Power Rankings for NA VCT Challengers One Preseason 2022

The First Main Event of NA VALORANT Champions Tour Challengers Stage

The qualifiers are over, and now it’s time to look ahead to the first main event of the NA VALORANT Champions Tour Challengers stage. Instead of jumping straight into a double-elimination bracket, the qualified teams will face off in a round-robin group stage. The results of this stage will determine the seeding for the playoffs.

There’s an exciting mix of teams participating in this event. Some are top teams from last year that we haven’t seen in a while, some are familiar groups from the VCT 2021 campaign, and there are also some new squads that emerged during the open qualifiers.

With the main event just around the corner, we asked our VALORANT writers to rank the 12 teams competing in the first NA VCT Challengers main event of the year. Here are our NA VCT “preseason” rankings:

The Champions Return: Cloud9, Sentinels, and Envy

We begin at the top with Cloud9, Sentinels, and Envy—the three teams that represented North America at VCT Champions last year. Despite disappointing overall performance by NA, it’s hard to imagine these teams continuing to struggle.

Cloud9’s performance at Champions was the most impressive, especially considering the recent roster change. They looked great in their showing at Knights Arena VALORAMPAGE and finished in first place with just one map loss (in overtime).

While Sentinels and OpTic had surprising group stage exits at Champions, they’re still the dominant teams that crushed both North America and international competition in 2021. Their lack of open qualifier events may concern some, but it’s safe to assume they’ll continue their success from last year.

The Playoff Favorites: 100 Thieves, XSET, Version1, The Guard

A new-look 100 Thieves roster will make their debut in Challengers after falling to Cloud9 at the LCQ in October. With Hiko, Ethan, and the deadly duelist Asuna, they have a strong foundation, but the new additions of BabyJ and ec1s have a lot to prove in just a few matches.

Both XSET and Version1 displayed impressive performances in the first open qualifier, qualifying for Challengers without dropping a series. V1 even went undefeated without losing a single map. With their recent additions, Zander for V1 and Cryocells for XSET, these teams should continue their momentum in the Challengers playoffs. Zellsis for V1 and zekken for XSET have also been dominant since the year started.

The Guard formed in November and recently added Trent Cairns in January to complete their lineup. Despite their short time playing together, this new group has shown great potential, especially with standout performances from trent, valyn, and JonahP.

The Teams Scrapping Near the Bottom: NRG, Rise, Evil Geniuses, Knights, Luminosity

These teams may rank lower on the list, but they’re not far behind and could surprise everyone by snagging a playoff spot. To make it to the main event, all of these teams had to win in a deep and stacked set of open qualifiers.

Since joining NRG in November, hazed has brought out the best in the lineup, particularly tex, eeiu, and s0m. They’ve won 31 out of 36 matches played, with only five losses, three against XSET and one against Cloud9. They’ve also secured 2-0 wins against Luminosity, Knights, and Rise.

Rise had a strong presence at the LCQ but faced tough losses during the open qualifiers. They reached the main event in the final wave of matches but haven’t competed in any other events since the LCQ. They need to shake off some rust to regain their momentum.

Evil Geniuses may have been underestimated after their roster announcement, but YaBoiDre has been impressive, transitioning from a duelist to a Sova/Chamber hybrid.

Both Knights and Luminosity have relatively unproven rosters with limited VCT experience compared to their competitors. It will be challenging for them to finish in the top four in their respective groups, but not impossible.

The 2022 NA VCT Challengers One event begins tomorrow, Feb. 11.

Article NA VALORANT Champions Tour, Challengers stage, Cloud9, Sentinels, Envy, 100 Thieves, XSET, Version1, The Guard, NRG, Rise, Evil Geniuses, Knights, Luminosity