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| After six days of intense battles across 17 regions, the Asia-Pacific Predator League Finals come to a close |
The finals were split into four parts this year, two for Dota 2 and two for PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS (PUBG). The four winning teams will share a USD 240,000 bonus pool as well as the prized Predator shields.
Highlights from Dota 2
2020/21 Predator League Team Veteran, a Myanmarese team, defeated Bangladesh's The Council in the lower bracket final of Dota 2 Asia. They took advantage of The Council's connection issues, as their midlaner L3N was disconnected for the match's duration. This forced J1N to switch between Visage and Chen, two mechanically-focused heroes.
Team Veteran's victory advanced them to the grand final, where they faced IMG, a Mongolian team. Given their unbeaten record and the leadership of Ravdan "Hustla" Narmandakh, IMG was considered favorites. On the other hand, Team Veteran held their ground, thanks to Kalay99's Pangolier play in game one and a surprise wombo combo in game three's 29th minute.
TNC Predator, on the other hand, defeated BOOM Esports from Indonesia in the Predator League 2020/21 Dota 2 APAC lower bracket final. TNC Predator advanced to the grand final, facing fellow members Neon Esports, who had thrashed them in a previous match.
TNC outclassed and outplayed Neon in their grudge match, sweeping them in several team fights. Shot calling and drafting prowess of Marvin "Boomy" Rushton determined the series.
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Highlights from PUBG
In the PUBG Asia sub-tournament, three South Korean players competed, but it was DWG-KIA who emerged victorious thanks to their second-place finishes in rounds 11 and 12 as well as GPS Ghibli's defeat. The win was sealed by DWG-strategic KIA's decision to bombard GPS Ghibli after the parachute drop in round 11 and Ghibli's major vehicular disaster in round 12.
After 12 rounds in Erangel and Miramar, DGW-KIA won 142 points. Their efforts resulted in a total of USD 37,500. The GPS Ghibli's results earned them 122 points and a second-place score, earning them USD 15,000 in prize money. Danawa E-sports, in third place, rallied for a chicken dinner win in round 12, earning them USD 7,500.
Meanwhile, in the PUBG APAC sub-tournament, Eagle 365 from Indonesia dominated the competition, taking first place with a 125-point tally. They also took home USD 37,500 in addition to the Predator League cup.
Cerberus and “No.1” of Vietnam took the second and third seed slots, respectively.
Cerberus took advantage of ArkAngel's unexpected success by winning the chicken dinner in round 10 and finishing fourth in round 12, earning them a total of 104 points. They came in second place and earned a prize of USD 15,000 for their efforts.
However, the biggest plot came from “No. 1,” who miraculously rose from eighth seed to third place after winning a chicken dinner in round 11 and finishing second in round 12. They earned 97 points, a third-place finish, and USD 7,500 for their outstanding results.
Intel's most valuable player
Aside from the team awards, Neon Esports' Erin Jasper "Yopaj" Ferrer and Eagle 365's Risky "Chibiritt" Junaidi Putra were named Intel MVPs (most valuable players) for their outstanding performances.
Following this fruitful run, it was also revealed that the APAC Predator League Grand Finals will be held in Japan in 2022.