CGC Trading Cards Competitive Team Wins the Pokémon Oceania International Championships!

A resounding round of applause for Team CGC Trading Cards after winning big at the Pokémon Oceania International Championships! Competing in a smaller competition of 524 Masters, Azul Garcia Griego earned his second international champion title. He previously placed first at the 2022 North America International Championship.

Representing Team CGC Trading Cards, Griego placed 1st (13/2/2) and Caleb Gedemer placed 131st (5/3/1). Daniel Altavilla and Kidd Starck were unable to attend, but we look forward to cheering them on in Knoxville!

After the difficulties running a Control deck at the Orlando Regionals, the team revaluated their deck strategy and resumed their use of the Lost Zone Box deck format. This resulted in a return to using Dragonite V, Drapion V and Radiant Greninja, among others. From the Crown Zenith set, the team added the increasingly popular Sky Seal Stone, to counter tough opponents.

The decision to switch from Control back to Lost Zone box was made to deal with the “Lugia fatigue” felt by both Lugia VSTAR players and their opponents, due to the strength of the deck being primarily at a standstill. Other familiar foes also returned yet again, with the Mew VMAX/Genesect V, Duraludon VMAX and Regigigas combinations also proving to be powerful opponents.

Prior to their next regional competition, Team CGC Trading Cards will be making their way to another battle unlike any other. At CGC Headquarters in Sarasota, Florida, the team will next appear going against celebrity influencers and CGC Trading Cards' own graders in the 2023 CGC Trading Cards Invitational on February 23, 2023. Make sure to tune in to CGCgrading on Twitch to watch the competition, and CGCcards on Instagram for all-day coverage, exclusive interviews, giveaways and more. 

Team CGC Trading Cards was assembled by Danny Oesterreich in 2022, and is comprised of seasoned players Daniel Altavilla, Azul Garcia Griego, Caleb Gedemer and Kidd Starck. The team will compete next in the Knoxville Regional Championships, at the Knoxville Convention Center, in Knoxville, Tennessee on February 24-26.

You can watch the event live on the Pokémon YouTube and Twitch channels all day long to see players do battle. And check CGC Trading Cards social channels, @CGCcards, for updates on the team’s performance throughout the season.

To learn more about Team CGC Trading Cards, click here.