The $25,000 Super Main Event has broken all records, amassing an incredible $72 million prize pool after initially guaranteeing $60m. Many thought that lofty target might not be reached but it has been exceeded instead as 2,891 total entries combined to make a prize pool of $72,275,000. With just 202 players left in the battle to win the biggest high roller of 2025, which PokerStake hopefuls are still in contention?

Kid Poker and Kanit Both Crash Out

While many PokerStake players will be eyeing up the Day 3 table draw, some fell short of booking a seat. Adi Rajkovic and Mustapha Kanit both suffered beats to leave themselves on the outside looking in on Day 2. Kanit in particular was unfortunate, running a low straight into the high straight to exit.

Daniel Negreanu cashed for $55,000 after losing with what he called his ‘favorite ever hand’ of ten-seven offsuit. Kid Poker crashed into pocket kings to bust out but plenty of other big names joined him on the rail with money but no chips for Day 3, including Stephen Chidwick, Patrik Antonius and Kristen Foxen.

One player who looked set to survive the cull on Day 2a was the WSOP Main Event winner from the summer in Las Vegas, Michael Mizrachi. ‘Grinder’ was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame after his improbable WSOP Main Event and Poker Players Championship victories corralled the living members of the ranks to vote him in immediately.

Late on Day 2a, Mizrachi was all-in and at risk with pocket tens against the pocket nines belonging to Alex Theologis, who starred in the opening episode of the GGPoker documentary Online Poker Millionaires, which premiered last month to rave reviews. Theologis hit a two-outer nine on the flop to oust Mizrachi at a devastating moment for the world champion.

Kabrhel the Leader After Day 2a

With 108 survivors on Day 2a, it as the controversial Czech player Martin Kabrhel who bagged biggest, topping the overall Day 2 leaderboard with 22.6 million chips. Kabrhel not only took out Mustapha Kanit, with whom he exchanged several spicy words earlier in the day but piled misery on top of mischief for many of his opponents. The reigning champion, Chinese player Yinan Zhou (11.5) sat 16^th on the Day 2a list, marginally ahead of Alex Foxen on 10.25 million.

The 2019 WSOP Main Event winner Hossein Ensan (8.5m) followed in the counts, as did the dangerous five-time WSOP bracelet winner Adrian Mateos, who bagged up 8.22m in the week he was named one of Spanish sport’s most 100 inspirational people. The record-setting youngest ever world champion, 2009 winner Joe Cada, also ended the day inside the top 50 on 7.55 million.

PokerStake players battled hard and several made the grade on Day 2a, with Brock Wilson above the average on 6.47 million chips. The 2003 world champion Chris Moneymaker sat strong on 5.55m chips by the close of play too, with the former GGMillion$ winner Alex Kulev on 4.25m. The former WSOP Europe winner Max Neugebauer ended 2a on 3.5m, while Ebony Kenney (2.57m), Sam Soverel (2.55m) and Byron Kaverman (2.3m) are a double-up away from being right back in contention.

Day 2b Breaks Records

With hundreds of late registrations, the likes of which included the 17-time WSOP bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth, an incredible 2,891 entries and a record-breaking $72,275,000 prize pool. The day’s chip leader was the eponymous Frenchman Jean-Noel Thorel on 20.9 million chips but he was closely followed by legends of the felt such as Faraz Jaka (17.1m), Jesse Lonis (16.8m), and Chad Eveslage (16.7m), all of whom will be hoping that their big game experience counts for millions of dollars at the end of the event.

The record attendance for a $25,000-entry event and the biggest for any tournament outside Las Vegas saw the eighth-biggest prize pool of all-time in a live poker tournament. Here are all ten in order:

2024 WSOP Main Event – $94,041,600 (won by Jonathan Tamayo for $10m)

2023 WSOP Main Event – $93,399,900 (won by Daniel Weinman for $12m)

2025 WSOP Main Event – $90,535,500 (won by Michael Mizrachi for $10m)

2006 WSOP Main Event – $82,512,162 (won by Jamie Gold for $10m)

2022 WSOP Main Event – $80,782,475 (won by Espen Jorstad for $10m)

2019 WSOP Main Event – $80,548,600 (won by Hossein Ensan for $10m)

2018 WSOP Main Event – $74,015,600 (won by John Cynn for $8.8m)

2025 WSOP Paradise Super Main Event – $72,275,000

2010 WSOP Main Event – $68,799,059 (won by Jonathan Duhamel for $8,944,310)

2017 WSOP Main Event – $67,877,400 (won by Scott Blumstein for $8.15m)

As Day 3 kicks off, the field is likely to be reduced dramatically again, from 202 players who will start the day to just 24 contenders for the $10,000,000    top prize that will be one by one lucky winner on Thursday evening.