Pro Predictions
WCS Global FinalsThere Can Only be One
by lichter and a bunch of famous people
Even though Team Liquid's writers are pretty good at making predictions, if there is a group of people more well equipped to prophesize a tournament, it's the pros and casters that live the game each day. So, even though we are pretty confident in our own guesses completely objective assessments, we decided to poll a bunch of famous people, chosen by who actually replied to me on twitter and skype, for their insight into BlizzCon.
With only 12 hours left until the biggest tournament of the year, it seems like the pros have chosen 2 very clear favorites! On the other hand, 3 players received ZERO votes as potential WCS Global Finals winners. Ouch, guys.
Blizzard have also announced a series of exhibition matches between the eliminated players from the Ro16. You can find the known information for that here.
And finally, to up the ante, ESPN3 is going to broadcast BlizzCon live on satellite TV. Totally legit.

Races Left
4 Terrans
3 Protoss
1 ZergPrize Pool
$250,000 Total$100,000 First Prize
Predictions:
INnoVation - 10herO - 7
TaeJa - 4
Bomber / Life - 2
Note: the following quotes were only edited for layout and capitalization.
Solar: "Life because the last remain zerg and he is really good at practice games and really confident!!"
Kane: "I think INnoVation will win BlizzCon, seeing the way he's been playing recently reminds me a lot of early HotS when he was dominating. I think if he can best Taeja he will reach the finals."
ZombieGrub: "INnoVation! Going back to a KeSPA team + dat hunger for championships = mechanical domination. ᕦ(ò_óˇ)ᕤ"
PiG: "I think INnoVation has my bet. Historically he's just a scary dude in a situation where he can leverage mechanics without having to do too many mindgames, and I think the current state of ZvT and PvT Terran is performing well, and Innovation especially just looks incredibly confident. Of course we can always be surprised with a few really weird players like Bomber still in the mix, and Taeja flying out of the gate really hard. But my instincts tell me neither of those two will be making it past top 4."
CatZ: "Since everyone else will mostly say herO/Innovation i'll pick Life, I won a bunch of money betting on him vs Zest, he should defeat San and might have the best shot at beating herO in the final, Life's real final will be the Semi Final, where he'd meet TaeJa or INnoVation, both very strong players, and terrans on top of that. Also he's the last zerg hope, seems we only get one per tournament these days, so gotta hold on to the #hope"
FanTaSy: "I think the winner of Inno vs Taeja will be champion."
TLO: "I really don't know.
All the people I thought will win are out. My prediction for a german Redbull article was 3-0 Zest haha"
Bunny: "I think the champion will be the winner of Taeja vs Innovation. I'm leaning more towards INnoVation since he just won GSL though."
MaSa: "I think INnoVation will beat Classic at the finals, either with score of 4-1 and 4-0. Classic already dealt with Polt, and will have to deal with Bomber or MMA if he were to advance to ro4. Meanwhile INnoVation does not have to deal with protoss as I predict life would beat San. That lets INnoVation to completely understand how Classic plays against terran, but the other way around."
Scarlett: "Some terran will win. Coin flip to pick which one. And herO has a chance but probably some terran. I think Life could make semis and lose to a terran. If herO beats Classic, he has a good chance. I think he has the best PvT. RIP zergs. Maybe next year. Even broodlord infestor couldn't win in 2012. We got immortal sentry'd back then."
iaguz: "I think INnoVation will win."
Harstem: "herO or Bomber."
"
Liquid`Nazgul: "pls no i dont know"
HuK: "I think INnoVation will win. The bottom bracket looks a lot strong than the top bracket. In my opinion, herO and INnoVation are the two best players. INnoVation will win the whole thing after going up against herO in the finals.
GuMiho: "I think herO will win. I think herO's PvT is the best. As long as he can win his PvP in the quarter-finals, he should be fine afterwards since he'll face a Terran in the semi-finals. And since I think there is a strong chance that he'll face INnoVation in the finals, he'll win the whole thing by taking down two Terrans after his quarter-finals match."
Symbol: "I think herO will win. I actually know herO a little bit and saw him practice one time. He is very good and he knows how to play mind games with his opponent. He's also very good at microing the little things. I also think he is the best protoss player when it comes to blink micro. Also, protoss is very strong right now, so I think a protoss champion will emerge.
Balloon: "I think INnoVation will win. Recently, his force has been overwhelming and he's so good."
SuperNova: "I think herO will. He is a very solid and flexible player. He is showing an even stronger form than before for a short-term tournament like this, and I don't see anyone left in the quarter-finals that could defeat him."
San: "I think TaeJa will win. At first, I thought he was going to lose to soO. But since he overcame the biggest hurdle, I think he's going to win the championship now by riding his current momentum. I noticed that his desire and passion to win BlizzCon is different than everyone else's since he's been performing so poorly for WCS AM tournaments this year."Note: Not even San thinks San will win T_T
DongRaeGu: "I think herO will win. Since he has already proven his PvP skills, I think he's a shoo-in for the semi-finals. I feel that Bomber will probably advance through to face herO in the semis, but since herO already has beaten Bomber before for KeSPA Cup, I think herO will be the dominant one there. INnoVation will probably be the one he'll face in the finals but I still feel that herO will win in the final set.
RagnaroK: "I think TaeJa will win. TaeJa told me himself that he's been working hard and TaeJa is strong when it comes to overseas tournaments. He also has a style that is unique to other Korean players so I think it will be difficult for other Korean players to face him. He even beat soO.
Check: "I think either INnoVation or Bomber will win. Terran is just too good."
Daisy: "I think herO will win. I predict that the semi-finals will be Bomber vs herO, and San vs INnoVation. I am presuming that INnoVation will advance to the finals. As long as he can overcome Classic in the PvP match for the quarter-finals, then everything else should be fine for herO since he is the best PvT player. However, since the balance and map balances have all been good for Terran these days, I of course, do not expect any one-sided matches to occur.
Mamuri: "I think INnoVation will win. My vote goes for him because I think he will ride his momentum from the GSL win and take the whole thing.
Seed: "I think INnoVation will win. I say this because whenever I play against INnoVation on either ladder or for a tournament, I always feel like I'm going up against a wall."Note: and lastly, Wolf with a last minute prediction
Wolf: "You'd never expect Wolf to pick a non-GSL player to win Blizzcon, but I'm gonna have to go with TaeJa here. He's so good in these types of tournaments. He doesn't seem to feel the pressure of huge crowds, or rather, perhaps he gets energy from them. When I think of a huge, overseas tournament, TaeJa hoisting a trophy comes to mind. So when it comes to the biggest finals of the year... I'm going with Taeja. With his performance against soO, he's looking good. A lot of people would say herO, and I would too- if it were in Korea. Blizzcon is TaeJa's stage."


































