B8 claim first title with headtr1ck in CCT Series 2

npl and headtr1ck led their side through a 19-map campaign to win the online event.

B8 have secured victory in CCT Season 2 Europe Series 2 after a difficult run through the playoffs culminated in a 2-1 victory over BetBoom in the grand final (13-6 Ancient, 8-13 Anubis, 13-9 Mirage).

The tournament title is the team's first since they swapped Artem "⁠r1nkle⁠" Moroz for Daniil "⁠headtr1ck⁠" Valitov with Ninjas in Pyjamas and added Oleg "⁠baz⁠" Kulynych in place of Mykhailo "⁠OWNER⁠" Lymar.

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headtr1ck set on B8 move

Initial results didn't come B8's way following an early exit from YaLLa Compass Spring and a group stage finish in ESL Challenger League, despite headtr1ck individually performing well.

However, progress has shown since then through playoff runs in RES Regional Series and Elisa Invitational Spring, and now with a title victory in CCT S2 EU Series 2.

The Swiss group stage didn't prove particularly troublesome for Andrii "⁠npl⁠" Kukharskyi's troops as, outside of a 1-2 loss to Zero Tenacity in their opener, B8 surpassed their opposition with relative ease.

The Ukrainian team then beat MOUZ NXT and two teams near the top 30 of HLTV's world rankings, BLEED and KOI, in the bracket stage to make the grand final, where BetBoom came in as favorites after a playoff run at ESL Pro League.

Date	Matches
CCT Season 2 Europe Series 2
30/04/2024	B8 Finished 1:2 Zero Tenacity	Match
01/05/2024	V1dar Finished 0:2 B8	Match
04/05/2024	B8 Finished 2:0 GL Academy	Match
06/05/2024	B8 Finished 2:0 Enterprise	Match
09/05/2024	KOI Finished 0:2 B8	Match
11/05/2024	B8 Finished 2:0 BLEED	Match
12/05/2024	MOUZ NXT Finished 1:2 B8	Match

headtr1ck immediately made his presence known at the start of the series on BetBoom's Ancient pick, powering B8 to an 8-4 lead on the CT side before they wrapped up the map, 13-6.

The former NIP sniper ended the first map with a 20-8 K-D, 112.7 ADR, and 1.81 rating, but dropped off significantly on Anubis as BetBoom responded 8-13, to force a Mirage decider.

There, Alexey "⁠alex666⁠" Yarmoshchuk stepped up with a 25-13 K-D and 1.60 rating to haul B8 over the line, force-buy wars at the start of the map giving way to dominance in gun rounds from the Ukrainian team.

npl ended atop the board thanks to his consistency throughout the series and in the event, which he finished as the third-highest rated player (1.31 rating, 19 maps — only Patsi and r3salt finished above with only three maps played).