ASTRALIS WINS BLAST PRO SERIES ISTANBUL

On Saturday night the world's current number one Counter-Strike team, Major winners Astralis, won BLAST Pro Series Istanbul.

The tickets were sold out in Ülker Sports Arena for the biggest esports event ever in Turkey, and the crowd got what they came for: An amazing stage show and true world class Counter-Strike ending up with Astralis beating Brazilian superstars MIBR 2-1 in the Grand Final.

Massive performance

For the most of 2018 Astralis have been dominant on the world stage and the newly crowned Major winners did not come to Turkey for vacation. The team crushed all opposition on their way to the Grand FInal, and in the first map it certainly seemed it would be a safe win. But the Brazilian team of superstars came to defend their trophy from Copenhagen, and they demonstrated why they are always considered one of the favourites at all tournaments they play.

16-3 on Train was followed by an extremely close fight on Overpass, which the Brazilian side won 16-14. The last map of the BO3 Grand Final was Inferno, a map that came out just as close but this time Astralis came out on top with a 16-14 win. 2-1 and the new BLAST Pro Series champions was found - and crowned!  

MVP: Nikolai "dev1ce" Reedtz

The official BLAST Pro Series MVP, Nikolai "dev1ce" Reedtz is more than satisfied with his teammates:

- First and foremost this is a team performance. I felt good out there today, but I can't stress how good these guys are, and how much it means to be on a team where everybody works their butts off day in and day out. 

- I didn't make it to the first BLAST Pro Series event in Copenhagen, so for me this is my first time on the amazing stage. It's true what they say about this event; it's something truly unique and it's an amazing experience as a player to be on that stage. I also want to thank the Turkish audience - I hope it is not the last time we are here, and I hope that we have made a difference for the local esports scene. 

- I want to give my respect to the MIBR guys. It's a great team with really strong individuals, and I have a feeling they might be very hungry to take back the BLAST trophy, which they won in Copenhagen. For now, we're just extremely happy to bring home another trophy to our office. 

- It's been a great 2018 so far, but we have no intentions to slow down. We still have many areas to improve and a lot to work on. 

- But all that can wait! Tonight we celebrate!

The victory means that Astralis can take home 125.000 USD and the iconic gold trophy.

Next stop Copenhagen

BLAST Pro Series Istanbul was broadcast to TV stations in 129 countries, streamed on twitch in 20 languages and with more than 70 media representatives from 12 countries in the arena, the winners can expect quite some media attention over the coming days.

Next version of BLAST Pro Series will be held in Copenhagen's Royal Arena on November 3rd. 9.500 tickets out of the arenas capacity of 12.000 has been sold and reserved, but seats are still available via ticketmaster.dk 

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