EPT Barcelona: Former Champions Juanda, Malec, and Wiciak Battle for a Double

The prestigious €5,300 Main Event at EPT Barcelona 2026 has wrapped up a dramatic Day 3, which significantly thinned the field. Only 67 players remain in the fight for the coveted Golden Shard trophy, led by chipleader Fabricio Nociolini. Among them are former champions John Juanda, Sebastian Malec, and Simon Wiciak, who are on the brink of etching their names into the series' hall of fame.

This year's Main Event, with a buy-in of €5,300, attracted a total of 1,823 entries to the Catalonian capital, pushing the total prizepool to €8,841,550. The new champion awaits a prize of €1,370,050.

Day 3 began with 205 players, all of whom had already secured a payout after the bubble burst on Day 2. The pace of play rapidly intensified, with eliminations happening one after another.

By the end of the day, only 67 players remained, each guaranteed a minimum payout of €19,900. The overall leader is Brazil's Fabricio Nociolini, who delivered a stunning performance to finish the day with an impressive 2,510,000 chips.

Champions Duel for Historic Double

One of the most captivating stories of this tournament is the battle for a historic entry in poker chronicles. Only three players in EPT history have won two Main Event titles in live events (Victoria Coren, Mikalai Pobal, and Mike Watson). Among the 67 remaining players are several former champions eager to expand this elite group.

Amongst them, Poland’s EPT Barcelona 2016 winner Sebastian Malec has played excellently, currently sitting in 4th place with a stack of 1,950,000 chips. Malec amassed a massive stack at the end of Day 3, when Swedish opponent Alexander Ivarsson pushed all-in with 8-8 against Malec’s K-K.

Legendary Poker Hall of Famer John Juanda, who triumphed in Barcelona in 2015, also remains in the title chase, carrying a comfortable 990,000 into Day 4, placing him at 23rd position.

Other past champions dreaming of a second title include Nicolas Chouity (1,050,000), Mark Teltscher (695,000), and Simon Wiciak (415,000). The trio of Malec, Juanda, and Wiciak snatched their victories right in Barcelona, making a potential win even more remarkable.

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Sebastian Malec is one of three former EPT Barcelona champions still in this year's Main Event.

Another of that triumvirate - Simon Wiciak - is at the feature table, watch cards-up coverage at https://t.co/OZmTZ902yd or https://t.co/kuFrTsqbfU pic.twitter.com/kpQZHLNIF7
— PokerStars LIVE (@PokerStarsLIVE) August 25, 2026

Among other dangerous contenders are Brock Wilson (585,000) and Romain Lewis (615,000). Meanwhile, Day 3 marked the end of the road for several big names. Former EPT champions Anton Wigg and Barny Boatman were eliminated, as were high-profile players like streamer Parker Talbot and Nacho Barbero.

Top 10 Player Standings Before Day 4:

Rank	Player	Country	Stack
1.	Fabricio Nociolini	Brazil	2.510.000
2.	Joris Ruijs	Netherlands	2.185.000
3.	Alexandru Toderita	Romania	1.970.000
4.	Sebastian Malec	Poland	1.950.000
5.	Eduardo Kalil	Brazil	1.950.000
6.	Edward Pak	USA	1.505.000
7.	Zheng Xiaosheng	China	1.465.000
8.	Gerard Carbo	Spain	1.455.000
9.	Roman Criado	Spain	1.355.000
10.	Yurii Zabrodotskyi	Ukraine	1.305.000

Sources: PS Live, Flickr, YouTube