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€5,300 EPT Main Event
Day 5 Completed
2026 PokerStars EPT Barcelona
€5,300 EPT Main Event
Day: 5
Players Left 10 / 1,823
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Chip Counts
Chip Counts
Level 28
: Blinds 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante
Day 5 of the €5,300 Main Event at the 2026 PokerStars European Poker Tour Barcelona has come to an end inside Casino Barcelona, with the field whittled down to just 13 players. They have all locked up at least €81,350 from the €8,841,550 prize pool, but with the €1,370,050 top prize and the EPT Barcelona Main Event title getting closer, there is still plenty left to play for.
Sitting pretty at the top heading into Day 6 is Italy's Manuel Ferrari, who bagged 10,625,000 and is the only player to break into eight-figure territory. Ferrari will return with 106 big blinds and quite the lead at the top after leapfrogging the two Spanish players who had occupied the top spots at the start of the day.
Online qualifier Jose Criado is still more than comfortable in second with 8,950,000, and his good friend and fellow Spaniard Gerard Carbo rounds out the podium on 8,325,000. The pair lingered around the top of the counts for much of the day and remain firmly in the mix as the Main Event heads into its penultimate day.
End of Day 5 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manuel Ferrari | Italy | 10,625,000 | 106 |
| 2 | Jose Criado | Spain | 8,950,000 | 90 |
| 3 | Gerard Carbo | Spain | 8,325,000 | 83 |
| 4 | Joris Ruijs | Netherlands | 5,950,000 | 60 |
| 5 | Xiaosheng Zheng | China | 4,225,000 | 42 |
| 6 | Michael Dwyer | Ireland | 3,475,000 | 35 |
| 7 | Barbara Akemi | Brazil | 3,300,000 | 33 |
| 8 | Matas Cimbolas | Lithuania | 2,675,000 | 27 |
| 9 | Nicolas Chouity | Lebanon | 2,000,000 | 20 |
| 10 | Edward Pak | United States | 1,850,000 | 19 |
| 11 | Vasyl Pidhrusnyi | Ukraine | 1,475,000 | 15 |
| 12 | Lukas van Eeden | Netherlands | 1,175,000 | 12 |
| 13 | Toni Kaukua | Finland | 650,000 | 7 |
Day 5 Action
With 28 players returning for Day 5, there was little time for anyone to settle in before the eliminations started coming at a rapid rate. Eight players were shown the door during the opening level, quickly reducing the Main Event field to 20.
Luigi Minolfi was the first to go, with Albert Grane, Gabriel Tavares, and Henok Tekle Mariam soon following. A brutal river saw the Day 2 chip leader Grzegorz Kozieja bust, while Mitch Garshofsky, and Romain Lewis were also sent packing before the first break.
One of the biggest stories just before the break was the felting of 2016 EPT Barcelona Main Event champion Sebastian Malec. Malec had been looking to repeat his famous victory ten years on, but his quest ended in 21st place at the hands of Matas Cimbolas. Malec check-jammed the river with blockers, only for Cimbolas to make the right call with trips, bringing Malec's hunt for a second Barcelona title to an end.
The eliminations kept coming after the first break. Alexandru Toderita, who had started the day inside the top ten, departed in 20th place, before Day 3 chip leader Fabricio Nociolini and Vinicius Goncalves followed him out the door. Jonas ten Cate in a flush-over-flush confrontation, and Eduardo Kalil were next to go, collecting €56,600 for finishing 17th and 16th, respectively.
That left 15 players, with two former EPT Main Event champions still among them: John Juanda and Nicolas Chouity. Juanda's stack had taken several hits throughout the day, and a rivered flush for Lukas van Eeden eventually left the poker great with just crumbs and the big blind approaching in a few hands.
It didn't take much longer for Juanda's remaining chips to be sent flying into the middle, especially when the poker Hall of Famer was holding suited Broadway cards, but qualifier Criado called with pocket fives and held to send Juanda to the rail in 15th place for €67,800. With his exit, Chouity was left as the only former EPT Main Event champion still with a shot at becoming a two-time winner.
