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Italian poker player Manuel Ferrari has capped off a remarkable run of form by winning the 2026 PokerStars European Poker Tour Barcelona Main Event, earning €1,002,488. The victory marks his third PokerStars trophy in just 14 months, following wins in the PokerStars Open Malaga Main Event and the PokerStars Open High Roller in Campione.
Ferrari defeated a field of 1,823 entries, overcoming the final six players in roughly five hours on the last day. He entered the finale as chip leader, a spot he had held for three consecutive days of play.
As the table shortened, local favorite Jose Criado eliminated short-stacked Nicolas Chouity early, followed by the departures of Michael Dwyer in fifth and Xiaosheng Zheng in fourth. Lukas van Eeden then doubled up during three-handed play, narrowing the chip gap and prompting deal talks among the remaining three.
Ferrari admitted he initially considered pushing for better numbers given what he felt was a skill edge, but ultimately agreed to an ICM deal to save time and energy. The three players locked up over €900,000 each, leaving €100,000 and the trophy to be decided in play.
Criado busted in third shortly after the deal, sending Ferrari into heads-up against van Eeden with a three-to-two chip lead. The heads-up battle lasted about 30 minutes before van Eeden shoved king-six offsuit and was called by Ferrari’s ace-queen, which improved to two pair to seal the win.
Despite usually playing mid-stakes events, Ferrari said he is in no hurry to move up in stakes, adding he plans to take time to process the achievement before deciding on his next steps.
