Paper Rex secures a Grand Finals spot, LOUD and Evil Geniuses to make Lower Final

The Champions Los Angeles is reaching its final stage, and today was a day of clashes between titans. The following were the teams that faced off today:

• Paper Rex vs Evil Geniuses
• LOUD vs Fnatic

Evil Geniuses vs Paper Rex

VCT 2023 - Champions

Paper Rex

2

X

1

Evil Geniuses

Upper Bracket Final, Best of 3 - August 24, 2023 - 7:00PM

10

Ascent

13

13

Bind

9

15

Pearl

13

Paper Rex

player

Rating

ACS

K/D/A

+/-

K/D

KAST

ADR

HS%

FBSR

FB

FD

Jinggg

1.19

253

63/56/20

+7

1.13

79.5%

162.4

18%

50%

9

9

mindfreak

1.19

213

57/42/32

+15

1.36

81.2%

152.9

35%

33%

2

4

f0rsakeN

1.07

228

57/53/22

+4

1.08

69.3%

151.2

24%

40%

6

9

d4v41

0.96

177

44/52/32

-8

0.85

77.7%

116.2

25%

50%

3

3

something

0.83

179

44/51/16

-7

0.86

70.1%

117.2

15%

46%

13

15

Evil Geniuses

player

Rating

ACS

K/D/A

+/-

K/D

KAST

ADR

HS%

FBSR

FB

FD

C0M

1.30

233

64/47/19

+17

1.36

79.2%

147.0

24%

75%

3

1

jawgemo

1.09

213

52/52/38

0

1.00

76.3%

141.2

18%

50%

6

6

Ethan

0.98

183

46/54/29

-8

0.85

68.2%

118.8

15%

58%

11

8

Demon1

0.96

207

56/54/5

+2

1.04

64.5%

150.6

34%

63%

12

7

Boostio

0.67

158

36/60/20

-24

0.60

61.0%

115.1

22%

42%

8

11

In the first game of the series, both teams brought an aggressive playstyle to Ascent, Evil Geniuses' map choice. Despite EG's shaky start, their Controller player, C0M, pulled off clutches and impressive plays round after round, tipping the rounds in favor of his team. With this determination and led by a well-prepared Sova, Evil Geniuses managed to take the lead in the second half. Despite a closely contested match, the American team succeeded in closing out the map with a score of 13-10. C0M finished the game with an impressive rating of 1.74 and 28 eliminations.

On Bind, PRX's map pick, EG managed to exhibit dominance on the Defense side. Despite some solid rounds from Paper Rex, EG turned the half around with a score of 7-5 in their favor. PRX's Duelist, something, struggled at the beginning of the second half, going 1/11, while EG's Duelist, Demon1, displayed confidence by engaging in "tea bagging" gestures and body shots on opponents. However, this time it seemed to backfire, as after the trash talking, Evil Geniuses failed to secure any more rounds, and the momentum shifted. PRX mounted an impressive comeback, pushing the score to 9-5 in their favor and eventually securing the map 13-9, thereby taking Bind out of EG's reach.

On Pearl, the deciding map, both teams ended the first half tied at 6-6. With a strong start on the Attack side in the second half, Evil Geniuses managed to secure five consecutive rounds, putting PRX in a tough spot with a score of 11-6. However, EG didn't anticipate that a team capable of making one comeback could pull off another. And that's exactly what happened. PRX managed to bring the game to Overtime and secured their spot in the Grand Finals by defeating Evil Geniuses with a score of 15-13.

LOUD vs Fnatic

In the final match of the night, we witnessed a rematch where LOUD once again faced off against Fnatic. However, this time there was no second chance.

VCT 2023 - Champions

Fnatic

1

X

2

LOUD

Lower Bracket Round 3 of 4, Best of 3 - August 24, 2023 - 10:45PM

4

Split

13

13

Ascent

9

7

Haven

13

Fnatic

player

Rating

ACS

K/D/A

+/-

K/D

KAST

ADR

HS%

FBSR

FB

FD

Leo

1.16

230

45/36/27

+9

1.25

80.8%

153.5

20%

75%

6

2

Boaster

0.98

180

37/46/26

-9

0.80

72.9%

114.4

21%

40%

4

6

Derke

0.96

215

43/43/12

0

1.00

64.6%

145.6

23%

43%

10

13

Alfajer

0.87

194

42/46/4

-4

0.91

66.1%

138.4

27%

22%

2

7

Chronicle

0.58

128

26/48/14

-22

0.54

56.9%

91.0

24%

11%

1

8

LOUD

player

Rating

ACS

K/D/A

+/-

K/D

KAST

ADR

HS%

FBSR

FB

FD

cauanzin

1.38

244

54/36/25

+18

1.50

81.4%

150.0

28%

64%

9

5

aspas

1.35

258

59/39/12

+20

1.51

82.9%

168.8

23%

87%

13

2

Saadhak

1.14

195

38/40/37

-2

0.95

84.9%

121.5

18%

54%

7

6

Less

0.99

207

41/39/12

+2

1.05

75.8%

142.6

22%

50%

5

5

tuyz

0.78

130

26/39/28

-13

0.67

73.1%

85.6

21%

29%

2

5

The first map of the series was Split, chosen by Fnatic to kick off the series. However, it was LOUD who dominated the match. The Brazilian team displayed a strong understanding of their opponents' defensive setup and managed to conclude the first half with a significant lead of 8-4. The story continued in the second half as LOUD didn't drop a single round, ultimately closing out the map with a score of 13-4.

On Ascent, LOUD's map choice, the representatives from the Americas once again took the lead and finished the first half with a 2-round advantage, 7-5. However, this time Fnatic didn't give up easily. The team secured the initial rounds of the second half and gained momentum, enough momentum to eventually close out the map with a score of 13-9.

In the final and decisive map, Haven, the story repeated itself. Once again, LOUD took the advantage, ending the first half with a score of 8-4. In the second half, Fnatic did manage to show some signs of a comeback, but it wasn't enough.

For the second time in Champions LA, LOUD emerged victorious against Fnatic. As a result, the EMEA team bids farewell to an international event for the first time this year.

Check out our VALORANT Champions event page for stats, the bracket, and schedule of the event.

Featured image photo credit: Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games