Lima Major 2023: All teams qualified for the Playoffs

The group stage of the Dota 2 Lima Major came to a close with some amazingly close results and notable teams missing out on making it to the main event. Popular Dota 2 teams like Gamin Gladiators, Liquid, Entity, and TI 10 winners Team Spirit have made it to the playoffs, while notable fans’ favorites TSM, HellRaisers, EHOME, and Execration, have been eliminated from The Lima Major.

The top four teams from each group progress to the upper bracket, while teams who finish fifth and sixth will begin in the lower bracket. The Lima Major playoffs will follow the same double-elimination bracket format as all DPC LAN events, with 12 teams competing for a $500,000 prize pool and a total of 1,900 DPC points. The playoffs will start on February 28 and end on March 5 with the best-of-five grand finals.

Lima Major Group A Result:

Gaimin Gladiators and the TI 10 champions Team Spirit managed to secure the upper bracket berth in the playoffs after dominating the group stage. Both teams finished with an impressive 11-5 record after winning four of their eight games and losing just one.

Evil Geniuses became the third team to earn an upper-bracket berth from Group A after they swept TSM in the last matchup. The North American core performed brilliantly against the international teams, dropping only one game against Team Spirit throughout the event to finish with a 10-6 record.

The next team to qualify for the playoffs was Talon Esports. The team performed magnificently during the group stage, surpassing all expectations with a remarkable win-loss record of 10-6. The team earned a coveted spot in the upper brackets of the playoffs, becoming the first Southeast Asian team to do so.

PSG.LGD and the TI 11 champions Tundra Esports both survived the group stage despite a rocky road, with the former finishing with an 8-8 record and the latter only managing a 7-9 record. The defending TI champions had a strong start in the group stage but were forced to settle for the lower bracket spot after suffering devastating defeats against PSG.LGD and EG.

TSM’s early withdrawal from the Major after finishing with a 6-10 record was among the most unexpected upsets in the group. Despite the North American team fielding what appeared to be a superstar roster, the team’s performances at the Major were far from decent. Out of their total eight matches, they won two, lost four, and drew the remaining two.

The Southeast Asia team Execration is another notable team that missed out on a playoff spot. Despite their success at the regional competition—where they won Tour 1 of the new season after getting promoted from Division II to Division I—they failed to live up to expectations internationally.

The eight games they played resulted in two losses and six draws, which wasn’t enough to guarantee them a position in the playoffs. EHOME, who placed bottom in Group A with a miserable 3-13 record, also withdrew early from the competition, joining Execration on a flight back to China.

Group B Results:

The first teams to qualify for the upper bracket of the Playoffs from Group B were Team Liquid and Entity, who took the top two positions in their group with records of 14-2 and 11-5, respectively.

The next team to make it to the upper bracket was the star-studded Shopify Rebellion, who finished the group stage with a 10-6 record. Featuring the former core of Evil Geniuses, the American team recently won the BTS Pro Series Season 14: Americas, and their run in the Lima Major so far clearly displays their hungry for more success, perhaps a Major to validate their capabilities and dedication.

 

Beastcoast and Team Aster, who both tied with 8-8 records each, don’t have as much room for comfort. To secure their place in the higher bracket, Team Aster destroyed Beastcoast in the tie-breaker game.

The second tie-breaker game of the group was played between HellRaiser and Green Slate, who both ended the group stage with a 7-9 record. Although Hell Raiser handily defeated the Southeast Asian squad 2-0 to secure their place in the playoffs, they will be without the helpful buffer that the upper bracket offers.

BetBoom Team and Green Slate are next in the standings, finishing the group stage in seventh and eighth places with a 7-9 and 6-10 record, respectively. Although BetBoom entered the Major as dark horses, they failed to live up to expectations and returned home empty-handed.

The Knights haven’t shown any questionable activity that qualifies as cheating throughout the Major, but after their dismal group stage performance, their name was once again associated with match-fixing allocations. The team failed to win even a single series throughout the event and finished with a 1-15 record, including seven losses and one draw.

Here are the complete Lima Major Group Stage standings:

Group A:

1. Gaimin Gladiators: 11-5
2. Team Spirit: 11-5
3. Evil Geniuses: 10-6
4. Talon Esports: 10-6
5. PSG.LGD: 8-9
6. Tundra Esports: 7-9
7. Execration: 6-10
8. TSM: 6-10
9. EHOME: 3-13

Group B:

1. Team Liquid: 14-2
2. Entity: 11-5
3. Shopify Rebellion: 10-6
4. Team Aster: 8-8
5. Beastcoast: 8-8
6. HellRaisers: 7-9
7. Geek Slate: 7-9
8. BetBoom Team: 6-10
9. Knights: 1-15

Header: Team Liquid/ Twitter