Pacific kings Paper Rex have finally won a global event on their 11th attempt, and a year-and-a-half on from their Champs final heartbreak. They beat EMEA Stage 1 winners Fnatic in a 3-1 map score to win Masters Toronto.
PRX beat Fnatic in the Masters Toronto final
Fnatic were slim favourites on the day. They’d performed better in their home region, winning EMEA Stage 1 with convincing victories over Team Heretics, previously thought of as one of the in-form teams in the whole of VCT prior to their manhandling by Fnatic.
Paper Rex had had a much rockier road to Toronto, starting off disastrously with three straight defeats in Stage 1 before reaching playoffs by the skin of their teeth. A five-game streak culminated in a third-place finish, enough to get them to Toronto.
While Paper Rex had been in good form at the tournament itself, reaching the grand final via the upper bracket, beating the likes of G2 and Sentinels, the global-winning experience of Fnatic’s core of Boaster, Alfajer, and Chronicle meant that they were marginally tipped to take the series.
PRX started the final perfectly, going into halftime 8-4 up on their Sunset. Fnatic fought back on their attack side, winning six of the next seven rounds to find a 10-9 lead, but Paper Rex retook control to complete a 13-11 win.
With the third map being Pearl, on which Fnatic were notoriously ill-prepared, the Icebox up second was crucial for Fnatic to win. In a decisive display, Fnatic found themselves 12-7 up, right in line to level the series and keep their title hopes alive.
But then Paper Rex won a ridiculous five consecutive rounds to push into overtime. There, constant back-and-forths saw the map drag on, though Fnatic were eventually able to close it 17-15.
Though a stomp was expected on Pearl, Fnatic’s solid performance saw them come close to an unlikely victory, 10-8 up at one stage. However, Paper Rex kept their heads to win the final five rounds back-to-back to complete the map and regain their series lead.
Then the drama fully unfolded on Lotus. At 11-7, it appeared that PRX were poised to end the series and finally become global winners. Fnatic, namely Alfajer and Chronicle, had other ideas, with the pair putting in inspired performances that saw Fnatic claw back to 12-11 and within one round of levelling the series once again.
Then, finally in a global final, Paper Rex showed grit. Avoiding capitulation, the Pacific favourites found another three rounds, the first forcing overtime and the latter two to complete their victory. Finally, they became international champions.
11th try lucky
The road to global silverware was long for Paper Rex. Widely thought of as the best team to have never tasted global success, the side had had plenty of chances in the past.
Their unprecedented run of attending nine global events back-to-back but failing to win any would’ve been funny if it wasn’t so tragic.
They had come extremely close. In Copenhagen, in 2022, the side reached the grand final but succumbed to a slim 3-2 defeat. More than a year later, they reached a final again — Champions Los Angeles. There, it was Evil Geniuses who got the best of them to win 3-1.
They’re a side with one of the largest fanbases in VALORANT, thanks not only to their close brushes with global success, but largely in part due to the popularity of their core that has remained together for so many years through the ups and downs. Those fans had stuck with them throughout, and Paper Rex owed it to them to finally reward the loyalty with a global title.
f0rsakeN MVP
Paper Rex’s IGL, and the world’s best flex player, Jason “f0rsakeN” Susanto was crowned tournament MVP following the closing of the series.
The Indonesian player, who became the first from his country to win a global VCT event, was pivotal in the title-winning series. He had the most kills on his team (81) across the four maps, as well as the highest ACS (223) and ADR (149).
He also led the team mentally throughout the tournament, playing up to the crowd and hyping up his teammates in a way he’s not been seen to before. He exuded confidence in Toronto, and it’s no wonder that his side mirrored that on the server.
Teammates Jinggg, d4v41, and PatMen were also in inspired form through the tournament, and any of them could’ve easily been crowned MVP on the day. Were it not for ending up on the losing side, then Fnatic’s Alfajer also had a great shout — he was arguably the best performer in-game through the grand final itself.
