Gladiators dominate in winning Overwatch League’s Kickoff Clash

The first stage of the 2022 Overwatch League season is over, with the Los Angeles Gladiators being crowned champions of the West and the Seoul Dynasty being crowned champions of the East. For the first time since 2019, a crowd was able to watch an Overwatch championship match as the Gladiators won in front of an audience at Esports Stadium Arlington in Texas. Qualifiers for the next tournament, Midseason Madness, begin June 16, but before then, here’s a look back at some of the highlights from the Kickoff Clash tournament.

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Gladiators dominate the competition

The Los Angeles Gladiators took home the first tournament victory of the season for the West region by beating the Dallas Fuel 4-0 in the Kickoff Clash grand final. It capped off an impressive tournament run in which they didn’t lose a game and went 13-1 overall, with their only map loss coming against the Fuel in the upper bracket. They beat the Houston Outlaws 3-0, the Dallas Fuel 3-1, the Atlanta Reign 3-0 and the Fuel 4-0.

They didn’t exactly come out of nowhere to win it all, but the Shock and Fuel were better during qualifiers. Those were the two teams the Gladiators lost to during qualifiers, too. The Gladiators didn’t face the Shock in the tournament, but they did get revenge (twice) on the Fuel in front of a very blue crowd. With a mixture of team veterans like Kevin "kevster" Persson and Jin-seo "Shu" Kim and newcomers like Corey "Reiner" Scoda, Daniel "FunnyAstro" Hathaway and Patiphan “Patiphan” Chaiwong, the team looked sharp throughout the weekend.

Patiphan a two-esport champion

The Gladiators made a splash in the offseason when they announced they had signed Patiphan. He was an Overwatch prodigy a few years ago, rising up the ranks in Thailand as a 15-year-old and leading Team Thailand at the 2018 Overwatch World Cup. Then, in 2020 he made the switch to VALORANT.

In early 2021, he led X10 to Masters Reykjavík as the Southeast Asian representative at the first-ever international VALORANT tournament. He became known internationally not only for his play but all for his quirky personality and his showmanship onstage. Later in the year, he and his team stunned the world by beating Envy at Champions to qualify for the playoffs of the first-ever VALORANT world championship.

Now, he’s an Overwatch tournament champion with the Gladiators in what looks like a very promising 2022 for him and the Gladiators. Patiphan was in tears after the victory and could barely speak during his onstage interview after what was clearly a big moment for him. “It means everything to me,” the 18-year-old said. Yes, he’s only 18 and already has an impressive list of accomplishments in VALORANT and Overwatch.

Shock disappoint, while Fuel rise to the occasion

Overwatch League fans are used to seeing the Shock do well, and they have continued that trend this year despite a major roster overhaul. It was a disappointing Kickoff Clash tournament for the San Francisco Shock after they looked so good during qualifiers. They were 6-0 during qualifiers but went 2-2 in the tournament. They did show some resilience in their first match where they went down 2-0 before coming back to beat the Washington Justice 3-2.

The Fuel performed very well in front of a home crowd at Esports Stadium Arlington. They played the most matches of any team this past weekend, going 4-2 with wins over the Toronto Defiant, Florida Mayhem, San Francisco Shock and Atlanta Reign. They just couldn’t beat the Gladiators. It’s too bad they couldn’t win a title in front of their fans, but it was still fun to see the Texas crowd cheering on the Fuel. They’re certainly exciting to watch and provided lots of highlight moments, like Tae-hoon "Edison" Kim’s 5K, and the team’s speedrun on Colosseo against the Reign.

Seoul Dynasty finally win one

While North American fans were probably just paying attention to the West region Kickoff Clash, there also was a tournament going on among the best teams in the East. The Seoul Dynasty came out on top in that one, winning their first Overwatch title. As the only team representing South Korea in the Overwatch League, a league that is predominantly composed of Korean players, it was a big moment. The moment was even bigger because the Dynasty have come close before, losing the 2020 Overwatch League playoffs grand final to the Shock.

Unlike the Gladiators, the Dynasty had to make a lower bracket run to win the East Kickoff Clash after losing their opening matchup to last year’s champs, the Shanghai Dragons. The Dynasty beat the Hangzhou Spark and got revenge against the Dragons en route to their victory over the Philadelphia Fusion in the final. Now, the Dynasty finally have the pressure of winning a tournament off their back. Next, the Fusion, whom they beat in the final, need to do the same after falling short a few times in the past. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to see the Gladiators face the Dynasty in the Kickoff Clash, but with Midseason Madness being a global tournament, we’ll finally get to see who’s better between the East and West next month.

Lead photo credit: Los Angeles Gladiators via Twitter