T1 clinches VALORANT Masters Bangkok crown in five-set thriller
T1 captured the VALORANT Masters Bangkok title by defeating Americas champion G2 Esports in a five-set final this past weekend.
t1-valorant-202516The win marks the team's first international tournament win since joining the league as part of the Pacific region in 2023.
The playoffs, held at UOB Live from Feb. 27 to March 2, saw T1 overcome four regional champions. After a 2–0 victory over DRX in the Swiss Stage, T1 dropped one set in an early playoff match against China's Edward Gaming before battling back in the lower bracket with a win over Team Vitality. A rematch with Edward Gaming on March 1 ended in a 3–1 set win that propelled T1 into the championship round.
In the final against G2 Esports, T1 lost the opening set on the map Lotus by a wide margin but rallied on Haven to take the second set 13–9. An initial lead on Ascent evaporated as the team surrendered five consecutive rounds, resulting in a lost set. A tightly contested fourth set, decided after two overtimes, produced a 15–13 win for T1 and forced a decisive fifth set on Pearl. With an 8–4 lead that nearly unraveled late in the match, T1 managed to force overtime and clinched the set 16–14.
T1's championship run comes on the heels of a major roster overhaul earlier in 2024. The team added Kim "stax" Gu-taek andYu "BuZz" Byung-chul - both formerly with DRX - as well as MVP Kim "Meteor" Tae-oh, who secured consecutive tournament titles from Masters Shanghai to Bangkok. Veteran Ko "Sylvan" Young-sub also joined the squad, with the revamped lineup quickly earning a "dream team" reputation despite a runner-up finish at the VCT Pacific Kickoff.
