Outsiders end Rare Atom's run in Valencia

The majority Russian side are the first team to reach the grand final of ESL Challenger Valencia.

ESL Challenger Valencia's first semi-final matchup went the way of Outsiders, who put up a solid display in a hard-fought victory against Rare Atom at the end of two maps. The Dzhami "⁠Jame⁠" Ali-led squad now await the winner of the second semi-final between Movistar Riders and Sprout to determine their grand final opponent.

Meanwhile, Rare Atom bows out in 3-4th place at ESL Challenger Valencia, a result they can be happy with considering they started the event ranked #50 in the world. They were already facing elimination after their first game against MIBR, yet the Asian side were able to bounce back and take their next two best-of-threes, including a revenge match against Marcelo "⁠chelo⁠" Cespedes's men, to reach the penultimate round of the tournament.

Both Rare Atom and Outsiders went three-for-three to begin the series, as the Asians struck first before Jame and company quickly recovered as soon as they got their rifles. After the early exchange, Outsiders were able to create a significant gap to Rare Atom by playing excellent defense on both bomb sites, garnering an impressive 10-5 score by halftime with Petr "⁠fame⁠" Bolyshev's 18 kills leading the way for his team.

Rare Atom experienced a resurgence in the second half, narrowing their deficit to one by establishing solid defense as a group, accompanied by remarkable fragging courtesy of Jingxiang "⁠Mercury⁠" Wang and Andrew "⁠kaze⁠" Khong, with the latter posting an ace in the 18th. The comeback wasn't meant to be, however, as Outsiders closed out the map winning five out of the last six, claiming the 16-12 victory and 1-0 series advantage.

Vertigo opened with a strong CT side from Rare Atom, who gained a swift 5-0 lead with Mercury racking up 13 kills without a single death in that span of time. That advantage eventually grew to 8-1, before Outsiders started to string rounds together, scoring three in a row. Despite the majority Russian team's best efforts, Rare Atom's defense was far superior to the offense showcased by Jame's crew, as the Asians boasted an 11-4 lead heading into the break.

Coming out of halftime, Outsiders immediately took eight of the first nine to start the second period, finding a good amount of success on their mid and A ramp holds which led to Rare Atom's sizeable lead being completely erased as the game stood at 12 apiece after 24 rounds. The continuous losses suffered by the Asian side was extremely harmful for the team's economy, usually entering rounds on a half-buy or full-eco against Outsiders' rifles. In the end, Outsiders were the team to emerge victorious on Vertigo, completing the comeback in a tightly-contested 16-14 victory.