Thunder Predator and Chinese Titans top Singapore Major Group Stage

With absolute dominant force, Thunder Predator has finished first place in the Group Stage at the Singapore Major, alongside PSG.LGD and Vici Gaming. These three teams will join the top team from each region, excluding beastcoast who unfortunately withdrew due to COVID-19 complications, in the upper bracket of the playoffs.

As we discussed yesterday, Thunder Predator finished the first day of the Group Stage with an impressive 8-0 run. Though they didn’t finish the entire group stage undefeated, they used this energy to split a series with VG and defeat PSG.LGD, 2-0. Thunder Predator are the only team to finish the Group Stage without losing 0-2 to any team, ending with a score 12-2. The only representatives of South America here in Singapore, Thunder Predator surprised us all with their incredible gameplay. Let’s hope they bring it to the playoffs.

With no breaks between the Wild Card and the Group Stage, VG and PSG.LGD have played 24 games in the past four days. Though they both began in the Wild Card, the two teams were still considered heavy favorites for the entire tournament. Riding their momentum from the Wild Card, these two teams reminded everyone of who they are and why they’re here. The upper bracket of the playoffs begins the day after the Group Stage, so there are still no days off for these two.

Everyone had high expectations for Alliance but unfortunately the team bottomed out with the lowest score of 4-10. With a rough day one where they finished 1-5, they simply could not find their footing in this tournament. Having finished second in the European DPC Upper Division and not having to play with a stand-in, they were considered a top contender in the group. Alliance will need to go back to the drawing board and prepare themselves to come back stronger next season.

Surprisingly, there were no tiebreakers this time around. In the lower bracket we have Quincy Crew, Team Liquid, Team Aster, and OB Esports x Neon. Quinn "Quinn" Callahan from Quincy Crew looked remarkable on his signature Void Spirit, creating immense amounts of space and constantly outplaying his opponents. Unfortunately, QC needed one more win to force tiebreakers with VG. Neon finished the first day of the Group Stage 1-7 but persevered and found themselves just one game ahead of Alliance along with Team Aster. Neon’s stand-in Rafael Sicat "Rappy" Palo even needed a stand-in, who was replaced by Yang "Deth" Wu Heng, but they didn’t let this stop them.

So far of the 87 games that have been played so far at the Major, Puck has only been ignored in three games and has been picked in 40 games. This hero is heavily valued by every team, and still sports a 63% win rate alongside being the most picked hero at the tournament.

The Io hate still continues from the Wild Card, with Io being the most banned hero at the event with 66 total bans. Teams utilize this carry Io extremely well, with the exception of Alliance who ran it as a support for their Weaver-Io combo. It’s likely we’ll see this trend continue into the playoffs.

Death Prophet is another heavily contested hero. She’s been picked in 34 games and banned in 47. Though she only has a 47% win rate, there is no doubt this is a powerful hero. With the ability to go into any lane and have immense impact, she is the ultimate flex pick at this tournament.

With no break between the Group Stage and Playoffs, the playoffs will begin March 30 at 10 p.m. ET / 4 a.m. CET between Fnatic and Evil Geniuses. Thunder Predator, despite obtaining the top seed in the group, has a first-round matchup against Team Secret. All series looked to be very competitive. All first-round upper bracket matches will be played on the first day.