Team Russia looks very tough on paper. They've got a solid mix of players that have plenty of accolades to back up their play. Match their experience with on-the-felt toughness, and Russia seems poised to really contend for the first GPM title.

Confidence always plays a big part in a poker player's game. Vladimir Troyanovskiy can be considered the team's leader, and he's coming off some nice results from the European Poker Tour Deauville festival. First, he won the FPS High Roller for €141,000, and then he cashed in the EPT Deauville Main Event and the €10,300 High Roller. Ivan Soshnikov is coming off a deep run in the World Poker Tour L.A. Poker Classic, so he will likely be in form as well.

The other three could be the achilles heel for Russia, as Alex Bilokur, Anatoly Filatov, and Vitaly Lunkin have been blanking as of late. Even so, these three players know how to buckle down and take every event they play very seriously — especially Bilokur and Lunkin. It's rare that these two play an event without giving it their all, and we can expect much more of that on Saturday at the GPM.