American Showdown qual preview: "Nouns favourites for Ace Masters"
With BLAST Fall Showdowns soon to be upon us, the final qualifier for the American Showdown, Ace Masters, is right around the corner.
Coldzera’s team Fake Natty have already qualified alongside The Mongolz, while FURIA and Imperial were invited recently. They join the likes of Team Liquid, Evil Geniuses, and Complexity, who all dropped down to the Showdown following their failure to qualify for Fall Groups.
So, with Ace Masters set to be played, who will be in attendance and who is most likely to claim that coveted final spot?
Ace Masters
With NA finally becoming home to a host of competitive teams once more, there are a number of strong teams at the event. Nouns, Mythic, Party Astronauts, Bad News Bears, Wildcard, Forsaken, Zomblers, and Reason Gaming will be the eight teams battling it out as they seek a chance to qualify for Fall Final in the Royal Arena.
fl0m's Mythic squadron will need to go above and beyond to earn their place at the American Showdown. Photo: Todd GutierrezWith some of these teams being relatively unknown quantities, we spoke to tier two marvel GrimyRannarr to get his opinion on the favourite to qualify, as well as underdogs who could rain on their parade.
Who are the favourites to win Ace Masters?
Even though Nouns have been struggling with a five that works for them, they have to be the favourites. After their bootcamp in Europe which they obtained by winning the cash cup circuit. They will be looking to come into this qualify and secure themselves in the second international tournament in recent history.
Who are the underdogs with the best chance?
With their new coach in horvy, Wildcard have only been on the rise, however, many would still say this team is unproven. After steady results in ECL and qualifying for the Thunderpick World Championships beating M80 and Nouns, these guys are looking to see if they can replicate that success, and secure themselves as a household name within the region.
Given Wildcard’s recent successes though, I would instead go for Bad News Bears.Coming from the Open Qualifier, the recently returned org could shake up NA CS. Individuals who have garnered incredible success internationally and regionally have been supplemented by one of the regions greatest ever IGLS, steel, who has returned from VALORANT. The NA legend will be looking to breathe new life into the likes of Jonji to see if they can bring success back to one of NA’s most beloved teams.
With Nouns in Group A, they should be secured in their advancement, but with both of GrimyRannarr’s underdog picks finding themselves in Group B alongside a strong Forsaken team, one might have to eliminate the other to stand a chance.
You can watch all the action here: https://www.twitch.tv/blastpremier