Verizon 5G Ultra Cup Recap
Dominance for G2 Esports
After winning the Winter Major, G2 Esports deserved a break. Years of work and roster moves had finally culminated in victory at an RLCS LAN, and a let-down in the next event would be acceptable. Instead, G2 Esports stormed through the Verizon 5G Ultra Cup, losing only one series (to Spacestation Gaming) in Game 7 before coming back and winning the bracket reset 4-2. Tournament MVP Chicago led them to an overall 5-1 record, including a 21-11 game record. Their performance mirrored that of their Winter Major, as they went undefeated barring a setback to a flaming-hot roster, before avenging that loss and winning the tournament. Spacestation Gaming had won three straight in dominant fashion before ultimately falling short to G2 Esports. G2 extended their lead in the North American standings, opening up a more significant gap over The General NRG.
G2 Esports’ recent performances this season means that they’ve achieved something no other major region team has thus far: clinched a spot in Dallas for the World Championship. Though they’re currently only guaranteed a spot in the Wildcard, they are on an upwards trend and are tracking to receive a bye directly to the World Championship group stage. G2 Esports also becomes the first team in a major region to win four events this season, while nobody else has won more than two (The General NRG, Team Queso, Team BDS, Endpoint CeX). The addition of Atomic to the roster was ill-received at first, but G2 Esports has quickly staked a claim to world’s best with Atomic leading the way.
(image courtesy of Rocket League Esports)
New-look Rosters Surprise
On the heels of a Winter Split which saw Ghost Gaming struggle to a 16th placed finish, it was time for them to make a change. With Roll Dizz retiring, Ghost Gaming signed hockser to fill the void, and the move immediately paid off. Ghost Gaming swept their way through The General NRG and Version1, falling only to G2 Esports in the Upper Bracket. They then stormed through Team Envy before losing to Spacestation Gaming, but still placed fourth in the tournament. So far this season, a top four finish in North America or Europe has led to Major qualification 88% of the time, and the new Ghost Gaming certainly looked capable of continuing that trend in their first event together.
Team Envy also made a deeper run than they had in the Winter Split, losing to Complexity Gaming in the first round before going on a lower bracket run all the way to a top six finish. Team Envy qualified for the Fall Major, and are one of several rosters who look capable of qualifying for the Spring Major in London this time. While G2 Esports, Spacestation Gaming, and FaZe Clan (who finished third) have all had strong seasons and seem more likely than anyone else to make it to London, Team Envy is one of several teams on the bubble capable of making a run of their own.
(image courtesy of Rocket League Esports)
Early Exits
Due to the brutal format of a double-elimination tournament and improved depth in North America, some contenders went home early. Version1 matched Team Envy by finishing in the top six, and a constantly-improving Rogue fell out in the top eight. On their way there, however, Rogue sent The General NRG to a shocking twelfth-place finish. After dominating North America for so much of this season, The General NRG will need two very strong tournaments to qualify for the Spring Major, which won’t be easy with the growing number of strong teams fighting for those spots. A result like this after a highly disappointing Winter Major has raised several questions around the team, but they are certainly capable of a bounceback. Along with G2 Esports and Team BDS, they’re one of only three teams to have won an event in both the Fall and Winter splits, and will be pushing to make it three splits for three next time out.
Joining The General NRG with a twelfth-place finish are Fall Major qualifiers Complexity Gaming, who beat Team Envy but couldn’t overcome G2 Esports or a surprisingly solid Akrew team. They almost certainly need to qualify for the Spring Major to have a chance at the World Championship, so they’ll need two good results in the upcoming events more than any other roster. Oxygen Esports also only managed a top-twelve finish, which comes as a disappointment for a roster that finished top six in every event of the Winter Split. North America has a newfound depth after a second straight busy trade window, and it certainly showed throughout.
Europe’s roster window was even busier than North America’s, as top talent changed rosters and created some potential superteams. A region known for its depth, Europe promises to have similar results to North America next week in the Dacia Spring Cup. Make sure to keep up with Shift for all your Rocket League news until then!
