FaZe Eliminates Spirit, 3DMAX Makes Falcons Sweat: ESL Pro League Season 22 Quarterfinals Recap

The ESL Pro League S22 quarterfinals are wrapped up, and the four remaining teams are ready for the semis. We got a mix of clean wins, close maps, and a couple of surprises – nothing too crazy, but enough to keep things interesting.

Here’s how each of the games went down.

3DMAX vs Falcons

Team Falcons' NiKo vs 3DMAX — Image credit: ESL

This was (surpisingly) the most even match of the day. 3DMAX started strong with a 13-9 win on Inferno, but Falcons fired back on Ancient 13-7. That set up a very tense decider on Nuke. Falcons got off to a fast start on T side, but 3DMAX fought back hard to force overtime. But NiKo, m0NESY and kyousuke showed up when it mattered the most. In the end, Falcons steadied themselves and closed it 16-13 in OT. It wasn’t easy (as we could see from their faces on the sidecams), but they pulled through.

The strange part? Falcons lost every pistol round across all three maps and still managed to win the series. Not something you see often, but a win’s a win.

FaZe vs Spirit

karrigan & rain last dance in FaZe's unexpected stomp win against Team Spirit — Image credit: ESL

FaZe didn’t give Spirit much of a chance. They won 2-0 with a 13-9 on Nuke and 13-5 on Mirage. Team Spirit were never really in control of either map, and their individual form just didn’t show up when it mattered. FaZe, on the other hand, looked organized and confident. Frozen, broky, and Twistzz were all putting up numbers, and FaZe’s map control made Spirit look lost more than once.

It was a quick and clear series – FaZe move on to the semifinals without breaking much of a sweat, and I’m glad FaZe’s last dance with rain turns up to be a banger.

MOUZ vs NaVi

torzsi doing his job well on the big green in MOUZ's win against NaVi — Image credit: ESL

This one was tighter. NaVi actually took the opener on Ancient 16-14 after a long and messy battle. But once MOUZ found their rhythm, the next two maps went their way. They tied it up on Inferno with a 13-8, and then completely ran over NaVi on Train 13-4. Brollan and Jimpphat had a great showing, while NaVi just couldn’t keep up after the first map.

iM tried to pull them back in on the decider, but it wasn’t enough. All things considered, NaVi are slowly going back to their winning days, and hopefully we’ll be able to see them stomp in the Thunderpick World Championship 2025, coming up in just a few days.

FURIA vs Vitality

ZywOo dominated the server in Vitality's win against FURIA — Image credit: ESL

FURIA actually managed to surprise Vitality early on. They took the first map, Overpass, 13-9 with a solid defensive side. But once Vitality adjusted, the rest went their way. Inferno ended 13-7, and Nuke was a one-sided 13-5. ZywOo was his usual self, topping the board, while mezii and flameZ helped lock down the CT halves. Vitality’s defense was just too sharp – across their three CT sides, they won 24 of 32 rounds, which tells you everything.

FURIA showed fight, but Vitality were simply more polished.