Quest Esport have won the MENA qualifiers for Riyadh Masters 2023 to join the fray in the Saudi Arabia capital next month and fight for a shot at the title and a share of the generous $15,000,000 prize pool.
Quest Esports and Nigma Galaxy were the only two teams invited to the only regional qualifier for Riyadh Masters 2023. The closed qualifier leg featured a total of four participants fighting in a double elimination bracket for one spot in the play-in stage of Riyadh Masters. The biggest surprise of this qualifier competition was Team Secret ME, a middle east roster put together by Team Secret’s captain, Clement "Puppey" Ivanov, who took the open brackets road to reach the finals day.
However, the competition got tight right from the get go, with Team Secret ME and Nigma Galaxy going head to head in the opening series. It was Nigma who came on top with a quick 2-0, but their celebration was cut short by Quest, who took them down in the next series. Nigma Galaxy and Secret ME fought once again against each other in the lower bracket final, this time around with Secret taking revenge and bouncing back to the grand finals where Quest were waiting.
The best-of-five grand final took less than two hours, as Quest were in full control from the drafting stage to game plan execution. They took a flawless 3-0 win to secure themselves a seeding spot in the play-in stage.
Quest Esports will be joined in the play-ins by other 11 teams that will get a spot based on the ESL Pro Tour (EPT) ranking.
Riyadh Masters 2023 will feature a total of 20 teams. Eight will be starting in the group stage after securing a spot via DreamLeague Season 19 and Season 20, which is getting close to the finish line, with the playoffs stage being due on Sunday, June 25, when the final seeding for Riyadh will be done as well. So far, Gaimin Gladiators, Tundra Esports, PSG.LGD, Evil Geniuses, Talon Esports, Team Spirit and Shopify Rebellion locked themselves in for the group stage, the final spot being disputed between BetBoom Team and beastcoast.
beastcoast didn’t make it to the playoffs stage of the ongoing DreamLeague Season 20. They are in contention for a group stage seed for Riyahd Masters courtesy of their overall placement in both seasons, while BetBoom could earn their spot only if they reach the grand finals of the current season.
headline picture courtesy of Quest Esports via Twitter
