OpTic Gaming Defeat Echo Fox in Grand Final to Be Crowned Champions of Gears New Orleans 2018

Two North American titans locked horns in the grand finals at the Gears Pro Circuit New Orleans Open, as Echo Fox faced off against OpTic Gaming for the trophy an $100,000 first place prize.

OpTic Gaming had already beaten Echo Fox in the first round of the winners bracket on day two, but the EF players, namely former OpTic player Icy, maintained that they weren’t in a good state of mind in that match.

After dropping to the losers bracket Echo Fox looked back to their best though, making quick work of OpTic Mexico and Elevate, and closing out a close series against reigning champions Ghost Gaming.

In the losers final they pushed to the very edge by EU’s Finest, but eventually clutched up the third map 7-5 to earn their replay against OG in the final.

• More: Gears Pro Circuit New Orleans $250,000 Tournament – Final Placements

OpTic took the early rounds in map one and it was beginning to look like business as usual as Echo Fox provided little in response.

But from seemingly out of nowhere Echo Fox gained a new lease of life and motivation, shocking OpTic by winning seven straight rounds and taking the first map in what was, eventually, dominant fashion.

And it was the former OpTic star Icy who really stood, not just with his round saving plays but also with his motivational communications, firing up his squad against his old team.

Map two was more closely contested, with rounds trading back and forth as OpTic fought to get a foothold in the series. Echo Fox were the first to edge out an advantage at 5-4, but OpTic took the map with three straight rounds, despite Kenny’s best efforts.

So map three in the first series was Echo Fox’s last chance to force a second series, but OpTic had no plans of giving them a second chance, quickly extending out to a 6-0 lead – at which point Icy had zero kills.

Echo Fox managed to take one round (and Icy managed 2 kills), but OpTic won the match, series and tournament with a 7-1 win.