Paris served two clean storylines today and both hit hard. NRG swept Fnatic to punch the first ticket to Championship Sunday, and DRX sent Paper Rex home with a steely 2-0. One match felt like a slow squeeze into a stomp; the other was a momentum theft followed by a tidy close.

If you wanted quiet, you picked the wrong tournament.

Fnatic vs NRG: OT on Ascent, Stomp on Abyss

Ascent set the tone. It felt like NRG had the remote control – timeouts on point, mid-round reads clicking, and by halftime they were chilling with an 8-4 lead. Fnatic clawed back with the second-half pistol and finally settled into their double-Sentinel setups. Kaajak did an amazing flank, getting a double kill that forced the overtime. But that was it. In the extra rounds, NRG’s timing won out: mada held his own, s0m’s early-round disruptions paid off, and the map ended 14-12. Not flashy-just the kind of disciplined mid-rounding that steals a favorite’s pick at a major.

Abyss was a different sport. NRG’s attack half snowballed instantly, and by the time anyone blinked the scoreboard said 11-1. Harbor/Yoru layers were opening space on command, skuba was everywhere cleaning up, and the few Fnatic lifelines – winning pistol, catching a bonus – didn’t really do much. The second half was formalities: 13-5, 2-0 series, and NRG into their org’s first international grand final. Skuba walked away with series-high impact (1.31 rating, +17), and the whole team looked scarily comfortable in the chaos.

Fnatic drop to Lower Bracket Final, with a day to reset and rethink Abyss.

DRX vs Paper Rex: The 9-3 Curse on Ascent, Ice Cold Close on Lotus

Ascent started with PRX in full swing. Jinggg had 20 kills by halftime, PRX bullied their way to a 9-3 lead, and it looked like a routine shove over the line. Then DRX flipped the script. They won the second pistol, took mid space away, and let HYUNMIN run hot – six first kills and a ridiculous 36/19/1 by the end. PRX reached 12 first, but DRX dragged it to extras and closed 15-13 after trading defensive stands in OT.

Lotus was PRX’s pick and a clean read from DRX. They swapped HYUNMIN to Raze to mirror PRX, snatched the opening pistol, and played a patient first half to 7-5. The second pistol (a MaKo 4K) blew the game open. The game went 11-5 in a blink – before PRX punched back with a couple of sharp A-hits and a 1v3 Showstopper clutch from Jinggg. No panic from DRX; they tightened post-plants, traded correctly around A Tree, and shut the door 13-8. HYUNMIN still led the line (19 kills on Lotus, 55 across the series), but it was the classic DRX package: MaKo calm in anchors, free1ng’s timing on hits, and no wasted utility once the economy stabilized.

PRX bow out in fourth; DRX move on with their first Champs top 3 since 2022.

Lower Final is set: Fnatic vs DRX on Saturday, October 4 at 13:00 CEST. Winner gets NRG in the best-of-five Grand Final on Sunday, October 5 at 13:00 CEST, both at Accor Arena.

Paris crowds have been loud all week – expect that to spike with a trophy on the line.