Look, let's be honest, the playoffs for the 2026 VALORANT Champions Tour Pacific Stage 2 unfolded from August 26 to 29 at the S-Plex Center Sangam SOOP Colosseum in Mapo-gu, Seoul. Through this playoff crucible, Nongshim RedForce secured their ticket to Champions Shanghai, while Gen.G, a team carrying the heavy expectations of fans, unfortunately wrapped up their journey.

Nongshim RedForce locked in the second-highest accumulated championship points, earning the Pacific region's second qualification slot for Champions Shanghai. Back on August 27, Nongshim RedForce claimed a 2-1 set victory over Gen.G, simultaneously punching tickets to both the VCT Pacific Finals in Busan and Champions Shanghai.

During the first map Ascent against Gen.G, Nongshim RedForce were briefly rattled by the Yoru play of Gen.G player t3xture, but neutralized the threat with bold decision-making to take the lead. The second map, Summit, went the way of Gen.G as the team recovered their form, highlighted by epina winning a 1v2 engagement from an isolated position.

Map 3 on Sunset turned into an absolute bloodbath between the two sides. Following an early advantage for Nongshim RedForce, Gen.G mounted a fierce comeback, leading to a nail-biting 11-11 stalemate. During a chaotic B-site skirmish, Lakia playing Sage resurrected the fallen Ash on Neon to grasp a numerical advantage, but the precise aim of Francis on Yoru and Rb on Omen shut down Gen.G's charge. Ultimately, Nongshim RedForce closed out the third map 13-11, sealing their trip to Shanghai.

Meanwhile, T1 and VALO (VL) secured victories to earn their tickets to Busan, while Gen.G's defeat against T1 marked the end of their VCT Pacific campaign for the year. T1 first crossed paths with DRX in the lower bracket round 1, sweeping the match 2-0 after both teams pushed through the play-in stage. Their next opponent was Gen.G, who had previously fallen to Nongshim RedForce in the upper bracket. T1 maintained unwavering form to secure another 2-0 win. In particular, the second map on Split was a ferocious battle, and after reaching match point first, Stax eliminated the lone survivor Carron to clinch a hard-fought 12-11 victory. iZu consistently contributed to the team's success across both maps.

VALO also captured a 2-1 victory over Paper Rex to grab their ticket to Busan. The driving force behind VALO's advance was team ace Foxy9, who racked up 29 kills in the third map against Paper Rex to claim the match MVP honors. Foxy9 bounced back brilliantly after failing to leave a mark in the upper bracket round 2 against Global Esports player PatMen.

VALO still stands a chance to reach Champions Shanghai if they continue their winning streak through the remaining bracket. Consequently, a fierce showdown is expected in Busan among three teams: T1, Global Esports, and VALO.

The 2026 VCT Pacific Stage 2 was broadcast live across online platforms including YouTube, Chzzk, and SOOP, and you can check out more details regarding the tournament schedule and results right on the official website.