The final representative of France, Arnaud Enselme, was the last player to hit the rail for the day, getting his ace-ten in against the ace-king of Cimbolas. Enselme couldn't find the help he needed on the runout, ending his Main Event and leaving 13 players and the clock ticking down toward the end of the night.
There was still time for one last big pot, though, and it was Ferrari who sped further away from the rest. Cimbolas attempted a huge river check-raise bluff against the Italian, but Ferrari zoned in and thought it over before finding the hero-call with just second pair. It proved to be spot on, sending Ferrari over the ten million mark and making him the man to catch when cards hit the felt on Day 6.
Focus now shifts to Friday, August 28, when the 13 remaining players return to Casino Barcelona at noon local time for Day 6, with play resuming on Level 29 with blinds of 50,000/100,000 and a 100,000 big blind ante. The schedule calls for play to continue until just six players remain, with those who survive securing their place on the final day of the EPT Barcelona Main Event.
Remaining Payouts
| Place | Prize |
|---|---|
| 1 | €1,370,050 |
| 2 | €857,800 |
| 3 | €612,700 |
| 4 | €471,250 |
| 5 | €362,500 |
| 6 | €278,950 |
| 7 | €214,600 |
| 8 | €165,050 |
| 9 | €126,950 |
| 10-11 | €97,700 |
| 12-13 | €81,350 |
The action will be streamed on a delay on the PokerStars YouTube channel, while the PokerNews live reporting team will be back on the floor inside Casino Barcelona to bring you all the action as the final 13 battle for a place at the final table.
Level 28
: Blinds 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante
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Level 28
: Blinds 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante
Level 28
: Blinds 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante
With four more levels completed, Day 5 of the EPT Barcelona Main Event has come to a close with 13 players surviving.
Those who bagged chips will return tomorrow, Friday, August 28, at noon local time for Day 6.
Stay tuned for the full chip counts and a recap of the Day 5 action.
Level 28
: Blinds 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante
Nicolas Chouity raised to 160,000 from the cutoff with A♠9♠, which only Jose Criado called in the small blind, holding 8♣6♣.
Criado check-called a bet of 155,000 on an A♥3♦8♥ flop, before the K♣ turn was checked through. The K♦ completed the board, and Criado checked once again. Chouity bet 225,000, and Criado quickly let go of his cards.
Level 28
: Blinds 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante
Joris Ruijs raised to 280,000 with 10♥10♣ from the small blind, and Nicolas Chouity called in the big blind with J♣9♣.
Ruijs continued for 200,000 on the 7♦6♠8♣ flop, and Chouity called once again. The Q♦ turn saw Ruijs bet again, this time for 525,000. With a shake of his head, Chouity let go of his cards, unable to realise his equity by seeing the final card.
Level 28
: Blinds 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante
With 440,000 in the pot and a 8♦Q♠K♦ flop face up on the felt, Matas Cimbolas checked from the big blind, and Manuel Ferrari checked behind from under the gun.
The 10♣ hit the turn, and when Cimbolas checked again, Ferrari bet 250,000, which Cimbolas called.
The 4♥ completed the board, and Cimbolas checked once more. Ferrari opted to bet again, this time for 350,000. Cimbolas responded with a check-raise to 2,200,000, which put Ferrari deep into the tank. After using two time banks, Ferrari opted to hero-call with his Q♥J♥ for second pair, which was the correct decision, as Cimbolas turned over J♠10♠ for third pair.
"Mucho, mucho cojones," another player at the table said.
Level 28
: Blinds 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante
Holding Q♥5♥, Joris Ruijs raised to 160,000 from the hijack and faced a three-bet to 460,000 from Edward Pak on the button with K♠Q♦. When the action returned to Ruijs, he four-bet to 760,000, which did the trick, as Pak folded the best hand.
Level 28
: Blinds 40,000/80,000, 80,000 ante
The stream joined the action with Arnaud Enselme all-in for 1,160,000 from the button, and at risk of elimination at the hands of big blind Matas Cimbolas.
Arnaud Enselme: A♥10♣ 
Matas Cimbolas: A♣K♠
The 5♦7♠6♣ flop offered no help to Enselme, who was then left with just three outs after the J♦ hit the board. The river was unforthcoming, as the 4♣ river brought Enselme's Main Event run to an end.
