Woxic on Aurora’s Katowice bronze: “We played our game”

Aurora defeated Spirit to finish third in Katowice after losing 1-2 to Vitality in the semifinals. The result moved the international roster to ninth in the live VRS rankings and gave it a 98.8% chance of receiving a Stage 3 invitation to the Major.

Özgür “woxic” Eker said Aurora treated the match as if it were playing in the final rather than a third-place decider.

“We just played our game,” woxic said. “We didn’t say, ‘This is the third/fourth-place game, let’s not play seriously.’ We just did our own thing and acted as if we were going to reach the final.”

He added that the match mattered because of the VRS points and the medal. “I think it’s always good to have at least something from the event,” he said. “It doesn’t matter if you win or lose.”

Aurora’s players had to prepare for another match after their semifinal defeat. Woxic described that process as mentally difficult, saying he dislikes third-place games because players must stay focused for another day after being eliminated from the title race.

The roster will next compete in Malta. Woxic said each tournament gives Aurora a chance to improve and gain experience before the Major. He also said the team had built confidence against strong opponents through close matches, even when it lost.

Asked whether the previous full-Turkish Aurora lineup had a higher ceiling because of its shared language, woxic said the international roster could surpass it.

“Why not? It’s in our hands,” he said. “If we play all the events like we performed here, we can pass it. We can pass the previous lineup.”

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