Team Envy ends VCT NA Challengers with 3-0 sweep of Sentinels

In what some Valorant esports fans might consider an upset, Team Envy beat out fan-favorite Sentinels in a clean 3-0 sweep to take first place in the second Challengers weekend. 

Team Envy beat Sentinels earlier in the tournament in a close 2-1, sending Sentinels down to the lower bracket. Sentinels topped 100 Thieves, XSET, and Immortals to make it to the finals without dropping a map. This culminated in a grand final that was meant to be competitive but instead, Team Envy made it look easy. 

Team Envy is now the team to beat in the Valorant Champions Tour

In the first weekend of the VCT Challengers, Team Envy fell in the semifinals while Sentinels went on to take the win over Immortals in the first VCT Challengers Weekend. That performance and the strength of Sentinels' roster had many pegging them as the top squad in the region, but instead it's Team Envy looking like the team to beat. Though Sentinels is still a team, this was a brutally tough loss for the team. 

The VCT has been an interesting journey for fans of Valorant esports, which has seen many upsets as fresh faces emerge. Many supposed top teams including FaZe Clan, TSM, and T1 failed to qualify for playoffs. It is true that Valorant is a newer esport and teams are doing their best to pick up talent that they think will win games, but it is interesting to watch how teams are evolving and fans are loving the wild nature of the brackets. 

Immortals and XSET qualify for Masters with Envy, Sentinels

Along with Sentinels and Team Envy, Immortals and XSET have also qualified for the Valorant Masters tournament which begins mid-March after the third Challengers Weekend. Four more teams will qualify for the Masters tournament after the Challengers stage concludes. 

XSET is another surprising name that has emerged as a top team in Valorant. XSET didn't make it very far in the Fist Strike tournament last year, but placed fourth in the first Challengers Weekend and in this Challengers Weekend as well. 

Immortals took second place after losing to Sentinels in Challengers Weekend 1 and have taken third place in order to qualify for Masters. Sentinels are still favorites to win Masters, even though they've lost a key tournament on the road to Masters. 

The third Challengers weekend begins with open qualifiers on February 25, and closed qualifiers will take place March 4-7, with Luminosity, 100 Thieves, FaZe Clan, and Gen.G competing against the four teams from open qualifiers.