Image courtesy of iBUYPOWER
Immortals secure a 2-1 map score in the Grand final of iBUYPOWER Masters against North American favourites, Cloud9.
iBUYPOWER Masters 2016 has come to a conclusion, where we saw North America's favourite, Cloud9 fall to the Brazilian roster of Immortals. The best-of-three series saw three maps, where the first two swayed both sides with a significant bias, with the losing teams unable to secure double digits. In the end the Brazilians managed to edge it out, where they secured a 16:12 finish to close out the tournament.
iBUYPOWER Masters - Grand Final
Immortals vs. 
Cloud9
Winner: Immortals
Maps: de_Cache, de_Train, de_Mirage - 9:6, 7:0 (16:6); 6:9, 2:7 (8:16); 11:4, 5:8 (16:12)
MVP: Joao "felps" Vasconcellos
The series kicked off on de_Cache, where we saw a solid T side from Immortals. An initial lead from the Brazilians had a significant impact on the outcome of the series, providing a much needed confident boost prior to a series against North America's finest. Immortals secured a total of nine rounds to Cloud9's six before switching sides. Despite a decent score in the first half, after the American roster switched to the T side, things weren't going to plan. Not a single round went in favour of the team, allowing Immortals to run away with an astonishing 16:6 score on the first map.
Up next was train, where Cloud9 simply couldn't afford to lose, match point was on the line and both teams knew it. On the T side of Train the Americans were able to produce a competitive half, contrary to their previous experience. The team seemed to be a lot more focused, allowing for a 9:6 finish prior to switching over to the defence. Once on the CT side, Cloud9 repelled all advances of the Immortals roster, shutting down but two rounds. A spectacular performance from the team settles the map score at 1-1 and pushes the series onto map three.
The final map, de_Mirage was the closest of all. Both teams secured double digits; however the victor's crown was only destined to be granted to a single team. Immortals demonstrate a dominant CT half on the map, where the team managed to fend off a large portion of attempts from Cloud9. The Americans seemed lost throughout it, as strategies fell apart due to spot on reads from the opponents. The Brazilians go 11:4 and are ever so close to taking the series. Cloud9 refused to go out without a bang, trying their utmost best during the second half of Mirage. The CT side proved to be more fruitful for the team; however the initial deficit was simply too extensive to come back from, culminating in a 16:12 victory for the Immortals. The Brazilians secure the Champions' title, along with a placement at IEM XI Oakland and $20,000 in prize money.
Headline image courtesy of iBUYPOWER Twitter
