After Toronto Ultra’s monumental collapse in the Stage 5 Major, many fans have written them out of Champs contention — but not Seattle Surge star man Sam ‘Octane’ Larew.
The Stage 5 Major really turned some heads as to how wide-open the CDL competition is.
Minnesota RØKKR weren’t looked at as potential winners by almost anybody ahead of the event, but they wiped out the very best teams in the league in incredible fashion to lift the trophy.
Toronto Ultra losing at the hands of a best-of-9 reverse sweep made Call of Duty history, and the onus is now on them to either use it as a stepping stone or let it eat them up.
While many fans believe the loss will affect them mentally and ultimately be their downfall, Octane thinks it will go the other way and spur them on to win the big one.
- Read More: CDL 2021 Power Rankings after Stage 5 Major
“I know what you’re thinking,” he said after picking Toronto as his winner. “‘Sam, they just choked a 4-0 lead at the Stage 5 Major.’ They did, but I think they also should have won the Stage 4 Major but they choked that as well.”
Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest updates on Esports, Gaming and more.
He continued: “I think they’re going to curb the choking. I think they’ve been the best team for quite some time now, they just haven’t been able to really put it together at the very end. I think they should have won the Stage 4 Major and the Stage 5 Major.”
Octane says the one caveat to his belief in Toronto is if they let the loss to RØKKR blow them up, but with a “teensy bit of ice” they’re going to be the 2021 champions.
Despite how solid Toronto have been, this is still a pretty bold call from Octane. Atlanta FaZe are an almost-unanimous number 1 pick for most in the community, while the likes of Minnesota, Dallas Empire, and OpTic Chicago will all have a lot of expectations on their shoulders.
The CDL 2021 playoffs event takes place from August 19-22 at the Galen Center in Los Angeles.