Fluxo, MIBR through to BLAST Showdown grand final; 00NATION out

MIBR and Fluxo have beaten Sharks and 00NATION, respectively, in the semi-finals of the BLAST NA Showdown bracket, earning themselves the chance to play for a spot at the BLAST Premier Fall Final and in front of a packed audience at the Royal Arena in Copenhagen.

It is a massive opportunity for both lineups after they missed out on the IEM Rio Major, with MIBR falling short at the Americas RMR and Fluxo failing to qualify for the RMR itself. Playing in the Royal Arena surrounded by some of the best teams in the world would provide invaluable experience, especially for a team as fresh as Fluxo, who only officially formed in August.

MIBR were the first team to ensure their spot in the grand final as they dispatched of Sharks in a somewhat one-sided series, posting a strong defense on Vertigo to take the first map of the series before coming back from a 5-11 deficit on Nuke to send Sharks packing from the tournament.

In the other semi-final, Fluxo saw to the elimination of the last remaining tournament favorite in 00NATION, who were expected to come out on top of the Showdown after Complexity and Evil Geniuses were both eliminated in the opening round.

The 2-0 victory must be especially sweet for João “⁠felps⁠” Vasconcellos‘ side, who were denied a chance to qualify for the IEM Road to Rio Americas RMR by 00NATION in the first South American open qualifier following a tightly-contested 2-1 series.

This time around, Fluxo looked much more prepared, and started things out with a strong T side showing on their own pick of Ancient before halting a brief comeback effort from TACO‘ side in the second half to take the map. Mirage was the Lucas “⁠Lucaozy⁠” Neves and felps show, the pair combining for 54 kills in a 16-10 victory to seal the victory in their favor.

The grand final between MIBR and Fluxo for a spot at the BLAST Fall Showdown will kick off on Sunday at 22:30 , or immediately after the conclusion of the Europe Showdown grand final, should it run late.