Photo courtesy: Valorant Esports
After finishing 2nd runner-up on 2022 Valorant Masters Copenhagen and 2023 Valorant Champions Los Angeles, Paper Rex did not fall short this time as they earned their first ever international trophy at the 2025 Valorant Masters Toronto against Fnatic.
On the first map Sunset, Fnatic started the game with a 3-0 lead forcing PRX’s coach, Alexandre “Alecks” Sallé alongside assistant coach, Aaron “Mindfreak” Leonhart, to an early tactical timeout to talk things over about their opponents stressing the flank. As the rifle round came for Paper Rex, they turned up the tempo and changed the game in their favor, ending the first half with a score of 8-4. To close things out for PRX, an incredible gamble play from Jingg, D4v41, and F0rsakeN paid off in the final round causing Fnatic to struggle and fall.
However, PRX did not make a complete comeback on the second map, after taking the game to overtime from being down 7-12. Fnatic rookie, Kaajak, delivers 32 kills to even up the series 1-1. Although the fast aggressive approach of PRX barreled through Fnatic, Jingg’s aggressive positions and unexpected spots were not enough to close out the rounds in overtime for the W Gaming squad.
Moving on the third map, Paper Rex constantly put questions and challenges towards Fnatic in the first half—often finding gaps that they can exploit to win rounds. On the attack, the duelists did their job right as they dominantly entered sites making space for their teammates to post plants. PRX’s sentinel, D4v41’s usage of utilities made huge plays on Vyse making his team one map away from being Masters champions.
Transitioning to map 4, Paper Rex handled to make a lead in the first half of the Lotus map. But eventually, Fnatic managed to win the pistol round as well as the bonus round of PRX to tie up the score 7-7. As Paper Rex’s economy was on the rise, their rifles made them win four straight rounds to take a commanding lead 11-7. However, Fnatic maneuvered to catch up, winning five straight rounds to put themselves on match point. In the end, PRX something and F0rsakeN carried on the pressure of a 4 versus 2 situation, winning the series 3-1.
IGL and flex player Jason “f0rsakeN” Susanto stepped up much more as a leader for PRX storming up the scoreboard. With a total of 81 kills, 75 deaths, and 32 assists using Omen, Sova, and Astra, he became the MVP of Masters Toronto, earning him the MVP bracelet as recognition for his outstanding performance.
Looking back, Jingg, D4v41, Something, and F0rsakeN all struggled a lot to bag trophies before, but now, they succeeded to lift the trophy with the help of the Filipino rookie, Patrick “PatMen” Mendoza, who had a major contribution to the team dropping 67 kills, 72 deaths, and 24 assists on Viper and Fade in the grand finals to defeat the 2-time winners of international tournaments, Fnatic.
Now, the Paper Rex train has come to its final destination—Masters Toronto champions. A moment to remember and wipe up the tears from Masters Copenhagen and Champions LA.