LEC Summer 2022 playoffs Week 2 recap

Fnatic hit their stride at the perfect time, while MAD Lions make Worlds without winning a single best-of-five series.

If there ever was a time to step it up, it was this weekend. After barely qualifying for the playoffs, Fnatic are now one series away from the LEC Finals in Malmo. This weekend, they ended Misfits’ journey in the LEC and knocked out the MAD Lions. G2 Esports confidently swept Rogue, awaiting their opponent in the Grand Finals.

Last dance for Misfits in the LEC

In our LEC playoffs preview, we mentioned that Fnatic’s win conditions are in the bot lane, and they confirmed it. After breaking damage-per-minute records with his Zeri and Sivir picks the previous weeks, Elias “Upset” Lipp pulled out his Kalista in game one. Displaying dominance on your twelfth unique champion this split is hard to phantom, but you don’t sweep a team through one lane. Fnatic outplayed Misfits in every aspect throughout these three games, but it was just a forecast for what was about to come. On the Misfits’ side, it was time to cherish the moment. After an up-and-down split, filled with roster changes and ownership turmoil, this young team managed to make the playoffs. Throughout the years, this organization has given a chance and birthed some of Europe’s brightest talents. This is the last we will see from Misfits in the LEC after they sold their spot to Team Heretics, but the story of the French bunnies will live on. 

G2 Esports look unstoppable

After a down year for G2 standards, they seem to be back on track in 2022. With nine titles and ten LEC Finals appearances in their pocket, they look to add another one after sweeping Rogue. Every doubt surrounding their rookie bot lane quickly subsided in the spring split, and now G2 are just trying stuff out. Varus mid, Yone top and the bot lane Seraphine picks deviated from the meta, but Rogue couldn’t take advantage of that. Every game, another G2 lane stepped up to carry the load, and Rogue couldn’t handle the pressure. It has to be a mental edge at this point, with the lack of experience in long series hurting Europe’s young teams.

Fnatic prove everyone wrong

Fnatic opened their series against the MAD Lions with a statement. Winning games in less than 20 minutes is always impressive, but especially this season with the durability meta and added comeback mechanisms. MAD managed to bounce back in game two, offering hope for a competitive series, but Upset was having none of it. With amazing Kalista and Lucian performances in back-to-back games, he sealed their fate. The MAD Lions are heading into Worlds with a lot on their minds following this underwhelming playoff run. Four of their five starters made the LEC First team, their mid-laner Yasin “Nisqy” Dinçer won the MVP, and yet they made Worlds without winning a single series, finishing fourth in the LEC Summer playoffs.

Header:Riot Games