When it comes to Dota 2, very few places are as unpredictable as South America, and watching Hokori qualify for The International 2022 with a roster centered around three players who rejoined the team in July is peak SA Dota.

For more than two years, offlaner Pablo “Vitaly” Roman and captain Brayan “Gardick” Cárdenas have kept the Hokori roster together, persevering through the highs and lows that come with ongoing rebuilds in a volatile area.

A Quick Recap

The two failed their previous attempt to qualify for TI, placing eighth in the SA qualifier for TI10, and decided to start over for the upcoming Dota Pro Circuit season. They fared better in 2022, but they were nonetheless demoted from Division I in the Summer Tour and failed to win a single Major.

After disintegrating during the Summer Tour, the team set about reassembling around its two pillars. They brought in three players who had some prior experience playing with Gardick and Vitaly, and they trained like never before with those well-known individuals in the lead-up to the competition—only to stumble into the lower bracket after one win.

However, the victories the team did manage to secure were noteworthy, particularly the 3-0 victory over qualification favorites Infamous in a series in which every game lasted longer than 40 minutes.

In the grand finals, Hokori pulled off a second consecutive 3-0 upset after BetBoom Team defeated Outsiders in the Eastern Europe qualifier. And with that victory, the Peruvian team not only earned a spot in Division II for the upcoming season but also punched its ticket to its first TI.

Hokori joins beastcoast and Thunder Awaken in the event, giving SA three teams at TI for the third consecutive year.

The TI11 Last Chance Qualifier in Singapore, which starts on October 8, will feature the second and third place teams from each region’s qualifiers competing for the remaining two spots on Dota’s grandest stage, giving Infamous and Tempest a chance for atonement.