By Blizzard Entertainment

DALLAS FUEL

Joined Overwatch League: September 2017

Division: Pacific

Academy Team: Team Envy

2018 RECAP

The Fuel’s opening-day roster was one of the Overwatch League’s most diverse lineups, with players hailing from eight countries. With a wealth of talent and strong organizational experience, the team entered the season with high expectations that were not met during a disappointing Stage 1—capped by a 3-7 record. Stage 2 was even more difficult for Dallas as they struggled to a 2-8 mark and underwent multiple roster changes. The Fuel continued to slide in Stage 3, winning just one game. Before the stage, the team dealt Scott “Custa” Kennedy to the Los Angeles Valiant for Benjamin “Unkoe” Chevasson, only to see Custa go on to help spark the Valiant and be named an All-Star starter. With the arrival of a new meta, Dallas was finally able to rally in Stage 4, going 6-4 and qualifying for the Stage Playoffs, where they lost to New York.

2018 TEAM STATS AND LEAGUE RANKINGS

ROSTER ANALYSIS

Find out what the casting team thinks about the Fuel’s lineup.

More: 2019 Roster

KEYS TO SUCCESS

Overwatch League analyst Josh “Sideshow” Wilkinson offers his thoughts on what Dallas needs to focus on this season:

• The Fuel were expected to perform well at the beginning of 2018, yet they failed to generate momentum until the end of the regular season. In Stage 4, a new head coach and new meta proved favorable for Dallas, and they made the Stage Playoffs for the first time. The new coaching staff, featuring Aaron “Aero” Atkins and Justin “Jayne” Conroy, must continue this dramatic improvement if the team is to reach its potential in 2019. Both coaches are highly rated by the Overwatch community and could turn this roster into a consistent playoff contender.
• The meta in Stage 4 favored tank compositions, which proved to be a game-changer for the Fuel. With Brigitte still frequently used as a firm dive-killer, it seems that Dallas will have consistent opportunities to rely on their tank play instead of having to play dive, putting them in a much better position compared to 2018. The more wins Dallas can rack up during non-dive metas, the better they will place overall.
• New tank Richard “rCk” Kanerva fills a desperate hole for this team. Despite Pongphop “Mickie” Rattanasangchod’s skill on D.Va in 2016 and 2017 and on Brigitte in 2018, his off-tank performance in the Overwatch League has been poor. RCk has proven himself to be an intelligent and competent D.Va player during Contenders EU and could form a scary tank duo alongside Min-Seok “OGE” Son, one that can go toe-to-toe with the best in the league.
• DPS Zachary “Zachareee” Lombardo is another new player to the team. Though most fans may know him for his performance with Team USA in the most recent Overwatch World Cup, Zachareee has been a rising talent in Contenders for some time. If the Fuel coaching staff can relieve some of the pressure from his shoulders and allow him to play freely, Zachareee’s flexibility will do the rest. He only has to be a role-playing counterpart to Hyeon “Effect” Hwang to help the team secure victories.

Catch the Dallas Fuel in action in their season opener against the San Francisco Shock on Friday, February 15, at 7 p.m. PST. All 2019 season matches will be available live and on demand on overwatchleague.com, the Overwatch League app, our Twitch channel, MLG.com, and the MLG app.