Sochůrek Secures Gold in Paris

Top 8 Coverage

Grand Prix Paris truly proved to be a worthy send-off for Khans of Tarkir and Fate Reforged which would soon rotate out of Standard. 1,510 players entered the tournament, 466 made it to the second day, and the eight players who finally gathered in the feature match area for the playoffs were a veritable dream team, with entries from three continents.

We had Pro Tour Battle for Zendikar finalist Ryoichi Tamada from Japan, Hall of Famer Ben Stark from the United States, who made his 18th Grand Prix Top 8 this weekend, and we saw Martin Jůza from the Czech Republic collect his 24th GP Top 8. In the end, however, it was the lesser known Czech player Petr Sochůrek who defeated all comers, including both Tamada as well as Stark, and claimed the trophy.

Meanwhile, Standard showed it was still good for a few surprises despite the expected dominance of Four-Color Rally the Ancestors. First, the deck failed to claim any of the top spots at the end of Day 1. Then, it reappeared as the most represented among the Top 100. Finally, it took up but one spot in a Top 8 that featured eight very distinct archetypes, and by the time the semifinals came around, Rally was gone completely. Hardened Scales, the breakout deck of the previous Standard Grand Prix, was nowhere to be found as well. Instead Abzan staged a comeback and the unlikely choice of Grixis Control won the tournament.

Congratulations to Petr Sochůrek, for becoming champion of Grand Prix Paris 2016 and, in the process, reaching Gold in the Pro Players Club!

Day 2 Coverage

Welcome back to Paris, France, where this weekend players from all over the world have gathered for the final hurrah of Khans of Tarkir and Fate Reforged in Standard!

For one last Grand Prix, rhinoceroses lay siege to outposts, hordelings burst out, scales are hardened, ancestors are rallied, time is dug through, and players can rely on fetch lands to make their four- or even five-color mana bases work with relative ease.

What had started with 1,510 participants had been reduced to 466 by the end of the first day of the tournament. Now 466 players were back for six more rounds of Standard, to compete for a spot in the Top 8. Many familiar faces could be found at or near the top of the standings overnight, including Ryoichi Tamada and Martin Jůza at 9-0 as well as Ondřej Stráský, Ben Stark, Marcio Carvalho, Sebastian Thaler, Pierre Dagen, Yuta Takahashi, Gabriel Nassif, and Fabrizio Anteri all within the Top 32. These ten could boast a combined 84 Grand Prix Top 8s, 15 wins before the weekend, and one might reasonably expect the numbers to have increased by its end.

Stay tuned for text updates straight from the battlefield to find out who ends up on top here at Grand Prix Paris 2016!

Day 1 Coverage

It was a great first day full of Magic here in Paris. 1,510 players from all over the world convened in the French capital for one final chance to summon Siege Rhinos and cast Dig Through Time, to attack with Mantis Riders and play Rally the Ancestors before the upcoming Standard rotation.

Through nine grueling rounds the original field was whittled down to a mere 466. All of them would return in the morning for another six rounds of Standard, on the hunt for prizes and points, for fame and fortune, and eventually a shot at the trophy and title. Overnight, four players remained undefeated with perfect records of 9-0: Steve Bains, Ryoichi Tamada, Martin Jůza, and Olivier Gheysen.

Interestingly enough, none of them had chosen the supposedly best deck. In fact no Rally pilot was even playing for 9-0 in the last round of the day. Instead, the 9-0 crowd featured an illustrous line-up of Abzan, Grixis Control, Bant Company, and Dark Jeskai.

Join us tomorrow for a breakdown of the top decks, for deck lists, and for further news straight from the battlefield of Grand Prix Paris 2016!