DRX and 100T win their opening matches in Group D, OpTic secure playoffs

On the third day of VCT 2022 - Champions Istanbul, DRX won against FURIA and 100 Thieves over Fnatic in the opening matches of Group D, while OpTic Gaming defeated LOUD in the Group B winners match to secure the playoffs.

DRX vs FURIA

In the opening game of the day for VALORANT Champions, DRX won over against FURIA with one of the most spectacular comebacks in VCT history.

If DRX wanted to disrupt FURIA's mindset, they certainly succeeded on the opening map of the match, especially given that in round 16 DRX's prospects for Ascent appeared to be quite bleak with a score of 12-4. The rounds started coming in for DRX, regardless of whether they turned on their monitors, engaged their minds, or just hurried FURIA. They defeated FURIA in eight straight rounds, matching the number of rounds FURIA won to open the map and force overtime. One of the greatest comebacks in VCT history was ultimately completed by DRX after a back-and-forth fight to maintain the lead. On Jett, Yu "BuZz" Byung-chul made numerous outstanding moves, particularly when he was holding the Operator. The player performed some of the most thrilling moves on the map and had a number of near aces. In one of the most thrilling plays of the whole game, he defeated four players of FURIA by himself.

The match was over in the second map on Haven, DRX possessed the mental fortitude of a bank vault, and they weren't messing around any more. In lyrical form, DRX destroyed a shaky FURIA, defeating them by a final score of 13-4. On Haven, Yu "BuZz" Byung-chul turned the entire team against them and finished the map with an impressive 24-7 K/D.

VCT 2022 - Champions Istanbul

DRX

2

X

0

FURIA

Group D - Opening Match, Best of 3 - September 2, 2022 - 12:00PM

16

Ascent

14

13

Haven

4

DRX

player

Rating

ACS

K/D/A

+/-

K/D

KAST

ADR

HS%

FBSR

FB

FD

BuZz

1.41

301

44/32/7

+12

1.38

80.4%

170.0

24%

65%

15

8

MaKo

1.21

218

35/30/22

+5

1.17

88.3%

137.0

24%

43%

3

4

stax

1.16

191

36/28/17

+8

1.29

84.1%

114.2

36%

100%

2

0

Rb

1.04

207

36/26/17

+10

1.38

82.5%

148.5

47%

50%

5

5

Zest

0.68

128

22/27/14

-5

0.81

77.5%

92.9

25%

25%

1

3

FURIA

player

Rating

ACS

K/D/A

+/-

K/D

KAST

ADR

HS%

FBSR

FB

FD

dgzin

0.98

211

36/35/3

+1

1.03

64.4%

127.3

26%

60%

9

6

nzr

0.75

162

29/31/7

-2

0.94

60.2%

115.1

25%

40%

2

3

mazin

0.73

152

30/36/16

-6

0.83

53.0%

116.3

19%

30%

3

7

khalil

0.65

135

22/36/19

-14

0.61

61.9%

97.4

25%

50%

3

3

ambitioN

0.62

160

26/35/7

-9

0.74

52.6%

123.3

21%

27%

3

8

100T vs Fnatic

At VALORANT Champions 2022 second match of the third day, 100 Thieves beat Fnatic 2-1 to maintain their perfect record against EMEA teams.

Due to numerous players testing positive for COVID-19 before their match versus Fnatic, 100 Thieves was already at a disadvantage. On Pearl, Fnatic's chosen map, 100T maintained calm despite the situation. Less than a week passed after the North America Last Chance Qualifier, 100 Thieves got a chance to train on Pearl once it was introduced to the rotation. The young player Sean "bang" Bezerra from 100 Thieves stepped up for his squad as Astra. bang was the MVP of the match for their 13-10 victory on Pearl with a headshot percentage of 57 and a 1.75 KD.

Fnatic made a comeback in the second map of the series, taking the lead right away after winning many rounds early on. Despite the fact that 100 Thieves selected Bind, Fnatic was definitely in command throughout the whole game. Nikita "Derke" Sirmitev felt comfortable using the Operator and such areas as the Chamber. He didn't even win the MVP award for the particular map, as Fnatic won 13-7. James "Mistic" Orfila made a big improvement in the second map as Skye, dropping a 2.55 KD and dealing 176 damage every round on average.

On the crucial map of the match, Haven, resulting in a stalemate at the end of the first half. 100 Thieves players took advantage of the fact that gunfights on Mistic were more difficult to win than on Bind. Due to Peter "Asuna" Mazuryk’s tremendous outplays, 100 Thieves overcame Fnatic 13-7 to win Haven. To determine which team moves out of groups, 100 Thieves will battle against the South Korean team DRX.

