Gaimin Gladiators are the Riyadh Masters 2024 Champions!

After three weeks of spectacular Dota 2, the Riyadh Masters 2024 has concluded. Gaimin Gladiators won arguably the biggest tournament of the year, taking home a whopping $1,500,000. Gaimin Gladiators beat Team Liquid 3-0 to etch their name in history at the first-ever Esports World Cup.

GG's Run at Riyadh Masters 2024

From left to right: Ace, Dyrachyo, Quinn, Tofu, Seleri (Credit: Esports World Cup)

Gaimin Gladiators were one of the favorites coming into this tournament, though their performance had declined in 2024. Even during their godlike run last year, they choked in the Riyadh Masters. But this year, they turned the script around and took their rightful place as champions.

The Gladiators had a shaky start in the Group Stage, losing 2-0 to Heroic. But they quickly adapted to the meta and started grabbing wins. After securing third place in their group, GG moved to the Upper Bracket in the playoffs.

Coming into the Playoffs, the Gladiators started reaching their peak again. Their fast-paced gameplay, paired with their aura item builds, helped them win all their games before 40 minutes, until the Grand Finals. The only squad to steal a game from GG's perfect Upper Bracket run was Team Falcons.

GG faced Team Liquid in the Upper Bracket Finals, who was supposed to be the only team to stop GG at this point. But with a quick 2-0, GG dropped Liquid into the Lower Bracket and moved on to the Grand Finals.

Grand Finals: GG vs Liquid...AGAIN!

Is GG Liquid's Kryptonite, or is it the Grand Finals? (Credit: Esports World Cup)

These two teams have created a history of facing each others at the Grand Finals. The Riyadh Masters 2024 Grand Finals was their sixth iteration.

Game 1

Gaimin Gladiators were aggressive from the start to the end of the game. With a Chen, Beastmaster, and Broodmother drafted for GG, they had a small army of creeps constantly pushing and pressuring towers. This closed the map for Liquid and allowed GG to choose their targets. At 24 minutes, GG took Game 1 with an 18-4 kill lead.

Game 2

In Game 2, Liquid returned the aggression they suffered in Game 1. They pressured both top and bottom lanes early in the game and took a kill lead. But Quinn "Quinn" Callahan dominated the midlane on his Shadow Fiend by out-leveling and killing Michał "Nisha" Jankowski twice. This allowed him to help his team by disrupting Liquid's ganks.

While Liquid failed to take advantage of their lead, Anton "dyrachyo" Shkredov free-farmed on his Alchemist and became unstoppable. Even though Michael "miCKe" Vu picked up a Divine Rapier at 40 minutes, it failed to have impact on Liquid's chances in Game 2.

Moments before Gaimin Gladiators were crowned Champions (Credit: Esports World Cup)

Game 3

The final game of the Grand Finals ended much in the same fashion as Game 1. Liquid's draft had a lot of initiation between Beastmaster, Clockwerk, and Tiny. However, it was Quinn again that ultimately helped GG gain control of the game. He confidently rushed into the enemy knowing his team would back him up.

Gaimin Gladiators were knocking on Liquid's door 17 minutes into the game. Liquid tried to stall the game with pickoffs. But a dominating team fight by the Gladiators made them call 'gg' at 30 minutes.

Riyadh Masters 2024 Concludes

Gaimin Gladiators have now won 6 Grand Finals against Team Liquid. Although Liquid always seems to be in their top form, GG just seems to have that extra edge in all their face-offs. Quinn's dominant performance in the midlane during the tournament earned him the MVP title along with a $50,000 prize. With securing their win at Riyadh Masters 2024, the Gladiators have made a comeback from their slump. Will they be able to keep up this pace for the rest of the year?

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Featured Image: Esports World Cup