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The Valorant Champions begins in less than a week in Istanbul, and the hype is real. Top teams from across the world will battle it out from August 31 to September 18 for a chance to win the most important title of the year and call themselves the best in the world.
Sixteen teams participating from the regions of North America, Europe, South America, and Asia are locked in for the event. However, a particular region is hungry and motivated to return to the top: NA.
North America looking to reclaim glory at Valorant Champions 2022
NA is arguably one of the most popular regions in Valorant. It has consistently been at the top since the start of the shooter.
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Teams like Sentinels dominated the early days until the end of 2021, when North America had a blip.
Thanks to Optic Gaming, North America returned to its throne at the 2022 Reykjavik Masters. The region is loaded with talent and is looking to prove that it still has what it takes to win international tournaments after falling short in Copenhagen.
This article will cover the most important players for the three North American teams competing at the event:
- Optic Gaming
- XSET
- 100 Thieves
1) Optic Gaming - Yay
When someone is nicknamed "El Diablo," fans know the enemy team is in for a world of hurt when facing them. Jacob "Yay" Whiteaker does just that against any opposition he faces regularly.
Since Yay joined Optic, then named Team Envy, he has been a force to be reckoned with domestically and internationally.
Yay has been widely regarded as the best player in the world since the 2021 Berlin Masters, and his effortless transition into the Chamber has brought wonders for the Green Wall.
Yay will once again be the focal point for Optic's success. Their previous showing at Champions was riddled with COVID-19 problems.
After having a much better 2022, where they won the Reykjavik Masters, Optic have their eyes on the prize, and Yay will be the playmaker for the North American giants on their road to a second international trophy.
2) XSET - Cryocells
Matthew "Cryocells" Panganiban's signing to XSET before the start of the 2022 season was met with tons of hype. It is safe to say that the hype was justified heading into the Valorant Champions.
Cryocells has been an absolute monster throughout the calendar year of Valorant esports. He has put in ridiculous numbers on his signature Agents, Jett and Chamber.
The pro has consistently been a top performer and fragger in North America. One of the biggest doubts surrounding Cryocells was his ability to show up at an international event; that is precisely what he did at the Copenhagen Masters.
Despite XSET's disappointing showing at the event, Cryocells and his partner in crime, Zachary "Zekken" Patrone, played their hearts out.
Cryocells, in particular, had the third highest ACS in the entire event. Any concerns regarding his ability to perform at a LAN event were thrown out of the window.
Heading into the Valorant Champions, Cryocells looks to be the superstar player XSET needs to have a much better showing at their second LAN event of the year.
3) 100 Thieves - Derrek
100 Thieves will make their grand return to the international stage in Istanbul for the 2022 Valorant Champions. The last time fans saw them in action on the international stage was at the 2021 Berlin Masters, where they delivered some extremely nail-biting games versus Acend and eventual winners Gambit Esports.
Since then, 100T has had tons of ups and downs. Multiple roster iterations occurred throughout the two NA Challenger tournaments. These swaps paid off in their second season, where they had a respectable 5th-6th place finish and were seen as one of the outside favorites heading into the Last Chance Qualifier.
100 Thieves rose above all expectations and made a heroic run in the NA LCQ to secure their spot at the 2022 Champions. Excellent teamwork and fantastic fragging from Peter "Asuna" Mazuryk were highlights of their showing in the LCQ. However, the man who stole the show was Derrek "Derrek" Ha.
Derrek was phenomenal in fragging and was right up there with Asuna in that department. He is the player to watch out for in the 100 Thieves roster purely for his clutch factor above all else.
His clutches were a significant reason why 100 Thieves made it to Istanbul.
Derrek looks primed and ready to prove his mettle against the best clutch players in the world, such as Andrey "Shao" Kiprsky and Aaron "Mindfreak" Leonhart. 100T will look to make an underdog story happen at the 2022 Valorant Champions, and fans can be sure that Derrek will be the man of the hour for them.
North America has sent three strong teams loaded with individual talents and highlight reel machines. Istanbul could be where the region returns to its international throne.
The Valorant Champions starts on August 31, and NA's road to redemption starts on September 1 as Optic Gaming takes on the ultimate underdogs from Indonesia, Boom Esports.
Note: This article is subjective and reflects the author's opinion.
