLG.A	Link
2020-08-28	NA Academy 2020 Summer Playoffs	TSM.A vs C9.A	Link

Date	Tournament	Match	Link
2021-02-28	LCS 2021 Spring	FLY vs TSM	Link

Date	Tournament	Match	Link
2022-03-26	LCS 2022 Spring	IMT vs CLG	Link
2022-08-14	LCS 2022 Summer	IMT vs CLG	Link
2022-08-26	LCS 2022 Championship	GG vs CLG	Link

Date	Tournament	Match	Link
2023-01-27	LCS 2023 Spring	CLG vs EG	Link
2023-03-16	LCS 2023 Spring	CLG vs TL	Link
2023-06-24	LCS 2023 Summer	C9 vs NRG	Link
2023-07-07	LCS 2023 Summer	NRG vs EG	Link
2023-07-28	LCS 2023 Championship	TL vs NRG	Link
2023-08-06	LCS 2023 Championship	GG vs NRG	Link
2023-08-19	LCS 2023 Championship	NRG vs TL	Link
2023-08-20	LCS 2023 Championship	C9 vs NRG
2023-10-20	Worlds 2023 Main Event	NRG vs TL	Link