Hey guys, I'm back with more predicts, this time with some actual data on half the players :blobcheer: So, let's get into it
Friend Safari Pokemon Trainers vs. Route 30 Youngsters
SM UU: CBU (65) vs. (35) Mana: CBU played an immaculate game last week, with a team that allowed him to play into his naturally aggressive playstyle. Mana had a much tougher opponent in Pearl, but choked versus Passimian webs. I think CBU is likely to have to outplay a bad matchup here, as I can see Mana falling back on a bulkier build to try and deal with the classic CBU balance breakers. Bronzongs advisory
SM UU: vivalospride (40) vs. (60) FLCL: FLCL managed to take Poek down effectively in the builder last week with Eball Reuni, and the first week should've given the former Open champion a chance to get a feel for UU again. viv, on the other hand, played a good game versus yeezy week 1 only to lose out to a confusion on the last turn. viv's gonna be super motivated following the frustration of week 1, but FLCL takes this as long as his matchup isn't too unwinnable. The army of friends might have something to say about that, though
SM UU: passion (40) vs. (60) Lopunny Kicks: The Kicker won a pretty nicely played game last week with a pretty flashy dpulse on Eyan's double into Reuni, while passion is coming off the bench for the friends. I'm unsure as to how much experience passion has in UU, and Lop Kicks has been pretty impressive over the last few months in UU and OU, so giving it to him.
SM UU: hs (49) vs. (51) elodin: both of these players are likely to be motivated after week 1, with elodin losing to Osh's MegaBro and hs sitting on the bench after being one of the friends most expensive players. hs has been really impressive the last few months with a deep masters run and general decent results in side tours, but his fellow Brazilian may be a step far, for the moment. Not predicting this with a lot of confidence but have your :aborto: ready
Goldenrod City Grunts vs. Mikan Island Monsters
SM UU: HarrisIsAwesome (51) vs. (49) Eyan: Both these guys had a slightly disappointing week 1 and will be motivated to get on the board this week. I think that this game is likely to be won or lost in the builder, as both Pearl and Harris know each other well as builders and will know what they have to do to get a favourable matchup. I was also a big fan of the teams both of these guys brought in week 1, so I'm really looking forward to what we see at preview. Giving a tiny edge to Harris as I think he's slightly more likely to be able to outplay a bad matchup, but this one is a coin toss really for me.
SM UU: McMeghan (55) vs. (45) Poek: Roro got off to a strong start last week with a win over Bouff using a cool looking triple regen squad with no volt immunity, while Poek fell victim to an unwinnable matchup. Giving Roro a small edge here as I think the Monsters are going to find prep for that slot somewhat challenging, as Roro's eclectic team choices won't give Pearl a lot to work with here. Big highlight though, will definitely try and catch this live.
SM UU: Eternally (45) vs. (55) Osh: I was impressed by Osh's play last week in a tier he isn't too familiar in, taking down elodin in pretty emphatic fashion while Eternally lost out in an extremely tight game after a kinda weird series with Nido and Prim. Now Osh has had a week to work his way into UU and play a few games I think he's going to put up a really good record this tour, and I'm favouring him here versus Eternally.
SM UU: Freeroamer (40) vs. (60) TDK: This is another highlight game for me, TDK coming off the back of a week 1 loss versus ict (although he did win the SM game) and Freeroamer beating martha. This will be a much sterner test for roamer, however, and TDK will be looking to turn around his recent ill fortune in UU. TDK is a more solid player for me, and keeps up to date with UU enough that roamer shouldn't have a significant metagame advantage. TDK takes it
Ruin Valley Rangers vs. Iki Town Idols
SM UU: Indigo Plateau (40) vs. (60) Sage: Sage will be extremely motivated after her SPL campaign and sitting the first week out, and I'm looking forward to what we see teams-wise against IP, who is very challenging to prep for. I'm higher on Indigo than most, but he's going to find it tough to juggle OST semis (mad grats), UUPL and the infamous Venezuelan internet, so for me Sage takes this.
SM UU: Gondra (51) vs. (49) HT: Gondra's been putting up some pretty decent showings in UU over the last few months, most notably winning Majors, while HT was occasionally criticised for his play this SPL, despite ending with a positive record. Gondra will also be looking to recover from a tight loss in week 1 versus Adaam, and is backed up by the building prowess of Indigo and Pak, who will look to take advantage of some of the build trend HT showed over SPL. Very small edge to Gondra here
SM UU: Lycans (57) vs. (43) Charmflash: Weirdly specific predict here, but neither 40/60 or 45/55 felt fair in this matchup. Za picked up a nice win last week while Lycans' internet prevented him playing Misa. Lycans showed his consistency throughout SPL, and with longtime partner Indigo and creative builder Pak on side, I feel like he should be able to handle whatever Za can throw at him. Guy was no1 in the PR for a reason.
SM UU: Jarii (45) vs. (55) yeezyknows: gonna be honest I don't know too much about Jarii but everyone seems to think he's heat LOL so who am I to argue? Anyway yeezy's coming off a sketchy week 1 win, hence the small edge, while Jarii overcame Masters champ Amukamara (not Mael :angery:) in a tight one. I still see yeezy as a slightly more solid player, and with the range of building influences on the Idols I think he'll probably take this one home.
Likely playing Bouff evening GMT + 1 this weekend (most likely Sunday), LETS BOUNCE BACK DOCTORS!!!
