Liquid win 17 straight rounds, eliminate Wildcard in dominant fashion
In their second straight match against an NA opponent, Liquid had by far their best match of 2025, sweeping overtime on Inferno and then the entire Anubis map against Wildcard at IEM Katowice.
Inferno was a CT-side showcase for both teams, as both Liquid and Wildcard put up 10-round halves while on defense. But in overtime, it was Liquid who emerged on top, with the trio of Russel "Twistzz" Van Dulken, Roland "ultimate" Tomkowiak, and Keith "NAF" Markovic all stepping up to make big plays. Liquid would won all four OT rounds to steal away Wildcard's Inferno pick, 16-12.
Things went from bad to worse for Wildcard on Anubis. Liquid turned up the aggression, and both Twistzz and ultimate stayed hot while Guy "NertZ" Iluz heated up as well, preventing Wildcard from getting a single T-side round in the first half. NertZ led Liquid into the A site in their second half pistol round, and didn't even let Wildcard get a kill before mercifully ending the series with a dominant 13-0 win.
LiquidWildcard| Liquid |
K - D | +/- | ADR | KAST | Rating 2.1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Russel 'Twistzz' Van Dulken |
41 - 26 | +15 | 102.4 | 82.9% | 1.55 |
 Roland 'ultimate' Tomkowiak |
41 - 21 | +20 | 85.2 | 80.5% | 1.53 |
| Keith 'NAF' Markovic |
31 - 24 | +7 | 88.1 | 87.8% | 1.36 |
 Guy 'NertZ' Iluz |
35 - 27 | +8 | 90.8 | 70.7% | 1.33 |
 Justin 'jks' Savage |
19 - 20 | -1 | 59.9 | 87.8% | 1.05 |
| Wildcard |
K - D | +/- | ADR | KAST | Rating 2.1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peter 'stanislaw' Jarguz |
26 - 31 | -5 | 72.5 | 70.7% | 0.92 |
 Aran 'Sonic' Groesbeek |
24 - 32 | -8 | 71.4 | 73.2% | 0.82 |
 Love 'phzy' Smidebrant |
28 - 35 | -7 | 62.4 | 65.9% | 0.81 |
 Josh 'JBa' Barutt |
21 - 35 | -14 | 65.9 | 53.7% | 0.66 |
| Tim 'susp' Ångström |
17 - 35 | -18 | 56.9 | 53.7% | 0.66 |
This win sends both teams down different paths, as Liquid advances to the main event of IEM Katowice, while Wildcard is eliminated. With Liquid not competing at PGL Cluj-Napoca, a strong finish in Katowice is crucial for their Major aspirations.
