MAD Lions Carzzy aiming for DWG, RNG at MSI 2021: “We have the power to beat them”

The LEC Champions, MAD Lions, have made it out of the group stage at MSI 2021, and ADC phenom Matyáš ‘Carzzy’ Orság thinks his team can upset heavy favorites like RNG and DWG KIA.

MAD Lions toppled Group B with finesse, for the most part. They dropped only one game throughout the two Round Robins and it came at the hands of the Istanbul Wildcats, who bottomed out in the standings.

Though the EU champs won the games they needed in order to advance, Carzzy was left unsatisfied by MAD’s 5-1 group stage performance.

With MSI 2021 heading into the Rumble Stage, the 19-year-old Czech has his sights on two of the most dominant forces in League – and thinks the Lions have what it takes to deliver some upsets on the Icelandic stage.

Carzzy: MAD Lions can take down RNG, Damwon

The 2020 world champions, Damwon Gaming — now DWG KIA — haven’t missed a beat. LPL’s Royal Never Give Up (RNG) easily dismantled their three-team group. MAD Lions’ bid for a perfect record in groups was destroyed by a chaotic game against the Wildcats.

When looking at the top teams in MSI, there are clear frontrunners when it comes to who we might see in the Grand Finals. There’ll be plenty of detractors who’d say the MAD Lions are among the fodder RNG or Damwon will have to brush aside in order to take MSI 2021.

But Carzzy, and MAD Lions in general, are used to doubters. They’re willing to bet they can surprise people at MSI.

“We have a great chance at upsetting a lot of teams,” Carzzy told Dexerto after MAD qualified for the Rumble stage. “I mean there are only two teams we can possibly upset, Damwon and RNG, because people expect us to win against anyone else. I think we have a good chance at upsetting [Damwon and RNG.]”

Both RNG and Damwon haven’t given up substantial leads throughout MSI, and once they start to snowball, there’s no stopping their march to the Nexus.

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But that’s fine with MAD. While they typically convert leads into wins, Carzzy likes his team’s odds when their backs are to the wall – something they’ll likely have to contend with once they play.

MAD Lions built on trust

International audiences might not be familiar with MAD Lions, but the team’s 2021 campaign has been littered with unexpected wins and insane comebacks that eventually got them to MSI.

They came into the 2021 season with a new top laner in İrfan Berk ‘Armut’ Tükek and rookie jungler Javier ‘Elyoya’ Prades. While it wasn’t the cleanest of debuts, the org still managed to lift the first LEC trophy not awarded to G2 Esports or Fnatic since 2013.

Even though some might peg them as underdogs against greater factions, Carzzy’s team has come together in the face of doubters. They have each other’s back and find their strength among themselves.

“I don’t know how to explain it, we trust each other because we became close friends, all of us,” Carzzy said of the personalities on the team and how they’ve lifted each other to success. “It becomes easier to play, because even when something goes wrong, we are still there.

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“Even if we are still mad after we lose or something, we are there for each other. So I think that’s what makes us a strong team.”

Couple the team’s chemistry with a good read of the macro game along with impressive mechanical prowess across all positions, and the Lions start to get scary.

“We kind of know we have the power to beat them,” he said. “We’re good enough to beat them. That’s for sure and we know it. We are going into the matches not scared of anything, and we are just going to play our hearts out.”

The next double-round robin will have the top two teams of every group fighting to qualify for the playoffs. Carzzy is proud of the Lions’ development and accomplishments so far, but he knows they’ll have to play better in the next round if they want any hope of lifting the MSI trophy.

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“I’m not very satisfied with how it went in our group, I’m not going to lie,” he said. “But I believe it’s only going to get better from here.”