NertZ powers G2 past BIG into IEM Cologne Stage 3

G2 defeated BIG 13-3 on Inferno and 13-8 on Mirage to advance to Stage 3 of IEM Cologne. The result completed a 3-1 stage record for G2 in the event’s qualifying matches.

Guy “NertZ” Iluz was the match leader. He posted a 2.69 rating on Inferno, finished the series with 39 kills, a 109.0 average damage per round (ADR) and a 1.85 overall rating. On Mirage he delivered a double spraydown that closed out the map.

Nemanja “huNter-” Kovač recorded 36 kills, a 93.0 ADR, an 83.8% KAST and a 1.55 rating across both maps. Matúš “MATYS” Šimko and Álvaro “SunPayus” García each contributed 25 kills; MATYS had a 66.0 ADR and an 83.8% KAST with a 1.17 rating, while SunPayus posted a 68.9 ADR, an 86.5% KAST and a 1.05 rating. Nikita “HeavyGod” Martynenko finished even at 21-21 with a 69.9 ADR and a 1.03 rating.

BIG, a majority-German roster seeking a Stage 3 spot in front of a local crowd, struggled for impact. Johannes “tabseN” Wodarz led the team with 18 kills but had a 0.94 rating and a 68.4 ADR. Gleb “gr1ks” Gazin and Benjamin “blameF” Bremer posted 23 and 21 kills respectively but registered sub-1.00 ratings; gr1ks had a 0.88 rating and 58.9 ADR, blameF a 0.79 rating and 64.2 ADR. Josef “faveN” Baumann and Jon “JDC” de Castro finished with lower impact numbers, recording 21 and 16 kills and ratings of 0.72 and 0.59.

G2 entered the match after a loss to FUT earlier in the stage and recorded wins over Monte and M80 to finish 3-1. BIG sit at 2-2 in the stage and will face the winner of B8 or M80 in their final match for another chance to qualify for Stage 3.

The IEM Cologne stage format advances teams based on map wins and stage records across a small number of matches. G2’s results in Inferno and Mirage secured their spot in the next phase of the event.