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Dota 2 Lima Major predictions: Who are the strongest teams and where will they place?

The Lima Major will feature the 18-best performing teams of the 2023 Dota Pro Circuit season's first Tour

The upcoming Lima Dota 2 Major will feature 18 of the best teams in the Dota Pro Circuit. Pictured: Shopify Rebellion's Arteezy, Team Liquid's Nisha, Tundra Esports' 33, PSG.LGD's NothingToSay, BetBoom Team's gpk. (Photos: Valve Software, Evil Geniuses, Team Liquid, Tundra Esports, PSG.LGD, Virtus.pro)
The upcoming Lima Dota 2 Major will feature 18 of the best teams in the Dota Pro Circuit. Pictured: Shopify Rebellion's Arteezy, Team Liquid's Nisha, Tundra Esports' 33, PSG.LGD's NothingToSay, BetBoom Team's gpk. (Photos: Valve Software, Evil Geniuses, Team Liquid, Tundra Esports, PSG.LGD, Virtus.pro)

The Lima Major, the first Dota 2 Major of the 2023 Dota Pro Circuit (DPC) season, is almost upon us.

Lima, Peru will be hosting the first-ever Major in South America from 22 February to 5 March, featuring the best-performing teams in the DPC fighting for their cut of the US$500,000 in prize money as well as 1,900 DPC points.

There will be 18 teams flying to Lima after emerging as the best in their respective regions. Four teams each will be coming from Western Europe and China, three squads each will be from Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia, while two representatives each hail from North America and South America.

The Lima Major will feature storied veterans and talented newbloods alike, read on to find out more about all the teams competing in the tournament.

Western Europe

Team Liquid

Winter Tour record: 7-0

Predicted placement: Top 4

After placing third in The International 11 (TI11), Team Liquid didn't skip a beat as they replaced the retired Lasse "MATUMBAMAN" Urpalainen with Michał "Nisha" Jankowski. Nisha continued to make his case of being the best player in the world by leading Liquid to a perfect 7-0 run in the Western European regional league and a spot in the Lima Major.

Liquid's absolute dominance over Western Europe, the consensus best region in the DPC, makes them the runaway favourites to take the championship in Lima. Liquid were already a great team before, but the addition of Nisha seems to have made them nigh-unstoppable. If you're going to watch one team at the Major, it will have to be Nisha and Liquid.

Roster:

  1. Michael "miCKe" Vu

  2. Michał "Nisha" Jankowski

  3. Ludwig "zai" Wåhlberg

  4. Samuel "Boxi" Svahn

  5. Aydin "Insania" Sarkohi

Gaimin Gladiators

Winter Tour record: 5-2

Predicted placement: 9th-12th

Gaimin Gladiators are looking on track to improve over their solid performance last season with Quinn "Quinn" Callahan coming over from North America to replace Miroslav "BOOM" Bičan. Not many expected the Gladiators to finish second in Western Europe with a 5-2 record, finishing above regional favorites like Tundra Esports and Team Secret. With that said, expect them to be one of the better teams in Lima.

Roster:

  1. Anton "dyrachyo" Shkredov

  2. Quinn "Quinn" Callahan

  3. Marcus "Ace" Hoelgaard

  4. Erik "tOfu" Engel

  5. Melchior "Seleri" Hillenkamp

Tundra Esports

Winter Tour record: 4-3

Predicted placement: Top 4

The reigning TI champions seem to have largely evaded the post-TI curse, qualifying for the Lima Major with a solid 4-3 record and after surviving a crazy three-way tiebreaker with Entity and OG. While their run in the regional league may have been less than stellar, expect Tundra Esports to showcase their championship pedigree on the big stage once again.

Liquid may be the runaway favourites to be Major champions, but you can never count out the team that holds the Aegis of Champions.

