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It’s a dream matchup. The 1989 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event champion (Phil Hellmuth) versus the 2025 winner (Michael Mizrachi) in what should be an epic third round battle at the $25,000 Heads-Up No-Limit Hold’em Championship.
The match will take place Friday evening at the 2026 WSOP after both poker legends dusted off two opponents earlier in the Day 1a session. Another group of 64 players will enter the field for three rounds of heads-up action on Saturday at Paris Las Vegas.
While there is no shortage of superstars in this heads-up tournament — Daniel Negreanu, Doug Polk, and Alex Foxen, to name a few — if you only have time to watch one match, perhaps consider tuning in for this one.
World Champs Similar in Some Ways, Different in Others
Hellmuth and Mizrachi, both Poker Hall of Famers, have a combined 25 WSOP bracelets. They’ve each cashed for right around $30 million across all live tournaments, according to The Hendon Mob. And, in some ways, they play a similar style of poker, but their strategies differ in more ways.
If you’re anti-GTO, you’ll be in heaven when the “Grinder” and the “Poker Brat” take to the heads-up streets. These two G.O.A.T.’s don’t care much for GTO either, and rely more on intuition than putting an opponent on ranges. But they also differ in overall style, with Hellmuth’s “White Magic” being more selective in hands played than Mizrachi’s constant aggression.
Hellmuth picks his spots to pull off the perfect bluff, whereas Mizrachi just needs chips and two cards to find a spot. The winner of the match will advance to the Sweet 16 in the 128-player tournament.
Mizrachi, who won the Main Event and $50,000 Poker Players Championship last year, defeated Shannon Shorr in the first round before sending Jun Obara packing in the second round. Hellmuth first took down Ian Matakis, and then beat David “ODB” Baker thanks in large part to a cooler with both players rivering a full house.
Poker fans can watch the match on the WSOP livestream and follow live reporting coverage here at PokerNews starting at around 12:30 a.m. PT.
