Well, we didn’t expect it, but somehow the Turks did it.

Despite a losing record seemingly beyond saving, Aurora have managed to knock The MongolZ out of BLAST Open Rotterdam. And they… looked good doing it?

The match started on the pick of Aurora, Inferno, with an early lead for the Turkish side. The rounds were very close, though, and it really showed as MongolZ managed to fight back to a 6-6 score at halftime.

After the side-swap, however, the Turks grabbed the map with both hands.

A flawless CT-side, despite some dicey anti-eco rounds, marked the end for The MongolZ in the first map, as they went down without a single T-round won.

Don’t fret, paying audience members - Mirage is next.

Close scorelines are not infrequent on the dusty map but despite that, Aurora once again managed to run away with an early lead. After going down 0-5 the Mongolians finally broke through with a round win, but somehow MAJ3R controlled the economy to keep his team in the driver’s seat.

If MAJ3R was hitting sprays like this, it might already have been over for The MongolZ.

The economic advantage kept Aurora in the lead, which was extended to 8-4 by the end of the first half.

And yeah, then it was probably over.

The Turks quickly extended their lead to 11-4, and while The MongolZ clawed back a few rounds, it was ultimately too little, too late. As rare as they are, a great call from MAJ3R ends the game on the A-bombsite with a 13-9 scoreline.

It’s a statement win from Aurora, taking down their longtime rivals, but it also raises an interesting question.

Has this team finally gotten good?

XANTARES was notably relatively absent in the series as a whole, only really looking like the Terminator he usually is in the short but sweet second half of Inferno. Instead it was Wicadia leading the way on Mirage and very much a team effort over the first half of Inferno, which is further proof that maybe the addition of soulfly was the final piece they needed.

If that’s truly the case, we won’t know until the next event. Because we must congratulate Aurora on their top four placing, but here is where it ends.

Enjoy the loss to Vitality.

(If you’re reading this on Sunday, did our jinx work?)