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Asian domination: Paper Rex lift Masters Toronto trophy

BBG News

In the finals of VALORANT Masters Toronto 2025, the third seed from the Pacific region, Paper Rex, faced off against Fnatic, the top seed from EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa).

Originating from the VCT Pacific region, the formidable team known as Paper Rex managed to defeat one of the most celebrated VALORANT lineups, Fnatic, in the finals of Masters Toronto, ultimately claiming the tournament’s coveted trophy.

In the past four international tournaments, teams from the Asian region have emerged victorious. This streak started with Gen.G Esports taking home Masters Shanghai, followed by Edward Gaming at Champions 2025, and most recently, T1 winning Masters Bangkok this year.

Paper Rex wins Masters Toronto

For nearly the entirety of the global VALORANT competition’s existence, Paper Rex has been a prominent force. As such, they are considered a powerful team in their region. However, despite their regional victories and strong performances, they have yet to translate these accomplishments into an international championship title.

2025 VCT Pacific Stage 1: I found myself on the brink in Paper Rex’s journey, teetering dangerously close to elimination from the Group Stage. But the team rallied, leveraging their lower bracket run strategy and squeaked through with just enough victories to secure a spot at Masters Toronto.

In the Pacific region, they entered as the third seeded team. They overcame almost every opponent they faced: Team Heretics, Team Liquid, G2 Esports, Sentinels, and Wolves Esports. This led them to the championship match against Fnatic, who are currently the best in Europe. Despite the unfavorable odds, PRX managed to reach the final.

Masters Toronto 2025: PRX vs FNC

Paper Rex gets two bans thanks to coming from the upper bracket.

Map 1: Sunset

Initially, Fnatic commenced the final with vigor, securing the initial four rounds on Defense effortlessly, causing some unease among Paper Rex supporters. Yet, starting from round five, the momentum shifted dramatically, and Fnatic failed to secure another win in the first half. At halftime, Paper Rex held a substantial lead of 8-4 over Fnatic.

As a dedicated fan, I found myself on the edge of my seat as the teams swapped sides during the match. The rounds became progressively tougher for Paper Rex, with FNC gradually closing the gap. However, the game took a thrilling turn when Khalish “d4v41” Rusyaidee’s Sage and Wang “Jinggg” Jie’s Raze executed an astonishing play that proved to be the decisive factor on the map. It was an electrifying finish!

The astonishing tactic left both viewers and Tyzon “TenZ” Ngo speechless, with a word of caution regarding volume – the gameplay was simply exceptional.

Map 2: Icebox

Initially, PRX took the front position. However, by the end of the first half, Fnatic managed to level the score.

In the second part of the game, some thrilling events took place. With Fnatic defending, it appeared as if the match was about to be concluded swiftly. However, the leading team in EMEA, Fnatic, had a score of 12-7. Remarkably, PRX managed to win the last five rounds, pushing the game into overtime.

Overtime gave fans an amazing show, but FNC won out with the final map score being 17-15.

Map 3: Pearl

For Fnatic, Pearl is a new battleground they’re not accustomed to, as their last encounter was on January 24, 2025, during the VCT EMEA main event against Natus Vincere. Since then, Fnatic has consistently vetoed or banned Pearl in every match of Masters Toronto.

In spite of numerous challenges, they had a slight advantage in the first half, scoring 7-5. They maintained their control over the pistol rounds and extended their lead to 9-5. However, from then on, they won just one more round. Once again, Paper Rex’s gameplay proved superior, moving them closer to winning the trophy with a score of 13-10 against Pearl.

Map 4: Lotus

Afterwards, the teams engaged in a fierce confrontation on Lotus. PRX managed to secure an elusive pistol round, but Fnatic found themselves compelled to purchase Outlaw due to their earlier actions. The remainder of the game was equally intense – neither team backing down. Paper Rex aimed to drive the train to its destination, while Fnatic strove to move in the opposite direction.

As the second half drew to a close, Fnatic held a narrow lead of 12-11. In a thrilling turnaround, Paper Rex managed to level the score by the end of round 24, forcing the match into overtime.

In Map 3, things moved more quickly compared to Map 2, and PRX emerged victorious, effectively shedding the label of being the top team without a title.

For Fnatic, though, this was one more trophy that they couldn’t bring home.

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2025-06-23 20:11

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