Aurora Gaming secured a decisive 2-0 victory against HOTU in the Upper Bracket Quarterfinal 3 of IEM Rio 2026 on April 13, 2026.
The match, part of Group B's Upper Bracket Round 1, saw the higher-ranked Aurora Gaming, currently 6th globally, overcome HOTU, ranked 33rd. This result allows Aurora Gaming to advance further in the tournament.
While specific map scores were not provided, Aurora Gaming demonstrated strong form to close out the series without dropping a map. The teams' recent performance metrics indicate a competitive encounter, with Aurora Gaming holding a 1.12 rating and HOTU at 1.17 over the past three months, alongside similar KPR, DPR, and KAST statistics.
The potential map pool for the series included:
- Dust2
- Mirage
- Inferno
- Nuke
- Overpass
- Ancient
- Anubis