I’m just a regular Counter-Strike fan, and in 2026 I still find myself going back to certain matches when the mood hits. One of them is the 2023 BLAST Premier World Final upper-bracket final between FaZe and G2. I remember watching it live with a friend, both of us arguing about the veto before a single bullet was fired. Back then, both rosters were fresh in different ways: FaZe had brought in David “frozen” Čerňanský for Russel “Twistzz” Van Dulken, while G2 had welcomed Nemanja “nexa” Isaković back in place of Justin “jks” Savage. New pieces, old rivalries, and a decider on Anubis. What more could a fan want?
From my couch, the series felt like a roller coaster. G2 picked Inferno first, and I thought that was a smart move. The Kovač cousins, Nikola “NiKo” Kovač and Nemanja “huNter-” Kovač, were absolutely cooking. G2 built an 8-4 lead on the terrorist side, and every round seemed to flow through one of them. The moment I remember most from that map was nexa pulling off a 1×3 clutch. I actually yelled at my screen. It was the kind of round that makes you believe a new signing has already settled in. FaZe tried to claw back, but G2 closed it out 13-7 and looked comfortable doing it. Even the final force close felt like a statement.
Then came Nuke, FaZe’s pick, and the series flipped. FaZe only managed four points in the first half. I remember texting my friend something like, ‘This is over.’ Classic mistake. FaZe produced a practically perfect CT side and rattled off nine rounds in a row to win 13-10. NiKo was monstrous on Nuke, finishing with 30 kills and a 1.84 rating, but even that wasn’t enough. That map was a reminder of why Counter-Strike punishes individual heroics when the team structure collapses. FaZe didn’t panic. They just kept taking space, trading, and forcing G2 into uncomfortable retakes.
And then there was Anubis. The first half ended 6-6, and the balance never really broke. Every time one team looked ready to pull away, the other answered. As a neutral fan, I loved it. As someone who had picked G2 in my head, I hated it. The match went to overtime, and that’s where FaZe’s experience showed. Finn “karrigan” Andersen was everywhere, nearly reaching 27 kills, and he capped it with an overtime ace that felt almost theatrical. I’ve rewatched that ace more times than I should admit. FaZe took the decider 16-13 and the upper-bracket final.
Here’s a quick map summary from my rewatch notes:
| Map | Picker | Result | My takeaway |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inferno | G2 | G2 13-7 | NiKo and huNter- controlled the pace; nexa’s clutch was huge |
| Nuke | FaZe | FaZe 13-10 | FaZe’s CT side was flawless; NiKo’s 30 kills went to waste |
| Anubis | Decider | FaZe 16-13 | Overtime chaos; karrigan’s ace sealed it |
The bracket consequences were simple but dramatic. FaZe moved straight into the semi-finals, where they would meet the winner of Cloud9 versus MOUZ. G2 dropped to the quarter-finals and had to face Natus Vincere on the other side. As a fan, I remember thinking that G2 had the firepower to bounce back, but NaVi in a quarter-final is never a comfortable draw. FaZe, meanwhile, looked like a team that had found its shape at exactly the right time.
What makes this match stick with me in 2026 is how much it captured the transitional nature of top-tier CS. FaZe were integrating frozen, G2 were re-integrating nexa, and both teams were still figuring out their best defaults. You could see the raw talent everywhere: Ilya “m0NESY” Osipov producing highlight-reel moments, NiKo carrying with absurd numbers, karrigan out-thinking everyone in overtime. But you could also see the rough edges. That tension is what made the series so watchable.
Would I call it the greatest match ever? No. But it’s a perfect rewatch: a clean map one, a comeback map two, and an overtime decider. It has star power, a clutch, an ace, and a bracket twist. In 2026, with so many rosters having changed again, it plays like a time capsule. I still recommend it to friends who ask for a classic CS2 series to watch. My advice is simple: don’t skip the veto, don’t skip the Nuke comeback, and definitely don’t skip karrigan’s overtime ace. 🎯