Roster:

  1. Oliver "skiter" Lepko

  2. Leon "Nine" Kirilin

  3. Neta "33" Shapira

  4. Martin "Saksa" Sazdov

  5. Jingjun "Sneyking" Wu

Entity

Winter Tour record: 4-3

Predicted placement: 9th-12th

After replacing Ivan "Pure" Moskalenko with Alimzhan "watson" Islambekov in the offseason, Entity continue to prove they belong on the top tier of competition in Europe. They rightfully earned their spot in the Lima Major after a crazy tiebreaker where they force Stockholm Major champions OG to stay in Europe.

While Entity are arguably the weakest among the Western European representatives, that still puts them well above most of their competition in Peru. Expect at least a solid showing from them, if not a deep run.

Roster:

  1. Alimzhan "watson" Islambekov

  2. Daniel "Stormstormer" Schoetzau

  3. Tobias "Tobi" Buchner

  4. Vladislav "Kataomi`" Semenov

  5. Dzmitry "Fishman" Palishchuk

Eastern Europe

BetBoom Team

Winter Tour record: 7-0

Predicted placement: Top 4

BetBoom Team made one of the biggest splashes of the offseason when they assembled an Eastern European superteam featuring former players from Virtus.pro and Team Spirit. The squad's sheer star power saw them through a perfect run in the Eastern European regional league and a spot in the Lima Major, where we see them as one of the biggest favorites.

Roster:

  1. Ivan "Pure" Moskalenko

  2. Danil "gpk" Skutin

  3. Egor "Nightfall" Grigorenko

  4. Vitalie "Save-" Melnic

  5. Alexander "TORONTOTOKYO" Khertek

Team Spirit

Winter Tour record: 6-1

Predicted placement: 9th-12th

The TI10 champions are back with chips on their shoulders. After a disastrous run in TI11 and the departure of Alexander "TORONTOTOKYO" Khertek for BetBoom, Team Spirit are looking to prove they still have what it takes to be a contender with Denis "Larl" Sigitov as their new midlaner.

While Spirit's only loss of the Winter Tour came at the hands of BetBoom, they are bound to face even stronger opponents if they hope to claim the trophy at Lima. While we don't see them as one of the bigger contenders there, Spirit could still surprise many.

Roster:

  1. Illya "Yatoro" Mulyarchuk

  2. Denis "Larl" Sigitov

  3. Magomed "Collapse" Khalilov

  4. Miroslaw "Mira" Kolpalkov

  5. Yaroslav "Miposhka" Naidenov

HellRaisers

Winter Tour record: 5-2

Predicted placement: 13th-18th

HellRaisers had a solid performance in Eastern Europe, but that won't mean much when they face the best from other regions in the Lima Major. Not helping their case is the fact that they suddenly kicked carry player Nikita "Daxak" Kuzmin after he helped them qualify, with his replacement yet to be announced. Considering their circumstances, we wouldn't expect much from this team.

Roster:

  1. TBA

  2. Gleb "depressed kid" Zyryanov

  3. Matvey "MieRo`" Vasyunin

  4. Vladislav "Antares" Kertman

  5. Alexey "Solo" Berezin

China

PSG.LGD

Winter Tour record: 6-1

Predicted placement: 5th-8th

After their disappointing Top 6 finish at TI11, not many expected PSG.LGD to remain a dominant power in China, especially after Wang "Ame" Chunyu took a break and Zhao "XinQ" Zixing and offlaner Zhang "Faith_bian" Ruida left the team.

However, the new-look PSG.LGD are proving doubters wrong as newcomers Guo "shiro" Xuanang, Li "项羽" Longwu, and Lin "planet" Hao helped the team finish atop the Chinese regional league. While the relative inexperience of their new players gives us cause for concern, we still expect PSG.LGD to be one of the stronger teams at the Lima Major.

Roster:

  1. Guo "shiro" Xuanang

  2. Cheng "NothingToSay" Jin Xiang

  3. Li "项羽" Longwu

  4. Lin "planet" Hao

  5. Zhang "y`" Yiping

Team Aster

Winter Tour record: 6-1

Predicted placement: Top 4

Despite the sudden retirement of Zeng "Ori" Jiaoyang over the offseason, Team Aster remained one of the strongest teams in China with the additions of new midlaner Zhai "Xwy" Jingkai and coach Bai "rOtk" Fan.

