TNC Predator is an acclaimed Dota team known for their dominance. This Filipino esports organization is famed for their incredible performances at The International, including one of its greatest upsets ever seen at this tournament.
After Tournament International 10, they switched teams, switching eyyou and Kuku out for Kpii and March who did exceptionally well, winning World Electronic Sports Games 2019 Philippines Finals, ESL One Hamburg 2019, and MDL Chengdu Major.
Team History
At the start of 2017, few outside Asia had heard of TNC. Competing regionally and doing well, but never quite competing at Fnatic or MVP Phoenix levels; until Open Qualifier for The International 6. With DeMoN joining Teehee and xLucky out of their rosters and winning top spot at The International 6 open qualifiers.
At both sporting and esporting events, a common saying is that teams with more belief will triumph; although this cliche is far from being entirely accurate. Yet there may be truth to its declaration.
TNC Predator took home their inaugural Major of 2018 last November in MDL Chengdu by defeating Vici Gaming 3-0 in three sets. Kim “Gabbi” Villafuerte, Timothy “Tims” Randrip, Armel Tabios (aka Armel Tabios), Damien Chok and Korean Park Tae-won won an astounding total prize pool of $125,000 or six million pesos; an extraordinary sum for an amateur team without professional contracts or sponsorship deals!
Roster Changes
After suffering an underwhelming showing at The International 2019, TNC Predator needed to make changes. Kuku and eyyou left and their positions were filled by Kpii and March. This new lineup proved its mettle by finishing third at EPICENTER Major 2019 before winning both ESL One Hamburg 2019 (the first ESL ever won by an East Asia (SEA) team) and MDL Chengdu Major 2019.
Even with these promising results, the team was not able to reach the finals of DreamLeague Season 13 Major and were demoted to Division II of Dota Pro Circuit. Furthermore, Heen was dismissed as coach.
TNC decided to build their squad around rising Dota 2 talent and signed Jun ‘Bok’ Kanehara and Marvin “Boomy” Rushton; however, this move received mixed reactions in the Dota community.
Major Wins
TNC had an eventful Dota Pro Circuit season. Following their failure to qualify for The International 2022 qualifiers, some players found difficulty adapting to new patches at majors they attended.
TNC suffered several setbacks at StarLadder i-League StarSeries Season 3, notably an elimination by Team Faceless at StarLadder i-League StarSeries Season 3 that kept them from building any momentum ahead of Kiev Major. They also finished in eighth place at Mr. Cat Invitational Season 2, which was disappointing given their history at TI7 top seeds and previous triumphant performances at Mr. Cat Invitational Season 1.
TNC rebounded quickly by winning the Asia Pacific Predator League 2020/21 Grand Final against fellow Filipino team OB Esports x Neon. TNC took two out of three games easily before using Nuengnara “23savage” Teeramahanon’s Bristleback to kill 9 heroes while inflicting over 30,000 damage on his opponents during game three – making their victory all but certain!
Major Losses
Though many were outraged that Fnatic did not receive an direct invite to the event, the biggest surprise came from one team nobody expected: TNC Gaming made waves by adding Jimmy “Demon” Ho to their Filipino roster and sending shockwaves through all qualifying stages.
TNC were impressive during the group stages, easily defeating both Alliance and J.Storm to reach the finals. A shocking 2-0 loss against Bren Esports proved that TNC were no pushovers.
However, their win earned them $300,000. Additionally, 4,850 Dota Pro Circuit Points ensured them a place at next year’s TI 10 tournament; although unlikely to finish amongst the top four contenders, an outstanding performance could give them a shot at qualifying for its main event.
