Banner Image: Ubisoft / João F. @itsmeERROR
Hating and trash-talking on APAC is the trend in Rainbow Six Siege’s esports scene. Unfortunately, it’s a consequence of the region’s negative results throughout 2023, where their international winning rate was slightly inferior to XX – which is exactly why Bleed Esports’ run in Atlanta felt even more spectacular.
Almost one year ago, in Mar. 2023, Bleed Esports unveiled its Rainbow Six Siege roster. The team put together some of the most talented players in the region, led by the highly experienced and former Fnatic member Patrick “MentalistC” Fan.
One month after the announcement, the roster from the Red Dot was already the favorite to qualify for the BLAST R6 Major Copenhagen after its unbeaten run at the SEA League 2023 Stage 1. However, the team’s defeat against FURY in the Asia League 2023 Stage 1 left Bleed Esport out of the tournament celebrated in Denmark.
Luckily for them, Stage 2 turned out to be slightly better: another unbeaten run in the regular phase was followed by a second-place finish at the Asia League 2023 Stage 2. Finally, the players could prove themselves in front of an international crowd, as they headed to Atlanta well-alive in the race to qualify for the Six Invitational 2024.
“It was a year filled with ups and downs,” admitted Taylor “Terdsta” Ching in a pre-Six Invitational 2023 written interview for SiegeGG. “In the second half of 2023 we showed what we were made of on the international stage, and that we aren’t here to mess around.”
The Kiwi rated his rookie season as a “dream” after having competed around the world in his first year as a professional. At only 18 years of age, the player signed for the Singaporean organization after getting no offers from Oceanic teams.
Eleven months after his first professional match, Terdsta is heading to his first Six Invitational. During the summer off-season, qualifying for Brazil looked like a tough challenge for the Asian roster. Nobody except for them thought the team was capable of producing some notable upsets in Atlanta.
After getting out of Phase 1 following two victories against CYCLOPS athlete gaming, Bleed Esports kicked off Phase 2 with wins against M80 and Soniqs. Just like that, the red roster overtook SANDBOX Gaming (now known as FearX) in the Global Standings and qualified for the Six Invitational 2024.
“In Atlanta, we knew all the odds were against us especially when playing against M80 and Soniqs, so we tried to keep smiles on our faces and have as much fun as possible. This led to us having fun on the server and we play best when we’re having fun,” explained the 19-year-old.
Bleed Esports’ Cinderella run throughout Phase 2 was stopped by FaZe Clan, as the Brazilians defeated the Asian roster by 7-4. According to Terdsta, their “Bank defense setups were really weak” as the team had “showed everything in the M80 match.” Plain and simple, it was a consequence of the Brazilians’ excellent job outside of the server. “FaZe did their research and countered us perfectly.”
Despite the team’s loss to FaZe Clan, Bleed Esports still had two more bullets in the magazine. One more victory would send the Asian roster to the playoffs. Moreover, the team didn’t have the pressure of qualifying for the Six Invitational 2024 anymore.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to be. A maximum overtime loss against DarkZero Esports in the fourth match was followed by a 1-2 defeat against Spacestation Gaming. So close, but yet so far.
Now, Bleed Esports’s Siege team is headed to São Paulo, Brazil, where the roster will make its second international appearance. This time, the Asian squad has been put in what’s considered to be the group of death, as they share it with w7m esports, Team Liquid, Virtus.pro, and M80.
Precisely, two of Bleed Esports’ opponents will be from Brazil, potentially the only region that truly put the Asians between a rock and a hard place in Atlanta.
Overall, Bleed Esports could only win two attacks out of a possible twelve against Brazilian rosters in Atlanta. With defeats against LOS and FaZe Clan, the Asians couldn’t do anything against what Terdsta rates as “the best Siege in the world.” “Our next step in international play is to learn how to defeat the Brazilian teams,” he added.
“The teams in our group are some of the best in the world. We will most likely go home in groups,” admitted Terdsta.
Not even the addition of Tubarão seems to be going APAC’s way, as the New Zealander player believes the Portuguese operator “will make it harder for APAC teams to win rounds.”
“APAC’s strong suit isn’t problem-solving and winning with utility, it’s finding kills and opportunities. Tubarao slows the entire pace of the game and can directly win rounds by keeping walls closed which is bad for APAC teams,” Terdsta explained.
Luckily, Bleed Esports will travel to Brazil with an extra member in the squad, as Joel will be present in the team’s performances in São Paulo. “Of course, he will be back better than ever,” Terdsta concluded.