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Copenhagen Clutch – the best moments from VCT Masters 2022
Missed a clutch moment? Don't panic. We've rounded up the best and most exciting clutches from the VCT 2022 Stage 2 Masters.
The Valorant Champions Tour 2022: Stage 2 Masters has been full of exciting moments, surprises and last-minute victories. There have been dramatic wins and moving losses, with plenty to be proud of from each team and participant.
One of the most explosive things that can happen during a match is a clutch, a move that secures a victory from a team at a disadvantage. If the last remaining member of a team suddenly knocks everyone else out and claims the win – that's a clutch. The move has seen countless Valorant games change course dramatically in all manner of competitions, but a clutch at the VCT Masters just hits a little harder.
As you can imagine, the move takes guts and skill in equal measure, refusing to throw away the game even when the odds are stacked against you. A clutch can resurrect a flagging team and give fans something to remember for years to come. We've not been short of them during this year's Stage 2 competition, proving that the players are sharper and more determined than ever.
We've got a round-up of some of the best clutch moments at the 2022 VCT so that you can relive those victorious moments in detail.
Find out about Red Bull Campus Clutch
Kru Esports's unstoppable Klaus
Day one of the competition had Kru Esports against Loud, and the rivalry resulted in an exemplary first-day clutch from Nicolas 'Klaus' Ferrari.
After a neat and tidy 1v3 cleanup that got a beautiful clutch underway, Klaus also came through in several other rounds where he was the last man standing.
Funplus Phoenix's double whammy
Andrey 'Shao' Kiprsky had an exceptional performance on the third day of the competition, managing to secure four back-to-back kills across two consecutive rounds for FPX against DRX and clutching a number of rounds single-handedly.
During the last moments of the seventh round on Haven, he fearlessly clutched a daunting 1v2 with some flawless Fade mastery, then went on to clutch several more rounds. By round 15, his confidence was such that he pulled off a flick against Kim 'stax' Gu-taek, who was pelting him with everything in his arsenal, all while defusing the spike in a move that took everyone by surprise.
Shao's moves even left the commentators asking how it was possible to be this good. What's more, on day four, he secured several more accolades with a full clutch and a death-defying triple kill against Northeption.
Northeption's Ascent triple
Things were looking stacked against Northeption, and after Shao's performance earlier in the day, it took some serious courage to come up against them and pull something like this off.
Byung-yeon 'JoXJo' Cho was up against three remaining members of FPX on the Ascent map's 15th round, but he wasn't about to go down easily. Taking on a sneaky solo kill followed by some 2v1 chaos, he managed to clutch the round against all odds.
OpTic's pop
Day six was strong from start to finish, but a standout clutch for OpTic against Xset in round 12 of bind took everyone by surprise.
Jaccob 'yay' Whiteaker took the win for OpTic by first taking out Matthew 'Cryocells' Panganiban and planting the spike once the coast was clear. What was now a 1v1 situation with Xset's Brendan 'BcJ' Jensen sneaking toward the spike quickly became a textbook clutch as yay used his ultimate to wipe his opponent with a single one shot.
Guild Esports' 1 HP comeback
Pulling off a clutch is one thing, but pulling off a clutch when the odds are against you and you have just one HP left is a whole other thing.
Amazingly, this is precisely what Nikita 'trexx' Cherednichenko did in round 19 of Ascent against FPX. Without a second thought, he quickly jumped into a 1v3 with just one point of HP left, knocking out the competition and securing another win for Guild Esports.
Leviatán's last minute clutch
Another high-stakes clutch on day seven, this time from Leviatán's Francisco 'kiNgg' Aravena against Xset.
What makes this one so incredible is the speed with which kiNgg saved the round for his team. After Xset's Zachary 'zekken' Patrone had wiped most of his team, it came down to a 1v1 in the last few seconds of play. With just 10 seconds left on the clock, kiNgg jumped in with the clutch, taking the round for Leviatán.
Paper Rex's 1v4
Aaron 'mindfreak' Leonhart was taking no prisoners during Paper Rex's stint against Fnatic on day eight. Not only was the clutch late into the game, but it was also an astonishing victory during a 1v4 fight.
Barrelling around the Ascent map in the 21st round, mindfreak shocked everyone with his performance, securing an impressive clutch during the last few minutes of the game.
Paper Rex back on the offensive
Day 10 saw some aggressive play from Paper Rex, who once again managed to write the book on the perfect clutch. Khalish 'd4v41' Rusyaidee took an early 1v3 in Haven, taking everyone by surprise and skillfully turning the round in PRX's favour.
Not only that, but PRX's IGL Benedict 'Benkai' Tan secured a brutal clutch in Fracture several rounds later.
Shao's explosive return
The OpTic and FunPlus Phoenix matches on day 11 were tense and full of impressive plays. During the Split map, Shao came out of nowhere with a four-kill clutch during the third round.
Shao was setting up to be trouble for OpTic from the start, with clear and accurate yet aggressive plays throughout culminating in this brutal takedown of almost an entire team. He later secured a further clutch during a 1v2 as OpTic looked to plant the spike.
This kind of performance no doubt led to the dramatic victory of FunPlus Phoenix over Paper Rex at the VCT 2022 Stage 2 Masters Copenhagen Grand Final. Despite being knocked into the lower bracket by Fnatic right at the start of playoffs, they worked their way up with daring plays and endless clutches and even got their revenge on Fnatic on their path to becoming champions.
