A three-way tiebreaker that lasted for twelve hours and even Danil “Dendi” Ishutin’s Pudge made an appearance? Now that’s not something we expect in everyday DPC NA Division 1 standards.

Dendi’s Pudge made this a special tie-breaker to watch. While the DPC NA scene may not be the most challenging, it’s still a blast from the past for old time’s sake.

For the uninitiated, team B8, ALPHA and Sand King Gómez competed for the sixth-eighth place finishes in DPC NA Division 1 of Tour 3. The sixth-place winner gets to play in Division 1 bracket for the next DPC season, whereas the other two drops into Division 2 bracket.

The three rivals have to play three rounds of tiebreakers before B8 eventually take the victory. However, what’s mind-boggling is that each match lasted 45 minutes on average, which adds up to the record-breaking twelve-hour duration of the entire tiebreaker.

We have saved our slot in Division 1 ? pic.twitter.com/OMk4b42eWU

— B8 Esports (@B8esportsGG) June 6, 2023

After a gruesome eighth match of the tiebreaker, Dendi took the leap of faith and picked Pudge as his team’s last pick. This was also his first professional win with the champ since 2015, when the veteran player was still in Natus Vincere.

His teammates’ reaction to the Pudge pick was indeed priceless, such as Glib “Funn1k” Lipatnikov, who was recorded laughing at the last pick. Meanwhile, even the younger players of B8, Denis “StoneBank” Korzh and Oleg “Lodine” Kvasha could only facepalm to the unexpected pick. He is, after all, the captain of his team, B8.

Was Dendi’s Pudge truly impactful in this match? Well, truth be told, it wasn’t. There are the occasional good hook shots that probably gave the viewers a tinge of adrenaline rush. But it was ultimately B8’s overall draft, comprising of Batrider, Beastmaster and Terrorblade, that truly won them their decisive match against Sand King Gómez.

Nevertheless, seeing Dendi’s Pudge in the latest meta of Dota Update 7.33 is still a treat.

B8 won the sixth place in DPC NA Division 1, which is a commendable effort altogether. Considering this team hasn’t had any success since their debut in 2020, this is certainly B8’s best accomplishment in DPC thus far.

And, to all the haters, who are calling Dendi too persistent for his own good at his age. Well, he hasn’t given up since he founded B8 four years ago. Perhaps with this current roster, that also has been among the longest tenured in B8’s recruitment history.

We just might see B8 reach greater heights, such as placing third or fourth place in DPC NA Division 1. As much as we are happy to see Dendi and B8 on the rise, there are still gatekeepers in the NA region, namely Shopify Rebellion, TeamSoloMid and more recently, nouns.

Speaking of overdue commitments, one agenda which Dendi hasn’t been able to fulfil since 2016, was qualifying for the Internationals Championship. This means Dendi hasn’t participated in TI for five years, so surely, he’s aching to make it this year somehow.

Although the Bali Major 2023 is out of question, B8 will likely have a shot at qualifying for TI12 via the TI12 Regional Qualifier for NA teams. Even though NA teams are infamously known for their underwhelming performance and easier playouts, it would still be tough for B8 to win against nouns, TeamSoloMid, Team DogChamp or even felt, that all placed better than them.