Even if Aster ended up finishing second in the Chinese regional league, we still peg them as the stronger team over PSG.LGD once they're at the Lima Major. After all, this is still a majority of the Aster squad that finished fourth at TI11, and they're looking like one of the biggest contenders for the Major championship.

Roster:

  1. Du "Monet" Peng

  2. Zhai "Xwy" Jinkai

  3. Lin "Xxs" Jing

  4. Ye "BoBoKa" Zhibiao

  5. Yu "皮球" Yajun

Knights

Winter Tour record: 5-2

Predicted placement: 13th-18th

Knights are one of the new teams in the Chinese regional league, fielding a mixed roster of Chinese and Malaysian players. While they were one of the biggest surprises in the region, finishing third with a solid 5-2 record, they did so not without controversy.

In mid-January, Knights were accused of using vision hacks to cheat in multiple DPC games, though nothing has come of such allegations yet. China is no longer the juggernaut it once was and there's a significant drop-off in talent after PSG.LGD and Aster. While this team has the potential to pull of an upset or two, we still expect them to be among the weaker performers in the Major.

Roster:

  1. Luo "eGo" Bin

  2. Vincent "AlaCrity" Hiew

  3. Su "Flyby" Lei

  4. Chong “FelixCiaoBa” Wei Lun

  5. Xiao "XCJ" Chaojian

EHOME

Winter Tour record: 4-3

Predicted placement: 13th-18th

EHOME is another one of the mixed teams in China featuring Chinese and Malaysian players. They earned their spot in the Lima Major after finishing the regional league with a 4-3 record and defeating Xtreme Gaming in a tiebreaker.

While the organisation's name carries a lot of prestige, its current squad is a far cry from the legendary EHOME squads long past. As such, we don't expect this team to make a big splash.

Roster:

  1. Wong "mks" Sim An

  2. Pan "Night" Shuaifang

  3. Lee "X1aOyU" Qian Yu

  4. Tang "Salad" Xiaolei

  5. Liu "Lww" Weiwei

Southeast Asia

Execration

Winter Tour record: 6-1

Predicted placement: 13th-18th

Southeast Asia continues to be the most chaotic region in the circuit, as the Winter Tour regional league saw established teams like Fnatic and BOOM Esports get relegated to Division II. But once the dust settled, it was Filipino squad Execration that surprisingly stood atop the league.

While Execration has long been a household name in the Philippine and Southeast Asian scenes, this will be their biggest shot at making a splash internationally so far. But considering their competition at the Lima Major, we unfortunately expect them to narrowly miss out on a spot in the Playoffs. We hope to be proven wrong though.

Roster:

  1. Jinn Marrey "Palos" Lamatao

  2. Mark Anthony "Bob" Urbina

  3. Justine "Tino" Grimaldo

  4. Mark "Shanks" Redira

  5. Juan Carlo "BDz" Manalo

Geek Slate

Winter Tour record: 5-2

Predicted placement: 13th-18th

Geek Fam made its return to the Dota 2 scene by partnering with Slate Esports to rebrand as Geek Slate, assembling a roster built around a core of Filipino players. The team performed admirably during the regional league, being the only ones to take a game off of Execration en route to a second place finish.

While we rate Geek Slate higher than Execration, we don't think they can make it out of the Group Stage either. With that said, there is potential for this team to surprise unwitting opponents and make it farther than expected. We do hope that happens.

Roster:

  1. Andrei "skem" Ong

  2. Joshua "Kokz" Maraño

  3. Nikko "Force" Bilocura

  4. Ravdan "NARMAN" Narmandakh

  5. Roger "Roddgeee" Tan

Talon Esports

Winter Tour record: 4-3

Predicted placement: 13th-18th

After bombing out of TI11, Talon Esports retooled during the offseason by replacing Damien "kpii" Chok and Brizio "Hyde" Budiana with Anucha "Jabz" Jirawong and Chan "Oli" Chon Kien. The team was able to avoid the fate of the region's other established teams, qualifying for the Lima Major at the expense of Filipino superteam Blacklist Rivalry.

