CS2 analyst Alex "Mauisnake" Ellenburg voiced strong disagreement with the choice of Mathieu "ZywOo" Erbo as the best player of 2025. In a post on X, Mauisnake highlighted the statistical superiority of Danil "donk" Kryshkovets, arguing that donk led in nearly every relevant individual metric yet was placed second in the year-end ranking.
"I don't understand in what world being first in almost everything can mean you are second. ROBBERY," Mauisnake wrote, expressing frustration that the statistical leader did not take the top honor.
The HLTV Awards results, announced overnight on January 11, named ZywOo as the 2025 best player. Donk finished behind him despite outperforming ZywOo on multiple statistical measures. The third spot in the year-end top three went to ZywOo's teammate Robin "ropz" Kool.
Commentators pointed to HLTV's statistical tables to back up the claims about donk's dominance in individual categories. The discrepancy between raw metrics and the final voting outcome has provoked discussion within the scene about how such awards are decided and which factors—numbers, impact, or reputation—should carry the most weight.