Week Three of CDL Major I Qualifiers starts Friday Afternoon

(Gray News) - The Call of Duty League’s (CDL) holiday hiatus ended last weekend, with Atlanta FaZe winning at CDL Minor I. With the CDL points earned from Minor I only counting towards qualifying for the postseason, FaZe still sits at 10th in the season standings, outside a winner’s bracket start. However, the good news is that they don’t have to do much to get back into a strong position.

The penultimate week of Major I qualifiers starts this afternoon, and four teams are tied with 1-3 records at 7th-10th in the standings. From top to bottom, those teams are Miami Heretics, Vancouver Surge, Cloud9 New York, and Atlanta FaZe. Each team placing 8th or above in the Major I qualifiers gets a winner’s bracket start, ensuring at least two matches in Madrid. The other four teams are subject to make or break their tournament in the loser’s bracket. So, the teams to watch in the last two weeks of qualifiers are those dancing around the winner’s bracket cutline. Let’s take a look at the matchups for this weekend.

Matches on Friday, January 17th:

• Los Angeles Guerrillas M8 vs. Cloud9 New York - 3 PM EST / 2 PM CST / 12 PM PST
• Vegas Falcons vs. OpTic Texas - 4:30 PM EST / 3:30 PM CST / 1:30 PM PST
• Minnesota RØKKR vs. Toronto Ultra - 6 PM EST / 5 PM CST / 3 PM PST

Week Three starts with a matchup between the 1-3 Cloud9 and the 0-4 Los Angeles Guerrillas M8. Cloud9 needs the win to begin distancing themselves from the jumble of teams at the bottom of the standings. The Guerrillas are searching for that first win of the season, as they also went out in round one of Minor I. Cloud9 has the edge in this matchup. In match two, we have OpTic Texas taking on the Vegas Falcons. This matchup should be an easy one for OpTic as the Falcons are also looking for their first win of the season. At the same time, OpTic has a 3-1 record in qualifiers and placed in the 3rd-4th tie at Minor I.

Minnesota RØKKR faces Toronto Ultra in Friday’s final match. Ultra is undefeated in Major I qualifiers so far, while RØKKR has a 2-2 record and is 6th in the standings. Ultra is the quick pick here, but RØKKR knocked out Ultra in the second round of Minor I last weekend with a reverse sweep. So, honestly, this is the match to watch on Friday, as it has the best chance for an electrifying finish.

Matches on Saturday, January 18th:

• Vancouver Surge vs. Vegas Falcons - 3 PM EST / 2 PM CST / 12 PM PST
• Cloud9 New York vs. Miami Heretics - 4:30 PM EST / 3:30 PM CST / 1:30 PM PST
• Boston Breach vs. Carolina Royal Ravens - 6 PM EST / 5 PM CST / 3 PM PST

Saturday’s matches begin with another fight at the bottom half of the standings. The Surge get their only chance at separating from the 7th-10th place pack this week by battling the Falcons. Unfortunately for the Falcons, they have been easy pickings this season, so the Surge will likely get the boost in CDL points they need. Cloud9 faces the Heretics in Saturday’s second match. Both these teams badly need any win they can get. The winner will likely edge their way into a winner’s bracket start, while the loser will presumably find the loser’s bracket. Due to this match’s weight, Cloud9 versus Heretics will be the can’t-miss match of the day.

The Carolina Royal Ravens clash with Boston Breach will end Saturday’s schedule. It is a battle at the top, with the Royal Ravens trying to maintain their perfect qualifiers record while the Breach hopes to bring them back to level pegging.

Matches on Sunday, January 19th:

• Los Angeles Guerrillas M8 vs. Toronto Ultra - 3 PM EST / 2 PM CST / 12 PM PST
• Los Angeles Thieves vs. OpTic Texas - 4:30 PM EST / 3:30 PM CST / 1:30 PM PST
• Minnesota RØKKR vs. Atlanta FaZe - 6 PM EST / 5 PM CST / 3 PM PST

Week three’s final slate of matches kicks off Sunday with a skirmish between Ultra and the Guerrillas M8. In a classic tale of undefeated versus utterly defeated, Ultra will try not to tarnish their strong start to the season, while the Guerrillas will desperately try to ruin someone else’s day for once. The Los Angeles Thieves will also look to keep their qualifiers record unharmed as they face OpTic in Sunday’s second match. OpTic, like the Breach on Saturday, will try to even the playing field and bring the Thieves back to earth.

Finally, RØKKR will take on FaZe in FaZe’s only matchup of the week. After a strong performance at Minor I, FaZe will be looking to right their qualifiers record with a win. FaZe did take RØKKR down in the semifinals of Minor I, but it was a close finish at 3-2, so don’t count RØKKR fully out of this one.

Each team only has three matches left in qualifying to change their Major I destiny. Tune into the official CDL YouTube Channel so you don’t miss a second of the action as they race to the finish. Coverage should begin 30 minutes before each day’s first match starts.

Gray Television is an investor in OpTic Gaming.