Michael “Mick” Bradshaw has been leading the Team Dignitas Call of Duty team since CoD 2. Since then Mick’s marauders have remained the top UK team, as well as ranking among the European elite. With Intel sponsorship the team have been able to continue their success with Call of Duty 4. This year they are taking on the best the world has to offer, at events like the Antwerp e-sports Festival, the-eXperience in Denmark and i-Series 34 in England. Game On pulled Mick out of the front line for a quick sit-rep.

GO: How did you get into gaming and e-sports?

Mick: My dad used to play on the PC a lot. When Unreal Tournament came out he buzzed over it and suggested that I give it a go. Of course, I became addicted to the game and played on LAN with my family. A year or so down the line I got involved more and more with the online community and, although I was limited by my connection, I still made quite an impact, labelled as one of best dial-up players at the time. The rest is history. I got better Internet. I started gaming more, and here I am today in one of the most successful ever Call of Duty teams.

GO: What has been the most memorable moment of your career so far?

Mick: Well there have been many good moments in my career as a gamer, but I would say the best would be back in March winning i33, because we had been playing pretty mediocre up until that point and winning it has given us a real big boost in confidence and restored our winning ways. Not only that but the money was good – 6000 euros – so we had a lot of people gunning for us.

GO: You are undeniably one of the top players in your game. What did it take to get there?

Mick: It takes alot of practice, determination, and sacrifice to get to the top. When you get there you just have to keep practising. And never under-estimate anyone.

GO: Do you have any other advice for up-and-coming players?

Study teams and players. Pick up on the things they do that make them win games and add it to your own game. Play plenty, to get your skill up. Then it should be pretty easy to maintain it.

GO: What are your thoughts on the future of e-sports, especially in the UK?

The UK e-sports community is getting better and better. In CoD4 you have 2 British teams that are really strong: ourselves and Meet Your Makers. In Counter-Strike: Source you have Birmingham Salvo who again are sensational and fly the flag for the UK.