The Cignal Ultra Warriors delivered what was expected of them. as the heavy favorites bagged the first-ever conference of The Nationals after beating the Suha-Execration Punishers in the Dota 2 best-of-five finals series, 3-2, last Sunday at the Gariath Concepts in Eastwood City, Libis.
Cignal entered the championship round as the favorites after it obtained an automatic berth with its league-best 13-3 record in the group stage of the first professional esports tournament.
Their skill was on full display after winning a convincing Game 1 in the finals.
Though the Punishers put their foot on the pedal as they racked up back-to-back wins, including a 27-minute stomp in Game 2, the Ultra Warriors stepped up and won the final two games of the conference with a strong, push-oriented lineup of Beastmaster, Pugna, Jakiro, Dazzle and Sven in the final game.
Prior to their finals showdown, the Punishers eliminated PLDT-Smart Omega in a best-of-three semifinal that also went the distance. Overall, Suha-Execration played a total of eight games on the playoff day.
With the victory, the Warriors won the top prize money of P400,000 for the three-week tournament, while the Punishers and second runner-up Omega got P200,000 and P100,000, respectively.
Cignal’s Fernando “Nando” Mendoza was named Best Player of the finals series, finishing with an average of 9.4 kills, 6 assists, and 650 GPM per game.
The Nationals is the country’s premier esports league, and that the recently concluded Dota 2 conference is just one of the six conferences that will happen in the competition’s inaugural year.
The next Dota 2 conference will start on 1 May.
Mobile Legends: Bang Bang and Tekken 7, two of the country’s biggest games on mobile and console, will also host two conferences each later this year. Follow The Nationals through its social media on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram at PHNationals.
It also aired on 5Plus via ESPN5 and One Sports and eGG Network via CignalTV.