Aurora upset The MongolZ and soulfly says he wants to take down Vitality in Rotterdam

Aurora moved into the BLAST Open Rotterdam 2026 semi-finals after a 2-0 victory over The MongolZ, and their star rifler Caner “soulfly” Kesici said the result gives his squad fresh belief before a scheduled semi-final against Vitality on 28/03/2026 at 15:00.

The match itself felt controlled for Aurora. Soulfly credited a clear plan and a strong pistol-round performance as the keys to closing out Mirage and the second map. He added that the win matters beyond the tournament, because it helps with Stage 3 invites and the team’s momentum heading into the next event.

In an interview with HLTV.org, soulfly singled out Vitality as the hurdle he most wants to clear. “I really want to beat them,” he said, adding that he wants to show Aurora are not like other teams that have fallen to Dan “apEX” Madesclaire’s side this year.

Vitality arrive in Rotterdam as the tournament’s top seed, and soulfly acknowledged how difficult the upcoming match will be while stressing that the confidence from beating The MongolZ can help. Aurora’s win also highlighted The MongolZ’s lack of a coach on the sideline; soulfly argued that missing timeouts and an outside perspective hurt their opponent’s ability to stop Aurora’s runs.

For wider context on Vitality’s recent form, the team claimed the StarLadder Budapest Major on 14 December 2025, a run that has kept them at the center of conversations about who is the team to beat.

Tomorrow’s semi-final will be a direct test of whether Aurora’s tournament run can climb another step. Soulfly sounded upbeat but measured, saying the squad wants this win and that they will use the learning from today to prepare.

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