ENCE secure penultimate Paris Major spot; Cloud9 go to last-chance qualifier

14-4-2023 16:20

Guy "⁠NertZ⁠" Iluz delivered another massive performance to earn his first Major appearance.

ENCE have secured the final BLAST.tv Paris Major spot on offer in the Europe RMR B tournament with a hard-earned 2-0 win over Cloud9 (Ancient 19-16, Vertigo 16-12).

The Russian side falls to the last-chance qualifier, joining FaZe, Aurora, B8, Falcons, and BIG in the fight for just one last spot at the Major. Cloud9 will play B8 in the opening round of the bracket at 17:15 .

Dycha could not hold back tears following ENCE's qualification for Paris

ENCE completed a comeback from a 0-2 start to the tournament. Marco "⁠Snappi⁠" Pfeiffer's squad fell to Monte and FORZE in the best-of-one matches before they headed into the series, where they beat iNation, 500, and Vladislav "⁠nafany⁠" Gorshkov's team in three consecutive 2-0 matches to qualify for Paris.

Following the qualification, you could see how much it meant to some of the members of the European squad. Paweł "⁠dycha⁠" Dycha and NertZ were visibly emotional and had their faces in their hands moments after the match.

"I don't think words can describe my feelings. I want to cry, I'm so happy for myself, for my team," NertZ said in an interview after the match.

The Israeli joined ENCE in February as a replacement for Valdemar "⁠valde⁠" Bjørn Vangså, and in that short time with the team, he has proven to be a crucial signing as he has consistently put up big performances.

NertZ averaged a staggering 1.40 rating across eight maps played at the Europe RMR, far and away outperforming the rest of his team to help them secure the Paris Major spot and guarantee a first-ever Major appearance for himself in the process.

The list of teams who have qualified for the BLAST.tv Paris Major looks as follows:

Legends stage