Team Heretics reach top four with 2-1 over DRX

Team Heretics Team Heretics Europe Rank #1 MiniBoo Dominykas Lukaševičius Wo0t Mert Alkan RieNs Enes Ecirli benjyfishy Benjamin David Fish Boo Ričardas Lukaševičius have eliminated DRX DRX Korea Rank #2 Flashback Cho Min-hyuk (조민혁) BuZz Yu Byung-chul (유병철) MaKo Kim Myeong-gwan (김명관) Foxy9 Jung Jae-sung (정재성) BeYN Kang Ha-bin (강하빈) following a 2-1 win. They are now in the top four at their first-ever Champions appearance, and will next play against Sentinels Sentinels North America Rank #3 TenZ Tyson Ngo Zellsis Jordan Montemurro zekken Zachary Patrone johnqt Mohamed Amine Ouarid Sacy Gustavo Rossi following their win against FNATIC. DRX, meanwhile, are now eliminated from the event, ending in the top six in the first international tournament in South Korea.

This matchup is the first time both teams have played against each other, as DRX had been unable to qualify to either Masters event earlier in the year. Both teams went through roster turmoil during 2024, as DRX saw the need to go through a rebuild and Team Heretics were forced to play with star-substitute paTiTek due to scheduling and visa conflicts. Now at their full potential, the teams were pit against each other in an elimination series at the most important VCT stage of the year.

The map veto erred slightly in Team Heretics' favor, as they had more clarity on which maps they preferred and which they could leave out. Ahead of the series, the decider map, Icebox, could be considered a strong end for DRX, but most of their victories had been against weaker regional teams. The map was not uncomfortable for Heretics, however, as they tended to leave it open, only banning it first once since the beginning of Stage 2. The European team's more decisive selection process also left Abyss as the first map, on which Heretics were only slightly less successful than DRX.

DRX kicked off the series by denying a retake on their Abyss B plant. A slow, two-pronged approach gave them the anti-eco, and Heretics were able to win the bonus with a quick plant denial. Flashback and BuZz were next to show up, granting the hometown team a pair of rounds to go up with a 4-1 lead. Three ultimates and a MiniBoo 3K helped Heretics close the gap, setting the score at 4-3. A back-and-forth ending at 5-5 led to both teams' respective timeouts, the second of which helped DRX close out the half 7-5.

Now on the defense, DRX extended their two-round streak, taking their second pistol and winning the anti-eco with ease. Despite a Boo lurking double-kill, DRX recovered the bonus round by using defensive utility to force mistakes from Heretics. A Heretics timeout was unfruitful, as Flashback showed up in early rounds and DRX's player advantage helped deny Boo's Astra post-plants. The map ended unceremoniously, with BeYN and MaKo finishing off a 2v2 and closing out Abyss 13-5.

“We had our eye on Abyss since it first came out,” DRX coach termi said after map one. “We thought we could take on Heretics with that map pick.”

His counterpart, Heretics coach neilzinho , was more optimistic on the second map. “That was shambolic,” neil said regarding their Abyss performance. “[Sunset] is always a map we're comfortable on,” he added. “We've been looking to play against certain teams; DRX is one of them.”

Team Heretics changed their composition from Neon to Raze, keen for redemption on Sunset. They proved as much on defense, taking their first pistol of the half and bringing the bonus round down to the wire. Four more rounds followed for the European squad, as they consistently suffocated DRX's offensive attempts. DRX were able to recover, however, as they took an eco round and were able to use their set executes to break open the B site. With BuZz in the lead, DRX closed out the half 7-5.

A slow pistol round helped set Heretics up for an anti-retake plant, putting control back into the Masters finalists' hands. Team Heretics continued playing with both wings of the map, using timings and well-placed utility to mask their intentions. A pause was called for by DRX after 11-5, giving the team a window to plan and reset for the rest of the half. Two fast rounds followed from Heretics, the adaptation confusing the defense and ending map two 13-5, tying the score at 1-1.

Heading into Icebox, benjyfishy helped win a third pistol round for his team. Their defense started off successfully, taking an early 3-1 lead. Round five began in similar fashion, early kills leaving two DRX members stranded in mid. The round was not over, however, and Heretics began peeking into MaKo, who eliminated the defenders one by one until he ended up in a 1v1. The extra eliminations gave him a Viper's Pit, and MaKo closed out the ace.

Two more rounds went DRX's way, planting on a weaker A site and giving them the lead. A Heretics timeout reinforced their problem site, but DRX poked and prodded the defense, brute-forcing their way to a sixth round win. The South Korean squad continued insisting on the site, eventually dropping a thrifty round. A Sova-Killjoy post-plant gave them the next round, and Wo0t clawed back a B retake to end the half 7-5 in DRX's favor.

The hometown team extended their lead in the second half after a stuck defuse from Flashback. Heretics stabilized after winning the bonus round, taking an additional pair of rounds without much resistance. The 9-8 scoreline led to a DRX pause, enabling Flashback and Foxy9 to take a point. Heretics continued with their A plan, which ended in success and weakened the defense's economy. The plant switched sites against the low buy, but returned to A to find success and take the lead 11-10.

The European squad's continued offensive success had left them with an ultimate and economic advantage that was impossible to overcome. Despite repeat incursions into a fully-reinforced A site, they eventually left DRX with no economy or ultimates compared to Heretics' three ults. The Champions débutants took the anti-eco by using a Lockdown to plant and a Viper's Pit for their post-plant. RieNs opened their match point with his own ultimate, eliminating BuZz and leaving two more at half health. Team Heretics rushed to rotate, ending Icebox 13-10 and moving forward with a 2-1 victory.

“We can play well, everybody knows that,” Boo said after their win. “I'm actually really happy to play Sentinels,” he added. His brother and Heretics spearhead, MiniBoo, was emotional following the series. “After the first game I just thought, ‘I don't want to sit another six months without doing anything and regret this day',” he said. “I did everything I could to benefit our odds to win this game,” he added.

Team Heretics will now play against Sentinels in the lower semifinal, a rematch of the European team's international debut. Both teams were Masters finalists this year, but Sentinels were the only one of the pair to win an event. DRX are now eliminated on home soil, their rebuilt roster matching the team's previous Champions finish.