Tullio Bertoli Takes Down the CEP Barcelona Main Event For €65,500
Venezuela's Tullio Bertoli must feel on top of the world today after he came out on top in the CEP Barcelona Main Event at the Casino Barcelona. The opening leg of the 2026 Spanish Poker Championship attracted 1,352 players, and Bertoli left them all in his wake. Bertoli secured a €65,500 payday plus the all-important trophy.
The third and final day of the CEP Barcelona Main Event saw 22 hopefuls return to their seats. Laurent Vauquelin (3,775,000) held a narrow chip lead over Damien Regnier (3,750,000), with Bertoli in seventh (2,195,000). Each of the returning players locked in €3,665 for their efforts, with the final nine guaranteed €8,975.
Gabi Podovei was the unfortunate soul who popped the final table bubble. Podovei committed the last of his chips with pocket fours only to run into an opponent's pocket jacks. Those jacks improved to set on the turn, meaning Podovei was eliminated despite hitting a set of his own on the river.
CEP Barcelona Main Event Final Table Results
| Rank | Player | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tullio Bertoli | €65,500* |
| 2 | Enric R. | €64,500 |
| 3 | Dragos Iosub | €32,000 |
| 4 | Damien Regnier | €21,500 |
| 5 | Konstantin Generalov | €16,900 |
| 6 | Daniel Rodriguez | €14,075 |
| 7 | Laurent Vauquelin | €12,075 |
| 8 | Bernat Carreras | €10,400 |
| 9 | Darya Hulyk | €8,975 |
Darya Hulyk was the second-shortest stack at the start of the final table's action, but the first player to head out of the door. Hulyk lost with pocket sevens against pocket queens to be left with crumbs, and they busted a couple of hands later.
Another hour passed without an elimination. Bernat Carreras broke the deadlock when he moved all-in for three big blinds with king-queen, and found callers in the shape of Dragos Iosub and Regnier, who held ten-nine and pocket sevens, respectively. Both active players checked the queen-eight-deuce flop and the ten on the turn, but Iosub bet on the jack river after improving to a straight. Regnier folded, and Carreras was sent to the showers.
Seventh place went to start-of-the-day chip leader Vauquelin after a clash with "Enric" didn't go to plan. Enric min-raised with jack-deuce from the small blind, and Vauquelin called with six-deuce of clubs. The all-club ten-king-trey flop saw "Enric" lead (they held the jack of clubs), then call when Vauquelin clicked it back. Both players check on the nine of clubs turn. "Enric" moved all-in on the river, Vauquelin called off his stack, and was shown the better flush of his opponent.
Six-handed play lasted less than 30 minutes, with Daniel Rodriguez becoming a Bertoli victim. Rodriguez moved all-in for around 10 big blinds from under the gun with ten-eight of clubs, Bertoli isolated with a shove of his own from the button, and both blinds folded. Bertoli flipped over pocket tens, which held on a draw-heavy king-high board.
Bertoli claimed another scalp: Konstantin Generalov. The action folded to Generalov in the small blind, and he moved all-in for 10 big blinds with jack-nine. Bertoli decided to call with ten-seven and was rewarded with a ten-high straight on the turn.
The CEP Barcelona Main Event lost another player when Renier ripped in 18 big blinds from the small blind with jack-ten, and "Enric" called with the dominating queen-ten. Both player paired their ten on the flop, but Regnier couldn't find any of his three outs on the turn or river, and had to make do with a €21,500 fourth-place prize.
Heads-up was set when Iosub bowed out in third. Iosub lost all but a small blind when their ten-deuce of hearts lost to Bertoli's pocket tens. There was no epic comeback because Iosub crashed out moments later.
"Enric" held a substantial 65 big blind to 38 big blind advantage over Bertoli going into the heads-up clash. Despite this, "Enric" agreed to a bizarre chop, taking home €64,000 and second place, leaving Bertoli to bank €65,500, the title, and the trophy.
This latest victory for Bertoli takes his lifetime live poker tournament earnings to $300,000. The €65,500 prize is the Venezuelan's third-largest, trailing only the $81,460 he won for a third-place finish in the 2015 LAPT Panama City Main Event, and the $80,000 he collected for his victory in the 2024 LAPTT Uruguay Main Event.
