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The culmination of the VCT 2022 circuit will proceed in Istanbul, Turkey, with the best teams from all over the world competing for the title of Valorant Champions. Scheduled to be held between August 31 and September 18, this annual spectacle will decide the second-ever winner of the VCT Champions trophy.
16 teams from all over the world will compete at the tournament, including teams from North America, South America, Europe, APAC (Asia-Pacific), China, Japan and Korea.
Entering VCT Champions 2022: Istanbul as one of North America's top representatives is 100 Thieves. After enjoying a streak of success in the NA Last Chance Qualifiers, they will join OpTic Gaming and XSET as NA's last hopes of winning the Valorant Champions 2022.
This article will take a look at how 100 Thieves is gearing up for the upcoming VCT Champions 2022 Istanbul.
100 Thieves roster analysis ahead of VCT Champions 2022 Istanbul
100 Thieves is yet to compete in an international VCT event in 2022. Their most recent international VCT outing was in 2021 when the North American side secured a top-four finish at the Stage 3 Masters - Berlin.
However, since then, 100 Thieves' Valorant roster has gone through a horde of changes. After their original roster split up in late-2021, 100 Thieves acquired two new players - BabyJ and ec1s - only to remove them from the active roster a month later.
Later on, the organization brought in DDK and Sean Gares to the coaching staff in an attempt to revamp their roster for the 2022 VCT season. As a result of their efforts,100 Thieves went on to win the North American LCQ, earning a last-minute ticket to the Champions 2022. Their current roster comprises of:
- Peter "Asuna" Mazuryk
- Derrek "Derrek" Ha
- Brenden "stellar" McGrath (IGL)
- William "Will" Cheng
- Sean "bang" Bezerra
- Sean "sgares" Gares (Coach)
Team analysis
Overall, 100 Thieves' roster appears to be in good shape ahead of their VCT 2022 Champions Istanbul campaign. With the firepower of players like Will and Asuna, and under the guidance of experienced minds like stellar and Sean Gares, 100 Thieves enters the tournament with a strong chance of seeing victory. Here is an individual player analysis of their roster:
Asuna
19-year-old Peter "Asuna" Mazuryk leads the 100 Thieves Valorant roster as its most promising player. He is the longest-standing member of the roster as well, having joined the team back in October 2020. He has been with the organization through thick and thin, and is the only one from the current roster who has represented 100 Thieves on the international stage.
Although known for his audacious plays on Duelists, Asuna has been seen in an Initiator role for most of the year. His most popular Agent choices include KAY/O and Skye, but Asuna does not shy away from occassionally picking Raze, Sage, Fade or Neon.
bang
At just 18 years of age, Sean "bang" Bezerra will represent 100 Thieves as their youngest member, while being one of the youngest players in VCT Champions Istanbul. Bang has played a pivotal role in the organization's rebuilding, as he was one of the only two players to be retained from the previous roster.
Despite being the youngest in the team, bang is known for being a proficient Controller, carrying out one of the most pivotal in-game duties. He initiated his Valorant career as Omen, later shifting to Astra. However, bang can currently be seen switching between all four Controller Agents in his VCT matchups.
stellar
Brenden "stellar" McGrath is one of 100 Thieves' most recent additions. Upon his arrival, the 26-year-old filled the spot of the team's IGL (in-game leader), a role that several 100-Thieves players have struggled with in the past. Stellar will be competing in an international VCT tournament for the first time in his career at Champions 2022.
Stellar finds himself in a Sentinel role at 100 Thieves, which enables him to carry out his duties as the team's primary shot-caller. Although he was a Controller player in the past, stellar is a versatile talent. He was seen on Agents like Cypher, Sage and KAY/O during 100 Thieves' recent NA LCQ run.
Derrek
Derrek "Derrek" Ha was acquired by 100 Thieves as part of their roster rebuild back in Stage 2 of VCT 2022. Since his arrival, the 24-year-old has proven himself to be the most reliable player in the team. His ability to clutch the most unwinnable rounds and guide the team to victory will definitely come in handy during 100 Thieves first ever VCT Champions tournament.
Derrek is reputed to be one of North America's most experienced Sova players. With 244 official matches on the Agent, Derrek has established himself as a force to be reckoned with. He has also been seen on Agents like Fade, Breach, and Sage during his time at 100 Thieves so far.
Will
William "Will" Cheng joined 100 Thieves alongside Derrek and stellar, and has taken on the responsibility of the team's Duelist. He will compete in his first international VCT event at the Valorant Champions 2022 in Istanbul.
Will has played Duelists all throughout his Valorant career and continues to do so at 100 Thieves. However, with Chamber taking over the game's meta, Will has been seen picking Chamber on some maps and alternating between Raze and Jett on the remaining maps.
Recent performances
100 Thieves had a disappointing streak of results to kick-start their VCT 2022 season. Their performance in the Stage 1 NA Challengers earned them a 9-10th spot finish, whereas their Stage 2 run ended with them in fifth-sixth spot, failing to qualify for the Masters in both instances.
In terms of recent performances, however, 100 Thieves has perhaps the most stellar match-history among all the teams competing in the upcoming Champions 2022. They redeemed their past records by proving themselves against some of NA's best rosters in the Last Chance Qualifiers.
Upcoming matchups
100 Thieves finds themselves in Group D of the VCT Champions 2022 Group Stage, alongside DRX, Furia and Fnatic. They will engage against teams from their group in GSL-style group play in an attempt to qualify for the playoffs.
Thieves will open up their Valorant Champions tally against European giants - Fnatic - on Day 3 of the tournament. Fans will witness one of EMEA's top sides face-off against one of NA's finest on Friday, September 2 - 8.00 am PDT / 5.00 pm CEST / 8.30 pm IST.
