LOUD stun Paper Rex at Valorant Champions as NRG sweep T1; PRX face T1 in Friday elimination match
LOUD beat Paper Rex 2-0, winning 15-13 in overtime on Sunset, and NRG swept T1. Paper Rex now play T1 in an elimination match on Friday at 5pm Malaysia time.
Paper Rex's hopes of a Valorant world title now depend on the lower bracket. LOUD beat the Singapore-based team 2-0 in the upper-bracket quarter-finals of Valorant Champions 2026 in Shanghai on Wednesday, while NRG swept T1 in the other quarter-final played that day.
Paper Rex, whose lineup includes Malaysian player Khalish "d4v41" Rusyaidee, will now face T1 in an elimination match on Friday, 9 October, at 5pm Malaysia time.
LOUD come back from 3-9 down on Split
Paper Rex picked Split and looked in control, leading 9-3 at half-time. LOUD then flipped the map in the second half, dropping only one round on attack, to win it 13-9. The second map, Sunset, was much closer. The two sides traded rounds into overtime before LOUD won it 15-13.
Insider Gaming singled out Lucca "lukxo" Travaioli's Yoru as the difference for LOUD, with strong support from Roberto "erde" Lobos. For Paper Rex, Jason "f0rsakeN" Susanto had a big first half on Split, and Ilya "something" Petrov won a 1v2 clutch in the first overtime on Sunset, but it was not enough.
The defeat was a sharp turnaround for Paper Rex, who had won their group to reach the playoffs.
NRG hold off T1
The day's first quarter-final went to NRG. T1 chose Lotus and led 10-6, but NRG rallied on their attacking half to take the map 13-11. On Summit, T1 pulled level before NRG won the last six rounds to close it out 13-7. Insider Gaming noted that NRG had won Summit in each of their five previous meetings. Ethan "Ethan" Arnold's in-game calling, plus the fragging of Georgio "keiko" Sanassy and Adam "mada" Pampuch, drove the win.
NRG and LOUD will play each other in the upper-bracket semi-finals on Saturday, 10 October, at 5pm Malaysia time.
The rest of the bracket
The other two upper-bracket quarter-finals are scheduled for Thursday, 8 October: 100 Thieves vs G2 Esports at 5pm and Team Vitality vs Nongshim RedForce at 8pm, both in Malaysia time. Vitality are the only EMEA team still in the competition after the group stage. The four teams from China all went out in the groups.
In the playoffs, the lower-bracket final and grand final are best-of-five, and every other match is best-of-three. Losing a match in the upper bracket drops a team into the lower bracket, where a second loss means elimination.
Key dates in Malaysia time
- Friday, 9 October, 5pm: T1 vs Paper Rex (lower bracket round 1, loser is out)
- Saturday, 10 October, 5pm: NRG vs LOUD (upper semi-final)
- Sunday, 18 October, 2pm: grand final
The event, which has a US$2.25 million prize pool, moves to Shanghai's Mercedes-Benz Arena for the final four.
Key takeaways
- LOUD beat Paper Rex 2-0 (13-9 Split, 15-13 Sunset) after coming back from 3-9 down on the first map.
- NRG beat T1 2-0 (13-11 Lotus, 13-7 Summit) and will face LOUD in the upper semi-finals.
- Paper Rex, with Malaysian player d4v41, play T1 in an elimination match on Friday at 5pm Malaysia time.
- The grand final is on Sunday, 18 October, at 2pm Malaysia time.
FAQ Are Paper Rex out of Valorant Champions 2026? No. The loss to LOUD sent them into the lower bracket. They are out if they lose to T1 on Friday. What time is T1 vs Paper Rex in Malaysia? 5pm on Friday, 9 October. It is a best-of-three. Where is the Valorant Champions 2026 final? In Shanghai, China, on 18 October. The final four is played at the Mercedes-Benz Arena.
Sources: Insider Gaming, VLR.gg, THESPIKE.GG, Sheep Esports