Banner image: Ubisoft / @ericananmalay
M80 topped the standings in Group D, while FaZe Clan finished in fourth place. Heroic and DarkZero Esports were sandwiched between the two, while Team Secret were eliminated from the competition.
M80 top Group D standings
M80's Six Invitational 2023 preparation in Brazil seems to have done wonders. The NAL team topped the Group D standings in splendid fashion, and they would have been unbeaten if it wasn't for a final-day dead-rubber map three loss against DarkZero Esports.
The Brazilian-majority roster had a splendid start to the competition with a 2-1 victory against FaZe Clan, where they showed their title credentials for the Six Invitational 2023. Another 2-1 victory, this time against Heroic, put the team in first place after the conclusion of the third day.
M80's 2-0 victory against Team Secret on Day 4 and their Chalet victory against DarkZero Esports ensured that they would finish at the top of the standings with 11 points.
Lucas "DiasLucas" Dias was the best player of the group stage for M80, as he registered a SiegeGG Rating of 1.24. The former Oxygen Esports duo of Evan "Yoggah" Nelson and Leonardo "Kyno" Figueiredo followed with Ratings of 1.12 and 1.04.
Heroic impress despite deep roster changes
Shortly after Benjamin "Benjamaster" Dereli's departure to G2 Esports, Heroic had to quickly focus on the rebuilding of the roster heading to the Six Invitational 2023.
To solve their problems, the roster moved Jake "Sloth" Brown back to the active squad while also signing Adam "nudl" Hryceniak. While the changes affected the roster deeply, Heroic ended up putting up strong performances during the group stage of the Six Invitational 2023.
Heroic's start to the competition was against DarkZero Esports, a team they had already faced twice this season as they first met at the Charlotte Major. Despite Heroic winning the first map, the North Americans made a big comeback after winning the final two maps.
In Day 2, Heroic defeated Team Secret 2-0 to momentarily climb up to the top of the standings.
Heroic's two remaining games would end in 1-2, 2-0 scores. After being beaten by M80, Heroic confirmed a top two finish following a 2-0 victory against FaZe Clan, as Aleksi "UUNO" Työppönen secured eight plants against the Brazilians.
Adam "nudl" Hryceniak and Marc "Jume" Steinmann were the two best players for Heroic in the group stage, proving to be very dangerous in the entry kills and in overall kills departments.
DarkZero upset M80 to finish in third
DarkZero Esports' first international appearance after winning the Charlotte Major has come almost a year later at the Six Invitational 2023, as they missed out on the Berlin Major and the Jönköping Major.
Following their 2-1 victory against Heroic, the North American squad was beaten by FaZe Clan just before defeating Team Secret in a triple overtime map series. Eventually, the team finished in third place of the group stage after defeating M80 by 2-1.
So far, Nick "njr" Rapier has been the team's best player with a SiegeGG Rating of 1.18. He also has the third-best K-D in the group stage, a 128-93 (+35).
Gaven "Gaveni" Black has also been in the spotlight since the beginning of the competition, as the former Reality TV player made his professional debut last week. So far, the young talent has been the team's third-best player in the team with a SiegeGG Rating of 1.02 while on Dokkaebi and Goyo.
FaZe Clan drop to lower bracket
Surprisingly, FaZe Clan will start the playoffs from the lower bracket following poor performances throughout the group stage. Their defeats against M80 and Heroic cost them the top three, as they could only defeat DarkZero Esports and Team Secret.
FaZe Clan's best moment of the group stage was José "Cyber" Ramos' performance against Team Secret, as he finished with an entry balance of 15-3 (+12). The Brazilians showed their strength in that final match, as four of the five players ended up with SiegeGG Ratings over 1.10, with José "bullet1" Victor the only exception.
Lucas "soulz1" Schinke was the team's best player in the group stage, as his performancve were extremely consistent regardless of the outcome of the game. With a SiegeGG Rating of 1.16, he's currently one of the top 15 players.
Meanwhile, Victor "VITAKING" Augusto made his top-flight debut with FaZe Clan at the Six Invitational. The young player has been playing as a hard breacher and support, combining his defuser carrier role with Leonardo "Astro" Luis to mixed results.
Team Secret follow eliminated APAC trio
Team Secret were the only non-APAC team to be sent home in the group stage of the Six Invitational 2023 -- perhaps because there were only three APAC teams in total.
Despite the lack of wins in Montreal, Team Secret's qualification was a miracle considering their EUL struggles in 2022. Without a doubt, Marlon "Twister" Mello's players can learn a lot from this experience and use it to improve heading into the next season.
While only getting two points, Team Secret could have added more to their personal tally as they lost a maximum overtime map against Heroic and lost to DarkZero Esports after playing three overtime maps that could have gone the other way.
Dawid "Gruby" Marciniak was Team Secret's best player throughout, but it's worth noting that Team Secret's combined entry balance was incredibly poor -- a 47-75 (-28).