Budapest Major 2025 Stage 3 Recap And CS2 Predictions Fallout

"You sure you chose right?" Now we actually know.

Last week we warned that Stage 3 was going to be chaos, not comfort.

We labeled it the real coin-killer, identified 3DMAX and PARIVISION as the most dangerous qualifiers, and said one big favorite was almost guaranteed to collapse.

We just didn't know who.

Now we do.

Stage 3 is complete, and if your Pick'ems survived Liquid's implosion, you're already ahead of most of the world.

Let's revisit what we predicted, what hit, what missed, and how the final eight reached playoffs.

FURIA 3-0, The Prediction That Aged Flawlessly

We recommended FURIA as a top 3-0 pick, and they delivered perfection.

Against G2, KSCERATO and yuurih were unstoppable, FalleN's calling was icy, and they never allowed series momentum to slip. This is the best CS2 FURIA we've seen, structure, clutch, pace control, no hesitation.

Our pick last week: FURIA = recommended 3-0 🟢 Correct

Tournament favorite. Playing like it. No overthinking needed.

Vitality: Not Clean, But Reliable, Just Like We Expected

We listed Vitality as the safest team in the field, and that remains true. Their opener vs FaZe was shaky, but once they settled, structure took over. ropz's 1v3 and zywoo's late-rounds saved them when NAVI pushed them to the edge.

Five Majors in a row reached, this is what stability looks like.

Prediction: Vitality = lock postseason 🟢 Hit perfectly

If you used them as a core qualifier, you're smiling today.

MOUZ Hold Strong, But They Made It Scary (exactly as predicted)

Last week we said:

MOUZ are safe to advance, but never stress-free.

And that is exactly how Stage 3 looked.

Falcons dragged them into deep water, but torzsi and Jimpphat turned Nuke into their playground and closed when it mattered.

Home crowd, playoffs, energy spiking, this team is dangerous now.

🟢 Safe pick validated.

NAVI Survive, Chaotic, But Expected

We warned that NAVI's opener vs FURIA was brutal but that long BO3s favored them later.

That's exactly how it played out.

• Nearly eliminated early
• Stabilized when structure mattered
• Closed vs B8 with clutch and composure

Not dominant, but alive, just as projected.

🟢 Another correct read.

Falcons Through, No Major Without Them

Steady, structured, low-variance, the exact reasons we placed Falcons in the safe-to-qualify bracket.

They stumbled early, recovered late, then finished G2 in the deciding match in a way that looked inevitable once m0NESY woke up.

🟢 A strong predictive hit.

LIQUID 0-3, The One Thing We DID NOT Expect

This is where Pick'ems died.

We didn't recommend Liquid as a 3-0 pick, or even as a safe slot, but we did expect them to survive eventually.

Instead:

• Spirit crushed them
• MongolZ exposed them
• Passion UA finished them

A shocking 0-3 run, the single biggest bracket-breaker of the stage.

We marked Liquid as caution, not a safe pick, but even we didn't see 0-3 coming.

🔴 Our only major miss.

MongolZ, FaZe & 3DMAX, The Movers That Defined Stage 3

This is where our dark horse calls matter.

3DMAX, Upset Machine (We NAILED This One)

We labeled them:

"Best Stage 2 team. Real upset potential. Only pick ONE dark horse, choose them."

They rewarded believers, and punished everyone who ignored them.

🟢 Dark horse success.

FaZe, Volatile, But We Kept Them in QUALIFY Range

We said not to trust them as 3-0, but to include them in the seven qualifiers.

We also said jcobbb instead of rain adds variance.

Both statements aged perfectly, FaZe qualified the hard way, but qualified.

🟢 Correct risk-balanced read.

PARIVISION, The Landmine We Warned You About

We wrote:

"PARIVISION is the most likely team to ruin a favorite mid-stage."

And yes, multiple teams felt their teeth.

Anyone who overlooked this call probably paid for it.

🟢 Correct danger tag.

Final Reality vs Our CS2 Predictions Scorecard

FURIA We Recommended: 3-0 pick Outcome: 3-0 Verdict: 🟢 Best call

Vitality We Recommended: Safe Outcome: Qualified Verdict: 🟢

Falcons We Recommended: Safe Outcome: Qualified Verdict: 🟢

Spirit We Recommended: 3-0/Safe Outcome: Qualified Verdict: 🟢

NAVI We Recommended: Safe Outcome: Qualified Verdict: 🟢

FaZe We Recommended: Qualify (not 3-0) Outcome: Qualified Verdict: 🟢

MOUZ We Recommended: Safe, but risky Outcome: Qualified Verdict: 🟢

Liquid We Recommended: Caution pick only Outcome: 0-3 Verdict: 🔴 unexpected collapse

7/8 correct qualifier reads, Liquid the only bracket-killer.

If you followed our structure, your Pick'ems probably survived.

If you gambled... may the coin forgive you.

CS2 Tournaments Playoffs, So What's Next?

Now the fun begins, playoffs.

Eight remain. Legends will fall. A champion will rise.

And yes, we will have a full playoff prediction breakdown next.

Just say the word. 🏆

TL;DR

• 7/8 correct qualifier predictions from our Stage 3 preview
• FURIA delivered the perfect 3-0 run exactly as recommended
• Liquid's shocking 0-3 elimination was the only bracket-killer
• Playoffs bracket set with all predicted favorites surviving except one