by In a high-stakes meeting between two of the VALORANT Champions Tour Americas top teams, LEVIATáN secured a 2-0 victory over G2 Esports.
The series, played on Icebox and Abyss, showcased Leviátan’s dominance.
LEVIATáN WINS THE AMERICAS REGIONAL BATTLE TO KICK OFF THEIR PLAYOFF RUN! #VALORANTChampions pic.twitter.com/zTizXvrVEx
— VALORANT Champions Tour (@ValorantEsports) August 15, 2024
Icebox, Leviátan’s pick and one of their strongest maps this year, saw them clinch a nail-biting 16-14 win.
Entering the match with a 12-3 record on Icebox, Leviátán faced a challenge from G2, who had previously handed them two of those losses.
G2 started strong on Icebox with a zero-duelist composition, putting Jacob “icy” Lange on Gekko and Nathan “leaf” Orf on Killjoy.
Their in-game leader, Jacob “valyn” Batio, orchestrated an early 5-1 lead.
However, Leviátan’s IGL, Francisco “kiNgg” Alberto Aravena, brought his team back into the game despite being detained by icy’s Gekko Thrash.
G2 managed to avoid the gun of Leviátán’s star player, Erick “aspas” Santos, who ended the map with just one Operator kill.
In a tense finish, Leviátán clinched the map 16-14.
On Abyss, G2’s map pick, Leviátan took control from the start.
Their defence, led by Corbin “C0M” Daniel Lee and kiNgg, dominated, ending the half 8-4 in their favour.
Leviátan won the pistol round on attack, and G2’s puzzling decision to abandon the map didn’t pay off, allowing Leviátan to secure an 11-4 lead.
From there, they cruised to a 13-5 victory, sweeping the series 2-0.
Despite aspas having a quiet series, his teammates shone, guiding Leviátán to victory.
G2’s head coach, Josh “JoshRT” Lee, attributed their performance on Abyss to the close loss on Icebox, stating, “We lost a close one. I could tell the nerves were a little high.”
No G2 player finished with a positive K/D on Abyss.
Ian “tex” Botsch, a former teammate of many G2 players, expressed satisfaction with the win, noting the friendly rivalry with his old team.
C0M led the server with 42 kills and a massive 1.42 rating across the series.
G2’s leaf followed with 38 kills, but it wasn’t enough to stop Leviátan.
TEAM HERETICS COME OUT ON TOP IN THE EMEA REGIONAL SHOWDOWN! #VALORANTChampions #VamosHeretics pic.twitter.com/MILuGmnBBL
— VALORANT Champions Tour (@ValorantEsports) August 15, 2024
Team Heretics, in a surprising result, defeated FNATIC 2-0 in the VALORANT Champions 2024 playoffs, setting up a clash with Leviátan in the next round.
Heretics and FNATIC had faced each other four times in 2024 before this Champions clash, with Heretics winning twice.
Fnatic picked Lotus for the first map of the series; however, it backfired in the worst way possible.
Mert “WoOt” Alkan dominated for the Heretics, recording a massive rating of 1.80, 280 average combat score (ACS), and 188 ADR in their 13-3 demolition.
Heretics continued their dominance on Abyss, defeating FNATIC 14-12 in overtime.
Although Heretics won the second map in overtime, only Enes “RieNs” Ecirli finished with a positive kill/death difference (+9) and rating over 1.0 (1.36), with Nikita “Derke” Sirmitev topping the server with a 1.38 rating and 28 kills.
RieNs and Benjy “benjyfishy” David Fish were instrumental in Heretics’ win, which marked their third victory at Champions 2024.
With this win, Team Heretics advanced to play Leviátan, while FNATIC dropped to the lower bracket to face G2 in an elimination match.
The winner of Leviátan vs. Team Heretics will secure a top-three finish at VALORANT Champions 2024.
Friday’s VALORANT Champions fixtures
- DRX (-303.03) vs Trace Esports (+225) @ 5pm KST
- G2 Esports (-138.89) vs Fnatic (+100) @ 8pm KST