VCT 2022 - Champions Istanbul

Fnatic

1

X

2

100 Thieves

Group D - Opening Match, Best of 3 - September 2, 2022 - 2:55PM

10

Pearl

13

13

Bind

7

7

Haven

13

Fnatic

player

Rating

ACS

K/D/A

+/-

K/D

KAST

ADR

HS%

FBSR

FB

FD

Alfajer

1.19

278

55/50/14

+5

1.10

77.0%

176.1

23%

52%

13

12

Derke

1.18

243

57/39/6

+18

1.46

71.3%

166.5

39%

56%

9

7

Mistic

1.03

204

47/41/16

+6

1.15

73.4%

134.2

35%

17%

1

5

Boaster

0.74

154

29/49/28

-20

0.59

68.2%

104.1

14%

30%

3

7

Enzo

0.59

113

24/42/20

-18

0.57

67.8%

77.9

24%

29%

2

5

100 Thieves

player

Rating

ACS

K/D/A

+/-

K/D

KAST

ADR

HS%

FBSR

FB

FD

Will

1.43

300

66/45/16

+21

1.47

79.2%

186.2

15%

70%

14

6

Asuna

0.97

196

43/46/21

-3

0.93

73.2%

119.6

22%

47%

7

8

bang

0.97

166

41/36/21

+5

1.14

74.4%

105.3

48%

50%

7

7

Derrek

0.94

168

41/46/17

-5

0.89

71.3%

117.9

41%

70%

7

3

stellar

0.74

137

30/39/21

-9

0.77

73.2%

97.6

26%

17%

1

5

OpTic vs Loud

The fourth match between OpTic and LOUD this year brought to a close the third day winners match of VALORANT Champions 2022. The two well-known rivals have previously faced off in playoff finals and elimination games, but today's matchup saw them go head-to-head in a group stage winners final with one of the top playoff berths up for grabs.

Breeze saw LOUD's exceptional defensive performance as they consistently stifled the OpTic assault side. Erick "aspas" Santos, the top duelist for LOUD, had total command of the map, employing the Jett/Operator combination to get early picks and thwart OpTic executions. In an 11-1 first half, Gustavo "Sacy" Rossi and Aspas take 30 kills as opposed to only 6 deaths. Jaccob "yay" Whiteaker anchored a couple of rounds on OpTic's defensive side to grab some early positive mentally. The winners of the Masters Reykjavk proved to be just as tough on defense despite being down by such a significant margin. To get to the B site and plant, LOUD had to utilize several ultimates, but it was worthwhile because it gave them a 12-7 edge. Despite Victor "Victor" Wong some good playmaking on Jett, less of LOUD opened up the B site with some accurate headshots to beat Breeze 13-7.

On Fracture, LOUD showed off the defense's adaptability by relying on crushing retakes to rapidly gain the lead. OpTic, on the other side, fought back with more effective post-plant angles and kills and prevented LOUD from gaining a big advantage this time. The most impressive demonstration of this was a two-vs-four ace from yay utilizing Chamber's ultimate, when he removed all of the LOUD players before they could even make a move, tying the map at 6-6. Coach Chet called an OpTic timeout after LOUD won the pistol round and the first buy round to reclaim the lead. OpTic originally found it difficult to react to LOUD's daring and assured strikes, especially when they came from Felipe "Less" Basso and his Operator. However, a decisive victory turned the tide, and yay maintained his incredible speed to assist OpTic in regaining the lead. Victor's Neon, who played more aggressive defense for OpTic, helped to set up the team's 13-10 victory on Fracture.

OpTic's goal on Pearl defense was definitely long-range B control; they selected aggressive angles to make LOUD lose as much usefulness as they could, then pinched the attack if they went elsewhere. LOUD's onslaught had little opportunities to succeed against Pearl's defense because the top seed in NA seemed to be more than prepared for it, leading 9-3 at the half. OpTic maintained their momentum moving into the attack, showcasing their comfort and familiarity with Pearl straight away and winning the pistol, anti-eco, and even the bonus round to create an overwhelming 12-3 advantage. OpTic used B with the weapon advantage, barely fending off LOUD, and went on to take the game 2-1 with a convincing 13-3 victory on Pearl.

OpTic has now defeated LOUD three times in a row in their rivalry, only dropping the Masters Reykjavk winners match. As a result OpTic joins Leviatán in the VCT Champions playoffs, while LOUD must wait to see how BOOM Esports vs. ZETA DIVISION turns out.

VCT 2022 - Champions Istanbul

OpTic Gaming

2

X

1

LOUD

Group B - Winners Match, Best of 3 - September 2, 2022 - 6:50PM

7

Breeze

13

13

Fracture

10

13

Pearl

3

OpTic Gaming

player

Rating

ACS

K/D/A

+/-

K/D

KAST

ADR

HS%

FBSR

FB

FD

yay

1.24

257

58/35/3

+23

1.66

78.6%

163.0

26%

83%

10

2

crashies

1.05

184

36/38/33

-2

0.95

75.1%

111.6

21%

67%

4

2

FNS

1.00

202

40/39/16

+1

1.03

78.2%

133.7

18%

75%

3

1

Victor

0.99

195

41/40/15

+1

1.03

76.9%

122.2

28%

43%

9

12

Marved

0.90

176

34/42/19

-8

0.81

64.5%

107.9

23%

38%

6

10

LOUD

player

Rating

ACS

K/D/A

+/-

K/D

KAST

ADR

HS%

FBSR

FB

FD

Sacy

1.00

198

44/41/16

+3

1.07

69.2%

141.4

31%

60%

3

2

Saadhak

0.88

190

35/43/27

-8

0.81

61.5%

131.3

21%

35%

6

11

aspas

0.88

191

41/44/7

-3

0.93

62.8%

112.3

21%

38%

8

13

pANcada

0.85

176

34/40/19

-6

0.85

70.3%

110.9

23%

86%

6

1

Less

0.83

186

40/41/7

-1

0.98

63.2%

118.2

24%

44%

4

5