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Out of 128 teams who participated in the North America Stage 2 Challengers Open Qualifier 1, four teams have secured berths into the Challengers phase for Valorant Champions Tour (VCT) Stage 2.
After an intense four-day marathon, NRG, FaZe Clan, TSM, and Luminosity have clinched their spots in the NA Stage 2 Challengers. They have joined The Guard, OpTic Gaming, Cloud9, and XSET, the top four teams from NA Challengers 1, two of who participated in the just-concluded 2022 Masters Reykjavik.
OpTic showed out for the entire NA region, winning the Stage 1 Masters over the team from Brazil LOUD. Coming into the Grand Final, LOUD were the favorites, but OpTic completed the sweep in the best-of-five series.
That said, the winners from the Open Qualifier 1 will also have a shot at reaching the Masters and ultimately getting points for the 2022 Valorant Champions.
Meanwhile, four more teams are expected to join the tournament before the contest begins. Only eight of the 12 teams needed have secured their spot in the Stage 2 Challengers. Another riveting four-day tournament will see 128 teams slug it out to finish in the top four. The Open Qualifier 2 will commence on May 5 and will run through to May 8.
NRG, FaZe Clan, TSM, and Luminosity Gaming had a difficult run in the Round 16 bracket but successfully soldiered through. They were not the favorites to win, as they faced tougher opponents. However, they all managed to pull off the spectacular.
While they all had tough opponents, NRG and FaZe Clan played fewer games to secure their spot in the NA Challengers 2. They made it through the Upper Bracket.
Despite the difficulty, NRG did not give up a single map, sweeping Zero MarksMen Black in the first round, Knights, in the second, and Version1 in Round 3 to secure their qualification.
For FaZe Clan, it was more of a struggle as they gave up one map against every of their opponents. It was all close calls for FaZe, and their final win against TSM was the most rewarding.
Luminosity and TSM were both relegated to the Lower Bracket after losses at different stages in the Upper Bracket. TSM was responsible for Luminosity’s demise early in the top-16 matchups after their Round 1 win over 100 Thieves.
In Round 1, Luminosity made light work of Gen.G Esports and advanced to the next round. Waiting was TSM, who had just beaten 100 Thieves and got another victory against LG.
Following a series of impressive performances in the Lower Bracket, defeating BBG Academy, Sentinels, and Version1, Luminosity secured Challengers 2 qualification.
For TSM, they were relegated to the Lower Bracket after losing to FaZe Clan. With only one victory needed to qualify, they bested a familiar foe, 100 Thieves, to guarantee their spot.
All four teams will get the much-needed rest before the Challengers 2 commences. The event will commence on May 13, with 12 teams fighting for a piece of the $200,000 prize fund and one of the slots for the Stage 2 Masters.
