The Chinese Home Front
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The Chinese AD Carry with the god level mechanical skills is back on the Worlds stage. Uzi returns with Royal Never Give Up for his 4th run in the League of Legends World Championship. They may still be the underdogs hiding in the shadows of a domineering Korean delegation, but now they’re fighting with the home court advantage.
Homecourt Advantage
Uzi has been to Worlds a total of four times now with the Royal organization through different team rosters. They are currently standing as the 2nd seed of the Chinese region after failing to secure the local championship against EDward Gaming.
This year marks the first Worlds to be held on Chinese soil. Naturally, most of the audience are rooting for the hometown teams. Uzi has a great chance to secure his own Summoner’s Cup in front of millions of his own countrymen.
4th Time’s the Charm
EDG were expected to lead the charge in the homestead defense of the LPL region at Worlds. However, given their abysmal 0-3 record at groups, EDG have almost no hope of defending the homeland.
RNG on the other hand are undefeated in groups. They are only 1 game win away from a sure spot at the playoffs.
Uzi stepped onto the international stage at the same time the Korean squads started to emerge. This has left the Chinese carry and most of his team on the underdog side of engagements since 2013. This trend continued through to 2016 despite Uzi teaming up with two former world champions in Looper and Mata.
Things seem to be different this year for the RNG marksman as they look towards breaking through the group stage. With EDG failing miserably in their first round of groups, Uzi and the rest of Royal Never Give Up proudly carry their country’s flag.
Time is Ticking
Uzi has already failed three times at Worlds in his three years of professional play. Summoners aren’t expected to keep chasing after the world championship for their entire life. This means that Uzi maybe has one or two more years at the very least.
Their crushing 2-3 defeat at the hands of EDward Gaming in the recent LPL championship should have completely demoralized them for the world championship. Royal Never Give Up is living up to the tenacity that their team’s name stands for.
This may very well be Uzi’s final chance at the World Championship title before his skills begin to deteriorate. For Jian “Uzi” Zi-Hao there are only two paths left; a glorious victory in the grand finals, or a sure path to obscurity in the LoL history books.
Catch RNG and the rest of teams wrap up their groups matches tomorrow at 12:00NN!
