Movistar Riders Take the Crown at ESL Challenger Melbourne 2023

The Spaniards beat Bad News Eagles in the final to claim the ESL Challenger Melbourne 2023 title

Movistar Riders bagged 1000 BLAST Premier points and a $50,000 check by becoming the ESL Challenger Melbourne 2023 champions. Alejandro “ALEX” Masanet Candela and company took down Bad News Eagles in the Grand Final to win the tournament. The achievement will also earn Movistar Riders a guaranteed spot in the ESL Pro League Season 18. 

🏆 ARRIBA CON LA COPA MUCHACHOS 🏆

FUIMOS CAMPEONES EN VALENCIA Y REPETIMOS EN MELBOURNE.#SomosMovistarRiders🌊 #ESLChallenger Melbourne pic.twitter.com/DHJFMeCFr1

— Movistar Riders (@Movistar_Riders) April 30, 2023

The Spaniards had no trouble closing out the first round of the final on the Anubis map, winning with a score of 16-10.

Ancient was up next, presenting a more difficult obstacle for Movistar Riders. They maintained their composure, nevertheless, and closed out their opponents on the map with a score of 16-13.

How Did Movistar Riders Won The ESL Challenger Melbourne 2023? 

Movistar Riders weren't even supposed to be at the event – they got an invite just four days before it started! That's because TheMongolz had to withdraw, and ESL called up the Spanish team to take their place.

Movistar Riders kicked off their group stage journey with an intense match against Rare Atom on Anubis. It was neck-and-neck the whole way, and even went into overtime! But in the end, ALEX and his team emerged victorious. Next up was a showdown with the favorites, Bad News Eagles. The Spanish outfit continued their winning run and qualified for the playoffs. 

In the semi-finals, Movistar Riders faced off against ECSTATIC in a best-of-three affair, who had just beaten Complexity, the highest-ranked North American team at the event. the Spaniards rose to the challenge and won the match in two maps to secure their place in the final. The second map, Inferno, was a real nail-biter. The Danes almost came back from a 15-8 deficit, but Movistar Riders held on and emerged victorious.

The final showdown saw Movistar Riders go head-to-head with Bad News Eagles in a highly-anticipated rematch. Despite the Kosovar squad's best efforts, the Spaniards were just too strong and won the match in two maps, just like they did in the group stages, to get their hands on the trophy. 

Throughout the event, ALEX was the driving force behind Movistar Riders' success. The in-game leader not only had the highest rating (1.30) of any player at the tournament but also won the most clutches and had a remarkable KAST of 78.2%.

In addition to ALEX's standout performance, Movistar Riders also received significant contributions from Martinez and mopoz. The former's prowess with the AWP and the latter's ability to dominate on the T side steered the Spanish side toward glory. 

Movistar Riders have now won their second ESL Challenger trophy after their victory at Melbourne 2023. The Spanish squad had previously taken the trophy home from Valencia, Spain last summer.

With their victory at Melbourne 2023, the champions can now turn their attention to their upcoming ESL Challenger League Season 45 Europe campaign, which is their only scheduled event for the coming weeks.