First Stand 2026 Match Review: JDG Redeem Themselves with a Dominant Victory

Draft

JD Gaming – First Pick

• Rumble
• Vi
• Twisted Fate
• Ezreal
• Karma

Loud – Red Side

• Sion
• Nocturne
• Aurora
• Ashe
• Seraphine

JunJia Gives Over First Blood

JunJia decides to contest for the top Scuttle Crab. He smites the Crab, but dies to YoungJae on the chase. YoungJae’s first Paranoia takes a while, but it does get value. He dives onto a low-health Xiaoxu and kills him. JunJia dives the Loud bot lane alongside GALA and Vampire. They get both kills and the bot Tower at 12 minutes.

Targeting Xiaoxu

Loud attack Xiaoxu in the mid-lane. Loud killed him three times in a matter of minutes. Xiaoxu is behind in gold, but the rest of his team is significantly ahead. JDG force Loud away from the third Drake with their poke damage. JDG continues to extend their gold lead.

A Soul Crushing Fight

With Loud needing to contest the Hextech Soul, JDG tears them apart. Four kills for JDG earn them the Hextech Soul and Baron. JDG charges down the top lane and ends the game with a 13k gold lead.

Total Apex Ratings

JD Gaming

• Xiaoxu – 6
• JunJia – 7
• HongQ – 8
• GALA – 8
• Vampire – 7

Loud

• Xyno – 6
• YoungJae – 6
• Envy – 5
• Bull – 5
• Redbert – 4

Player of the game – GALA

First Stand 2026: Game Two Review

Draft

JD Gaming – Blue Side

• Renekton
• Xin Zhao
• Ahri
• Yunara
• Neeko

Loud – First Pick

• K’Sante
• Aatrox
• Syndra
• Zeri
• Lulu

A Repeat of Game One

YoungJae ganks Xiaoxu and earns the First Blood Kill. JunJia uses the information to dive Bull and Redbert for the second game in a row. Both of Loud’s bot laners die without a return kill. The gold continues to build for JDG. Most of the gold goes into GALA’s pocket. He leads by 3k gold over Bull at 16 minutes through turret platings.

The First Teamfight is JDG’s

JDG crushes the first 5v5 teamfight of the game. The only kill Loud gets is on JunJia. All three kills for Loud sit on YoungJae. He is the only player even in gold. The second team fight is much like the first, but this time without a player dying. JDG cracks open the base and secures the Chemtech Soul. 2 minutes later, JDG cleans up Loud again and ends the game.

Total Apex Ratings

JD Gaming

• Xiaoxu – 6
• JunJia – 7
• HongQ – 7
• GALA – 8
• Vampire – 8

Loud

• Xyno – 5
• YoungJae – 5
• Envy – 4
• Bull – 4
• Redbert – 4

Player of the game – Vampire

First Stand 2026: Game Three Review

Draft

JD Gaming – Blue Side

• Jax
• Poppy
• Hwei
• Corki
• Nami

Loud – First Pick

• Ambessa
• Viego
• Annie
• Kalista
• Renata Glasc

Level 1 First Blood

Envy tries to get a ward in JunJia’s bot side jungle. JunJia and HongQ punish his play, and First Blood goes to JunJia. HongQ wins in isolation and is a large portion of JDG’s 1k gold lead. The first Drake sees a 4-vs-4 fight. JunJia steals the objective, and JDG got three kills. Loud kills Xiaoxu with a gank from YoungJae. But the moment of joy is short-lived as JunJia ganks the bot lane for three more kills.

Mid-Game Dominance

Loud has no chance to make a play that nets them a recovery in gold. They keep targeting Xiaoxu, but he is not the only one to die. JDG kills four members, while HongQ pushes bot lane. They lead by 10k at 17 minutes. The mid inhibitor dies at 18 minutes. JDG earned the fastest game win of First Stand, ending at 21 minutes.

Total Apex Ratings

JD Gaming

• Xiaoxu – 7
• JunJia – 9
• HongQ – 7
• GALA – 7
• Vampire – 7

Loud

• Xyno – 5
• YoungJae – 4
• Envy – 3
• Bull – 4
• Redbert – 4

Player of the game – JunJia

First Stand 2026: Player Summary

JD Gaming

Xiaoxu – 6.3

Xiaoxu was the target of multiple ganks from Loud during this series. Many of them worked, but he outplayed some of them.

JunJia – 7.7

JunJia ran the early game for JDG in this series. His bot lane dives in games one and two were instrumental in building a lead for GALA. Then, in game three, he ran the show for the game’s duration. He was the Total Apex player of the series.

HongQ – 7.3

HongQ was not challenged much during the series. He had easy laning phases and showed up when the team needed him.

GALA – 7.7

GALA was the beneficiary of JunJia’s ganks this series. He always got a lead thanks to his jungler. He utilized the advantage to take over the games.

Vampire – 7.3

Much like GALA, he benefited from JunJia’s plays. He played alongside GALA to carry JDG to a dominant victory.

Loud

Xyno – 5.3

Xyno benefitted from most of YoungJae’s ganks. Loud targeted his lane opponent, but it did not matter. Xyno was unable to impact the series due to JDG’s leads.

YoungJae – 5.0

YoungJae tried to give Xyno an advantage in the series. However, that came at a cost. His bot lane fell drastically behind.

Envy – 4.0

Envy had next to no impact on the series. HongQ was the better mid-laner in this matchup.

Bull – 4.3

Bull did not get much attention during the series. YoungJae’s presence on the top side meant JunJia had many opportunities to put him behind.

Redbert – 4.0

Redbert had to die alongside Bull as the Loud bot lane could not do much against JunJia’s ganks and dives.

First Stand Impact

Loud is out of First Stand contention. JDG advances to the final Group B match against Lyon. If they win that series, they will qualify for the Knockout Stage.

More First Stand Content

The articles below will provide more information on the First Stand event and the team’s participation. You can expect further preview and review coverage of all the matches taking place in the coming week.

• First Stand Details
• JD Gaming Preview
• Loud Preview
• JDG Versus Loud Preview