Manuel Ferrari Finishes First in the €5K Main Event EPT Barcelona (€1,002,488*)

Manuel Ferrari Finishes First in the €5K Main Event EPT Barcelona (€1,002,488*)
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Alex Sakuta Content Editor
Fact Checked: PokerListings
  • Updated: August 31, 2026
  • Read time: 2 min

Manuel Ferrari continues his incredible run on the PokerStars Live circuit. In June 2025, he won the €1K PS Open Malaga Main Event (€206K). In January 2026, he won the €2K PS Open High Roller Campione (€87K). Now, he has secured the biggest victory of his career. Here’s how the final table of the €5K Main Event EPT Barcelona played out, as well as the other players who took home EPT titles.

Manuel Ferrari Becomes the New EPT Barcelona Main Event Champion

Manuel Ferrari started the final table as the chip leader. He had held the top spot for the final three days of the tournament.

Nicolas Chouity finished in 6th place after getting it in with ATs against KJs held by Jose Criado. The pot was 18 BB, and a king appeared on the flop.

Michael Dwyer finished 5th after getting it in with ATo and running into a dominating hand — Zheng had AQo, with 27.5 BB in the pot.

Zheng Xiaosheng finished 4th after shoving A7s. Criado called with TT, with 29.5 BB in the pot.

The three remaining players played for a couple of minutes. Once their stacks became roughly even, they decided to make a deal. Each player received more than €900K, with another €100K left to play for.

Ferrari eventually eliminated both opponents. He won ATo > 77 against Jose Criado with an ace on the flop, then AQo > K6o against Lukas van Eeden on an A46Q7 board.

In an interview after the victory, Ferrari said he had dreamed of winning an EPT title since childhood and had finally achieved his goal!

€5K Main Event EPT Barcelona 6-Max Payouts (1,823 entries total):

PlaceFlagPlayerPayout
1Manuel Ferrari€1,002,488*
2Lukas van Eeden€927,420*
3Jose Criado€910,642*
4Zheng Xiaosheng€471,250
5Michael Dwyer€362,500
6Nicolas Chouity€278,950

Fabiano Kovalski Wins Big in Two Events: Other EPT Barcelona Champions

The Brazilian poker pro and head coach of Samba Poker Team put together an incredible performance. First, he won the €3,250 Mystery Bounty (€385K including knockouts). On the final day of the series, he also won the €10K EPT High Roller (€727,580). What a legend!

Also taking home two spades were:

  • Klemens Roiter for the €25K NLHE (€266K) and €10K NLH 6-Handed (€94.6K) titles.
  • Jamie Dwan for the €1,050 Super Chance Hyper Turbo Freezeout (€27K) and €25K NLH Unlimited Re-Entry (€134K) titles.
Klemens Roiter
Jamie Dwan

The next EPT stop will take place in Prague from December 2–13, 2026.

Main photo by Manuel Kovsca © Rational Holdings Limited