The BLAST Pro Series: Istanbul 2018 is set to begin at the end of next week and details have just been released about the matchmaking and other important information.
BLAST Pro Series: Istanbul 2018 format and teams
The Istanbul event will feature two main stages and a one-on-one extra one. To begin with, the Group Stage is the initial phase of the tournament and will take up at least one of the two days of the event. Six teams have been invited to the tournament and they will face off in the Round Robin format, where they all play against one another. All matches will be in the best-of-one format, with the top two teams advancing to the Finals on 29 September.
The six teams that will participate in this tournament are:
- Astralis
- Cloud9
- MIBR
- Ninjas in Pyjamas
- Space Soldiers
- Virtus.pro
Unlike most other tournaments, BLAST Pro Series: Istanbul 2018 will include a special bonus stage, where players from certain teams will engage in one-on-one duels on a BLAST Standoff Aim Map. These showdowns will be played with different weapons, more specifically with the M4A4 (or M4A1-S), Desert Eagle, AK47, CZ75, and AWP, in that order. The first player to score 10 kills against their opponent will win the match up. The team that brings in the most kills will win this stage and take home $20,000 from the prize pool, in addition to any other rewards from the main stage.
Speaking of the prize pool, its combined value is $250,000 and all teams will receive a share of it. However, the size of that share will depend on how well they perform and where they place in the rankings. The prize distribution goes as follows:
1st place – $125,000
2nd place – $50,000
3rd place – $25,000
4th place – $15,000
5th place – $10,000
6th place – $5,000
Standoff Winner – $20,000
Game Schedule
In addition to the tournament format, the organizers have also announced the match lineup with a full schedule for the Group Stage.
Your complete #BLASTProSeries #Istanbul 🇹🇷schedule is here. Are you ready? @Astralisgg @Cloud9 @NiPGaming @SpaceSoldiersTR @MiBR @VirtusPro
— BLAST Premier 💥 (@BLASTPremier) September 17, 2018
The matches are organized into rounds, in which every team participates, but never against the same opponent. More specifically:
Round 1
Space Soldiers vs Ninjas in Pyjamas
MIBR vs Cloud 9
Virtus.pro Astralis
Round 2
Space Soldiers vs Astralis
Cloud 9 vs Virtus.pro
Ninjas in Pyjamas vs MIBR
Round 3
MIBR vs Space Soldiers
Astralis vs Cloud9
Virtus.pro vs Ninjas in Pyjamas
Round 4
Cloud9 vs Space Soldiers
Ninjas in Pyjamas vs Astralis
MIBR vs Virtus.pro
Round 5
Astralis vs MIBR
Space Soldiers vs Virtus.pro
Cloud9 vs Ninjas in Pyjamas
