After an epic few days of Playoff action, it was time to crown the MPL PH Season 8 champions as we went into the grand finals between Blacklist International and Onic PH.
Today would be the final day of MPL PH Season 8, as we looked to crown the champions. Before that happened, we would have another amazing series between Blacklist International and Smart Omega Esports, a rivalry that has been brewing for the better part of 2021. While Omega were the team to send Blacklist into the lower bracket, today they were essentially stomped, as Blacklist eliminated the hopefuls in a swift 3-1 series. The win set up a massive grand finals between the reigning champions and Onic PH – with both teams now being confirmed as the Philippines representatives for the M3 World Championships later this year.
The Grand Finals
Blacklist International versus 
ONIC PH
A best-of-seven series was all that was left to determine which team would claim the MPL PH Season 8 crown as we went into the grand finals. The two teams, Blacklist and Onic, were the best two teams in the Regular Season, coming in first and second respectively. It was also Onic who ended the perfect Regular Season run of Blacklist as they beat them in Week 6, which meant that we were set for a fantastic series.
For game one, we saw some brilliant picks from both teams, with the Wise Aldous on one side, and the Markyyyyy Natan on the other. However, the picks were also reminiscent of Onic’s dismantling of Blacklist previously, with Akai to counter the Mathilda. While Onic seemed to have Blacklist on the ropes, one fight around the Luminous Lord changed everything, as the Aldous came in huge to grab a triple kill, placing Blacklist in the driver’s seat. Onic managed to put up a short defense, but it was not enough as the first game went to Blacklist.
Game two was a back-and-forth brawl between the two teams, with neither wanting to back down from a fight. Just when it seemed one team had the advantage, the other found a perfect fight to turn things around again. However, as Blacklist looked to punish an over-aggressive move from Onic, they were ripped apart, as Markyyyyy’s Natan shredded everyone, to secure a 1-1 scoreline.
It was clear that this series would be intense, and game three showed that even more, as both teams begun to show their mechanical prowess. Blacklist made some massive early game plays, while Onic were able to answer back with some fantastic moves of their own. Unfortunately for Onic, the damage coming out from their opponents was too much to handle as they eventually fell.
Something switched on in the heads of Blacklist after that, as game four was a brutal destruction of Onic. Blacklist took 11-minutes to complete an absolutely flawless game, not dropping a single kill, defending all their towers and securing every Turtle and Lord. Onic were defenseless as Blacklist went on to championship point.
It was impossible to fault Blacklist as they went into what would be the final game of the series, with another Bane for Wise and OhMyV33nus taking on the Mathilda again. The reigning champions were able to dismantle any hopes Onic PH had, swiftly ending the game and series.
With that, Blacklist International became the champions of MPL PH Season 8, defending their crown as they left every team in their wake. For Onic PH, their second place finish would not go unrewarded, as they will also be join Blacklist at the M3 World Championships, both being the Philippines representatives.
