BLAST Pro Series returns stateside to the City of Angels with six teams vying to shake things up and take the grand prize of $125,000 and 10 BPS points.
We'll be seeing Team Liquid, NRG, FaZe, MiBR, Renegades, and Cloud 9 squaring off for a chance to make up ground in the BPS standings on Astralis, NiP, and Na'Vi who are all not attending.
Five of the six compete in North America for their online seasons, while FaZe remains a prominent name in the US despite their EU superteam roster. We can expect to see fans of all six teams in attendance, but how will each fare in the new BLAST format featuring best-of-three semi-finals? Let's break it down.
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The storylines
Team Liquid: The undisputed best team in the world right now is coming off of a huge haul at ESL One Cologne, having won the Grand Final, the Intel Grand Slam, and the respect of their doubters who were desperately clinging to the Choke-quid of yesteryear. Can they make like an aftershock and strike again? That's one quake that would be sure to please the home crowd.
Related: Can anyone stem Liquid at Blast Bro Series Los Angeles?
NRG: This is a NRG squad that is looking to turn the corner and be a threat to win events instead of consistently finding the 3/4 slot. LA is a good opportunity for the squad under the new tactical leadership of Peter "stanislaw" Jarguz to show what they're made of. Stanislaw is known for being one of the better fragging IGLs in NA, can he push NRG over the top?
FaZe: The EU superteam is still looking for some super results heading into Berlin and there's certainly high caliber teams here to try to find them against. There are rumors circling that another player at this very tournament might be seeking out challenges as a part of their roster in the near future, but for now some of the biggest names in CSGO are gearing up for a major run and this is the tune up they desperately need to go well.
MIBR: The Brazilian legends are plagued with both a recent roster change with the addition of Lucas "LUCAS1" Teles and the news that their ever present rock, Marcelo "coldzera" David, desires a transfer to seek out new challenges. Will the farewell tour be reminiscent of his world-number-one form as he attempts to impress potential suitors? Or will the opposition stop MiBR cold?
Renegades: One of the big mysteries in CSGO right now, the Aussies are red hot when they're hot, but their cold streaks are frigid. Some visa issues plagued them in the recent past, along with some really tough matchups in Cologne. Will they bounce back in LA, or sink back down under?
Cloud 9: A new core, a new start. C9 forfeited their HLTV ranking and any shred of what remained from the major winning roster aside from emergent star AWPer Timothy "autimatic" Ta. This is a hell of a first LAN for a debutant roster full of players that have been plying their trade against much less significant opposition in the recent past. Can they scrape out a map win in LA? Or will they leave the city like so many others with broken dreams of instant stardom?
Where's Waldo's money?
Here's Waldo's Blast Pro Series Los Angeles predictions and you can bet on all the matches at Luckbox.
MIBR (HLTV ranking 13) vs. Renegades (16)
Map: Mirage
Score Prediction: RNG: 16 - MiBR: 11
NRG (5) vs. FaZe (6)
Map: Nuke
Score Prediction: NRG: 19 - FaZe: 16
Team Liquid (1) vs. Cloud 9 (301)
Map: Inferno
Score Prediction: Liquid: 16 - C9: 5
FaZe (6) vs. Renegades (16)
Map: Train
Score Prediction: FaZe: 16 - RNG: 10
Team Liquid (1) vs. NRG (5)
Map: Overpass
Score Prediction: Liquid: 16 - NRG: 13
MiBR (13) vs. Cloud 9 (301)
Map: Mirage
Score Prediction: MiBR: 16 - C9: 7
NRG (5) vs. Renegades (16)
Map: Dust II
Score Prediction: RNG: 16 - NRG: 14
FaZe (6) vs. Cloud 9 (301)
Map: Mirage
Score Prediction: FaZe: 16 - C9: 9
Team Liquid (1) vs. MiBR (13)
Map: Mirage
Score Prediction: Liquid: 16 - MiBR: 7
Renegades (16) vs. Cloud 9 (301)
Map: Inferno
Score Prediction: RNG: 16 - C9: 6
Team Liquid (1) vs. FaZe (6)
Map: Nuke
Score Prediction: FaZe: 16 - Liquid: 13
NRG (5) vs. MiBR (13)
Map: Inferno
Score Prediction: NRG: 16 - MiBR: 11
FaZe (6) vs. MiBR (13)
Map: Inferno
Score Prediction: FaZe: 16 - MiBR: 13
Team Liquid (1) vs. Renegades (16)
Map: Vertigo
Score Prediction: Liquid: 16 - RNG: 9
NRG (5) vs. Cloud 9 (301)
Map: Nuke
Score Prediction: NRG: 16 - C9: 6
Related: Blast Pro Series Los Angeles schedule
Blast Pro Series LA standings predictions
- FaZe: 4-1 (won head to head against TL)
- Team Liquid: 4-1
- Renegades: 3-2 (won head to head against NRG)
- NRG: 3-2
- MiBR: 1-4
- Cloud 9: 0-5
Predicted semi-finals
FaZe vs. NRG (1-2 NRG)
Team Liquid vs. Renegades (2-0 Team Liquid)
Blast Pro LA final prediction
Team Liquid vs. NRG (2-1 Team Liquid)
Pictures: BLAST Pro Series
