Rebellious Rookie
The name DAMWON Gaming started to gain widespread recognition after this team officially secured their promotion to the LCK Spring 2019 alongside SANDBOX Gaming. Along with Griffin, who had just been promoted in the summer of 2018 and immediately became the runner-up, DAMWON and SANDBOX were also dubbed the “rookie superstars” of the LCK, both boasting a wealth of young talents ranked among the top tier in the Korean Challenger League.
However, among the three names SB, GRF, and DWG, the team with the traditional blue jersey was somewhat overshadowed by their two siblings, as they did not achieve overly impressive results in the LCK Spring 2019.
Nevertheless, long-time LCK fans would surely not be surprised when DWG made a spectacular breakthrough to conquer numerous prestigious titles later on, as earlier, in the winter of 2018, DAMWON had already created a significant shock at the preseason tournament 2019 – KeSPA Cup 2018.
In a Bo3 playoff series, the young squad including Nuguri, Canyon, ShowMaker, Nuclear, and Hoit unexpectedly defeated SKT T1, who had just completed their “Super Team” lineup by recruiting Khan, Clid, Teddy, and Mata.
After three games, ShowMaker and his teammates left Faker’s “dream” of winning the KeSPA Cup unfulfilled. Although the KeSPA Cup is merely a tournament with a friendly and experimental nature, the fact that a rookie team newly promoted to the LCK managed to defeat a lineup predicted to be a top contender for the championship soon brought the names of DWG players into the limelight.
In the LCK Summer 2019, DAMWON continued to surprise the audience by finishing in the top 2 of the group stage. However, at this time, they still appeared quite “inexperienced” compared to the lineup of world-class superstars like SKT, resulting in DWG suffering a convincing defeat with a score of 0-3 in that year’s playoffs. Meanwhile, SKT continued to claim the LCK crown for the eighth time in history.
Turning of the Tide
Almost three years have passed since their first encounters, and the status of both DAMWON Gaming and SKT T1, now DWG KIA and T1, has transformed in ways no one could have imagined.
The promising rookies of yesteryear are now the reigning world champions, the current champions of Korea, and are fiercely determined to achieve three consecutive LCK championships. Meanwhile, T1 is now playing the role of challenger to the king, as they are about to face DWG KIA in a Bo5 match – the LCK Summer 2021 Finals.
Three years have passed, the Super Team of yesteryear is now just a memory, while the young talents of DWG have quickly risen to become some of the world’s leading superstars. This upcoming confrontation is even more fateful, as two members of the former Super SKT – Khan and coach kkOma – will now be rivals against T1 wearing DK jerseys.
Now, DK is the mountain that T1 must overcome in their journey to reclaim past glory. Meanwhile, ShowMaker and his teammates are also aiming for an even higher goal – conquering the record milestones that the legendary T1 team has achieved.
Each team has its reasons to fight with 2000% strength, and that is the spice that promises to turn the LCK Summer Finals 2021 into the most thrilling battle of the season.
A Special Relationship
We often know that DWG KIA once “sworn brotherhood” with Suning, thanks to the close relationship between the players of the two teams. However, aside from SN, T1 is also a team that DWG KIA holds in special regard.
The relationship between the two organizations has been nurtured since DK was just a rookie team with very limited financial resources. At that time, T1 was one of the few teams willing to scrim with DK, and key players from T1 such as Faker and Mata, although not overly close, still took many practical actions to support their younger brothers at DK during their tough days as they “turned professional.”
The good relationship between DWG KIA and T1 was also the catalyst for the smooth transfer of the duo coaches Daeny and Zefa from DWG to T1 at the beginning of the 2021 season. Although the outcome of this deal was not very successful, it did not significantly affect the goodwill that the two teams have for each other.
It can be seen in the press conference before the Finals, aside from a few “bragging” about the match score, the representatives from both sides sent very friendly wishes to each other. This is truly a rare expression of intimacy within the context of a serious media exchange.
However, alongside their close friendship, T1 and DK both have 1001 reasons to be determined to “devour” their opponents once the match begins. Faker and his teammates have endured a six-match losing streak against DK before securing victory in the return match of the group stage, and they certainly do not want this regrettable record to repeat itself. As for DK, as mentioned, they still have a strong motivation to do everything possible not to let the championship slip into the hands of their “fierce rival” and “brother.”