Can Neon topple TNC as kings of PH Dota?

TNC Predator has long been the undisputed king of Filipino Dota 2 for as long as anyone can remember.

But the sudden rise of OB Esports x Neon has a lot of fans asking the same question – can this squad rival what TNC has achieved through the years?

In an appearance in Tiebreaker Vodcasts’ Beyond the Meta, presented by SMART Sports, OB.Neon believes that the possibility of dethroning the Filipino powerhouse is within reach. That is, as long as they can do one thing – stick with each other long enough to reap the fruit of their hard work.

“Sa tingin ko siguro, depende lang ‘pag hindi kami nag-change ng lineup, siguro kaya namin,” said OB.Neon captain Gabriel “Skem” Ong.

“Sa tingin ko depende lang din kasi eh sa sitwasyon kung ano mangyari sa game. Pero same lang din. Kung same team kami, parang kaya naman talaga as a team,” added support Prime Ejay “PlayHard” Maque.

OB.Neon rising midlaner and Singapore Major breakout star Erin “Yopaj” Ferrer echoed the sentiments of his older brothers. Still, he also knows that they have a lot to prove in order to challenge TNC’s reigns in the Philippines.

“’Yun din tulad ng sinabi ni Skem na kaya naman namin na maging ganon. Pero respeto pa rin sa TNC,” said the 19-year-old Yopaj.

TNC represented the Philippines at The International for the last four editions. They even took the lead in the Dota Pro Circuit rankings in 2020 before the COVID-19 pandemic put a stop to the season.

Besides multiple ESL ONE titles and a couple of World Electronic Sports Games championships, TNC also made history when they became the second Southeast Asian and Filipino squad to win a Dota Pro Circuit Major. They topped the MDL Chengdu Major in 2019 – beating a heavily-favored Vici Gaming on their home floor.

The esports organization of Philippine net cafe chain TheNet.Com also made noise when they booted out European powerhouse OG, that has the likes of Dota 2 legends Johan “N0tail” Sundstein and Amer “Miracle-” Al-Barkawi – in what could be the biggest upset in Dota 2 history.

There may come a time that OB.Neon can finally rival TNC’s recognitions. Then again, let’s first see if they can manage to stay together long enough to turn that to reality.