Aurora Beat Team Falcons 4-2 to Claim First MPL Philippines Title

Three Straight Wins Deliver Aurora's Breakthrough

Aurora Gaming PH won their first MPL Philippines championship on Sunday, October 25, beating Team Falcons PH 4-2 at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City. After falling behind 2-1, Aurora took the final three games of the Season 18 grand final, turning a difficult weekend into the franchise's first domestic league title.

Jan "Domeng" Del Mundo earned the Finals MVP award, with his damage helping finish the deciding game after Nathanael "Nathzz" Estrologo repeatedly created openings for Aurora to attack. The victory ended Aurora's wait after finishing second in Seasons 14 and 16.

The fourth seed also reversed its fortunes against the second seed at the most valuable moment. Aurora had lost to Falcons in the upper bracket final two days earlier and had not beaten them all season before Sunday's championship match.

Both finalists secured places at the M8 World Championship. Aurora will head there as Philippine champions and defending world champions, having won M7 in January. The domestic breakthrough gives the team a title that had remained out of reach even after success on the international stage.

A Demanding Route Through the Playoffs

Aurora's championship required more than one recovery. Friday's defeat against Falcons sent them into the lower bracket, where another loss would have ended their tournament. On Saturday, they faced Team Liquid PH, the winners of the previous three MPL Philippines seasons.

Aurora beat Liquid 4-3, ending that championship run and earning another meeting with Falcons. A series decided in seven games left Aurora with little time before Sunday's final, where they needed another four game wins to take the trophy.

The closing weekend unfolded in three stages:

• Friday: Falcons defeated Aurora in the upper bracket final and advanced directly to the championship match.
• Saturday: Aurora eliminated Team Liquid PH 4-3 in the lower bracket final.
• Sunday, October 25: Aurora recovered from a 2-1 deficit to defeat Falcons 4-2 for the title.

The bracket gave Aurora a second chance after Friday's defeat. They used it to beat the reigning domestic champions and then the team that had sent them into the elimination match.

Objective Control Sets Up the Opening Win

Aurora began the grand final with a 14-7 victory in kills, closing Game 1 in 14 minutes and 24 seconds with an advantage of about 8,000 gold. Kenneth "Yue" Tadeo's Zhuxin supplied six kills and seven assists while dying only once.

Kyle "Koyl" Reyes helped Aurora control the Turtle and Lord, major neutral monsters that both teams can contest. Defeating them provides rewards or attacking support, giving a team more ways to pressure its opponent than simply chasing player kills.

Falcons briefly created an opening by eliminating Domeng in the top lane and destroying an outer turret. Turrets protect the routes into each team's base, so removing one gives attackers more space to move forward.

Aurora answered with successful fights and secured a second Lord. They then pushed through the middle lane and eliminated the Falcons lineup to finish the opener. Their lead in gold, the resource players spend on equipment, helped turn control of the map into stronger fighting power.

Falcons Turn the Series Around

Michael "Kyle" Sayson led the Falcons response in Game 2 by repeatedly entering Aurora's jungle and contesting important objectives. The jungle contains monsters that provide gold and experience; taking those resources from an opponent can slow its development while strengthening the invading team.

Salik "Hadji" Imam's Zhuxin helped swing group fights toward Falcons, while Marco "Super Marco" Requitiano played Claude. Falcons wiped out Aurora's lineup and won in 13 minutes and 24 seconds, bringing the series level at 1-1.

Falcons carried that pressure into Game 3, using Aurora's early mistakes and control of objectives to move ahead. Super Marco switched to Cici as Falcons worked toward a breakthrough.

Aurora kept the game competitive through Koyl's repeated Lord captures and Domeng's pressure in another lane. That approach forces opponents to decide whether to stay together for a fight or send players back to defend. Falcons eventually broke through the bottom lane, ending the game in 20 minutes and 41 seconds and taking a 2-1 series lead.

Estes Helps Aurora Reset the Final

Aurora changed the direction of the series in Game 4 by drafting Estes for Yue in the middle lane. Estes is a healing support hero, and Aurora used him in a strategy often called the ultimate bonding experience, or UBE, which keeps players close enough to support one another during fights.

The choice gave Aurora a different way to withstand pressure and keep fighting. Yue finished with nine assists, while Nathzz landed a crucial Barats ultimate ability to eliminate Kyle. Domeng supplied the damage as Aurora dismantled Falcons' defenses.

Aurora won 11-2 in kills, holding Falcons to their lowest kill total described in the final. They finished with more than 37,000 gold against Falcons' 28,300, a gap exceeding 8,700. Using those figures, Aurora had at least about 31 percent more gold than their opponents.

