Life Was A Highway for POG on Day 1b of the Sismix Main Event
François Dequidt is used to moving fast. On his YouTube channel, followed by 1.3 million fans, “POG” showcases his supercars and shares his passion with unfiltered exuberance. When he’s not behind the wheel, he’s found another thrill: poker. And just like his cars, he plays it at 300 km/h.
“Flat out” all day long, POG bagged an extraordinary stack of 1,875,000 chips, 6.7 times the average. “I was on automatic mode all day,” he said, sticking to the automotive theme. “I was never in danger. I used my big stack to apply pressure, and I achieved my goal of finishing as the chip leader of the Main Event.”
Not only did he reach that goal with flying colors, but he did it over a massive field of 1,079 entries on Day 1b of the 2025 Winamax Sismix Main Event, a new record for a Sismix starting flight. This second flight brings the total to 1,756 entries so far, with two more flights still to come tomorrow.
Among the biggest stacks from the dinner break to the end, Bastien Vial finished second in chips with 972,000, while two anonymous Spanish players bagged nearly identical stacks: Likidator with 939,000 and Arévalo with 937,000.
Day 1b Top 10 Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | François Dequidt | France | 1,875,000 | 234 |
| 2 | Bastien Vial | France | 972,000 | 122 |
| 3 | _Likidator_ | Spain | 939,000 | 117 |
| 4 | David Arévalo | Spain | 937,000 | 117 |
| 5 | Kevin Scandella | France | 927,000 | 116 |
| 6 | Alexandre de Zutter | France | 925,000 | 116 |
| 7 | Mohamed El Bakkouri | France | 850,000 | 106 |
| 8 | Lazar Vidic | Serbia | 788,000 | 99 |
| 9 | Javier Tsunamy | Spain | 780,000 | 98 |
| 10 | Aurelie Reard | France | 748,000 | 94 |
“It was fluid today,” Alexandre De Zutter said after writing 925,000 on his chip bag. He spent the last levels seated next to Aurélie Reard, who was pleased to reach 380,000 by the dinner break. She did even better by ending the day with twice this stack (748,000), just a few blinds shy of Javier Tsunamy (780,000)
The Spaniard built his stack all day long and ultimately burst the bubble, eliminating Gérard Lemee with an unorthodox seven-four offsuit against ace-king.
Tsunamy was seated across from the talkative but friendly Jérôme Sgorrano all day long. The 2015 Sismix champion brought smiles to his opponents’ faces with his jokes, only to take their chips and finish the day with 478,000. The 2023 champion, Issam Benhaddou, is also still in contention with 175,000 chips, while last year’s winner Anthony Dasbourg took a shot on Day 1b but failed to qualify.
Mustapha Kanit (543,000) and Romain Lewis (87,000) where the only two Winamax Team Pros to qualify for Day 2 today, despite attempts by Gus Hansen, Bruno Lopes, Pierre Calamusa, Julien Sitbon and Alexane Najchaus. Former member of the day Gaelle Baumann however made it to Day 2 with 186,000.
In the rest of the field, Cédric Danneker (730,000), Karim El Rharbaoui (702,000), Mathieu Choffardet (657,000), and Marc Bougaret (655,000) will enjoy a well-earned day off tomorrow, knowing they return with big stacks.
The same goes for Jean-Charles Remaud (206,000), Rehman Kassam (166,000), Sonny Franco (135,000), and Clément Van Driessche (89,000), though they’ll come back with shorter stacks.
The 112 qualifiers from Day 1a and the 179 survivors from Day 1b will be joined by many more this Friday, as Day 1c kicks off at noon local time, followed by Day 1d Turbo at 7 p.m.
Will last year’s record of 2,736 entries be broken? PokerNews will be on the floor in Marrakech to find out!