In LEC 2022 Spring, G2 Esports managed to go against all odds and win the league to represent Europe at MSI 2022. After a chaotic 2021 and huge changes to the roster, no one expected them to get back this fast, especially following their mediocre regular season performance. Let’s have a look at this brand new G2.
The iconic CEO ocelote is once again proved right, after being criticized for his decisions all 2021 long. Getting Rekkles, kicking out Rekkles, bringing in an inexperienced bot lane duo… G2 emerged through all that drama. You can watch our tribute for the team below, and then we can move on to their story.
G2 Esports rebuilt
After ruling the LEC for two years straight, G2 had a disappointing year: even after bringing in the best ADC in the West, Rekkles, the team failed to win a single championship and couldn’t even make it to Worlds 2021. Thus, a rebuilding phase was due. Jankos and Caps were picked as the new “center of attention” in G2 roster, and the rest of the players were picked according to that idea.
Rumors said that Jankos and Caps didn’t want to work with Wunder, Rekkles or Mikyx, claiming that they don’t believe they can find success with those players anymore. We don’t know if those rumors are true or not, but G2 Esports parted ways with these players and some people from the coaching staff, including GrabbZ.
Widely appreciated for his performance in a team that would be relegated if relegation was still a thing, Broken Blade joined as the new top laner, as an ADC with potential, Flakked joined the team and Targamas filled the last spot, a support player with the ability to lead his team, make confident plays and the potential to be the new Mikyx.
With Dylan Falco becoming the new head coach of the team, G2 Esports’ 2022 roster was complete. This was an impressive roster, but considering Jankos and caPs’ (after his nick change) recent performances, G2 couldn’t create much hype, and was widely regarded as a “transition” and if the changes worked, success would come during summer or 2023.
12-0 series from the lower bracket
However, G2 Esports’ regular season run didn’t start poorly. They were able to put up a fight against some of the best teams in the league such as Fnatic, Team Vitality or Rogue. They weren’t dominating or anything and their performance in the Rift was at best mediocre, but they were getting results and that was the important part. G2 secured a top four finish with their performance, considered behind Fnatic and Rogue in the championship race.
After a 3-1 loss against Fnatic, the odds of G2 being the champions dropped even lower. The series was a disappointment for the team, it looked like Fnatic could win it even if it was a best of ten or fifteen games instead of best of five. To survive, G2 needed to change things, but there weren't too many people who had the faith in them to make those changes.
G2 was there to prove us wrong a second time this year. Following a convincing 3-0 defeat against Vitality, their run started. G2 took down Misfits the following day, making it a 6-0 series after the loss against Fnatic. On the final weekend, their first opponent was Fnatic, widely regarded as the strongest team in the LEC. FNC was recently reverse swept by Rogue, and it isn’t sure if that affected their performance but nonetheless, G2 found yet another 3-0 against their nemesis.
Their last challenge was Rogue. After the reverse against Fnatic, they were looking very strong and were finally stripping their “loser/choker” label out. But G2’s belief in their rebuilding phase proved to be stronger than Rogue’s will. Another 3-0 sealed the deal, G2 Esports was the champion after a one-year long break.
Some stats
According to Esports Charts’ data, the four most-watched games of LEC 2022 Spring belongs to G2 Esports: the grand final against Rogue (723,061), semifinals against Fnatic (568,910), first week game against XL (527,567), first week game against MAD Lions (512,681).
Targamas was the player with the most champions played during the regular season, playing 15 different champions. Other than their flexibility, G2 Esports players didn’t place high in most statistics, and aside from Broken Blade and Jankos in All Pro Team #2 and Targamas in All Pro Team #3, they failed to land an award.
Obviously, the playoffs phase went much better. caPs was the player with the most champions played together with Wunder at 8. Flakked 8.22 KDA was the best and he was followed by Targamas’ 5.8. After a long streak of being criticized and regarded as outdated, caPs emerged from the shadows and claimed the LEC Finals MVP award. All in all, it was a great “rebuilding phase for G2”, one might say.
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