Game 4 lasted just 10 minutes and 23 seconds, making it the shortest game of the final. Game 3 had taken 20 minutes and 41 seconds, almost twice as long. Aurora had moved from a prolonged defeat to a rapid win that tied the series at 2-2.

Falcons still needed two victories to claim the championship when Game 4 began. Aurora's response stopped them from reaching a 3-1 lead and restored an equal contest with up to three games left.

A Lord Fight Decides a Close Game 5

Aurora selected Estes again in Game 5, this time assigning him to roamer Dylan "Light" Catipon. A roamer moves around the map to help teammates, create openings and protect vulnerable players. Light supported Domeng, who was playing Chou.

Neither side pulled away early. At nine minutes, the teams were tied at 12 kills each. During the first Lord fight, Kyle came close to completing a Maniac, the game's announcement for four consecutive kills, before being stopped. The exchange left four players dead on each team.

Koyl made the decisive contribution in the next Lord engagement, securing a triple kill as Aurora eliminated Falcons. Aurora then advanced through the top lane and finished the game in 12 minutes and 42 seconds.

The win put Aurora ahead 3-2 and one victory from the title. Estes had now helped them win in two different roles, with Yue using him in the middle lane and Light using him as the roamer.

Domeng Finishes the Championship

Falcons banned Estes for Game 6, preventing Aurora from selecting the hero again. Aurora still found a way to dictate the fights, with Nathzz repeatedly setting up engagements that allowed Domeng to deal damage.

Aurora punished Falcons' attempts to attack and took one exchange by four kills to one. Domeng followed with a triple kill in another decisive clash, keeping Falcons under pressure as Aurora moved toward their base.

Playing Clint, Domeng added a late double kill in the 11th minute. His uninterrupted run of kills brought the game's Godlike and Legendary announcements before Aurora attacked the remaining defenses and sealed the series 4-2.

The finish brought together two contributions that had shaped Aurora's recovery: Nathzz's ability to start favorable fights and Domeng's ability to complete them. Domeng's Finals MVP award recognized his performance across a series that ended with Aurora firmly in control.

The Draft Shows More Than One Winning Plan

Estes was the most visible change in Aurora's comeback, but the team's selections across six games showed a broader set of preferences. Aurora picked Atlas five times, Suyou four times and Barats three times. Barats appeared in both the Game 4 and Game 6 victories.

Hirara was either selected or banned in every game. Falcons played the hero in Games 1, 3, 4 and 6, Aurora used the hero in Game 5, and Falcons banned the selection in Game 2. A ban removes a hero from that game's available choices, making the draft a contest over what each team can use.

Masha was available only in Game 4, when Aurora selected the hero and won. The hero was banned in every other game. Those decisions show how much of the contest took place before players entered the map, as each side tried to secure useful combinations and limit the other's options.

Aurora's two Estes wins forced Falcons to spend a ban on the healer in the final game. Aurora then closed the championship without that selection, using Nathzz's engagements and Domeng's Clint to finish the job.

Both Finalists Head to M8

Aurora and Falcons secured their M8 World Championship places by reaching the MPL Philippines Season 18 final. Sunday's result decided which team would travel as the domestic champion, with Aurora adding the Philippine league crown to the world title they won at M7.

The M8 schedule places the opening phase in Bangkok in December, followed by the conclusion in Istanbul, Türkiye, in January 2027. Exact match dates were not specified. Aurora will be seeking to defend its world championship after finally winning the domestic trophy that escaped it in Seasons 14 and 16.

Falcons leave Pasig with another runner-up finish, having also placed second in Season 17, but with international qualification secured. Their sister team, the MPL MENA champions Team Falcons, has also qualified for M8.

Aurora's achievement rests on a demanding sequence of results: a seven game victory over Team Liquid, a recovery from 2-1 down against Falcons and three consecutive wins to close the final. The fourth seed finished the season by defeating both the previous domestic champions and the opponent it had been unable to beat earlier in the campaign.

Key Points

• Aurora Gaming PH defeated Team Falcons PH 4-2 at the PhilSports Arena to win their first MPL Philippines title.
• Aurora won the last three games after trailing 2-1, with Estes helping turn Games 4 and 5.
• Domeng earned Finals MVP and helped finish Game 6 with Clint.
• Aurora reached the final after eliminating Team Liquid PH 4-3 and ending Liquid's three season championship run.
• Both finalists qualified for M8, which opens in Bangkok in December and concludes in Istanbul in January 2027.