Former Masters: Copenhagen champions FunPlus Phoenix have been sent to the lower bracket of VALORANT Champions Istanbul by DRX.
DRX made a flawless run through the group stage to be the No. 1 seed coming out of Group D. Despite the slight advantage, DRX were tasked with facing the former Masters champions during the first round of the playoffs. No challenge proved too great for the South Korean team, though. They fought their way through FPX today during the longest map of the tournament.
After throwing a 12-8 lead, DRX went toe-to-toe with FPX in an overtime that featured two incredible clutches that had both stax and ardiis on their feet. DRX closed out FPX’s map pick Ascent 19-17 to take match point in the series.
While the first map had been an absolute bloodbath on both sides, DRX’s pick of Breeze was heavily one-sided. FPX looked lost after failing to clutch up in overtime on Ascent and DRX were seemingly in peak form. Early advantages were key to DRX’s success, including winning four consecutive rounds at the start and end of the half. Stax was hitting his stride on Breeze, working in unison with his team for an MVP-worthy performance.
After winning both pistol rounds after a 9-3 half to take an 11-3 lead, DRX stayed strong to finish 13-5 and send FPX to the lower bracket. Zest finished the series as the overall MVP with a 1.42 overall K/D and an average combat score of 248 while playing Sova.
DRX stay in the upper bracket of VCT Champions and will face Brazil’s LOUD on Sept. 12.
