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In one of the great underdog stories in League of Legends history, DRX became the first team to make it all the way to the Worlds finals as a Play-In team. The 6th seed in the LCK playoffs and the 4th seed in the LCK at Worlds 2022, they had their work cut out for them in the finals.
Playing against one of the greatest teams of all time, T1, the underdogs of DRX showed up and claimed victory at the biggest League of Legends event of the year. Ahead of the finals, Sportskeeda’s Jason Parker spoke to DRX as a whole, and to individual players about how far they’ve come, what it means to be playing against pros like Faker, and much more.
DRX discusses how it felt to make history at League of Legends Worlds
Q) Thanks for taking the time to chat with us. How does it feel to make history as the first Play-In team to make Worlds Finals?
DRX: We are happy and proud that we have achieved results through various trials and challenges, and at the same time, we are happy to be the first team to advance from the play-in to the final.
Q) How do you feel about the Worlds format as it is often criticized by fans? Do they think adding a lower bracket will make it more interesting?
DRX: Perhaps if there is an international competition where teams can compete, those teams, who will go to a lower bracket, will also be motivated and be competitive.
Q) Do you feel that there should be more international tournaments other than just MSI and Worlds?
DRX: To be exact, I hope there will be an international competition where minor league teams can compete and communicate.
Q) Getting this far required breaking a 13-game losing streak versus Gen.G. What was the secret to success to overcome them this time?
DRX: There may be some strategies and meta, but there are parts that have developed from Worlds, and I believe that we prepared against Gen.G well.
Q) It's been a long road to get to Worlds this year but ultimately, you made it to the Finals. What would you say your team's biggest stumbling blocks were this season, and how did you overcome this adversity?
DRX: Before we came to Worlds, there was a meta that our team had difficulty following up. We tried to follow the meta and try new things, but the results were not as good as we expected. The team's strength and teamwork had reduced.
We tried to unite the team by talking and discussing with each other, throwing away what we had to throw away, and taking what we had to take. The process was difficult, but I think it worked in the end.
Q) Deft, you had what might be one of the most hype-filled moments of Worlds this year, when you backdoored EDG's Nexus towers and almost won the game. What was going through your mind at that time?
Deft: I thought it was over, but it wasn’t. I felt sorry until the third set. Still, before the start of the third set, we let go of everything and focused on the game. We didn't think we'd lose the whole series, so we focused on what we did well.
Q) DRX as a team was accused by many of being inconsistent during the LCK Summer Split. How did the team bounce back from the same?
DRX: When we couldn't follow up, we might have felt inconsistent depending on the meta and because of various attempts to overcome meta. In fact, I don't think there was that much consistency. It was conducted in a similar context, but it didn't work well. I needed time to revise it, and I think our performance was not good.
Q) How was the encounter with Top Esports and what went wrong with them, according to the team?
DRX: We tried to punish the opponent in the early stages but we weren’t able to, which made us lose the game.
Q) What does it mean for Deft to face his friend Faker at the finals, the one who used to study in the same school as him?
Deft: In fact, I only attended school for a year, and I wasn't that close. But now I feel like I'm just preparing for the finals against the best player.
Q) When Deft studied at school, did he ever think that one day he will be at Worlds finals going up against his own friend?
Deft: I don’t think so
Q) What does facing T1 and Faker mean to DRX?
DRX: T1 has always shown signs of being a strong team, and I think everyone is good at what they do. So I think it's a team that is suitable for the final match. It is meaningful to challenge such a team, and I'll make sure to win.
Q) What does winning the trophy mean to Deft and will you retire after this? What's in the future for one of the OGs of League of Legends?
Deft: Thinking about the future will be done after this season is all over, rather than right now. The idea that comes to mind right now is that I will still play if I can develop further next year and show the results, and if not, I will not.
Q) Zeka was once picked by coach Kkoma to play for his team in China. What influence did Kkoma have in Zeka's development?
Zeka: I didn't know anything at first, but Kkoma taught me a lot in terms of life and games, so what I learned at that time is still helping me a lot.
Q) It has been a long time, but did Kkoma's guidance play any part in Zeka's performance at Worlds 2022?
Zeka: There was a time when I was very scared while scrimming. After the scrim, coach Kkoma pressed me a lot, saying, "Why are you hesitating?" and "Don't be scared." Since then, I've never been scared while playing scrim or games. Maybe that's one of the reasons why I'm playing fearlessly at Worlds now.
Q) How did Deft feel playing against Viper and how did the team bounce back in that game?
Deft: We studied a lot about the lane phase, so it went as far as we could. We decided to have as much fun as we could throughout the game and focus on what we're good at, so I think that was the driving force for us to win.
Q) Did facing the World 2021 champion add anything special that helped DRX as a team to improve in the semi-finals?
DRX: EDG is a team with a solid style, and the experience seems to have helped a lot by winning 3-2 against that team. As a result, it became a driving force for our team to become stronger.
Q) What did Deft think about Comp while facing Rogue in the Group Stages?
Deft: In the case of the laning phase, I didn't feel much. However, when I saw him playing Lucian very aggressively, I didn't think much about the European ADC before, but I felt that he was doing quite well.
Q) What did DRX think about Rogue as a team and would you want to face them again?
DRX: In the case of Rogue, when they played at LEC, the team color was clear and there were many brilliant plays. But for some reason, it was a pity that it did not appear in Worlds. It would be fun to meet again later.
Q) Was does DRX think about how LCK has done this year and do you think that all debates regarding the best region have been put to rest?
DRX: Previously, I heard that LCK was limited to style because it cared a lot about snowballing and that the team's fight part was behind. But through this year's opportunity, I think all parts, such as snowballing, fighting, and planning have developed and reached the best level in the world.
That's why the Worlds final also became an LCK civil war, and if you look at it, I think it showed that LCK is the best league.
DRX gave fans an unforgettable underdog story as the squad showed up and put it all on the line against the greatest teams and came out on top as the victors of the 2022 League of Legends Worlds.
