Banner image: Ubisoft / João F. @itsmeERROR
With the BLAST R6 Major Atlanta kicking off tomorrow, we decided to have a look at all of the teams competing in Phase 1.
Here's everything you need to know about the BLAST R6 Major Atlanta Group A.
#flag@20:br Ninjas in Pyjamas
Team interview: "If there's a game to play, there's hope": Ninjas in Pyjamas ready for Atlanta after Copenhagen and Riyadh performances
Without a doubt, Ninjas in Pyjamas are the favorites to take Group A's first seed. The Six Invitational 2021 champions qualified for Atlanta after finishing in third place in the Brazil League 2023 Stage 2.
Stage 2 Match Results
Brazil League Group Stage - FaZe Clan 7-8 Ninjas in Pyjamas (Consulate)
Brazil League Group Stage - LOS 0-7 Ninjas in Pyjamas (Skyscraper)
Brazil League Group Stage - Netshoes Miners 2-7 Ninjas in Pyjamas (Chalet)
Brazil League Group Stage - Black Dragons 4-7 Ninjas in Pyjamas (Border)
Brazil League Upper Bracket Semifinals - Ninjas in Pyjamas 0-2 FaZe Clan (Kafe Dostoyevsky 7-8, Oregon 4-7)
Brazil League Lower Bracket Final - Keyd Stars 1-2 Ninjas in Pyjamas (Oregon 6-8, Skyscraper 7-2, Kafe Dostoyevsky 4-7)
Ninjas in Pyjamas' flawless group stage run was followed by a 0-2 defeat against FaZe Clan, which made the team drop to the Lower Bracket. There, Arthur "TchubZ" Figueira met Keyd Stars, the first organization to offer him a coaching opportunity in Rainbow Six Siege.
Fortunately for the shinobis, the roster defeated the purple squad by 1-2 as they won the final map of the series by 7-4.
Banned Maps
Throughout the Brazil League 2023 Stage 2, Ninjas in Pyjamas banned 18 maps. Here's every map the Brazilians banned.
Nighthaven Labs | 6 |
|---|---|
Bank | 5 |
Oregon | 4 |
Consulate | 3 |
Chalet | 2 |
Skyscraper | 1 |
Clubhouse | 1 |
Ninjas in Pyjamas' most banned map was Nighthaven Labs, the team's most common first ban. The Brazilians' second most banned map in Stage 2 was Bank, a map they haven't played since May 2023 at the GWB South America semi-finals.
Round Winrates
Throughout Stage 2, Ninjas in Pyjamas played 102 rounds with a round win rate of 55.88. Here's how the team performed on defense and attack.
- Attacking win rate: 52 (26 rounds won out of a possible 50)
- Defensive win rate: 59,61 (31 rounds won out of a possible 52)
Operator Bans
Ninjas in Pyjamas' most banned operator in Stage 2 was Ying (9 times), with the Brazilians banning her from every map played in the second split of the Brazil League 2023.
Meanwhile, the ninjas' most banned operator on defense was Azami (6 times). She was followed by Kaid (2) and Valkyrie (1).
Individual player stats
Gabriel "Pino" Fernandes (1.28) finished with the highest SiegeGG rating in the Brazil League 2023 Stage 2. Raul "Kondz" Romão and Murilo "Muzi" Moscateli were the fourth and fifth-best players in the league.
International Performances in the Last Year
BLAST R6 Major Copenhagen: 8th - 5th
Gamers8 2023: 5th - 6th
Ninjas in Pyjamas' 2022 season was one to forget. The Brazilians could only qualify for the Six Berlin Major and ended up missing out on the Six Invitational 2023. Luckily, the team has already changed its luck.
The Brazilians reached the BLAST R6 Major Copenhagen's Top 8 and were sent home by Soniqs. In Gamers8, the shinobis were group staged after losing to M80 and Team Falcons.
#flag@20:kr SANDBOX Gaming
Team interview: "We wanted to make sure we had a flexible team": GoodBoy on Nova's return to active roster, Atlanta to decide South Koreans' SI 2024 future
Although we expect a close race for second place, it would be unfair if we didn't consider SANDBOX Gaming as the favorite to take it. The South Koreans have plenty of international experience behind them and have proved their value countless times in the past.
Stage 2 Match Results
South Korea League Group Stage - SANDBOX Gaming 7-3 Talon Esports (Bank)
South Korea League Group Stage - SANDBOX Gaming 7-0 Before and After (Clubhouse)
South Korea League Group Stage - SANDBOX Gaming 7-3 BlossoM (Oregon)
South Korea League Upper Bracket Semifinals - SANDBOX Gaming 2-0 Beyond Stratos Gaming (7-3 Bank, 7-5 Clubhouse)
South Korea League Grand Final - DPlus 2-1 SANDBOX Gaming (7-5 Clubhouse, 7-8 Bank, 7-2 Chalet)
After going unbeaten in Group B, SANDBOX Gaming played against Beyond Stratos Gaming in the South Korea League Deciders. The team's quick 2-0 win secured them a spot at the BLAST R6 Major Atlanta. Unfortunately, their defeat against DPlus sent them to Phase 1.
