Fnatic was swept 2-0 this Monday in the first Classico of the year in a BO3, despite coming in as potential favorites for once. This underperformance has sparked a lot of discussion, especially given how strong G2 Esports looked in response. Fnatic's poor form could partly be attributed to
Elias "Upset" Lipp's illness, as he stated on social media that he had been feeling very sick for the past two days.
Without making any particular excuses, the player had indeed accustomed us throughout the regular season to being an absolute killing machine, holding the best KDA in the league across all nine BO1s with 12.9 (63/9/53).
Additionally, Laure Vallée, LEC desk host for many years, stated on Jean "Trayton" Medzadourian's stream that there were backstage rumors within Fnatic about potentially replacing Upset with
Pablo "Gaax" Pérez, Fnatic’s Assistant Coach, in the botlane. Before stepping into coaching, the 23-year-old spent a few years as a professional player in the support role at a modest level. While this information should be taken with caution, it puts the performance of the Black and Orange AD Carry into perspective.
Following this defeat, Fnatic is sent to the loser bracket and will play next Sunday at 6 PM against the winner of the BDS vs Vitality match this Saturday.
