by The BLAST Bounty Spring 2025 tournament opened with a thrilling set of quarterfinals that set the stage for an intense weekend of Counter-Strike 2 action.
From Team Spirit’s resilient comeback against HEROIC to G2 Esports’ utter dominance over BetBoom Team, the action delivered excitement, drama, and standout individual performances.
Spirit secured a hard-fought victory against HEROIC to advance to the semifinals.
Despite both teams missing key members—HEROIC’s Andrey “?tN1R?” Tatarinovich due to visa issues and Spirit without coach Sergey “?hally?” Shavaev due to health concerns—Spirit displayed resilience and adaptability.
Semi-Final secured for @Team__Spirit as they eliminate @heroicgg from the Bounty and take $25K while they are at it! ?? #BLASTPremier pic.twitter.com/fiCE8bX7Qm
— BLAST Premier ?? (@BLASTPremier) January 23, 2025
The series kicked off on Anubis, where HEROIC dominated the first half, racing to a 9-3 lead behind álvaro “?SunPayus?” García’s stellar performance.
However, Spirit mounted an impressive second-half comeback, clawing back into the game to secure a narrow 13-11 victory.
“I feel like Spirit got a little lucky,” analyst Alex “?Mauisnake?” Ellenberg commented, suggesting the match could have easily gone the other way.
On Spirit’s map pick, Nuke, the Russian squad looked unstoppable.
A dominant 9-3 terrorist side was followed by a flawless counter-terrorist performance, closing the map with a decisive 13-3 scoreline.
Dmitry “sh1ro” Sokolov was the standout player of the match, continuing his strong form from last year.
Post-match, Danil “?donk?” Kryshkovets acknowledged communication struggles on LAN and personal frustrations during Nuke but expressed confidence in the team’s ability to address these issues.
HEROIC’s SunPayus, who posted an impressive 1.24 series rating, admitted they struggled to counter Spirit’s fast-paced playstyle, particularly in close duels.
G2 Esports’ revamped roster began their LAN campaign in style, steamrolling BetBoom Team to secure their spot in the BLAST Bounty Spring semifinals.
BetBoom, hampered by the absence of key players Kirill “?Boombl4?” Mikhailov and Aleksandr “?zorte?” Zagodyrenko, had to rely on stand-ins Vladislav “?nafany?” Gorshkov and Aleksandr “?KaiR0N-?” Anashkin, significantly weakening their lineup.
A great showing from @G2CSGO as they steamroll their way to the Semi-Finals! ?#BLASTPremier pic.twitter.com/QLzT7ABTAF
— BLAST Premier ?? (@BLASTPremier) January 23, 2025
G2 opened on Anubis, with Ilya “?m0NESY?” Osipov leading the charge.
The young AWPer delivered a jaw-dropping performance, tallying seven multi-kills and a 2.34 rating to help his team dominate the map 13-2.
The trend continued on Dust2, where m0NESY and Nikita “?HeavyGod?” Martynenko spearheaded another commanding display, closing out the series 13-3.
In post-match interviews, m0NESY acknowledged the adjustments required after Nikola “?NiKo?” Kova?’s departure, while Nemanja “?huNter-?” Kova? revealed his role in filling the leadership void.
“Losing NiKo is tough. He was vocal and one of the best players in the world, but we’ve all stepped up to make it work,” huNter- said.
With a monstrous 1.95 series rating, m0NESY was the clear MVP, demonstrating that he is ready to carry G2 in this new era.
Spirit and G2 now await their semifinal opponents, with the next matches set to take place this Saturday.
Saturday’s BLAST Bounty Spring fixtures
- Team Vitality ($1.36) vs Eternal Fire ($3.00) @ 4pm CET
- Natus Vincere ($1.28) vs paiN Gaming ($3.50) @ 7pm CET
