Spitfire London sweeps Saturday to thwart the gladiators of Los Angeles and advance to the semi-finals of the BUSE

London Spitfire entered Saturday in a survival match, with its season against its toughest opponent this year

During the regular season Overwatch Los Angeles Gladiators defeated Spitfire three times. One and the other. Then, on Wednesday, Gladiators continued this series, sweeping Spitfire in an embarrassing unilateral affair.

Saturday had two games in the schedule in case Spitfire win the first match to force a decisive in the best-of-three playoff series. but it seemed inevitable that they only play one.

Up to now, in the OWL playoffs, little has happened as expected.

London Spitfire took the stage as a tornado today, sweeping the program match with two 3-0 wins to defeat Los Angeles Gladiators and advance to the semifinals of the OWL playoffs. Spitfire seemed unbelievable in playing an aggressive mark of Overwatch, different from the double sniper and triple tank compositions that have so far dominated the playoff meta-game. No team in the league has the raw mechanical talent in Spitfire's lineup, and that was evident tonight as the Gladiators had no response despite their best attempts to stop the Spitfire steamroller.

The problems for the Gladiators began from the start the opening match from Dorado. Benjamin "BigGoose" Isohanni, the Gladiator's pity player, spent most of the card reappearing when Spitfire separated the Gladiator formations. Instead of the typical Orisa, D.Va and Roadhog compositions favored up here by the playoff teams, Spitfire opted for the more mobile Winston and D.Va combo. And their mobility kept the gladiators on their heels, opening the door to Kim "Birdring" Ji-hyeok especially to shine.

Then came Oasis, the worst card of Spitfire in the regular season. But Gladiators could not even touch them, a statement that tonight's Spitfire version is far from the team that took the stage on Wednesday. They then finished the first game with ease on Eichenwalde

As a seed, the Gladiators were getting the opening card selection for the last game of the best-three series, but that's not the case. did not matter. They took Junkertown, but Spitfire closed them with a proactive defense, preventing the Gladiators from getting ready to attack by playing aggressively on the chokepoints in the last segment of the map. The gladiators then chose Lijiang Tower, a card that they won with ease Wednesday

Los Angeles Gladiators were the most proactive team in the league by effectively exchanging hero compositions to counter the 39 enemy team during the regular season – and that's been nifty. exchange of heroes to open Night Market in Lijiang. The gladiators returned to spawn Pharah and Doomfist against the Spitfire tank rush. But Spitfire seemed indomitable, winning fights that they should not have through a combination of aggressive and decisive turns and an incredible individual game.

King's Row was the final choice of the Gladiators, but Spitfire's momentum continued until a quick map. attack. Gladiators made a valiant final effort, finishing the card with respectable time, but it was not enough. Spitfire once again defeated the Gladiators in their time bank attack, ending the match and series.

Tonight's version of London Spitfire looked like the team that everyone thought was entering the regular season. Spitfire has introduced many of the best Korean talent in a multitude of positions. They line up Birdring and Park "Profit" Joon-yeong, probably the most talented DPS duo in the league. Hong "Gesture" Jae-hui could be the league's first main chariot, while Choi "Bdosin" Seung-tae is a deadly Zenyatta, just behind league MVP "JJoNak" Sung-hyeon

But while Spitfire took the lead of the stage, beating even New York Excelsior in the title matches, they disappointed throughout the regular season, culminating in a 4-6 in the last quarter. Spitfire often played without organization and with fear, reacting to opponents instead of proactively using their high level talent.

Tonight, however, it was different. Spitfire dictated the pace of play and that allowed their individual talent to shine. Maybe Spitfire has finally found the key to unlocking their potential. Maybe they've found the confidence to come in a match that few expected to be won. Maybe they were just in the area today.

Whatever the case may be, London Spitfire seemed unstoppable tonight – and though it's a preview of the form that they will bring to the other playoffs, the OWL title is on the table. . To do so, they will have to beat another Los Angeles team next week. They will play Valiant from Wednesday, July 18th, and if Spitfire continues to play like tonight, you will not want to miss it.

As for the Gladiators, today, it was an overwhelming end to what was Globally, a solid season. The team started slowly, but after the acquisition of Baek "Fissure" Chan-Hyung in the middle of the season, they emerged as one of the best teams in the league, finishing with a record 9-1 in the last leg of the season. The gladiators have, however, established a Crack bench for the playoffs, which will still lead to questions about what could have happened today if the star player had been in alignment. The team made the trip because supposedly Luis "iRemiix" Galarza Figueroa worked better in practice, but it's hard not to guess this decision with a result like today.

Yet with Spitfire played today, it probably would not have had any importance. London was clearly the best team today, and that is why they still play Overwatch and Los Angeles are not.