One of the final preliminary events on the 2012 World Series of Poker Europe, the €10,450 Mixed Max No Limit Hold’em tournament, went through a day of tribulation on Saturday to the point of not even determining the champion.
The Final Four of the Mixed Max tournament came back on Saturday, supposedly to determine a champion in the event after deciding on Friday not to play out the semi-finals. The two largest stacks remaining in the tournament, Roger Hairabedian (702,500) and Brandon Cantu (1,067,500) were set to play out one of the semis, while the two short stacks, Faraz Jaka (526K) and Jonathan Aguiar (586,500), sat nearby for their heads up match.
While Aguiar would take slightly over two hours to dismiss Jaka from the tournament and move on to the Championship Match, the battle between Hairabedian and Cantu would last much longer than even they probably intended. Although Cantu was able to work out to almost a 2:1 lead over Hairabedian, the Frenchman was able to work his stack to be able to stay in the fight. After over five hours of play, a decision by WSOP Tournament Director Jack Effel ramped up the tension between the two combatants.
After a break, Hairabedian lobbied Effel regarding the seating arrangement between the two players. In something that harkened back to the days of the U. S./U. S. S. R. “chess wars,” Hairabedian told Effel that, with the way the seating was at the table and the spectators’ proximity to such, he was fearful that railbirds could see his cards. Although Hairabedian wanted a complete table change, Effel compromised and allowed him to move to a different spot on that table, which didn’t sit well with Cantu.
The discussion reached a heated point as the match continued, with Cantu telling Effel that the seating change affected the game. Cantu expressed to Effel that he hadn’t been consulted on the change, but Effel stood by his decision (a questionable one at best) even though Cantu stated a similar situation during this summer’s WSOP in Las Vegas where he wasn’t allowed to change. “Look, you guys are playing for a lot of money here,” Effel said to Cantu, prompting the two-time WSOP bracelet winner to fire back, “I KNOW we are…which is why it’s (the table move) is ridiculous.”
Although Cantu would continue to steam over Effel’s decision, another Hairabedian move brought the tournament to a complete halt. After seeing a flop, Cantu believed that Hairabedian had checked out of turn, but both the dealer and Hairabedian didn’t see it that way. Effel was once again called to the table and, after reviewing camera footage, determined that Hairabedian did indeed check. The controversy intensified the battle between Cantu and Hairabedian, creating a toxic atmosphere that was palpable to those in attendance.
The Cantu/Hairabedian fight would last over eight hours total before Cantu was able to vanquish Hairabedian. The night wasn’t over yet, however, as Cantu (1.77 million) prepared to square off against Aguiar (1.11 million) to determine the champion of the “Mixed Max” event.
With both players deep stacked in relation to the blinds, they decided to work their respective stacks instead of making hasty moves. After five hours of play, the twosome sat pretty much at the same stacks as what they started with, but a huge hand between the two close to 5AM would switch the standings.
On an 8♦ 3♦ A♦ flop, Cantu and Aguiar would get their chips to the center. Cantu produced a K♦ 10♦ for the flopped nut flush while Aguiar showed pocket eights for a set. A Jack on the turn would not help either player, but a 3♥ on the river gave a boat (and the hand) to Aguiar, who now suddenly had a 3.5:1 lead over Cantu.
This sparked some rather heated conversation between the two men. “You played so bad and somehow you’re still winning,” Cantu commented to Aguiar as the tournament continued. “OK, Phil,” Aguiar wittily retorted before challenging Cantu to a heads up cash game following the completion of the tournament. After Cantu readily accepted the challenge, Aguiar quipped, “Show some class…you have what? Three bracelets (actually only two)? You’ve never been lucky to win one,” a comment that Cantu apparently didn’t have a comeback for.
Where Cantu made his response was on the table, working his way back into a slight lead against Aguiar as the Sunday morning sun glimmered in the east. Perhaps mercifully, the Hotel Majestic Barriere has a 5AM closing time (which had already been exceeded), so the two suspended their tournament – and perhaps diffused some of the tension – without a champion determined:
Brandon Cantu, 1.52 million
Jonathan Aguiar, 1.361 million
With both Cantu and Aguiar in action today for Day 1B of the Championship Event, there has been no date set for the conclusion of the “Mixed Max” tournament. As it will have to wait until both men have been eliminated from the Championship Event, it could be postponed until after the final table of that tournament has been played if one (or both) men make it that far. With the suspension of play, the WSOP bracelet for this tournament and the €258,047 for the champion will sit unclaimed for at least one more day.
