Bluffing handed LCK debut as HLE bench Delight against BNK FearX

Hanwha Life Esports beat BNK FearX 2-0 in Week 8 of the LCK on May 21, with 17-year-old support Park "Bluffing" Gyu-yong starting in place of Yoo "Delight" Hwan-joong. The decision, announced hours earlier without explanation, was clarified by head coach Choi "Homme" Hwan-young in the post-match press conference.

The call had divided opinion. HLE top the LCK standings, with their only defeats of the split coming against T1 in Week 1 and a 1-2 loss to KT Rolster in their previous outing. On the surface, there was little sporting case for shaking up a botlane that has been the league's most consistent form.

Bluffing, promoted from the HLE Challengers roster, made his LCK debut on the main stage.

The communiqué gave no further context. Delight, who has anchored HLE's botlane since 2024 and re-signed in November for a third season, addressed fans directly — "I'm not sick, don't worry," ruling out the most obvious hypothesis.

The official notice doubled down on the absence. The post-match fan meeting, awarded to victory-day attendees, featured only four players: Zeus, Kanavi, Zeka and Gumayusi. Delight was not listed.

Homme cleared up the rest. The head coach maintained that Delight remained, by some distance, the stronger player, but said he wanted his starter to "watch from the outside for once" — a call he framed as deliberate and one he stood behind regardless of result. Bluffing, he added, has strengths of his own.