The final elimination matches of Stage 3 at the StarLadder Budapest Major delivered tension, drama, and two devastating exits for Brazil. With all four teams sitting at 1-2 in the Swiss group stage, every round mattered, but in the end Passion UA and B8 survived while Imperial and paiN saw their Major dreams end.
Passion UA were the first to punch their ticket to the 2-2 bracket, taking down Imperial in a convincing 2-0. The Ukrainians opened with a 13-8 win on Inferno before closing out Dust2 13-10. In-game leader Ioannis “Johnny” JT Theodosiou put on a standout performance across both maps, leading with composure and delivering crucial impact kills. The South African finished with a 1.57 rating and earned Man of the Match honors for guiding his team through the pressure.
Overtime heartbreak seals paiN’s early exit
The second elimination match brought even more pain for Brazil, as paiN Gaming were knocked out by B8 in two extremely narrow defeats. Despite Rodrigo “biguzera” Bittencourt’s leadership and a strong team effort, paiN fell 19-16 on Dust2 before losing 16-12 on Ancient. Both maps could have swung either way, but B8 held firm in the key moments and edged the Brazilians out.
The Ukrainians now advance to the 2-2 bracket, where one final best-of-one tomorrow will determine their playoff fate. For Imperial and paiN, Budapest marks the end of their Major run, departing on the finest of margins and leaving Brazil without a representative heading into the final day of groups.
