FaZe players explain how CDL Atlanta was “easy” after home series win

After a dominant showing at their Call of Duty League home series, the Atlanta FaZe have revealed exactly what makes them tick and how they’re “trying to be the new dynasty.”

Atlanta FaZe became the first team to defend their home turf, after going flawless in their home series event. While the road to victory wasn’t as plain sailing as many predicted, the squad did rally to get the victory that was expected.

After a convincing win in the Grand Final, members of the FaZe roster spoke with Dexerto and delved into why the event was “easy” despite a little turbulence in the semifinals.

Fresh off of his 3-0 win versus Mutineers, Tyler ‘aBeZy’ Pharris explained how they managed to turn things around after a close semifinal match against RØKKR.

• Read more: FaZe win CDL Atlanta 2020: Final placements, highlights, results

“We came out with the fire, we just completely flipped a switch,” Pharris said before acknowledging the crowd’s role in their home series defense. “The crowd was amazing, shoutout to all the people in the crowd – those guys are great, can’t thank them enough.”

FaZe’s AR, Michael ‘MajorManiak’ Szymaniak, also took time out to speak with Dexerto following the win. Reflecting back on their path to the final, the 21-year-old claimed that “It was a little easy,” before continuing: “That’s expected – we’re such a dominant team online.”

• Read more: CoD community reacts to Prestinni’s emotional win vs twin brother Arcitys

In terms of the team’s recipe for success, MajorManiak put that down to knowing one another for a while alongside all being individually talented in their own right. “When you put those things together (and we vibe very well) and we’re fundamentally and mechanically gifted… I just think we’re a very scary squad,” Szymaniak explained.

However, the squad isn’t looking to settle with their home series win, as they’re looking to follow in the footsteps of compLexity and OpTic Gaming by “trying to be the new dynasty.”

Fresh from his lights-out performance in the Grand Final, Preston ‘Priestahh’ Greiner explained one of the main contributing factors behind their success to be bringing the ‘hype’ when it matters most.

• Read more: CDL Call of Duty League 2020 season: standings, schedule, format, more

“For some reason, aBeZy and Simp just feed off of it,” Priestahh admitted. “If you hype them up, they’ll pop out three-pieces… So I started doing that and I’m losing my voice now.”

Of course, FaZe prodigies Chris ‘Simp’ Lehr and McArthur ‘Cellium’ Jovel were on fire all weekend long, earning themselves a 1.24 and 1.32 K/D ratio respectively. Cellium’s efforts in the server were recognized, as he earned himself the MVP award.

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Simp has been Jovel’s hypeman all season long and that didn’t change in the post-tournament interview as he acknowledged that “Cellium is always just doing what he does best, just killing everything in his sight – he plays the game right and he gets the kills.”

Lehr also paid homage to the whole squad’s role after their win. “At any moment, any person can go off and just take us to victory, the 19-year-old shared.

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While the professional team stole the spotlight, FaZe’s home series was an all-around success for the organization, as the FaZe Academy team also took top honours in the Challengers event.

Atlanta will now be looking ahead to CDL Los Angeles, where Mutineers will be looking for redemption in the event’s opening match. For more information about the Call of Duty League, visit our season hub where we have everything rounded up in one place from the latest standings to full event schedules – and much more!