The Casino Gran Via was full of electricity on Saturday, as Day 1c of the 888poker LIVE Madrid €888 Main Event saw the largest flight battle for a bag and a shot at the growing prize pool.
A total of 163 entries were recorded, with just the final 51 surviving the opening eleven levels of action. That group was decisively led by Spain's Nacho Martin, who built a big stack over the late levels to sit at 432,000 entering Day 2 on Sunday. The 888poker online qualifier was on his third bullet of the day and was able to break through with a solid lead over the rest of the Day 1c field.
The overall field sits at 377 entries, with one final turbo flight to be contested before the field combines to play towards the money bubble. The remaining 117 players will join the Day 1d survivors along with Day 2 entrants in what is sure to be a fun-filled Sunday in Madrid.
888poker Ambassador Ian Simpson fired bullets number five and six of the week, telling PokerNews that he felt better about his chances today. Entry number five did not go his way, but Simpson was finally able to bag a big stack of 275,000 on his sixth try.
Day 1c Top Ten Chip Counts
| Rank | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nacho Martin | Spain | 432,000 | 108 |
| 2 | Barry Donovan | Ireland | 359,000 | 90 |
| 3 | Yakiv Syzghanov | Ukraine | 351,000 | 88 |
| 4 | Beltran Garcia | Spain | 339,000 | 85 |
| 5 | Angel Martin | Spain | 284,000 | 71 |
| 6 | Guillermo Sánchez | Spain | 281,000 | 70 |
| 7 | Ian Simpson | United Kingdom | 275,000 | 69 |
| 8 | Stefan Cupic | Montenegro | 223,000 | 56 |
| 9 | Amir Mansouri | Norway | 220,000 | 55 |
| 10 | Ivan Rodriguez | Spain | 211,000 | 53 |
Simpson will be joined on Day 2 by fellow 888poker Ambassador Lucía Navarro, who collected 89,000 chips for a spot in the field tomorrow.
Ricardo Mateus failed to find a bag, falling twice in the final two levels of the night despite catching a double through Marco Fideli.
Among the other notable names bagging at the end of the night were Barry Donovan (359,000), Guillermo Sánchez (281,000), Jiaze Li (196,000) and Aleix Vidal. The Spanish footballer steadily added to his chips throughout the day and bagged a healthy 121,000 to finish the night.
Players will have one last shot to qualify on the Day 1d turbo flight, which begins on Sunday, January 28 at 1 p.m. local time. Players can also buy into Day 2 directly, with late registration closing when play begins.
Day 2 gets underway at 5 p.m. local time, where the field from the opening four flights will be together for the first time. Play will resume on Level 12, with blinds of 2,000/4,000 and a 4.000 big blind ante. Another 11 levels will be played, with a 45-minute dinner break scheduled after Level 16.
The PokerNews team will continue to cover all of the action at Casino Gran Via as the busy weekend continues here in Madrid.
