Bitoy comes home with serious title ambitions for AP.Bren in MPL PH Season 18

His IGN may have comedic inspiration behind it, but Christian "Bitoy" Casten is bringing serious intentions back home as he sets his sights on the title in his return to the Philippines.

"Actually, that's the purpose why I left in the first place, so I can show what I can I do and who I am to the world," Bitoy told GMA News Online in Filipino during the MPL Philippines Media Day last August 8 in Makati.

"And good thing that I'm now able to come back here and this time, I want to become a champion here also. That's the goal we're setting."

But Bitoy knows too well there is no easy route to the top, especially in a highly-competitive league such as the MPL Philippines.

Bitoy has been in the MLBB professional scene since the league's inception in 2018, where he played for Digital Devils No Limit in Season 1, before getting his first coaching gig with Minana. He first served as Minana's assistant coach in Season 12 before getting promoted to head coach in Season 13, helping the squad to 7th and 6th place finishes, respectively.

Bitoy also shared that former Minana manager Setsuna "Dogie" Ignacio was the one who gave him his current IGN, changing his old moniker, "sry im thin," to Bitoy.

"Actually, when I was still a player, I was already doing the drafting. It was like I was the captain already. The person who saw that was Dogie, so he was the one who got me to transition from a player to coach," Bitoy added.

"My IGN also started with Dogie. He said I looked like Bitoy and that stuck so I just went with it."

Bitoy was eventually forced to look for a job elsewhere after Minana disbanded in 2024. He landed a coaching stint in Singapore, steering Evil to MPL Singapore Season 10 title and a runner-up finish in the following edition. Bitoy also called the shots in Evil's M7 World Championship run.

But when another opportunity in the Philippines came knocking, Bitoy didn't hesitate to take it, and now finds himself helping guide AP.Bren through its rebuild ahead of MPL Philippines Season 18, which kicks off this week.

"Actually, at Minana, since it was my first coaching job, I learned everything there and I was able to bring that to Singapore and now also here."

—JMB, GMA News