IEM Cologne 2025 is now in full swing, and expected statistical MVP Danil “donk” Kryshkovets is facing stiff competition for the title of the event’s best player. His biggest rival? His own teammate.
donk is currently neck-and-neck with Dmitriy “sh1ro” Sokolov for the event’s standout star. Both players rank as the top two of the group stage according to HLTV. Their insane stats have contributed to a dominant run for Team Spirit, which is now one win away from a spot in the playoffs. A handful of other players are hot on the pair, but even if Spirit falls early in the final stage, both players’ performances should remain statistical standouts.
donk and sh1ro race as IEM Cologne best players
Team Spirit’s sh1ro and donk each took one series to rack up their stats at IEM Cologne 2025, with sh1ro stomping HEROIC and donk shattering expectations versus Aurora.
Spirit started in the group stage with a match against HEROIC. sh1ro took the opportunity to start strong, earning a combined 60 kills in the 2-0 victory. A 4% higher KAST rate and .14 fewer deaths per round earned sh1ro a 1.52 HTLV rating, just barely higher than his star teammate.
Image Credit: HLTV
However, a monster performance against Aurora has put donk solidly in the lead. The 18-year-old racked up a mind-boggling 60 kills in 44 rounds to secure his space at the top. sh1ro performed admirably, but 31 just wasn’t enough to keep up. donk now holds the lead at a remarkable 1.71 rating.
Image Credit: HLTV
Four maps is only the start of the event, and there are plenty of other players now nipping at sh1ro’s heels. Azbayar “Senzu” Munkhbold of The Mongolz holds a 1.39 rating after a protracted stomp win over Falcons. MOUZ AWPer Ádám “torzsi” Torzsás sports a 1.69 KD ratio after a big win over Natus Vincere. With the remainder of the group stage and the entire playoffs to go, the race for IEM Cologne MVP has only just begun.