The International 2023 favorites, Gaimin Gladiators are in the lower brackets. Twice in TI history teams were able to seize the Aegis from this position.
No other event rivals The International. Brimming with prime-cut games between teams of the highest caliber, gut-wrenching action, and emotional storylines, TI has it all.
Gaimin Gladiators have come into The International 2023 as the utter favourites. Their 2022-23 Season run has been nothing less than spectacular. Until Riyadh Masters, they had won all five premier Dota 2 tournaments of the 2022-2023 season.
Gaimin Gladiators came second in Group C of TI12 behind LGD and were seeded against a team that had already overpowered them before —Talon Esports. In this series, Talon overpowered Gaimin Gladiators 2:1 and sent them packing to the lower brackets.
- Read Talon Esports secure an upper bracket slot at TI12; banish Gaimin Gladiators to the lower bracket
Now, The International 2023 favourites will need to travel the lower Road to the International until the end of the playoffs if they hope to seize the Aegis of Champions.
But can they do it?
The International Champions who came from lower brackets
Favorites; Curse or Blessing?
In 2013 Alliance claimed the Aegis after a thrilling 3:2 victory over Na’Vi in an epic 5-game series that is still hailed today by many as one of the best moments in Dota 2 history and gave these teams the "El Clásico" moniker. The all-Swedish roster was one of the most dominant teams of that year, earning first place in over ten major tournaments including G1-League, Star Series V, VI, and DreamHack Summer 2013.
However, typically it isn't so easy for the favourites to become the champions at The International. The pressure is at the highest level and every single team is gunning for you.
At TI5 Team Secret was the utter favorite and ended with a disappointing 7-8th place finish. Team Liquid, along with OG and Newbee, were one of the top contenders for TI6. But just like the other two, Liquid crashed and burned with a 7-8th position finish.
Team Liquid headed into TI7 as one of the top contenders for the Aegis after they made one final change in January 2017 to their roster, bringing on board Maroun 'GH' Merhej to replace Sam 'BuLba' Sosale.
The change was exactly what the lineup needed to become a championship team, turning everything they touched into gold. Team Liquid quickly became one of the top household names in Dota 2. Claiming title after title.
They took first in their group to seed into the upper brackets but were dropped immediately by Invictus Gaming.
After dropping to the lower bracket and going through a number of tough series, Team Liquid brought on their best game in the grand finals against Newbee, whom they beat 3-0 to take the title of The International 2017.
It was the first time in the history of The International that a team came back from the second round of the lower bracket and won the whole thing. Before this, all the teams that have won have been a part of the upper bracket finals. This was also the first time that a team had won with a clean sweep, in not just a TI grand final, but a Valve grand final.
The power of underdogs
Being an underdog often takes the pressure off and certainly keeps from anyone putting a target on your back. This definitely gives the team an advantage. Don't believe it? Just look at OG —twice! In both 2018 and 2019 and Wings Gaming in 2016.
In 2021 Team Spirit was the underdogs.
They pulled off the unthinkable when they took down the Chinese juggernaut, PSG.LGD, in the grand finals of The International 10. Coming into the final day against all odds, these underdogs defeated Team Secret 2-1 in the lower bracket finals and then went on to defeat the tournament favorites 3-2 in the grand finals.
This was a team that got to TI10 through qualifiers, barely made the upper bracket, dropped to the lower bracket on the first day of the playoffs and after that, just didn’t look back.
They were about 300 Dota Pro Circuit short of securing a spot at TI10 after they missed the first Major of the year which meant it was qualifiers for them.
In the EEU qualifiers, Team Empire gave them a scare by taking a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five series but in the end, Team Spirit took the series 3-2 and secured a spot at TI10.
Once at TI10, things didn't start out exactly the best for them. Despite getting an upgraded room after going public about the practice and group stage accommodations, the team went 0:4 on the first day and took another 0:2 loss on the second.
And then something clicked. They were able to rise above and finish out strong enough to secure a spot in the upper brackets for the playoffs —which didn't last long. They were immediately knocked down to the lower brackets by Invictus Gaming in a 2:1 loss.
There they swept through Fnatic, the two-time champions OG, bested Virtus.pro 2:1 and exacted revenge on iG with a clean 2:0 sweep before outplaying Team Secret for a place in the grand finals.
All Team Spirit kept saying was they were just there to have fun.
Can Gaimin Gladiators do the same?
So we know that twice before teams bounced back from the lower bracket round 2 to take the Aegis. We know that it has happened before for both the underdogs and to favorites.
There is no rest of the wicked. No doubt this team is the utter favorites going into The International and they have been flexing their dominance all season long. Over and over again this team has proven that they can outplay, out-draft, and outmaneuver any drafts and teams before them. So far.
Before the Bali Major, Tundra Esports carry, Oliver “Skiter” Lepko told GosuGamers
I have a lot of respect for Gaimin Gladiators. They have managed to win four tier 1 tournaments in a short span of time. Quinn “Quinn” Callahan is a very dedicated and hardworking person. I think something clicked with the addition of Quinn to the roster and they have been in the honeymoon phase ever since the change. THEY NEED TO BE STOPPED!!!
Gaimin Gladiators completed their roster by adding NA mid-lanner Quinn "Quinn" Callahan to their ranks, marking the first time he would compete for the Western European region. Quinn replaced Miroslav "BOOM" Bičan, who left the team immediately after they were eliminated at The International 2022 and joined Team Secret.
GG quickly moved to the top of conversations in the Dota 2 landscape. Not even a major, game-changing patch could overpower this team.
They continue to show no weakness —other than to Talon perhaps.
Talon Esports secured an upper bracket slot at TI12, banishing Gaimin Gladiators to the lower bracket with a 2:1 victory over the TI favorites. It isn't the first time Talon overpowered Gaimin Gladiators in recent memory. Three months ago Talon Esports ended Gaimin Gladiators' reign of terror to secure the top 3 at the Riyadh Masters. In DreamLeague Season 20 GG dropped a game also to Talon in their journey to the championship title.
Would it be too far of a stretch to think that Gaimin Gladiators have what it takes to claim the Aegis, as long as Talon doesn't stand in their way?
Be sure to check out Gaimin Gladiators in The International 2023 lower bracket elimination series this weekend.
The International 2023 Main Event format
Main Event - October 20 - October 22 (Playoffs Weekend) & October 27 - October 29 (Finals Weekend), 2023
- Sixteen teams play in a double-elimination bracket
- Eight teams begin in the Upper Bracket, and eight in the Lower Bracket
- Grand Final is Bo5, all other series are Bo3
The International 2023 Broadcasts
The event will be officially streamed in five different languages - English, Chinese, Russian, Spanish, and Portuguese. In addition, there will be other streams with various languages available for fans across the globe.
English:
Twitch: Main Channel | Stream #2 | Stream #3 | Stream #4 | Stream #5
Russian:
Twitch: Main Channel | Stream #2 | Stream #3 | Stream #4 | Stream #5
Chinese:
Twitch: Main Channel | Stream #2 | Stream #3 | Stream #4 | Stream #5
Spanish Streams:
Twitch: Main Channel | Stream #2 | Stream #3 | Stream #4 | Stream #5
Portuguese Streams:
Twitch: Main Channel | Stream #2 | Stream #3 | Stream #4 | Stream #5
