FaZe Clan is through to Stage 2 of the StarLadder Budapest playoffs after yet another sketchy display in taking down Fluxo with a 2-1 scoreline. FaZe, having won the previous match, had another close encounter that saw them secure another close win and a spot in Stage 2 of the Major.
VETO
- FaZe removed Train
- Fluxo removed Dust2
- FaZe picked Inferno
- Fluxo picked Nuke
- Fluxo removed Ancient
- FaZe removed Overpass
- Mirage was left over
Map 1: Inferno; Pick: FaZe; Winner: FaZe
Winning 8 rounds in the first half, FaZe looked dominant as they were expected to be. Confident and precise on their offense, they put the Brazilian side on the back foot, from which they could not recover. After winning 2 rounds to start their offense, Fluxo failed to keep the momentum up in the gun rounds, and FaZe closed the map effortlessly with a streak of 5 rounds. Having won their own map pick, FaZe found themselves a map away from qualification.
Map 2: Nuke; Pick: Fluxo; Winner: Fluxo
A 4-0 start for Fluxo put FaZe on the back foot right from the get-go. FaZe failed to recover from that point onwards, leading to Fluxo edging out a narrow lead of 7-5 in the first half. Starting the second half with a pistol win, FaZe levelled the scoreline, but all the gun rounds went the way of Fluxo. Winning 6 rounds in a row, the Fluxo defense forced FaZe into the final map of the series and kept their hopes alive.
Map 3: Mirage; Pick: Decider; Winner: FaZe
FaZe carried their poor form from the 2nd map onto the 3rd, leading to Fluxo running all over them in the first half. 8-4 in favour of the Brazilians, they went on to hit double digits before FaZe started mounting their comeback in typical FaZe fashion. With elimination staring them in the face, FaZe Clan started winning rounds. Brick by brick, the comeback was built, and by the time Fluxo could stop the bleeding, they found FaZe cruising past them to win the map 13-10 from being 10-4 down at a point.
The FaZe story so far seems to be something unbelievable, as if they are being protected by plot armor. Given their poor performance for most of the event, Stage 2 will not be this forgiving, and unless they drastically improve, we are unlikely to see FaZe advance beyond Stage 2.