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Sentinels claims second international title at Madrid after 3-year drought
Sentinels have claimed victory in the Grand Finals at VCT Masters Madrid. This puts them into hallowed halls with precious few others, as they become the second ever VALORANT organization to ever lift a second international title.
Having won VCT Americas Kickoff, Sentinels faced a difficult path at Madrid, taking on some of the hardest hitters from around the world. Despite that, Sentinels only suffered a single loss on their path to becoming international champions. That loss – to Gen.G – was swiftly correct in the Grand Finals, where they took their revenge.
Sentinels 3-2 Gen.G
In one of the most incredible Grand Finals of all time, Sentinels and Gen.G traded blow for blow, map for map all the way across the series. Each team managed to secure both their map picks, while delivering incredibly competitive performances on the others.
Only on Icebox, the decider, did we finally see Gen.G falter from the immense pressure. Despite that, the scorelines and plays from each map displayed a champions heart from both teams that have brought the Madrid crowd to life.
TenZ returns to the international stage
Tyson “TenZ” Ngo makes a triumphant return to the international stage since his original debut at the first ever international VALORANT event back in 2021 at Reykjavik. After having role-swapped over from main duelist, TenZ has successfully reinvigorated both his career and legacy.
A World Champion Lifts a Second Title
Precious few member can say they have two international titles in VALORANT. Despite the game’s 4-year history, only the members of Fnatic can claim to have lifted two titles from their run in 2023. But only Gustavo “Sacy” Rossi can claim to have won both a Masters and Champions title, solidifying his name amongst the legends of the game.
Zellsis and Zekken Finally Find Victory
Despite having attended more than their fair share of international events, neither Jordan “Zellsis” Montemurro nor Zachary “Zekken” Patrone have ever truly found true stability in a roster. On XSET, Zekken was clearly one of the brighter up-and-coming stars. Despite that, he hadn’t quite solidified his undeniable talent into something more.
Now with this victory, and with his performance throughout not just Madrid, but also at Kickoff, Zekken has undisputably etched himself into the annals of VALORANT history as one of the best players to ever touch the esports.
For Zellsis, he had long been a solid role player who delivered with big energy and a wider grin. However, since his time on the Sentinels’ roster back in 2022 during their LCQ run, his popularity and recognition for his value has skyrocketed to incredible heights.
In this tournament, Zellsis proves to be the emotional anchor that the team needed in order to close out the series against Gen.G, all while showcasing his clutch ability and dependability as one of the best flex players.
Johnqt’s Debut
Last year, Johnqt was languishing in the Americas Challenger League. Despite leading his squad, M80, into becoming one of the best in the league, they fell just shy of achieving their goal of Ascending to the partner leagues.
In his first year of joining Sentinels and the Americas League now, he has also proven himself one of the best IGLs in North America currently, and one of the key factors that contributed to the team’s immense growth and success as a unit.
Kaplan’s Success
After replacing head coach SyykoNT at the time on an interim basis, stepping up from strategic coach, Adam “Kaplan” Kaplan has now led Sentinels to their second ever international title.
A relative unknown at the time, Kaplan has now proven his leadership and coaching talents, shaping Sentinels into a well-drilled strategic machine by this point, with a deep sense of unity and tactical depth.
With all these colliding storyline taking place, Sentinels victory over Gen.G carries so much incredible weight. A story, years in the making. With all that said: Sentinels are back, baby.
Feature Image Credits: Sentinels X/Twitter