Banned Maps
Throughout Stage 2, SANDBOX Gaming banned 18 maps. Here's every map the South Koreans banned at the South Korea League 2023 Stage 2.
Consulate | 5 |
|---|---|
Skyscraper | 5 |
Nighthaven Labs | 3 |
Oregon | 2 |
Kafe Dostoyevsky | 2 |
Clubhouse | 1 |
Round Winrates
Throughout Stage 2, SANDBOX Gaming played 85 rounds with a round win rate of 58.82. Here's how the team performed on defense and attack.
- Attacking win rate: 61,7 (29 won rounds out of a possible 47)
- Defensive win rate: 60,5 (23 won rounds out of a possible 38)
Operator Bans
SANDBOX Gaming's operator bans have been more diverse than Ninjas in Pyjamas. The South Koreans' most banned operator on Attack was Ying (3 times), followed by Flores and Hibana (2) and Blitz (1). Meanwhile, on defense, Kaid (3 times) has been their most banned defender, with Azami and Fenrir (2) following the Moroccan operator. Valkyrie was banned once.
Individual player stats
Lee "GoodBoy" Ji-heon and Park "Mephi" Ju-wan were two of the best three players in the South Korea League 2023 Stage 2, as their ratings were only surpassed by Yoo "yass" Sang-Hoon's 1.29.
International Performances in the Last Year
Six Jönköping Major: 16th - 13th
BLAST R6 Major Copenhagen: 20 - 17th
In the last year, SANDBOX Gaming has competed in two international competitions, including the Six Jönköping Major and the BLAST R6 Major Copenhagen. The South Koreans were group staged in both of them.
Since the Six Jönköping Major, the team has only won one out of ten maps played, as their only victory of the record came against FURY in the team's first match in Copenhagen.
The roster's best performance abroad was at the Six Sweden Major, in Nov. 2021, when the South Koreans made it to the quarterfinals. Back then, the team was sent home by their fellows in DWG KIA.
#flag@20:sa Geekay Esports
Team interview: "If the MENA region is given a chance, I guarantee you they'll shine": X.Ke speaks about MENA and Europe's influence on the team's improvement
Geekay Esports will make its Rainbow Six Siege international debut in Atlanta. While the South Koreans are the favorites to qualify for Phase 2 alongside Ninjas in Pyjamas, the Saudi Arabia-majority roster has something different in mind.
Stage 2 Match Results
MENA League Group Stage - Geekay Esports 7-3 Sumar eSports (Consulate)
MENA League Group Stage - AKATSUKI-TEAM 4-7 Geekay Esports (Border)
MENA League Group Stage - Team Falcons 2-7 Geekay Esports (Clubhouse)
MENA League Group Stage - Gangsters Esports 3-7 Geekay Esports (Chalet)
MENA League Group Stage - Twisted Minds 1-7 Geekay Esports (Oregon)
MENA League Group Stage - Geekay Esports 7-0 win after Stox Esports forfeited the match
Geekay Esports went flawless in the MENA League 2023 Stage 2, including a 7-2 win against Team Falcons. On top of that, the roster played in six different maps, which shows Geekay Esports' great versatility and adaptability.
At the same time, Geekay Esports also took part in the Saudi eLeague 2023 Stage 2. The team played 19 maps in Saudi Arabia's regional competition, including two BO5 wins against Team Falcons. Out of those 19 maps, Geekay Esports only lost three (two against Team Falcons and one against Triple Esports).
While the team's experience in the Saudi eLeague 2023 Stage 2 has surely helped the roster by giving them BO3 and BO5 experience that could be crucial shortly, their opponents have plenty of material to study the Saudi Arabian roster.
Banned Maps
Throughout the MENA League 2023 Stage 2, Geekay Esports banned 24 maps. Here's every map the Saudi Arabian majority roster banned in the competition.
Oregon | 4 |
|---|---|
Chalet | 4 |
Border | 4 |
Skyscraper | 3 |
Nighthaven Labs | 3 |
Clubhouse | 2 |
Kafe Dostoyevsky | 2 |
Bank | 2 |
Round Winrates
Throughout the MENA League 2023 Stage 2, Geekay Esports played 60 rounds (after excluding the forfeited win against Stoax Esports) with a round-win rate of 70. Here's how the team performed on defense and attack.
