VCT 2022 - Korea - Stage 1 - Main Event Recap

From the Korean Stage 1 Challengers, it was one of the teams THESPIKE.GG had highlighted in its viewer's guide that earned a spot at VCT 2022 - Stage 1 - Masters Reykjavík. Their run in the tournament was mind-blowing with only one loss ever since the Open Qualifiers and only a single dropped map during the Playoff stages. This article will take a deeper look at their Stage 1 run from the Open Qualifiers itself.

DRX, previously known as Vision Strikers, had a relatively successful year in terms of tournament results with 1st place finishes in all regional tournaments they participated in except VCT 2021 - Stage 2 - Korea - Challengers, which became the unfortunate cause behind their absence from VCT 2021 - Stage 2 - Masters Reykjavík, which was the only major event they couldn’t qualify for.

Although most teams in the Valorant scene introduced several changes to their roster in the off-season, Vision Strikers utilized a less aggressive approach by only loaning Lee "k1Ng" Seung-won to Sla2ers and allowing Kim "Lakia" Jong-min to search for options. Since their roster coming into VCT 2022 was relatively similar to last years’, fans expected their their performance to remain unaffected either, making them one of the favourites for this tournament.

Open Qualifiers and Group Stages:

Their qualification for VCT 2021 - VALORANT Champions 2021 earned them a direct invitation to VCT 2022 - Korea - Stage 1 - Round of 16 from where they managed to qualify to the Main Event without dropping a map. As the event proceedings commenced, DRX VS decided to reinstate their dominance in the Korean scene as DRX VS managed to execute a perfect sweep in all the matches apart from the matchup against On Sla2ers, and better yet without letting any team reach a double-digit score in either of the two maps.

However, the loss against Sla2ers presented itself as a point of concern for a potential competitor in the scene that could rival VS in the ongoing VCT. That matchup took place over Icebox and Bind, which were lost by VS 3-13 and 8-13 scores respectively, largely due to the contributions of Park "Bazzi" Jun-ki who finished with a 1.83 Rating and 365 ACS. Being the second seed on the group table, they were given a direct placement into the second round of Upper Brackets along with Sla2ers.

Playoff run:

Their first oppoenents in the Playoff Stages was World Game Star, the 4th ranking team in the Group Stages, with 4 wins and 3 losses, two of which were against the VS and DWG KIA, and the last one against HolyMolly. However, they were responsible to the only loss encountered by Sla2ers. This matchup almost relegated DRX VS to the Lower Brackets as WGS to the first map comfortably with a 13-8 run and then stood at 11-2 in the second map before VS attempted a major comeback and finished the map without allowing WGS enough leeway to force OT, or even take the remaining couple of rounds. Being tied 1-1, VS chances in the matchup were revived but they were still on their toes given the fascinating performance WGS had put on so far. DRX VS was able to continue the momentum over to the decider map and finish it 13-2 winning the series and getting one step closer to the Masters spot, the path to which included two back-to-back matchups against On Sla2ers.

DRX VS were looking forward to this matchup to avenge their Group Stage loss, and as the matchup progressed, the difference in skill level became eminent. The only time On Sla2ers gave VS a run for their money was on the 1st half of Breeze, where they were able to tie them up at 6-6 by halftime. Following that half, fate decided to side with VS as they finished the map 13-8 and the subsequent map 13-2 to earn a spot at the Grand Finals of VCT 2022 - Korea - Stage 1 - Main Event. Despite being demoted to the Lower Brackets, On Sla2ers held onto their hopes and they demonstrated their intent by eliminating HolyMolly 3-0 in the Lower Bracket finals to earn a second chance of qualifying for the Masters.

Grand Finals:

In their 3rd ever head-to-head with On Sla2ers, they were hopeful to gain the upper hand early on especially since they had the first map pick. However, to their dismay, VS was able to get a 9-3 lead by halftime. Nonetheless, On Sla2ers was able to respond with 9 rounds of their own to force OT only to accept defeat courtesy of the brilliant co-ordination and teamwork of VS. This defeat seemed to have extinguished the hopes of the On Sla2ers roster because their performance encountered a steep decline in the subsequent maps allowing VS to secure the spot to VCT 2022 - Stage 1 - Masters Reykjavík as the sole Korean representatives.