As the Saudi Esports World Cup wraps up, the international LOL events are on pause, and the major regions will soon begin the third stage, vying for spots in the global finals. The European team G2 recently disclosed their training match outcomes from MSI and the Oil Cup, where they faced BLG in 11 games, with BLG securing a close 6-5 victory over G2, while AL also managed to tie G2 at 5-5.

During training matches against the LCK, G2 faced severe defeats, losing one match to T1 with a record of one win and six losses, and only winning three out of twelve games against GEN. Interestingly, G2 also scheduled training matches with their own region's KC, which had not qualified for MSI, and ended up losing 3-0 twice on the same day. It seems the future of the European region relies on MKOI and KC, as the veteran teams FNC and G2 are gradually fading and finding it hard to return to their peak.

Ruler rises to second place in the player prize ranking.

After the conclusion of the Oil Cup, the player prize rankings in the global LOL scene have been updated once again. Unsurprisingly, Faker remains at the top, with a total prize amount reaching $1.92 million. By the end of this year’s world championship, he is likely to surpass the $2 million mark. Following his second consecutive championship, Ruler's prize money has exceeded $1 million, placing him in second place in history, but he still trails behind the legendary Lee by over $900,000.

Although Duke has retired and transitioned to coaching, his prize earnings still rank third on the list. JKL is the only LPL player to make it into the top five, still needing over $80,000 to reach the million mark. Among those in the top ten, besides his brother, LPL also features Xiaohu, with Haki Tiger at $850,000 in seventh place. Following them are Knight and Meiko, ranked 15th and 16th respectively, while Baolan sits at 20th.

Beichuan misses the BLG training match.

In the first match of the third stage, BLG will face AL. Previously, a leak from a blogger named Hongcha suggested that Beichuan would likely still start in the first match. However, looking at the player rankings for BLG, it seems Beichuan might miss the starting position, as his teammates were not online when he was solo queuing. This situation likely indicates that Shadow has been training with others, and if the results are good, Beichuan may be sidelined.

In addition to solo queuing, some players were spotted in the gym, where BLG members such as Left Hand, Lord, Bin, and ELK were present, chatting and laughing together, while Beichuan was noticeably absent. Considering the training match circumstances, it seems Beichuan is in a precarious position. He is likely to follow Wei's old path, as his former team TT has already signed Aki for a dual jungle setup. If he ends up unemployed, it seems he won't have many options.

Xiangke responds to smoking during his debut stream.

During the second game of the LOL Oil Cup finals, a spectator captured Xiangke stepping outside to smoke after the match. It was clear that he felt immense pressure facing Chovy, as he struggled even in the second game. Unfortunately, he couldn't smoke during the match; otherwise, AL might have had a chance to turn the tables on GEN. Observant viewers noted that Xiangke, who earns millions annually, was smoking D-grade cigarettes.

During Xiangke's live debut, a viewer asked why he smokes LQ. Xiangke candidly replied, "Because it's cheap." When fans teased him about smoking D-grade cigarettes, Xiangke responded, "If it's D-grade, then it's D-grade; as if I'm not D-grade myself." Realizing he shouldn't discuss this topic, he attempted to change the subject but, upon realizing he wasn't in his own stream, added, "If it's banned, then let it be."

Conclusion:

Solo queuing and not going to the gym likely means Beichuan has little hope of starting. However, BLG should still give him a chance to play, as even a kill requires an excuse for not performing well. The question remains whether Beichuan's treatment will be like Wei's, being put in a last dance scenario with a Kassadin and Jinx while the jungler plays a nightmare.

So, do you think Beichuan still has a chance?

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