Virtus.Pro Shine In Katowice Ahead Of Bucharest Major
Published: Mar 1, 2018 - Last Updated: Apr 26, 2019
We’re in the midst of a busy two weeks of Dota 2 action. Two massive events are impacting how the Dota Pro Circuit standings look. A couple of days ago, the ESL One Katowice 2018 came to a conclusion. Yet the top teams barely have a chance to catch their breath before they are back in action in a few days.
Let’s quickly take a look back at how the ESL One event in Poland unfolded. Then, we’ll preview the forthcoming action set to begin in Bucharest on March 4.
ESL One Katowice 2018 recap
After a disappointing 5th/6th finish at the ESL One Genting back in January, Virtus.pro got back to winning ways this week with a solid victory in Katowice.
The team claimed the $400,000 top prize as well as 750 precious DPC Points. All in all, it was a topsy-turvy tournament that debuted ESL’s new format.
Drawn in Group A, Virtus.pro came through their best-of-one league matches by defeating OpTic Gaming in the quarterfinals, followed by Mineski in the semis. That left them a final match against Vici Gaming, but here, they came undone, falling 2-0.
Still, by earning a final spot, Virtus.pro qualified from Group A as the runner-up behind Vici Gaming and alongside Team Liquid (who qualified from the Losers Round). Fnatic, Team Secret, and Evil Geniuses joined them from Group B.
Playoffs
The quarterfinals pitted the Losers Round winners against each group’s runner-up. That proved a triumph for both Group A representatives. Team Liquid defeated Team Secret, and Virtus.pro eliminated Evil Geniuses.
Top seeds Vici Gaming and Fnatic awaited in the semis. Vici Gaming proved their worth with a 2-1 win over Team Liquid to reach the final. In the other semi, Virtus.pro pulled off a shock with a solid 2-0 win over Group B winner Fnatic to reach the final.
In the final, Vici Gaming and Virtus.pro met once again in a duplicate of the Group A winner match. This time though, there was a different result. Virtus.pro took a 2-0 lead following the first two games before Vici Gaming pulled one game back. However, Virtus.pro sealed the win in the final game to claim a 3-1 victory.
Dota Pro Circuit standings
The win for Virtus.pro together with the performance of the four other teams that won points in this event means a change at the top of the Dota Pro Circuit standings:
| Pos | Team | Points |
| 1 | Virtus.pro | 4947 |
| 2 | Team Secret | 4260 |
| 3 | Team Liquid | 4185 |
| 4 | Vici Gaming | 2160 |
| 5 | Newbee | 1725 |
| 6 | Natus Vincere | 1109 |
| 7 | Mineski | 900 |
| 8 | Evil Geniuses | 885 |
| 9 | OG | 630 |
| 10 | Fnatic | 614 |
| 11 | LGD Gaming | 471 |
| 12 | TNC Pro Team | 270 |
| 13 | LGD Forever Young | 199 |
| 14 | compLexity Gaming | 135 |
| 15= | Immortals | 90 |
| 15= | Team Kinguin | 90 |
Only the top eight teams in the Dota Pro Circuit league will qualify for The International 2018 later this year. However, those standings will not remain the same for very long. In a few days, the next big Dota 2 tournament gets underway. This is a big one: the Bucharest Major.
Bucharest Major preview
This week, the Bucharest Major sees another $1,000,000 prize pool up for grabs alongside 1,500 DPC Points. There are 16 teams competing in what is PGL’s fourth Major of the Dota Pro Circuit series this year. Here’s some key information about the event.
- Series – PGL Major (Dota Pro Circuit)
- Organised by – PGL, ImbaTV
- Sponsors – Deutsche Telekom, HyperX
- Location – Bucharest, Romania
- Venue – Polyvalent Hall
- Teams Competing – 16
- Prize Pool – US $1,000,000
- Dota Pro Circuit Points – 1,500
- Starting – March 3
- Ends – March 11
- Format – Best-of-one, Swiss Format group stage. Top eight teams qualify for playoffs. Playoffs are single elimination, best-of-three matches, apart from the final which is best-of-five.
Competitors
Of the 16 teams competing in Bucharest, 10 earned places via direct invitation:
- Team Liquid
- Newbee
- Evil Geniuses
- Natus Vincere
- Mineski
- compLexity Gaming
- Vici Gaming
- LGD Forever Young
- pro
- Team Secret
Alongside these 10, six other teams earned places through a series of regional qualifiers:
- OG (European Qualifier)
- Vega Squadron (CIS Qualifier)
- Thunder (China Qualifier)
- TNC Pro Team (Southeast Asia Qualifier)
- OpTic Gaming (North American Qualifier)
- paiN Gaming (South American Qualifier)
Latest betting odds
As you would expect given this event’s PGL Major status, the punters’ interest is piqued. The good news is 10Bet has already priced up the Outright Winner market for the tournament.
[show-table name=cta-10bet]- Team Liquid – 33/10 favourites
- pro – 7/2
- Team Secret – 15/4
- Vici Gaming – 13/2
- Newbee – 27/4
- Evil Geniuses – 39/4
- VGJ Thunder – 21/2
- OG – 13/1
- Mineski – 17/1
- Natus Vincere – 27/1
- LGD Forever Young – 29/1
- compLexity Gaming, OpTic Gaming – 35/1
- TnC Pro Team – 37/1
- Vega Squadron 69/1
- PaiN Gaming – 89/1
It is unsurprising that the top five teams in the DPC standings are the five favorites above. But to have Team Liquid ranked as a better bet than Virtus.pro after Virtus’ excellent showing in Katowice is a big call. That said, my best bet would be Vici Gaming at 13/2. They will likely be hungry after not winning the big one in Poland.
Since: August 10, 2015
