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We turn our attention to the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025, one of the most anticipated offline CS2 events of the competitive season, featuring a $1,250,000 prize pool. Group stage matches continue at MTK Sportpark, while the playoffs will take place at the iconic MVM Dome in Budapest, Hungary.
The stakes rise on Day 3 of Stage 1, where a crucial BO3 matchup awaits between Fluxo and Ninjas in Pyjamas. Both teams arrive with a 2–1 record, standing just one step away from securing their place in the next stage of the tournament. With pressure mounting and no room for mistakes in a full series, this showdown promises a tense and highly competitive battle as Fluxo and NiP fight to convert their momentum into a decisive qualification.
How The Bookies View It: NiP Slightly Favoured
According to the current betting odds, Ninjas in Pyjamas enter the series as slight favourites with a coefficient of 1.40, while Fluxo are priced at 2.89. The gap isn’t overwhelming, but it clearly reflects the bookmakers’ belief in NiP’s stability and recent form. Still, in a BO3 elimination-decider with both teams sitting at 2–1, the margin for error is minimal, and Fluxo have more than enough firepower to challenge the odds if they find their rhythm early.
Fluxo form. What result can be expected from Fluxo
In the first half of the 2025 season, Fluxo showed mixed performances, often dominating regional tournaments but struggling at higher-tier events. The team began the year with a strong showing at ESL Challenger League Season 49: South America, winning 1st place and earning $20,000, but soon faced challenges in S- and A-tier events, including ESL Pro League Season 22 (20th–22nd) and CS Asia Championships 2025 (13th–16th), where they were eliminated early.
Over the next months, Fluxo alternated between solid regional results and disappointing exits. They placed 3rd at Circuit X South America Season 1, 3rd at Fragadelphia 19, and 3rd–4th at Thunderpick World Championship 2025: South American Series #2, while also finishing 5th–8th at CCT Season 3 South American Series #4 and 4th at ESL Challenger League Season 50: South America - Cup #1. This showed that the team can perform well against regional competition but still struggles to reach top positions at international events.
- Fluxo roster: arT, zevy, Lucaozy, kye, decenty.
The team also secured 1st place at Circuit X Retake São Paulo 2025 and 1st place at CCT Season 3 South American Series #3, earning $5,500 and $10,000 respectively, which were highlights of their season. These victories demonstrate that Fluxo can dominate smaller tournaments when their roster is in sync and playing confidently.
Despite having talented players, Fluxo have struggled with consistency in 2025. The team sometimes loses focus in key moments and has had trouble against stronger international opponents. As they enter the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025, Fluxo remain a competitive team, but their results are hard to predict — they could make a good run or get knocked out early depending on how well they play on the day.
Fluxo Map Pool
Over the past three months, Fluxo have shown strong results on several maps. Dust2 has been their most successful map, with a perfect 100% win rate, followed by Train at 87.5% and both Nuke and Overpass at 66.7%, demonstrating solid performance on structured maps. Mirage sits at 53.3%, showing moderate success, while Ancient, often used as a first pick, has a 44.4% win rate, and Inferno remains their weakest map at 33.3%, where the team has struggled against stronger opposition.
NiP form. What result can be expected from NiP
In the first half of the 2023 season, NiP were remembered only for qualifying for the Paris Major 2023 after finishing 7th at European RMR B, as well as finishing in the top 8–11 at the Major itself. The team’s form slightly improved over the course of the season.
Although NiP lost in the Last Chance Qualifiers at Gamers8, they later performed well at BLAST Premier: Fall Groups 2023. They confidently advanced to the Fall Final, defeating such giants as Vitality.
NiP approached IEM Cologne 2023 in full combat readiness. There were no roster changes before the tournament, which clearly played in favor of the Swedish club.
In the first round of the Play-In at IEM Cologne 2023, Ninjas in Pyjamas faced Into The Breach. The match ended in an easy NiP win on Ancient with a score of 16-5.
In the match for a spot in the group stage of IEM Cologne 2023, NiP played against MOUZ. The "mice" outplayed the Swedes in class, allowing them to take only 19 rounds in two maps. The tournament ended for NiP in the top 16.
In the 2024 season, NiP drastically changed their roster, essentially carrying out a full rebuild of the team.
- NiP roster: r1nkle, ewjerkz, sjuush, xKacpersky, Snappi.
At PGL Major Copenhagen 2024: European RMR A, NiP performed poorly — top 16. Things slightly improved in the second half of the year: top 2 at YaLLa Compass 2024, top 4 at FiReLEAGUE Global Final 2023. Among TIR-S tournaments, the best performance was at BLAST Premier: Fall Groups, where NiP managed to beat C9 and FaZe, but stopped at the top 8 after losing to Astralis.
Later, NiP played at BLAST Premier: Fall Showdown 2024 but failed to repeat the success of the previous BLAST tournament, finishing only top 16. They later placed top 28 at ESL Pro League Season 20 and top 16 at CCT Season 2 European Series #13. They also participated in the Thunderpick World Championship 2024, where they finished top 12 — a result that can hardly be called successful.
In the 2025 season, NiP participated in a large number of various qualifying tournaments. Only one of them ended in victory — PGL Astana 2025: European Qualifiers. However, at PGL Astana 2025 itself, NiP managed to reach the playoffs by winning their group with a 3-2 score — this was the Swedish club’s best result in the past 5 months of the 2025 season.
Ninjas in Pyjamas performed quite well at C and B-tier tournaments. The team won Fragadelphia x LVL UP EXPO 2025, placed 3rd–4th at The Proving Grounds Season 1, and finished 2nd at CCT Season 3 European Series #3.
The team also performed successfully at StarLadder StarSeries Fall 2025. In the upper bracket, NiP claimed victories over OG and parivision but were defeated by NAVI in the Upper Bracket Final. In the Lower Bracket Final, the team beat B8 and advanced to the Grand Final, where they lost to NAVI and finished 2nd in the tournament, earning $130,000.
Later in the year, NiP participated in PGL Masters Bucharest 2025, an A-Tier offline Counter-Strike 2 event. The team fought hard but fell 1:2 in the playoffs, finishing 15th–16th and earning $6,250.
NiP Map Pool
Over the past three months, NiP has shown a varied performance across different CS2 maps. Their strongest map is Train, with a 71.4% win rate, followed by Nuke at 61.5% when picked first and Ancient at 57.1%, highlighting their strength on maps that favor structured strategies and coordinated team play. Overpass and Dust2 have been more challenging, with win rates of 33.3% and 28.6% respectively, while Mirage, often banned first, has brought only 25% success. Inferno has been their weakest map recently, with 0% wins, indicating clear vulnerabilities on this popular competitive map. This map pool suggests that while NiP can dominate on strategic maps like Train and Nuke, they may face difficulties on more dynamic or commonly contested maps.
Head-to-Head: Fluxo vs NiP
Ninjas in Pyjamas and Fluxo have never faced each other in an official match before. This BO3 will be their first head-to-head, so neither team has prior results to rely on. With both sitting at 2–1 in the group, the series promises to be unpredictable, and every map will be important.
Predicted result of the match Fluxo – NiP at StarLadder Budapest Major 2025
Given that this is a BO3 and both Fluxo and NiP have shown inconsistent form at times, it’s likely that the series will be competitive and extended. Fluxo have the firepower to challenge NiP on their stronger maps, while NiP can dominate on structured maps like Train and Nuke. Considering both teams’ tendencies to drop maps even against weaker opponents, a tight three-map series seems probable. Betting on total maps over 2.5 is a reasonable expectation, as the clash between these two evenly matched teams should push the series to the full distance.
