Natus Vincere had an eventful third day of competition at IEM Beijing 2026, securing two important victories and booking their place in the playoffs. First, the team defeated Ukrainian squad B8 2:0 in an elimination match, then beat Team Falcons 2:1, coming back after losing the first map.
Igor “w0nderful” Zhdanov’s performance deserves special attention, as he became one of the main heroes of both matchups. On the first two maps against Falcons, the NAVI sniper delivered an outstanding performance, while on the deciding Mirage, the team confidently closed out the series.
One of the central matchups on the third day was the all-Ukrainian derby between NAVI and B8 in the lower bracket of Group A. It was an elimination match for both teams: the winner would remain in contention for a playoff spot, while the loser would end their tournament run.
The series ended with a 2:0 victory for NAVI. However, B8 made their opponents work hard for it, as the team started both maps confidently and even took a four-round lead on each occasion.
On Ancient, NAVI’s own map pick, B8 quickly took a 5:1 lead. However, Oleksandr “Aleksib” Virolainen’s team managed to turn the first half around, winning six consecutive rounds and ending it with a 7:5 advantage. After the side switch, B8 once again closed the gap, but NAVI won six of the final seven rounds and closed out the map 13:8.
On Dust2, B8’s map pick, the scenario was partly repeated. The Ukrainian squad started with a 4:0 lead, but NAVI once again found a way back into the game. The first half ended in a 6:6 tie, and after the side switch, Natus Vincere gradually pulled away from their opponents.
B8 were not prepared to give up the map without a fight and managed to reduce the deficit to 11:12. However, NAVI won the decisive round and ended the match 13:11.
w0nderful was NAVI’s best player in the series, finishing the matchup with a 40–26 K-D. b1t (35–26) and Aleksib (31–25) also delivered strong performances. alex666 was B8’s top performer with a 33–33 record.
As a result, B8 finished their IEM Beijing 2026 run in 9th–12th place, while NAVI earned the opportunity to fight for the final playoff spot in Group A.
In the decisive Group A lower-bracket match, NAVI faced Team Falcons. The teams had already met at the start of the tournament, when the Ukrainian organization won 2:0. This time, the final playoff spot was at stake, making the rematch particularly important.
The first map was Ancient, NAVI’s pick. However, this time Falcons proved to be the stronger side. The team started the match confidently, then maintained its advantage to secure a 13:11 victory.
Despite the defeat, w0nderful and b1t were NAVI’s best players on this map. The Ukrainian sniper finished with a 27–14 record, while b1t went 25–11. Meanwhile, iM and Aleksib had a more difficult stretch, which prevented the team from maintaining its advantage at key moments.
However, on Falcons’ own pick, Inferno, NAVI demonstrated a completely different level of play. The main star was w0nderful, who practically dominated the server. In 17 rounds, he recorded 25 kills and died only four times, finishing the map with 131.9 ADR and a 94.1% KAST.
The start of the map was particularly impressive: the NAVI sniper had a 17–1 record before his opponents managed to take him down for the second time. The Ukrainian team finished the first half with a 9:3 score, and after the side switch, did not allow Falcons to get back into the game. The final score was 13:4, tying the series.
Mirage was the deciding map, where NAVI left their opponents no chance. The team won all 12 rounds of the first half, building a huge advantage. After the side switch, Falcons managed to take only three rounds, while the Ukrainian squad closed out the map 13:3.
Interestingly, on the deciding map, NAVI demonstrated their team strength even without an outstanding individual performance from w0nderful. Three players finished Mirage with positive K-D ratios: makazze — 16–5, b1t — 15–5, and iM — 17–10. The latter also recorded 112.8 ADR.
Across the entire series, b1t was NAVI’s best player with a 54–22 record. w0nderful finished the match with 59 kills and 28 deaths, while his performance on Inferno was one of the tournament’s most impressive individual displays.
NAVI defeated Falcons 2:1 (Ancient — 11:13, Inferno — 13:4, Mirage — 13:3) and secured their place in the quarter-finals of IEM Beijing 2026. Falcons finished the tournament in 7th–8th place.
In addition to the matches involving NAVI, several other important Group A and Group B matchups took place on November 4.
In Group B, Team Liquid comfortably defeated TYLOO 2:0, while BetBoom Team beat Aurora by the same score. Liquid and BetBoom then met in the decisive lower-bracket match. The series was closely contested: BetBoom lost on Nuke but managed to finish the matchup with a 2:1 victory and secure a playoff spot.
In Group A, Falcons defeated HEROIC 2:0 before facing NAVI. Meanwhile, in the Group B upper bracket, MOUZ beat PARIVISION 2:0.
Another important matchup was between The MongolZ and FURIA. The Mongolian squad won 2:1 and secured a place in the semi-finals, while FURIA will have to begin the playoffs in the quarter-finals.
By the end of the third day, MOUZ, PARIVISION, FURIA, The MongolZ, BetBoom, and NAVI had also qualified for the playoffs. The MongolZ and MOUZ, who won their respective groups, will begin the next stage directly in the semi-finals.
November 5 is scheduled as a rest day at IEM Beijing 2026, with no official matches taking place. Participants will have the opportunity to rest before the decisive stage of the tournament, while fans will be able to attend player autograph sessions in Beijing.
The competition will resume on November 6, when the quarter-finals begin. At this stage, NAVI will face PARIVISION, while FURIA will take on BetBoom Team. The winners of these matches will continue their fight for a place in the semi-finals.
Thus, NAVI ended the third day with two important victories, secured a playoff spot, and demonstrated that they can recover even after a poor start to a series. w0nderful’s performance was particularly convincing, while the team’s play on Mirage against Falcons showed just how dangerous Natus Vincere can be in decisive matches.
A reminder that Sentinels are signing world champion brawk and completing their roster for the 2027 season.
