On April 18, Dragon Ranger Gaming and TEC Esports will face off in the playoffs stage at VCT 2025: China Stage 1. This match will determine the next team to leave the tournament, while the winner will advance to the second round of the lower bracket. Let's take a look at both teams’ form and make our own prediction for this match.

Current Form of the Teams

TEC

After a poor start to the season at the VCT 2025: China Kickoff and the VALORANT China Evolution Series Act 1 tournaments, where they placed last (9th–12th), TEC has shown some progress. In their last five matches, the team has won three times, one of which was against Dragon Ranger Gaming with a 2:1 score. The debut of the updated roster with Coco and TvirusLuke has brought positive results — TEC reached the playoffs by finishing second in their group, winning 3 out of 5 group stage matches. However, their first playoff match ended in a loss to Wolves Esports.

DRG

Dragon Ranger Gaming showed more stable results throughout the season, finishing fourth at the VCT 2025: China Kickoff and placing 5th–8th in the VALORANT China Evolution Series Act 1. However, the last five matches were mixed — only two wins (against Nova Esports and FunPlus Phoenix) and three losses, including one against TEC and a poor performance against TYLOO. DRG has shown inconsistency: they can beat the favorites but also lose to lower-tier teams.

Team Map Pool

The expected map selection sequence is as follows:

First Ban:

• TEC will likely ban Pearl
• DRG might ban Icebox

Team Picks:

• TEC will likely pick Fracture
• DRG, based on their stats and preferences, will choose Ascent

Second Ban:

• TEC might remove Haven
• DRG, in turn, might ban Split

Decider:

• Lotus

Head-to-Head Matches

The teams met recently — two weeks ago TEC earned their first-ever head-to-head win, defeating DRG 2:1. Before that, DRG had won three times — once nearly a year ago and twice in earlier meetings. So the current head-to-head score stands at 3:1 in favor of DRG.

Match Prediction

The match promises to be intense, as both teams have their strengths and weaknesses. TEC looks motivated after their roster update and has already proven they can beat DRG. At the same time, Dragon Ranger Gaming has more firepower and shows better long-term results.

However, DRG’s inconsistency combined with TEC’s visible progress in recent matches suggests that TEC could repeat their success. Still, we believe that DRG will learn from their mistakes and, after analyzing the TEC vs Wolves Esports match, will be better prepared.

Prediction: DRG to win 2:1.

VCT 2025: China Stage 1 takes place from March 13 to May 4 in a LAN format at the VCT CN Arena in Shanghai. Twelve partnered VCT China teams are competing for 3 invitations to Masters Toronto, as well as China Points needed to qualify for the upcoming Champions.