Cloud9 vs Imperial at CS:GO IEM Rio Major 2022 - Predictions, head-to-head, livestream details, and more

After an exhilarating start to CS:GO's ongoing IEM Rio Major 2022, all 16 teams in the tournament's Challengers Stage have proceeded to the second matchday. The first day of the tournament witnessed all the teams competing against each other for the first two rounds of the tournament.

On Day 2 of IEM Rio Major 2022, teams will proceed to Round 3. Teams that lost the first two rounds of the Challengers Stage will attempt to avoid elimination, while the remaining twelve CS:GO teams will fight to be the first ones to claim the eight Legends Stage slots.

The European giants, Cloud9, will face one of Brazil’s most popular CS:GO teams, Imperial Esports, in a best-of-three elimination matchup on Day 2. Round 3 of the tournament will witness both sides engaging in fierce combat as they fight for survival.

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Cloud9 vs Imperial in CS:GO - Who will win this Round 3 matchup of IEM Rio Major 2022 Challengers Stage?

Cloud9 and Imperial are among the four CS:GO teams at the IEM Rio Major to head into Round 3 with a 0-2 record. Both teams had a disheartening start to the tournament as they lost their first two matches of the Challengers Stage.

In this elimination tie, these two promising contenders will battle it out in their attempts to avoid elimination.

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Predictions

Cloud9 has a talented roster that hasn't made any changes since they arrived at the organization. While C9 was expected to be one of Europe's most promising teams at the tournament, their performances so far in the tournament left them with the short end of the stick.

Cloud9 had promising performances in both their matches so far, falling short of victory by only a small margin on both occasions. Despite being pushed to an elimination matchup, Cloud9 has the innate talent and experience to learn from their mistakes and overcome their problems.

In comparison to Cloud9, Imperial had a worse start to the tournament. The team consists of some of Brazil's most respected players like Fallen and Fer, who have massively contributed to shaping the Brazilian CS:GO scene over the years. However, Imperial's Brazilian roster could not find the key to victory in either of their matches so far, despite playing in front of their home crowd.

Fans can anticipate the Round 3 matchup between Cloud9 and Imperial to be a tense affair, with one of these two prodigious teams packing their bags after the matchup. Considering their current form and recent performances in CS:GO's IEM Rio Major, Cloud9 is expected to pull through with a victory.

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Head-to-head

Cloud9's only encounter against Imperial Esports in 2022 was during CS:GO's PGL Antwerp Major 2022, where both sides engaged in a best-of-three combat to decide their Round 4 elimination tie during the Legends Stage. Imperial won the match with a 2-1 scoreline.

The last time Imperial faced Cloud9, they lost to the European roster on Vertigo (9-16) and defeated them on Mirage (16-3) and Overpass (25-23), with the latter stretching into a 48-round entertainer.

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Recent results

Cloud9 was matched against Fnatic in their opening match of the tournament. A slow start to the match put Cloud9 at a disadvantage. However, they found their rhythm in the second half, taking the match to overtime.

C9 were eventually overthrown by Fnatic in overtime (17-19), sending them to meet the Australian side, Grayhound Gaming, in Round 2. The second-round matchup ended with Cloud9 meeting a similar fate as Grayhound defeated the Europeans in overtime with a 17-19 scoreline.

Imperial were matched against European contenders, Team Vitality, in their first-round matchup. The Brazilian side were off to a disappointing start, with the first half ending with a 13-2 scoreline. They attempted a comeback later on. However, ZywOo managed to seal Imperial's fate with a phenomenal clutch in round 23, ending the match with a 16-9 victory for Vitality.

In Round 2, Imperial were pitted against a fellow South American roster, 9z Team. Similar to their opening matchup, the former was down 13-2 by the end of the first half. A promising performance in the second half managed to revive the hopes of their Brazilian fanbase for a short while. However, Imperial ultimately succumbed to 9z by a 11-16 scoreline to proceed to their Round 3 elimination tie.

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Potential lineups

Cloud9

• Vladislav "nafany" Gorshkov (IGL)
• Dmitriy "sh1ro" Sokolov
• Timofey "interz" Yakushin
• Sergey "Ax1Le" Rykhtorov
• Abai "HObbit" Hasenov
• Konstantin "groove" Pikiner (Coach)

Imperial

• Gabriel "FalleN" Toledo (IGL)
• Fernando "fer" Alvarenga
• Ricardo "boltz" Prass
• Vinicius "VINI" Figueiredo
• Marcelo "chelo" Cespedes
• Lincoln "fnx" Lau (Coach)

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When and where to watch

Fans of CS:GO can watch the 2022 Rio Major action live on ESL CS:GO's official Twitch channel. With two matches running simultaneously, viewers will have to tune into the A-stream to watch Cloud9 vs Imperial today.

Cloud9 will face Imperial on November 1, 2022, at 1 pm PDT / 10 pm CET / November 2, 2022 at 1:30 am IST on Day 2 of the IEM Rio Major 2022 Challengers Stage. Viewers can also enjoy GamerLegion vs Bad News Eagles, which will happen simultaneously on Stream B.