G2 Esports defeated Leviatán 3-2 in the grand final of VCT Americas Stage 1 2026 on Sunday, May 24, coming through the lower bracket to claim their fourth Americas regional title. The series went the full distance across five maps, and G2 closed it out despite losing the first kill battle 49 to 70 across the series. For a roster that had lost both previous meetings against LEV in 2026, the timing of the turnaround could not have been better.

The result sends G2 to VCT Masters London as the Americas’ first seed. Leviatán qualify as second seed. NRG, the reigning VALORANT Champions, secured the third and final slot with their own lower bracket run earlier in the week.

How the Map Veto Shaped the Grand Final Before a Round Was Played

Leviatán entered the grand final from the upper bracket and carried a two-map ban advantage. They used it to remove Lotus and Breeze, two of G2’s most reliable maps throughout the regular season and playoffs. The remaining pool left LEV with picks on Fracture and Ascent, while G2 selected Haven and Pearl. Split stayed as the decider.

On paper, this veto gave Leviatán the structural edge. Three of the five potential maps, Fracture, Ascent, and Split, sat firmly in their comfort zone. G2 had to survive on hostile ground, and for the first two maps, they did exactly that in opposite directions.

Fracture: G2 Start the Series on LEV’s Own Pick

Fracture was Leviatán’s choice, a map they had prepared specifically for this matchup, and G2 took it 14-12. The margin tells you everything about how contested every round was. Neither team built a lead larger than two rounds at any point in the half, and G2’s ability to grind through buy rounds and survive anti-ecos proved decisive late. Winning your opponent’s map pick in a grand final opener changes the psychological landscape of the series. LEV had invested preparation time into Fracture and walked away with nothing.

Haven and Ascent: LEV Level the Series and Take the Lead

Haven (13-11, LEV win) saw Leviatán answer on G2’s own pick, preventing the series from running away. Neon operated the Operator on attack side with a level of spatial control that G2 could not consistently break. The spacing he created forced G2 into awkward rotations, and LEV took the second pistol round to build enough of a cushion to close the map.

Ascent (13-9, LEV win) was a different story in pace but the same in outcome. LEV’s second pick played out far more comfortably than Fracture had. Leviatán dictated the tempo from the defensive half, and their retake setups on both A and B sites left G2 scrambling for post-plant positions that never materialized cleanly. At 2-1 down, G2 faced elimination on the next two maps.

Pearl and Split: G2 Close the Gap and Take the Trophy

Pearl (13-10, G2 win) was the map G2 had to win, and they delivered. LEV made a push in the middle rounds that tightened the scoreline, but G2’s attack structure on Pearl has been one of their defining strengths all season. A clean conversion of pistol rounds and disciplined executes in the second half gave them the map and forced a decider.

Split (13-11, G2 win) decided the series on a map that Leviatán had owned throughout the tournament. G2 took it in the tightest possible fashion, two rounds separating two teams that had played each other three times in 2026 and never produced a comfortable result. Split mirrored Fracture in texture: physical, round-by-round, and settled by margins that could have fallen either way.

The jawgemo Factor

jawgemo earned series MVP honors with 89 kills, 89 deaths, 31 assists, and 21 first kills, the highest first kill total on G2’s side. His impact extended beyond the stat line. On a night when G2 lost the first kill battle at the series level by a significant margin, jawgemo’s ability to convert clutch situations and generate openings in mid-round scrambles was a core reason the series went five maps instead of ending at four.

LEV’s Individual Numbers Tell a Painful Story

Leviatán did not lose this series because of individual underperformance. Sato topped the server with 94 kills and a 20-9 first kill-to-first death ratio. blowz posted 84 kills with a 7-1 FK/FD split, the cleanest opening duel ratio in the entire lobby. Neon finished at 91 kills and was LEV’s primary source of Operator pressure across multiple maps. spike led all ten players with 24 first kills, though a corresponding 23 first deaths reflected the volume of opening duels he was absorbing.

Every G2 player ended the series neutral or negative in kill differential. Every stat-line metric pointed to Leviatán being the more individually dangerous team. G2 won anyway, and the gap between individual output and match result is where this roster’s identity lives. They convert thrifty rounds, they execute post-plants with precision, and they close maps at 13-11 when the numbers say they should have lost at 11-13.

G2’s Bracket Run: Through 100 Thieves, KRÜ, and the World Champions

G2 entered playoffs as the Alpha group’s second seed and swept 100 Thieves 2-0 in the upper bracket first round before dispatching KRÜ Esports 2-0 in the upper semifinals without dropping a map. The upper final against Leviatán went 2-1 in LEV’s favor, sending G2 down to the lower bracket with a one-map disadvantage hanging over their heads for the grand final.

In the lower final, G2 faced NRG, the reigning VALORANT Champions who had carved their own path through the bracket after finishing third in Group Omega. G2 took the series 3-2 (Lotus 13-8, Breeze 6-13, Pearl 13-7, Haven 10-13, Ascent 13-10), with trent earning MVP honors off 77 kills and a 215 ACS across five maps. The win extended G2’s all-time head-to-head record against NRG to 7-0.

Four Rookies, a Runner-Up Finish, and LEV’s London Trajectory

For a Leviatán roster featuring four rookies in their first full VCT season at the top level, a grand final appearance and a five-map loss to the region’s most decorated team is a result that carries real weight. kiNgg remains the anchor of experience, but the development speed of blowz, Sato, spike, and Neon across this stage has reshaped how analysts view Leviatán’s ceiling.

LEV head to Masters London as the Americas’ second seed with legitimate reasons to believe they can compete. Their first kill generation rate, their agent compositions on patch 12.08, and their ability to push G2 to the absolute limit across five maps all suggest a team that is peaking at the right moment. The question for London is whether their macro discipline in extended Bo5 series can match the firepower that carried them through Stage 1.

Americas at Masters London: G2, Leviatán, NRG

The three Americas representatives for Masters London are now locked. G2 Esports travel as the region’s first seed and the holders of four Americas regional trophies (Kickoff, Stage 1, and Stage 2 in 2025, now Stage 1 in 2026). The international title remains the missing piece. G2 reached the top four at Masters Santiago earlier this year, falling in the lower bracket, and the question of whether regional dominance translates to global silverware follows them to London.

NRG arrive as the third seed and the reigning world champions, operating with a retooled roster after adding keiko from Team Liquid in the offseason to replace s0m. Their lower bracket run through Stage 1 showed the core of Ethan, mada, brawk, and skuba remains capable of extended series at the highest level, even if the consistency of 2025’s Champions run has not yet returned in full.

Americas will send three teams to London with three distinct profiles: the structured regional dynasty, the ascending rookie-driven contender, and the defending world champions rebuilding chemistry around a new fifth. The region has claimed more VCT trophies globally than any other, and its delegation to London carries enough tactical diversity to threaten both Pacific and EMEA across multiple rounds of bracket play.