- Attacking win rate: 64,51 (20 won rounds out of a possible 31)
- Defensive win rate: 75,86 (22 won rounds out of a possible 29)
Operator Bans
Geekay Esports' most banned operator on defense in the MENA League 2023 Stage 2 was Valkyrie, with five bans. The only exception is found in their match against Triple Esports, where they went for a full shield ban as they got rid of Clash and Montagne.
On attack, Geekay Esports' most banned operator was Ying, with three times. They also banned Maverick, Nomad, and Montagne, as previously mentioned.
Individual player stats
Geekay Esports' stats are exactly what you would expect from a team that has dominated a split. Despite having only played six maps in the MENA League 2023 Stage 2, everyone on the team has at least 42 kills. This shows how aggressive the squad is.
#flag@20:jp SANDBOX Gaming
Crest Gaming Lst will make its international debut in Atlanta after winning the Japan League 2023 Stage 2 Last Chance Qualifier.
Stage 2 Match Results
Japan League 2023 Group Stage - Crest Gaming Lst 2-7 CYCLOPS athlete gaming (Border)
Japan League 2023 Group Stage - SCARZ 5-7 Crest Gaming Lst (Oregon)
Japan League 2023 Group Stage - Crest Gaming Lst 8-7 Fnatic (Clubhouse)
Japan League 2023 Upper Bracket Quarterfinals - IGZIST 0-2 Crest Gaming Lst (5-7 Chalet, 5-7 Bank)
Japan League 2023 Upper Bracket Semifinals - CYCLOPS athlete gaming 2-1 Crest Gaming Lst (7-5 Nighthaven Labs, 5-7 Chalet, 7-5 Clubhouse)
Japan League 2023 Third Place Match - Crest Gaming Lst 2-1 NORTHEPTION (8-6 Oregon, 4-7 Clubhouse, 7-3 Chalet)
Japan League 2023 LCQ Quarterfinals - Crest Gaming Lst 7-3 System (Nighthaven Labs)
Japan League 2023 LCQ Semifinals - Crest Gaming Lst 7-5 IGZIST (Skyscraper)
Japan League 2023 LCQ Grand Final - Crest Gaming Lst 2-0 FAV Gaming (7-3 Oregon, 7-4 Clubhouse)
Crest Gaming Lst's second split has been a tough one. Initially, the Japanese were put in the group of death as they played against the two best rosters in the region, SCARZ and CYCLOPS athlete gaming.
After defeating IGZIST in the Japan League Deciders, the team lost to CAG before winning against NORTHEPTION to get the league's third seed. Eventually, the roster qualified for the BLAST R6 Major Atlanta after defeating FAV Gaming at the Japan League Deciders' Grand Final.
Banned Maps
Throughout the Japan League 2023 Stage 2, Crest Gaming Lst have banned 32 maps. Here's every map the Japanese roster banned in the competition.
Kafe Dostoyevsky | 8 |
|---|---|
Border | 6 |
Bank | 5 |
Consulate | 5 |
Skyscraper | 3 |
Clubhouse | 3 |
Chalet | 1 |
Oregon | 1 |
Crest Gaming Lst's most banned map in the Japan League 2023 Stage 2 was Kafe, as they banned the Russian map in eight of the nine ban map phases. Border, Bank, and Consulate follow Kafe with six, five, and five times each.
Round Winrates
Throughout the Japan League 2023 Stage 2, Crest Gaming Lst played 174 rounds with a round-win rate of 54,59. Here's how the team performed on defense and attack.
- Attacking win rate: 37,93 (33 won rounds out of a possible 87)
- Defensive win rate: 70,11 (61 won rounds out of a possible 87)
Crest Gaming Lst has a clear problem on attack, where the Japanese could only win 33 of their 87 rounds. Meanwhile, the team has been outstanding on defense. Only on the Last Chance Qualifiers, Crest Gaming Lst only lost two defenses out of a possible 20.
Operator Bans
Crest Gaming Lst's most banned defender in Stage 2 was Fenrir, as they banned him ten times. Solis, with three times, and Bandit and Mira, with one each, follow.
On attack, Crest Gaming Lst seems to adapt to their opponents. For example, the team banned Montagne in three of the four maps played against CYCLOPS athlete gaming. Another example can be found against IGZIST in the Japan League Deciders, when Crest Gaming Lst banned Zero twice.
The list of banned attacker operators includes Dokkaebi and Montagne (3), Ying and Zero (2), Osa, Finka, Glaz, Thatcher, and Brava (1).
Individual player stats
For Crest Gaming Lst stats, we decided to focus on the difference between their attacking and defensive performances.
On attack, the Japanese struggle to get rounds. Two of their members mained Iana and Buck, while Juusei "Eclair" Oura mained Thermite.
However, on defense, the team looks way more structured. As we mentioned earlier, the results on defense are way better than on attack. Heading to Atlanta, the Japanese must come up with a solution to keep their Six Invitational 2024 hopes alive.