Only 33 players remain in the hunt for the bracelet in Event #94: $10,000 6-Handed No-Limit Hold’em Championship at the 2026 World Series of Poker.
The final championship event of this year’s series continued at Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas with a demanding second day. The session featured an extended money bubble, two players sharing the first payout and several established professionals staying in contention for one of the most prestigious titles on the schedule.
Late registration remained available at the start of Day 2, allowing another 201 players to enter with short stacks and hopes of building a quick run. Their arrival increased the total field to 558 entries, surpassing the 546 recorded in the previous edition.
The tournament generated a prize pool of $5,189,400. A total of 84 players were guaranteed a payout, while the eventual champion will receive $1,001,391 and a WSOP gold bracelet.
Mustafov finishes Day 2 with 140 big blinds
After nine more levels of play, Bulgaria’s Fahredin Mustafov emerged as the clear chip leader. The two time bracelet winner finished the session with 2,800,000 chips and will begin Day 3 with 140 big blinds.
Mustafov created a sizeable advantage over the rest of the field and is currently the only player comfortably above 2.5 million.
Justin Liberto occupies second place with 2,100,000. The American, who has also won multiple WSOP bracelets, is the only other remaining contender to have crossed the two million mark.
Jamie O’Connor stayed close to the top of the counts throughout much of the day. The British player ended with 1,935,000 and will return with the third largest stack.
Kully Sidhu follows in fourth position with 1,850,000, while Calvin Anderson completes the top five after collecting 1,700,000.
Top ten stacks after Day 2
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip count | Big blinds |
| 1 | Fahredin Mustafov | Bulgaria | 2,800,000 | 140 |
| 2 | Justin Liberto | United States | 2,100,000 | 105 |
| 3 | Jamie O’Connor | United Kingdom | 1,935,000 | 97 |
| 4 | Kully Sidhu | United Kingdom | 1,850,000 | 93 |
| 5 | Calvin Anderson | United States | 1,700,000 | 85 |
| 6 | Aliaksandr Shylko | Belarus | 1,630,000 | 82 |
| 7 | David Peters | United States | 1,625,000 | 81 |
| 8 | Aliaksei Boika | Belarus | 1,585,000 | 79 |
| 9 | Loic Debregeas | France | 1,415,000 | 71 |
| 10 | Sergi Reixach | Spain | 1,365,000 | 68 |
Aliaksandr Shylko and David Peters are separated by only 5,000 chips in sixth and seventh place. Aliaksei Boika, Loic Debregeas and Sergi Reixach also remain within reach of the leaders heading into the next stage.
Several major names make early exits
Day 2 began with a large group of recognisable players entering the tournament. More well known competitors joined shortly before late registration closed, but several of them lasted only a few hands.
Martin Kabrhel was eliminated after playing just one hand. His appearance was even shorter than expected, but Phil Ivey remained in the event only slightly longer.
Ivey started the day with a pocket pair, but the hand failed to hold during his second deal of the session. The ten time bracelet winner was eliminated almost immediately.
Phil Hellmuth also had a brief stay at the tables. The record bracelet holder ran into pocket aces and was unable to recover, ending his participation soon after joining the field.
Michael Mizrachi, Joao Vieira and Michael Moncek were among the other prominent players who failed to produce a deep run.
Adrian Mateos enjoyed an encouraging start when his pocket kings defeated pocket aces. However, the Spanish professional could not use that double up to build lasting momentum and was eliminated before reaching the paid positions.
A lengthy bubble ends with two eliminations
The tournament moved to hand for hand action when the field was two eliminations away from the money.
Erik Seidel was knocked out shortly before the official bubble, leaving the remaining players one elimination away from securing a payout.
The bubble then became a long and tense process. It took 18 hands before another player was eliminated, but when the decisive moment finally arrived, two players left the tournament at the same time on separate tables.
Ran Ilani and Josep Ruiz were responsible for the eliminations. Both players found unexpected ways to win their respective hands and sent Hirokazu Kobayashi and Mauricio Pais to the rail.
Because the two eliminations occurred during the same hand, Kobayashi and Pais shared the value of the first payout. Each player received $10,077.
Once the bubble burst, eliminations began arriving much more quickly as shorter stacks looked for opportunities to double up or improve their positions.
Defending champion Soverel falls after reaching the money
Alex Foxen was among the recognised players to collect a payout before being eliminated. He finished in 65th place and earned $20,144.
Ethan Yau followed shortly afterwards in 64th position, receiving the same prize.
Defending champion Sam Soverel also reached the money but was unable to continue his attempt to win the event in consecutive years. His title defence ended after the dinner break when he was eliminated in 62nd place for $20,144.
Soverel’s exit confirmed that Event #94 will produce a new champion, although several former bracelet winners remain capable of adding another title to their records.
Bracelet winners remain in the hunt
Calvin Anderson will return with one of the strongest stacks in the tournament. His 1,700,000 chips place him fifth overall and give him 85 big blinds at the start of Day 3.
David Peters is close behind with 1,625,000. The American sits seventh in the standings and remains well positioned to challenge Mustafov if he can gain ground during the opening levels.
John Racener also remains in contention with 1,075,000 chips. His stack is smaller than those of the leading group, but it still provides enough room to play without immediate pressure.
Several members of the $25K Fantasy Draft are also among the final 33, giving participants additional interest as the tournament approaches its conclusion.
Dario Sammartino faces a much more difficult situation. The Italian professional will return with only 185,000 chips, leaving him with fewer than 10 big blinds.
Sammartino will need to find an early double up to remain competitive, while Mustafov can afford to apply pressure across the table with the largest stack in the room.
Day 3 expected to continue until a champion is crowned
The remaining players are scheduled to return at 1:00 p.m. local time.
Play will resume at Level 20 with blinds of 10,000 and 20,000. A 20,000 big blind ante will also be in effect.
Each level will last 60 minutes, with a break planned after every two hours of action.
The current schedule calls for the tournament to continue until a winner is decided. Organisers may adjust that plan depending on the speed of eliminations and the length of the final table.
Every remaining player has already secured at least $29,360. Reaching the nine player final table will guarantee a minimum payout of $85,340.
The champion will collect more than $1 million, while the runner up is set to receive $660,933.
Remaining prizes in Event #94
| Place | Prize | Place | Prize |
| 1 | $1,001,391 | 8 to 9 | $85,340 |
| 2 | $660,933 | 10 to 11 | $65,643 |
| 3 | $445,268 | 12 to 17 | $51,713 |
| 4 | $306,313 | 18 to 23 | $41,750 |
| 5 | $215,270 | 24 to 29 | $34,563 |
| 6 | $154,625 | 30 to 33 | $29,360 |
| 7 | $113,570 |
The difference between the bottom remaining payout and the top prize is considerable. Players beginning the day with shorter stacks may initially focus on survival, but moving up only a few positions could add thousands of dollars to their winnings.
Mustafov enters the final stage in the strongest position, but the field behind him contains numerous experienced players capable of changing the standings quickly.
Liberto, O’Connor, Sidhu, Anderson and Peters all have enough chips to challenge the Bulgarian leader. With the blinds increasing every hour, a single large pot could significantly alter the race for the bracelet.
The final week of the 2026 World Series of Poker continues in Las Vegas, and Event #94 is now approaching its decisive stages. Thirty three players remain, but only one will leave with the bracelet and the $1,001,391 first prize.
