The EU Challenger Series Rundown - 09/02

This morning brought news of yet another new team joining Season 3 of the Elite Series: Nordavind. With so many new teams, there are several roster spaces that need filling quickly. That's where our Challenger Series players come in, and with just one week left the race for points and places in the Elite Series Draft pool is hotter than ever. Let's take a look at how the leaderboards stand as we enter the final week of competition.

FIFA 18Sometimes there's just no substitute for consistency. That's exactly how CrazyCortez climbed to the top of the FIFA 18 PS4 table this week, ousting perennial leader adoniiPM in the process. Playing for four days straight with a win on Monday and a runner-up finish on Thursday netted Cortez 950 points for the week and moves him from 4th place to the top spot on 2230 points, exactly 200 ahead of adoniiPM. Bryanhessing now sits 3rd on 1840 points, and xexuatm96 is 4th on 1540 points, just 20 ahead of ferperry rounding out the top 5. A good win on Tuesday bumps RRRiv9 into the top 10 on 1110 points, and with only 70 points between him and Riptorek in 6th place, it’s clear how hard-fought the battles are for those top 10 spots. Safely in the top 30 they might be, but you still want to convince those talent scouts that you're the best of the best...Over on the Xbox One table, the leader has a new name: lionel_10_youtube becomes FABIO DENUZZO. A change of name doesn't equal a change of performance, though. One win, one top 4 and two top 8 results keeps him out in front comfortably on 3080 points, ahead of 2nd place Klutch_Ti on 2370 points. This week's big mover is unquestionably MegaBit. The 19-year-old German player from Bundesliga side VfL Bochum had a storming week, winning both cups he entered and beating players like FABIO DENUZZO and HUGE G0RILLA in the process. As a result, he jumps all the way up to 3rd in the table on 2090 points, ahead of kurt0411 on 1920 points and A Huge Dragon x on 1890 points.

SFVAt this point, it might be worth giving Hurricane and ImStillDaDaddy their own tournament - they seem destined to fight forever. They continue to lead the SFV table with a whopping 4825 and 4060 points respectively, and despite both being already signed to Elite Series teams they are utilising Challenger Series as a way to hone their skills for the coming season. Fellow Elite Series players better watch out.Behind them it's YogaPatate who continues to impress, adding to his points haul on 3245 points in 3rd place. You can read our player profile on him here, and his performances have marked him as a potentially white-hot free agent going into the Elite Series Draft. Shakz remains 4th on 3125 points after a great battle with Hurricane on Thursday night, whilst 5th place VegaPatch (2814 points) signed with Reason Gaming this past week along with former Prophecy standout DarkMoonHado. Plenty of unsigned talent remains elsewhere in the top 10, including former Method standout Nasty Nas (8th, 1522 points) and ex-Epsilon man Nightcross (10th, 1464 points). One thing is for sure: teams looking to bolster their SFV squads for Elite Series Season 3 aren't lacking for strong players to bring onboard. The question is, do they go for experience or new talent on the rise?

Rocket LeagueRemember last week when we said the Rocket League leaderboard was tight at the top? As it stands, the gap from 1st to 3rd in the table is a meagre 120 points. If that doesn't demonstrate how competitive things are in the Rocket League Challenger Series, nothing else will. D7 is your leader on 3230 points, followed by Fairy Peak! just 40 points behind and FaykoW 80 points behind him! Fairy Peak! Is the big winner of the week, with a 1000-point haul from a big win on Thursday night jumping him right up the rankings. Yukeo and KayDop complete the top 5, and what's fascinating to observe is just how few Elite Series players are in the mix at the top end of the leaderboard. EyeIgnite is a notable 11th on 1960 points and the former Prophecy standout has just this week signed with Envy for Season 3. Otherwise, a lot of the talent at the top of the Rocket League table are players waiting for that breakthrough opportunity to show the Elite Series just what they can do. It will be up to the teams to decide which ones are worth taking that ultimate chance on.Just one week left of competition then, and there's still a chance for you to sign up and compete against some of the esports world's very best talents. Get yourself registered here – the Challenger Series is waiting for you.