Florida Mayhem are the champions of OWL 2023 Pro-Am

After two and a half weeks of action and excitement at the OWL 2023 Pro-Am, the Florida Mayhem went undefeated to become the tournament champions. The Mayhem takes home $50,000 in prize money thanks to this victory. The grand final was exciting, as the Los Angeles Gladiators put up a great fight thanks to their excellent flex play.

This tournament marks the beginning of the 2023 Overwatch League season, which was in doubt due to the different problems in the Asian continent, specifically in China, with Blizzard games’ publication.

Florida Mayhem are the winner of the OWL 2023 Pro-Am

After a spectacular run throughout the tournament, the Florida Mayhem, who did not lose a single game during the three weeks, managed to defeat the Los Angeles Gladiators 4-2 to lift the champion’s trophy at the 2023 Pro-Am.

There is no doubt that the grand final match, specifically on the part of the Mayhem, was not all that flashy, as they focused their approach on their support player. However, they managed to keep Dante “Danteh” Cruz and his California team at bay.

Moreover, this was the common denominator throughout the tournament, as most of the teams focused their play on the support players. This time, it was Rupal “Rupal” Zaman with Ana, who completely neutralized every approach from the Gladiators’ star tank, Danteh. When the Gladiators tried to turn the situation around, the Florida Supports appeared to prevent it.

The Gladiators managed to win two of the six maps played and had Esperança and Shambali as main references. On those two maps won by the Gladiators, it was the only time Danteh could leverage his power with Ramattra and Winston to crush Rupal.

Flexibility was a double-edged sword for the Gladiators

While it is true that the team was known throughout the tournament for being very flexible when selecting heroes, in this match against the Florida Mayhem, there is no doubt that it hurt them. The players made some very confusing choices of heroes, which did not allow the team to display its full potential.

The reality is that the team experimented with it throughout the grand final and ended up paying dearly for it.

The role of the tanks

As we mentioned, the victory in each match of this Pro-Am depended on the level of play of the teams’ Support. However, the tanks, as offensive heroes, were the ones who gave the show on the battlefield.

There is no doubt that both Danteh (Gladiators) and Ham “SOMEONE” Jeong-wan (Mayhem), both tanks of their respective teams, managed to fight an excellent battle and also gave space for their teammates to come up with some strategies.

Finally, no one in the OWL scene expected the Gladiators to have as good a tournament as they did. However, thanks to the team’s level of play and performance, we can be sure that we should consider them in future events.

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