Frokat
As the VCT Masters Copenhagen’s ending is looming on the horizon, only the strongest of the teams remain on the playing field. In the event’s Lower Bracket, Europe’s greatest rivalry story is about to unfold. FunPlus Phoenix and Fnatic have clashed multiple times in the 2022 season, forging a bitter – and exciting – feud. Historically, Fnatic have been the ones winning out decisively in the end. Will this trend continue on the highest stage, or will FPX be able to take their revenge and turn the tables at the very last moment? Let’s find out together!
2022 Copenhagen Stage 2 MastersDenmark, Copenhagen, Forum Copenhagen
FunPlus Phoenix
Paper Rex
OpTic Gaming
Let’s start off with the teams’ match history. The two teams have been fighting each other for quite some time now, meeting five times in the 2022 season starting from VCT 2022: EMEA Stage 1 Challengers, where FPX claimed their first victory Fnatic 2:0. Unfortunately for FunPlus, that was also the only victory over Fnatic they’ve had this year.
Fnatic: Icebox diff
Icebox has been synonymous with “Fnatic dominance” for the entirety of the 2022 Season.
If we go down the memory lane down there, we can spot a pretty curious piece of info: Fnatic have a 100% winrate on Icebox in these matches. Unsurprisingly, the only time they did drop a match to FPX was when Icebox got banned out. That’s not to say that Fnatic is a one-map-pony team – far from it – but this map is a major ace up their sleeve, for sure.
Unsurprisingly, Paper Rex paid great respect to the British organization by banning Icebox in the match against them in the first round of veto in the Upper Bracket Semi-Final of VCT Copenhagen. After a close series, Fnatic were pushed down to Lower Bracket – and this crucial ban undoubtedly contributed to this result.
As the two teams have already collided in VCT Masters Copenhagen, we can approach their performance with further detail. Map dominance aside, Fnatic have another trick up their belt – and it’s Derke and his phenomenal performance on his signature Chamber. The Finnish player nearly dropped a double 30-bomb back-to-back the last time the two teams met in the opening bracket of VCT Copenhagen. Worth noting that it’s way harder to do that in Valorant than in his former discipline, CS:GO.
Nikita “Derke” Simirnev is a Russian-Finnish professional Valorant player. He is currently playing for Fnatic as a duelist and is most known for his signature picks, Chamber and Raze. The 19-year-old player career hails from CS:GO, where he has previously played for a Finnish stack KOVA under the alias “derkep.”
For the side of FunPlus Phoenix, they have demonstrated some wonderful adaptability in their two matchups against the Korean team DRX. After dropping the first match against DRX (although you could argue that was due to them playing with a sub), FPX sprung back to life and destroyed DRX on their map of choice, Fracture, ending the Korean team’s seemingly dominant showing.
Conclusion
We believe that this upcoming match is definitely Fnatic’s to lose. The team’s historical performance, map proficiency, and individual player’s talents and ability to step up greatly when needed will prove a tough nut for FunPlus Phoenix to break.
[match_prediction match=”fnatic-vs-funplus-phoenix-22-07-2022-07-00″ team=”fnatic-valorant”]
My vote goes to Fnatic, but, at the same time, I don’t believe it’s as clear and cut as the team’s match history makes it look. FunPlus Phoenix made Fnatic work for their win back in EMEA Challengers, and they can do so again – especially after the momentum they’ve gained in Copenhagen’s Lower Bracket.
Overall, this is gonna be an exciting match and an excellent continuation of this rivalry arc. I sure hope both teams enjoy it as much as I will!
