Riot Games continues to honor the Chinese legend Jian "Uzi" Zihao, recently inducted into the Hall of Legends as the second player to receive this recognition after Korean midlaner Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok. The GOAT himself expressed deep respect and admiration for the iconic LPL AD Carry, recognizing him as a true legend of the League. "I have tremendous respect for him," stated the legendary midlaner on a quote shared on X by LoLEsports. "I do think he's a legend." Many other prominent figures from the scene have also paid tribute to Uzi—from former teammates to Chun "Caster Jun" Yong-jun, the iconic voice of the LCK.

Faker and Uzi never faced each other outside of the World Championship, as Uzi only played at Mid-Season Invitational once, in 2018, the year he lifted the trophy after defeating Kingzone DragonX in the final. SKT T1 hadn’t qualified for that edition, which meant Faker and Uzi never crossed paths at the Mid-Season Invitational.

Clashes in favor of Faker

The two players currently in the Hall of Legends, Faker and Uzi, faced each other 14 times over the course of their careers—all of them on the Worlds stage. Out of those encounters, SKT T1 won 11, while Uzi’s teams managed only 3 victories, never securing a single best-of against Faker. Their first meeting was in the 2013 World Championship final, where SKT swept Royal Club 3-0 in dominant fashion. The rivalry reignited in 2016, this time in the quarterfinals, with the Chinese team now known as Royal Never Give Up. Despite some resistance, RNG fell once again—this time 3-1.

Their most iconic battle came in the 2017 Worlds quarterfinals, where RNG led the series 2-1 and Uzi looked closer than ever to defeating Faker. But SKT T1 mounted a reverse sweep to close it out 3-2, handing Uzi yet another heartbreaking loss. In 2019, the teams met again during the group stage, but only in best-of-ones—both of which were once more claimed by SKT. Despite never overcoming Faker in a series, Uzi’s performances in those clashes helped define one of the greatest rivalries in League of Legends history.