Conversations Spur as Aurora Beats Talon Esports, Securing DreamLeague S23 Qualification

After being pushed down to the lower bracket early on in the DreamLeague Season 23: Southeast Asia Closed Qualifier, Aurora went on a tremendous run to reach the grand final where it defeated Talon Esports 3-0 for a place in the main event. Despite a competitive first game lasting more than 30 minutes, Talon lost steam as the series progressed as it was outdrafted and outplayed.

Aurora’s carry player Nuengnara “23savage” Teeramahanon wrote a cheeky “no class )” in the all-chat just as the GG call in the third game was made by Talon. However, things took an unexpected turn after the series, with Aurora’s coach Lee “SunBhie” Jeong-jae and Talon Esports’ Chief Gaming Officer (CGO) Kim “hooondo” Do-hoon indirectly poking each other on Twitter.

SunBhie and Talon CGO indirectly exchange words following Aurora’s DreamLeague Season 23 qualification

Soon after Aurora defeated Talon 3-0 and 23savage’s “class” comment toward the end of the third game, Sunbhie fired shots at the Talon organisation, citing a “class” difference between the players and the organization.

Shortly after SunBhie’s tweet and questions surfaced in the comments, hooondo responded to SunBhie indirectly through a separate tweet and at the same time, clarified that was not about Aurora’s carry player, 23savage.

As was the case during the 2022-23 competitive season, the current Aurora lineup played for Talon Esports. Following the contract expiration after The International 12, the two parted ways, and the group of players, coached by SunBhie, signed with Aurora. Talon moved on to sign a new set of players.

In a response to his original tweet, hooondo stated that he considered certain individuals within Aurora as “cowards,” clarifying that this did not extend to the players, with whom he had no issues.

Subsequently, Aurora criticized Talon’s CEO for removing a previous tweet. In response, he clarified that his intention for deleting it was to highlight a particular message.

Aurora and Talon Esports competed in the DreamLeague Season 23: Southeast Asia Closed Qualifier grand final, with only one spot in the main tournament at stake. The two teams have been the strongest in SEA in recent months, and with some history involved, it was expected to be an exciting encounter

As it turned out, Aurora, despite its odd tendency to look out of place at times, was at its best on the day, and when that happens, it has turned out to be the most difficult team to beat in Southeast Asia. Talon showed fight in the start, but Aurora only got tougher as the series progressed, ultimately winning 3-0.