button in SafariFaraz Jaka Bags the Lead Heading Into Day 3 of the $2,500 Freezeout
Day 2 of the Event #49: $2,500 Freezeout No-Limit Hold’em began with 275 players returning to the felt, but only 235 of them would make the money. A wave of early eliminations thinned the field quickly, and the bubble arrived almost immediately. In fact, hand-for-hand play lasted just a single hand before WSOP bracelet winner Joseph Cheong became the unfortunate bubble boy, getting his final chips in with ace-queen against pocket eights and finding no help on the board.
Rania Nasreddine also made it through to Day 2 and managed to sneak into the money, but her run ended shortly after she ran into David Short’s pocket aces, sealing her exit not long after the bubble burst.
There were plenty of dramatic swings throughout the day. Louis Leboisselier left Mattias Hansen with just 5,000 chips in a tough pot, but Hansen refused to go quietly. He scored back-to-back doubles, climbing from less than a single big blind to five, and ultimately made the money, earning $5,240 for his efforts.
As the day went on, many others fell to the same fate. Level 21 proved brutal, as three former Main Event champions hit the rail within minutes of each other. Michael Mizrachi, who started the day near the top of the counts saw Gytis Lazauninkas take a huge chunk from his stack after getting in pocket fours against ace-jack. Moments later, Joe McKeehen was eliminated by Brandon Sheils, sparking Sheils’ rise up the leaderboard in the middle levels of the day. Jonathan Tamayo was also among those to bust during the same stretch, ending his hopes of adding more WSOP gold to his record.
As the night wore on, the chip leaders began to separate themselves from the pack. Faraz Jaka ended on top, bagging 4,400,000. Jaka was among the frontrunners late in the evening, consistently applying pressure to his tablemates. He took a small hit in a big pot against Marco Johnson, but quickly recovered and surged past the two-million mark after trapping Danilio Ragasa and eliminating him with just two levels remaining in the day. In one of the last hands of the night, Jaka stormed back into the lead after knocking out Aditya Agarwal when he held with jacks against nines.
Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Faraz Jaka | United States | 4,470,000 | 75 |
| 2 | Kenzo Ishida | Japan | 4,200,000 | 70 |
| 3 | Srivinay Irrinki | United States | 4,000,000 | 67 |
| 4 | James MacMillan | United States | 3,270,000 | 55 |
| 5 | Marco Johnson | United States | 3,215,000 | 54 |
| 6 | Sebastian Schulze | Germany | 2,820,000 | 47 |
| 7 | Vamerdino Magsakay | Philippines | 2,760,000 | 46 |
| 8 | Sebastien Grax | France | 2,600,000 | 43 |
| 9 | Joey Weissman | United States | 2,480,000 | 41 |
| 10 | Pyeongkang Kim | Korea, Republic of | 2,430,000 | 41 |
Jaka was closely followed by Kenzo Ishida, who bagged a clean 4,200,000, and Srivinay Irrinki, who rounded out the top three. His rise up the counts was helped by an evening knockout of Ran Yi, and he continued to chip up from there.
James MacMillan narrowly missed out on the podium but was seen consistently battling his table in the late evening, scooping up pot after pot and keeping up the pressure. Sebastian Schulze will also return inside the top ten after climbing steadily throughout the day and keeping his foot on the gas, taking pots from his opponents late into the night.
Just 28 players remain and have locked up $15,300. All will return to the felt tomorrow in hopes of taking home the $513,885 top prize, the title, and a WSOP gold bracelet.
Remaining Payouts
| Place | Payout | Place | Payout |
| 1 | $513,885 | 8 | $57,780 |
| 2 | $341,970 | 9 | $44,840 |
| 3 | $246,800 | 10–11 | $35,230 |
| 4 | $180,210 | 12–13 | $28,050 |
| 5 | $133,170 | 14–17 | $22,610 |
| 6 | $99,590 | 18–26 | $18,470 |
| 7 | $75,390 | 27–35 | $15,300 |
Play will return for Day 3 at Level 26 with blinds at 30,000/60,000 and a 60,000 big blind ante. Action resumes at 1 p.m. local time and will continue until a winner is crowned. Fifteen‑minute breaks are scheduled after every two levels, and a dinner break will be determined based on the pace of play.
Be sure to return to the PokerNews live updates tomorrow as we continue to bring you all the action from Event #49: $2,500 Freezeout No-Limit Hold’em and the rest of the 2026 World Series of Poker at Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas.