The two teams that met during Super Week—DRX and BRION—will face each other again on the 6th at CHZZK LoL PARK in Jongno, in Game 1 of Round 1 of the 2026 LCK Cup Play-In. This time, it’s a final showdown with elimination and survival on the line.

BRION are the biggest beneficiaries of this LCK Cup format. Their final record was 0–5. Despite failing to win a single match, they secured survival rights as the bottom seed of the Winners Group thanks to Gen.G Esports and T1—the Baron Group’s 1st and 2nd seeds—racking up 10 wins. Compared to Hanwha Life Esports, who finished 2–3 and didn’t even make the Play-In before being eliminated, it’s an enormous advantage.

DRX looked like they were headed for last place after opening the tournament on a three-match losing streak, but they managed to survive by taking down Nongshim RedForce and BRION in their final two matches. Even though kt Rolster and Hanwha Life Esports also ended at 2–3 in the Elder Group, their failure to manage their game differential allowed DRX to climb to third. That earned DRX the No. 3 seed in the Play-In, setting up a rematch against No. 6 seed BRION.

Based on this trajectory alone, you’d expect DRX to have the edge—but there are more variables than you might think. Even in the Super Week match, BRION won Games 2 and 3 back-to-back and pushed DRX to the brink. If Super Week had been played as a best-of-three—like the Play-In—then Super Week would have ended in a BRION victory.

Across those two games, BRION were clearly superior in both draft and in-game execution. That’s why the ceiling BRION show when they do take a game can’t be dismissed. If their biggest weakness—fatal late-game throws—hadn’t surfaced, they likely wouldn’t have ended winless. Put another way, if they don’t lose focus in the late game, a win is well within reach.

Another major variable is that DRX will not be able to use the Coach Voice (Coach Comms) system starting in the Play-In—despite it being a big source of strength for them. DRX were one of the teams that actively leveraged Coach Voice throughout the Group Battle. Head coach Jo Jae-eup reinforced the team’s win conditions by delivering detailed, timely calls at key moments.

With Jo’s assistance removed, how precisely DRX’s players can execute their early-to-mid-game macro will likely have a decisive impact on the result. From DRX’s perspective, it’s also an issue they’ll have to overcome no matter what if they want to climb higher.

This article was translated from the original that appeared on INVEN.