Grzegorz Kozieja has taken control of the EPT Barcelona Main Event as 205 players remain in the hunt for the €1,370,050 first prize at Casino Barcelona.
The Polish player ended Day 2 with 1,040,000 chips, making him the only player to break the one-million mark as the €5,300 Main Event reached its third day.
A total of 1,823 entries built a prize pool of €8,841,550, with 271 players reaching the money.
The bubble has already burst. Now the remaining field can concentrate on chasing one of the biggest titles on the European Poker Tour.
Kozieja Takes Command in Barcelona
Kozieja did not simply edge ahead of the field.
His 1,040,000 stack gives him a clear advantage over France’s Sarah Jarry, who sits second with 926,000. Fellow French player Yves Henrion is third on 805,000.
Spain’s Josep Ruiz is the leading home player with 673,000, while Miroslav Rizov completes the top five with 645,000.
EPT Barcelona Main Event Day 3 Top 10
| Rank | Player | Chips |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grzegorz Kozieja | 1,040,000 |
| 2 | Sarah Jarry | 926,000 |
| 3 | Yves Henrion | 805,000 |
| 4 | Josep Ruiz | 673,000 |
| 5 | Miroslav Rizov | 645,000 |
| 6 | Pasi Laihinen | 641,000 |
| 7 | Jonas ten Cate | 637,000 |
| 8 | Raffael Pereira | 627,000 |
| 9 | Vinicius Camargo | 602,000 |
| 10 | Duncan Cameron | 599,000 |
Kozieja made his decisive move as the tournament approached the money.
A flopped set of tens developed into a huge pot when his opponent check-raised all-in, giving Kozieja the opportunity to build the stack that eventually carried him to the top of the leaderboard.
He will start Day 3 with more than 200 big blinds.
€1.37 Million Awaits the EPT Barcelona Champion
The numbers underline the size of the task still facing Kozieja.
There were 535 survivors from the two opening flights before another 139 players entered ahead of the Day 2 registration deadline.
That took the final field to 1,823 entries and pushed the prize pool to €8,841,550.
The top 271 players were paid, with a minimum cash of €8,600 secured when the bubble burst.
Whoever survives all the way to Saturday will collect €1,370,050 and the EPT Golden Shard trophy.
The Main Event continues an enormous Barcelona festival that has already produced some exceptional fields.
Jason Wheeler recently beat 4,333 entries to win the PokerStars Open Main Event for €731,000, recording the largest live tournament score of his career.
Former EPT Champions Still Chasing Another Title
Kozieja may have the chips, but plenty of experience remains behind him.
Several former EPT Main Event champions survived Day 2, including Mark Teltscher, Sebastian Malec, Anton Wigg, Simon Wiciak, John Juanda, Barny Boatman and Nicolas Chouity.
Teltscher is particularly well placed with 502,000.
Juanda will return with 226,000, while Boatman has 206,000 and Chouity 181,000.
There are plenty of other familiar names still involved.
Joris Ruijs ended Day 2 with 512,000, while Alexandre Reard has 468,000 and Michel Molenaar 424,000.
Brock Wilson is also firmly in contention with 415,000.
Wilson has already enjoyed success at this festival after winning one of the opening EPT Barcelona high rollers for €233,556.
Nacho Barbero returns with 404,000, while Parker Talbot has 343,000.
Thomas Eychenne’s Title Defence Ends
One player who will not become a two-time Barcelona champion this week is Thomas Eychenne.
The defending champion was eliminated shortly after the first break on Day 2.
It ended his attempt to defend the Main Event title, but hardly made Barcelona an unsuccessful trip.
Eychenne had already won the PokerStars Open High Roller earlier in the festival for €589,395.
Other recognizable players eliminated during Day 2 included Erik Seidel, Kenny Hallaert, Chris Hunichen, Roberto Romanello, Marle Spragg and Rania Nasreddine.
Dario Sammartino, Maria Konnikova, Andras Nemeth and Benjamin Spragg were among those who reached the money before being eliminated later in the day.
Another Deep Run for Brock Wilson?
Wilson is becoming one of the players to watch as the Main Event develops.
His Barcelona high roller victory followed a strong 2026 that included a 16th-place finish in the WSOP Main Event.
He now has another sizeable stack in Barcelona.
Wilson’s progress is another example of players carrying their summer form into the European schedule. Han Feng did exactly that earlier in the festival, following his fifth-place finish in the WSOP Main Event by reaching the final eight of the PokerStars Open.
Poker Type followed Feng’s remarkable run from the WSOP Main Event to another huge Barcelona final table.
Wilson still has considerably further to go, but 415,000 chips gives him room to work as the Main Event moves deeper into the money.
205 Players Return for EPT Barcelona Day 3
Day 3 begins at noon local time on Tuesday, August 25.
The blinds resume at 2,000/5,000 with a 5,000 big blind ante, and five 90-minute levels are scheduled.
That should significantly reduce the 205-player field before the survivors return for Day 4 on Wednesday.
The tournament then continues daily until the final table concludes on August 29.
Kozieja starts that journey in the position every player wants.
There are former EPT champions, high roller winners and some of the biggest names in tournament poker still behind him, but none of them currently has more chips.
For now, the road to the €1.37 million first prize runs through Grzegorz Kozieja.