Much like the other Southeast Asian teams, we don't expect Talon to stay at Lima for long. To be honest, things are not looking great for Southeast Asia as a whole, though we welcome the teams to prove us otherwise in the Major.

Roster:

  1. Nuengnara "23savage" Teeramahanon

  2. Rafli "Mikoto" Rahman

  3. Anucha "Jabz" Jirawong

  4. Worawit "Q" Mekchai

  5. Chan "Oli" Chon Kien

North America

TSM

Winter Tour record: 7-0

Predicted placement: 9th-12th

TSM showed a lot of promise last season, especially after they finished second in the ESL One Stockholm Major. However, things started to look grim for the organisation after they bombed out of TI11 and had its roster gutted as Jonáš "SabeRLight-" Volek left for regional rivals Shopify Rebellion, Kim "DuBu" Doo-young moved to Southeast Asia, and David "MoonMeander" Tan was shifted to a coaching position.

Indonesian veteran Matthew "Whitemon" Filemon as well as newcomers Gainullin "kasane" Ilyas and Matthew "Ari" Walker proved to be valuable reinforcements for TSM, helping the team go on an unexpected perfect run through the North American regional league.

But despite being the top team in North America, TSM will still have a lot to prove at the Lima Major.

Roster:

  1. Enzo "Timado" Gianoli

  2. Jonathan "Bryle" De Guia

  3. Gainullin "kasane" Ilyas

  4. Matthew "Ari" Walker

  5. Matthew "Whitemon" Filemon

Shopify Rebellion

Winter Tour record: 6-1

Predicted placement: 5th-8th

After Evil Geniuses (EG) left for South America, Shopify Rebellion were quick to swoop in and sign their old roster plus SabeRLight. The squad was expected to make short work of the league thanks to their sheer star power, though they only finished in second place after losing their match against TSM.

Despite that hiccup, we still rate Shopify Rebellion higher than TSM as they still have the more talented and experienced roster. That counts for much in the high-pressure environment of a Major, even if the team's players have been notorious for choking when the stakes are high. With that said, we expect Shopify Rebellion to be among the stronger teams at Lima.

Roster:

  1. Artour "Arteezy" Babaev

  2. Abed "Abed" Yusop

  3. Jonáš "SabeRLight-" Volek

  4. Andreas "Cr1t-" Nielsen

  5. Tal "Fly" Aizik

South America

Beastcoast

Winter Tour record: 7-0

Predicted placement: 5th-8th

South America continues to rise in prestige, especially after the region's commendable showing at TI11. During the offseason, Beastcoast shuffled players with EG's new South American superteam then proceeded to reclaim their dominance over South America with a clean sweep of the regional league.

Last season, Beastcoast proved to be the bane of many teams in the lower bracket as they made deep runs. We expect a similar showing for the team in home turf, though this time we think they'll be causing upsets in the upper bracket.

Roster:

  1. Héctor "K1" Rodríguez

  2. Gonzalo "DarkMago" Herrera

  3. Rafael "Sacred" Yonatan

  4. Elvis "Scofield" Peña

  5. Steven "Stinger" Vargas

Evil Geniuses

Winter Tour record: 6-1

Predicted placement: 5th-8th

During the offseason, EG moved to greener pastures in South America by signing a majority of the former Thunder Awaken squad that gave the region its first Top 6 finish at TI.

Despite being pegged as the South American superteam, EG only finished second in the region after losing its match versus Beastcoast. Even so, they are looking like solid contenders for the Major championship, especially now that they'll be getting their home crowd cheering behind them.

Roster:

  1. Crhistian "Pakazs" Savina

  2. Jean Pierre "Chris Luck" Salazar

  3. Adrián "Wisper" Dobles

  4. Farith "Matthew" Puente

  5. Jose "Pandaboo" Padilla